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Ailing New Zealand music legend Max Merritt has been lifted spiritually and financially by a rock benefit concert late last year to help him cover expensive medical costs and other bills.
The Los Angeles-based Merritt is battling a potentially fatal disease attacking his kidneys and lungs.
He contracted the auto-immune disorder Goodpasture's Syndrome last year and it has forced the 66-year-old onto a dialysis machine three days a week.
The 1970s soul guitarist and singer is best known for his hit Slippin' Away with his band, The Meteors.
The rare disease has affected his ability to work and he has been struggling just to put food on the table.
But a concert at Melbourne's historic Palais Theatre on October 21 last year, which included on the bill musicians such as Daryl Braithwaite, Jon English, Ross Wilson and John Paul Young, raised A$240,000 ($275,000) to help Merritt get back on his feet.
His manager of 23 years, Wally Bishop, said today Merritt was still struggling with his health but had been uplifted by the goodwill shown towards him by friends and fans back in Australia.
"I speak to him every couple of days and he has an incredibly positive attitude," Mr Bishop told AAP.
"The concert had an enormous effect on his mental health knowing that that many people cared for him to raise A$240,000 to take the financial pressure off him.
"It's made an enormous difference to his mindset."
Mr King said that while some of the money had been invested to sustain him, some of it had been used to repair Merritt's home which was damaged in the 1994 Los Angeles earthquake.
The illness appears to have put an end to Merritt's music career but Mr Bishop remains hopeful.
"We live in hope," he said.
A kidney transplant is not possible as long as the Goodpasture's Syndrome remains in his body and doctors at this stage do not know what causes it or how to cure it.
Australia's music industry has a track record of rallying around its heroes hit by illness, staging fundraising concerts in recent years for stricken stars such as former Dragon lead singer Marc Hunter, Ted Mulry and Lobby Loyde.
Merritt was the latest beneficiary of the generosity and spirit of his old mates.
- AAP
