Photo: WENN.com
Velvet Underground frontman Lou Reed is currently recovering after a life-saving liver transplant, according to his wife Laurie Anderson.
Anderson believes her husband was 'dying' before the 71-year-old rocker, who has a well-documented history of alcohol and substance abuse, opted for the liver transplant.
She told The Times: "It's as serious as it gets. He was dying. You don't get it for fun.
"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."
Lou Reed at a photography exhibit in November, 2012
Reed was forced to pull out of a string of US dates which included a Coachella Festival performance earlier this year which meant Velvet Underground couldn't perform in California.
Anderson revealed that she was 'awestruck' at the liver transplant operation which she believes saved her husband's life.
Speaking of the surgery, Anderson explained: "You send out two planes - one for the donor, one for the recipient - at the same time. You bring the donor in live, you take him off life support. It's a technological feat.
"I was completely awestruck. I find certain things about technology truly, deeply inspiring."
Reed and Anderson had been a couple for almost 20 years before spontaneously deciding to get married in 2008.
Photos: Lou Reed Plays London's Apollo
