Former Twisted Sister frontman Dee Snider: 'I'm not dying!'

Dee Snider is assuring fans that he is "not dying" following his recent resignation from Twisted Sister due to ongoing health issues. Snider's decision effectively scuttled plans for the hair metal band's upcoming 50th anniversary tour.

"I’m not dying!" the Baldwin-raised musician said Saturday on his "House of Hair" radio show. "No, not never; I mean, we’re all dying, but not immediately."

Snider added, "My announcement about canceling the tour for health reasons, problems with my heart, arthritis, things like that, [since then] the rumors have run wild that I am on my deathbed. I am not. I just can’t do those things that I did in my 20s, 30s, 40s, 50s and even 60s. All right? Otherwise I’m alive and well. I’m enjoying life."

Snider, 70, said he's still active, hosting the radio show, directing a movie and writing. "You won’t see me on the stage kicking [butt] like I used to, because that will mess me up."

Snider said he was asked to "just go out onstage and lay back," which made the lead singer uncomfortable. "So, had to pull out of Twisted Sister, had to cancel the tour, my apologies for that."

And he concluded his report:

"And thank you for all the love and care and worry and all that stuff. It was crazy the amount of people, the outpouring was beautiful, thank you very much for cheering me on," he continued. "I’m OK, I just can’t do that anymore.

"The truth of the matter is, I don’t want you to see me up there being less than you expect me to be. You got memories of the great shows that I did, that’s what I want to leave you with. Not me standing up there like Willie Nelson — nothing wrong with Willie, 95 years old, in a wheelchair — but you know what I’m saying. I went out rockin’, I’m still rockin’ here, I ain’t stopping. I got a lot of life to live. My dad is 95 and still kicking, so I’m expecting to be around for a long time," said Snider, adding, "Don’t worry about old Dee. Thank you."

Before breaking out nationally in 1984 with their hit and MTV staple "We're Not Gonna Take It," Twisted Sister was a mainstay for years on Long Island's club scene at such long-gone venues as Speaks in Island Park, Hammerheads in Levittown and West Islip, Cheers in Deer Park and The Mad Hatter in Stony Brook.