The Jam’s Bruce Foxton has announced he has quit the band due to ongoing health reasons.
The singer, 68, shared a heartbreaking statement to his ‘lifelong wonderful fans’ on the band’s official Facebook account on Tuesday.
Bruce announced that he has to undergo an ‘immediate procedure’ in hospital and needs to step down from The Jam in order to make a ‘full recovery’.
He penned: ‘To all my lifelong wonderful fans, As a lot of you know my health has not been good for the past few years and the latest news is that I have had to go into hospital for an immediate procedure.
‘It is with much regret and sadness that I will not be able to perform again with From The Jam until I have made a full recovery.
The Jam’s Bruce Foxton, 68, has announced he has quit the band due to ongoing health reasons (pictured in 2014)
The singer shared a heartbreaking statement to his ‘lifelong wonderful fans’ on the band’s official Facebook account (Paul Weller, Rick Buckler and Bruce pictured L-R in 2002)
‘The band has done everything to help me for the past couple of years and have even suggested several times that I take time off to look after my health and recuperate.
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Bruce Foxton reveals he has tinnitus and was going deaf and blind after 40 years of performing
‘That time has now come so I wish the band (my dear friends) continued success until I return and with God’s will I will see you all in the not too distant future on the ‘Setting Sons’ 45th anniversary tour. Much love and respect, Bruce X’
His beloved fans rushed to the comments to support Bruce, while congratulating him for his music over the years.
Some wrote: ‘Take your time Bruce. Your health is the most important thing to look after. We can look after ourselves. You’ve given us all so much already young fella.
‘After buying my first Jam album in 1977, I was so grateful to finally see you live in Brisbane earlier this year. Rest up. Get well. And most of all thank you’,
‘Take care & get well soon Bruce. I’ve throughly enjoyed watching you play for many years & hope that will be so again soon once you are fully recovered. You have always been my idol’,
‘Take care of yourself Bruce. That’s all that matters at the end of the day – your health. Wishing you a speedy recovery’.
The Jam was disbanded in 1982 by frontman Paul Weller after just five years together.
Bruce announced that he has to undergo an ‘immediate procedure’ in hospital and needs to step down from The Jam in order to make a ‘full recovery’ (pictured in 2019)
His beloved fans rushed to the comments to support Bruce, while congratulating him for his music over the years
The Jam was disbanded in 1982 by frontman Paul Weller after just five years together (pictured in 1979)
In that time they racked up an impressive 18 singles and seven albums, all making the top 40.
In 2019, Bruce revealed he started wear a hearing aid mitigate the effects of the chronic condition tinnitus that causes a constant ringing in the ears and can lead to irreversible hearing loss.
‘I am not completely deaf but I do suffer from high-frequency hearing loss,’ Bruce said.
‘I’ve had tinnitus for years now and I have actually succumbed to wearing a hearing aid occasionally. Back in the days of The Jam, we were a three-piece and we needed to play at full volume to sound as loud as we could,’ he added.
In the U.S. the condition is said to affect an estimated 32 percent of the population, according to National Center for Health Statistics studies.
Furthermore, the British Tinnitus Association has said that the number of people living with the condition is set to increase by more than 500,000 over the next decade.
Bruce blames his hearing loss on years of performing at so many live concerts and standing next to loud speakers.
‘It means that I struggle to hear the treble and higher pitched sounds,’ he said.
‘But wearing a hearing aid has made a massive difference and it’s been customised to provide amplification for only the sounds that I am missing. I am wearing it more and more,’ he added.
He’s highlighted the challenges of going to restaurants and pubs if he isn’t wearing a hearing aid and says everything becomes a ‘mush.’
‘It’s embarrassing because I’ll be trying to have a conversation and if it’s that loud there are only so many times I can say, ‘Sorry, I didn’t catch that. What did you say?’
Bruce said the condition has caused him to become a bit introverted and says after the fourth time of asking what someone has said he gets ‘too embarrassed to ask again.’
After The Jam’s split, Bruce played bass in Stiff Little Fingers. In 2006, he formed tribute band From The Jam.