Meat Loaf talks on stage 'freak out'

Meat Loaf has revealed that a vocal cyst prompted him to walk out of a gig in Newcastle.

The veteran singer explained that losing his voice on stage caused him to "freak out" and prematurely announce his retirement.

He said: "I was totally freaked out and didn't know what was wrong with me. I wasn't sick, I didn't have flu, no sinus infection or anything like that. I thought that was it, so I thought I'd go out on stage. I said 'I quit' and walked off.

"It turned out I had a cyst on my vocal cord. Thankfully it burst as I didn't want to have the surgery the doctors were planning.

"Now I take care of my voice by not talking from the time I go off the stage one night to the time just before I go on again the next day. I care more about the people coming to see me than myself and whether I can chat to people."

The 'Bat Out Of Hell' rocker added that he has no plans to give up recording or touring.

"I'm not going to retire. To quote Jon Bon Jovi, I'll sleep when I'm dead," he said.