Status Quo guitarist Rick Parfitt has pulled out of his scheduled appearances with the band on their upcoming European tour, revealing that he may never perform live again after being ordered to rest by doctors after a near-fatal heart attack earlier this year.

The 67 year old axeman will not be playing alongside bandmate Francis Rossi as Status Quo head out on the continent next month on their Last Night of the Electrics tour, which was organised to mark the 50th anniversary of the Quo’s first hit.

Speaking at his home in Spain to the Daily Mail, Parfitt revealed that the latest health scare had left him in a much worse condition in comparison to previous incidents, which began in 1997 with a quadruple heart bypass operation.

Rick ParfittRick Parfitt has been ordered by doctors to pull out of Status Quo's tour

“It was a bigger heart attack this time, much more serious. I’d done a show in Turkey and went to bed. The PA lady came back with something for me to eat – and found me on the floor,” he said about the incident in June, which has left him with ‘mild cognitive impairments’.

“I did ‘die’ – my heart stopped for about three-and-a-half minutes. They gave me CPR for half an hour to keep my heart going. When I eventually woke a week later I was completely black and blue where they’d been pumping me.”

“I’ve let the band and the fans down, because Quo’s not Quo without me,” he continued, but said that his decision was also made because he is determined to see his eight year old twins, Tommy and Lily, grow up.

Doctors will tell Parfitt at Christmas whether he will ever be well enough to perform onstage again. While he is in defiant mood, his management revealed earlier this week that the he “may well have performed his last show with Quo”.

Financially, Parfitt reportedly only has a pension that yields £600 per month, and is therefore under pressure to keep earning to support his family. “If I can’t do it with the band, as a solo artist maybe I can play on ocean liners and corporate gigs.”

More: Status Quo guitarist Rick Parfitt hospitalised in Turkey after suspected heart attack