Duran Duran’s Andy Taylor has cancer, skipped Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame induction
The band's longtime guitarist was unable to attend Duran Duran's induction ceremony
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Last night, the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame induction ceremony was held in Los Angeles, and while us regular folk won’t get to see much of it until the special airs on HBO on November 19, there was still some noteworthy news to come out of the evening: During Duran Duran’s induction, the band revealed that longtime guitarist Andy Taylor, who was not in attendance, has Stage 4 metastatic prostate cancer. The band read a portion of a letter that Taylor wrote during their acceptance, which you can read in full on the band’s website, and Variety says that lead singer Simon LeBon shared some thoughts on Taylor’s condition backstage later on.
He said it was “devastating news” to find out that “a colleague… not a colleague—a friend, one of our family—is not gonna be around for very long.” He added that they “love Andy dearly” and declined to answer any questions or offer any other comments about it, with Variety saying he was “too distraught to address the subject further.”
Here’s a portion of Taylor’s letter, which also included a lot of words of thanks to fans and supporters and producers, plus a note to his family and a joke about how his grandson is “probably online listening or on Fortnite,” which is all very sweet:
Now to the reason I’m not here:
Just over 4-years ago I was diagnosed with stage 4 metastatic prostate cancer. Many families have experienced the slow burn of this disease and of course we are no different; so I speak from the perspective of a family-man but with profound humility to the band, the greatest fans a group could have and this exceptional accolade.
I have the Rodgers and Edwards of doctors and medical treatment that until very recently allowed me to just rock on. Although my current condition is not immediately life threatening there is no cure. Recently I was doing okay after some very sophisticated life extending treatment, that was until a week or so ago when I suffered a setback, and despite the exceptional efforts of my team, I had to be honest in that both physically and mentally, I would be pushing my boundaries.
However, none of this needs to or should detract from what this band (with or without me) has achieved and sustained for 44 years. We’ve had a privileged life, we were a bit naughty but really nice, a bit shirty but very well dressed, a bit full of ourselves, because we had a lot to give, but as I’ve said many times, when you feel that collective, instinctive, kindred spirit of creativity mixed with ambition, armed with an über cool bunch of fans, well what could possibly go wrong?
I’m truly sorry and massively disappointed I couldn’t make it. Let there be no doubt I was stoked about the whole thing, even bought a new guitar with the essential whammy!
I’m so very proud of these four brothers; I’m amazed at their durability, and I’m overjoyed at accepting this award. I often doubted the day would come. I’m sure as hell glad I’m around to see the day.
13 Comments
That sounds really bleak. Very sad.
What a sweet, well-written letter and a damn shame. Andy kinda stuck out in Duran Duran as he wasn’t as cute as the other boys (and didn’t really try) but his aggressive guitar often glued the romantic synth-pop that Nick and Simon favored with the Chic-like funk that John and Roger went for. He always seemed like, deep down, he wanted to be in a rock or heavy metal band but he fit into Duran Duran so well and they don’t sound the same without him.
He lived out his rock fantasies with Power Station, but of course he’ll always be known for his time with Duran. This is really awful news, I hope he has a lot of time left and it is spent happily.
power station was fckin amazing and deserves a pop culture revival
I mean they had the guitarist of Duran Duran working with Robert Palmer, of course they’d be flippin’ amazing. (Choosing not to swear because you didn’t swear)
Some Like it Hot is a banger
This makes me sad. I’m glad Taylor gets the validation of his career achievements that the induction brings, and I hope he gets to enjoy the time he has left.
God that’s such a shame, it’s such a terrible thing when someone gets diagnosed with cancer. That’s such a terrible way to die.
That is a beautiful letter. So much emotion in those words, so much acceptance.. and maturity on a level that most people never achieve.
Duran Duran is a sentimental favorite of mine from my teen years, so sorry to hear Andy is ill. The full letter was touching and worth a read. Eff cancer, and let this be a reminder to anyone who has procrastinated on cancer screening tests to get it done.
I really enjoy the album he did with Steve Jones, “Thunder.” Great hard rock.
This reads like Simon just found about it now too, even though Andy was diagnosed with it over 4 years ago. That feels kinda weird.
Andy has been estranged from the rest since the last time he left the group. No one ever said exactly what the issue was, but I don’t think he talked to them much for a while. Maybe after sitting with the cancer and realizing he wasn’t going to make the induction, he finally realized he can’t keep holding a grudge. It actually sounds a little like he planned to attend without letting anyone know he had cancer but when he realized he wasn’t going to be able to make it, he let people know what was going on.