As you may recall, there was a slight fear starting two days prior to the Big 4’s Yankee Stadium show that Megadeth’s set would be canceled due to an injury sustained by Mustaine. However, as we all know by know, Megadeth played on as scheduled and kicked major ass in Yankee Stadium. As it turns out, though, Mustaine risked a lot by performing and still has a long road to recovery.
Before the band performed “She Wolf” at the Big 4 show Wednesday night (September 14), Mustaine revealed to the audience that he will be undergoing neck surgery following the show. In an interview with Rolling Stone, he also confirmed that the band was very close to canceling their appearance, admitting the following:
“We called yesterday and said I couldn’t make [the gig]. And then I thought about it and I thought, ‘You know what? I trust God and I know He’s got me in His hands. I know that He hasn’t brought me this far through all this diversity and done all this reconciliation with all the [other] bands [the bill] and us all getting along this well to have the finale show [of the ‘Big Four’ tour] here in the States stopped. And I just thought, either God’s everything or it’s nothing, and I believe in Him, so that’s why I’m here.”
He also revealed to Rolling Stone that his surgery could delay the band’s plans upcoming touring plans in South America and Dubai. He admitted that the injury was caused by years of headbanging, and that one wrong move that night could’ve left him paralyzed. This would explain why Mustaine was noticeably absent from the Big 4 jam that night.
You can watch Mustaine’s interview with Rolling Stone at the gig in the video above. Fan filmed video of Mustaine telling the Yankee Stadium crowd about his needed surgery (and performing “She Wolf”) can be seen after the jump.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hU11wd2sKOs[/youtube]
