Ex-Yes Keyboardist Rick Wakeman Recently Underwent ‘Successful’ Brain Surgery

Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Rick Wakeman is on the mend after undergoing brain surgery.

Wakeman, a keyboardist and a member of the rock band Yes for decades, recently shared a health update to his website. The musician, 76, explained that he was diagnosed with normal pressure hydrocephalus, and underwent corrective shunt brain surgery last week.

“I am pleased to say [it] was very successful and I am now recuperating at home being cared for by my lovely wife and our wonderful furry healing animals!” he wrote. “I have to take things easy for a while but have been told by my surgeon that I will be perfectly fine to travel to America for the tour with my son Oliver in March and will be fine for all future engagements after that.”

Normal pressure hydrocephalus is a treatable neurological disorder that affects hearing, vision and balance. Billy Joel announced that he was diagnosed with the same condition in May.

Wakeman said that his playing ability remains totally intact after his surgery, and he plans to perform at two Saving Strays charity concerts in England on Dec. 19 and 20.

“I am also pleased to say that it doesn’t seem to have affected my piano playing in any way as I still seem to be very capable of hitting the odd wrong note here and there when I lose my concentration!!” he wrote. 

The British star concluded by thanking all those who had wished him well and hoped for a speedy recovery, “as it really did mean a lot to me,” he wrote.

Wakeman was forced to reschedule his American tour several months ago amid his illness, but has since rescheduled the dates for March. He is touring with his son Oliver, 53, who has also been a keyboard player for Yes.

“For the first time, it’s a thrill to be actually doing a tour with my eldest son Oliver. I know it will be very special – especially if, on the odd occasion, he buys me dinner!” Wakeman joked on his website.

The musician revealed in October that he’d spent a week in the hospital at the beginning of September having surgery on his spine and spinal cord. Wakeman said the surgery was “successful,” but he struggled with his mobility afterwards, and hoped that his November surgery would “help solve many of the issues.”

Wakeman, who in addition to his work with Yes has enjoyed a prolific solo career with more than 100 albums, previously told the British newspaper Express that he has arthritis in his hands and feet, Type 2 diabetes, and macular degeneration in his left eye.

 “I’ll keep playing until it hurts too much, but there’s going to come a time I’ll have to stop,” he told the outlet in 2023. “I’d never want to walk on stage and hear someone say, ‘He used to be good.’”