Former Rainbow and Deep Purple vocalist Joe Lynn Turner has been taken to hospital in Belarus with a “heart issue”.
The news was first reported on RIA.ru, with the website saying that Turner had suffered a “myocardial infarction” – more commonly known as a heart attack – and was in a stable condition.
Vocalist Graham Bonnet later posted a picture of himself with Turner on Facebook with the caption: “My friend Joe was hospitalised in Minsk with a heart issue last night and myself, Beth-Ami and the rest of the Graham Bonnet Band wish him a complete and speedy recovery. We love you, Joe.”
There’s been no word yet from Turner’s camp, with the singer due to go out on tour from April 25 when he’s scheduled to play Gothenburg’s Sticky Fingers.
Last year Turner, who was with Rainbow between 1980 and 1984, criticised Ritchie Blackmore’s decision to reactivate the band with a new-look lineup, calling the move “not so much disappointing as it was shocking.”
He added: “Why would anyone of Blackmore’s iconic nature want to come out and not be as good as he can be?”