Australian country star Keith Urban feels better than ever after his recent throat surgery as he can now sing the high notes without straining.
The For You hitmaker admits he was worried he would lose his singing abilities when he went under the knife in November (11) to remove a polyp on his vocal cords.
Urban has been working with a coach to strengthen his voice and insists he is thrilled with the results of the operation.
He tells the Associated Press, "I think if a footballer in their 40s was given their knees back like they were in their early 20s, that's kind of how I feel right now. It's an extraordinary feeling of freedom... I don't have to push the pedal down to 70 mph to reach those notes anymore."
The singer also reveals the health scare has inspired him to write more profound material.
He adds, "I already feel that this next album, the thrust and the pull as a songwriter is to talk more about some of my stories, personal stories, beyond my relationship with my wife (actress Nicole Kidman) and subjects that I've never really tapped into that much.
"So I think getting my voice back has sort of been a metaphor for finding my voice more so as well as an artist, broadening it, really, to the things that I want to write about and I feel ready to write about that I guess I haven't in recent years."