The Velvet Underground singer and avant-rock flag bearer Lou Reed has undergone life-saving surgery, Laurie Anderson has revealed.

Back in April, Reed mysteriously cancelled his two appearance at Coachella, plus a trio of shows down the West Coast. Speaking to The Times, Reed’s wife Anderson has revealed that, following a period of grave illness, Reed had a liver transplant last month in Cleveland.

In her words” “It’s as serious as it gets. He was dying. You don’t get it for fun.” She also stresses that the operation will have a major impact on his creative and personal life: “I don’t think he’ll ever totally recover from this, but he’ll certainly be back to doing [things] in a few months. He’s already working and doing t’ai chi. I’m very happy. It’s a new life for him.”

Reed has also posted a statement to Facebook  expressing his optimism for the future:

I am a triumph of modern medicine, physics and chemistry. I am bigger and stronger than stronger than ever. My Chen Taiji and health regimen has served me well all of these years, thanks to Master Ren Guang-yi. I look forward to being on stage performing, and writing more songs to connect with your hearts and spirits and the universe well into the future.

The Velvet Underground’s The Velvet Underground & Nico was granted an enormous 45th anniversary reissue in 2012. Last year, FACT chatted to Berlin producer Pole about the “powerful economy” of Lou Reed’s 1979 album The Bells; head here to read. [via Consequence Of Sound]