John Mayer won’t be touring after all.
Mayer’s longtime stage sound expert Bill Chrysler said the end to rehearsals in Los Angeles for a national tour came to a shockingly abrupt halt this week when the singer-guitarist’s voice – following surgery last fall to remove a granuloma (growth) — took a nasty turn, forcing cancellation of spring shows, including an April 12 tour stop at Grand Rapids’ DeVos Performance Hall.
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“It (granuloma) came back that fast. … It came back with a vengeance,” Chrysler told me.
Chrysler, who owns Grand Haven’s Redwall North Studios, stressed that Mayer’s voice had sounded terrific the first couple of days of rehearsals, which began Sunday.
But on Tuesday, something clearly had changed and Chrysler said Mayer was very upset about the return of problems with his vocal cord, which forced him to see a doctor again. Mayer even called it “bad news” on his Tumblr account today and Chrysler said the return of the problem will require more surgery and a longer period of recovery.
“The recovery thing is the most important part,” said Chrysler, who had earlier raved about the incredible band that Mayer had assembled for the upcoming tour: keyboard player Chuck Leavell, guitarist David Ryan Harris, drummer Aaron Sterling, bassist Sean Hurley pedal steel guitarist Doug Pettibone and percussionist Mitch Sanchez.
The official statement canceling the 18-city tour indicated that Mayer would be taking an “indefinite hiatus” from touring “due return of the granuloma in his throat.”
Those who bought tickets for the Grand Rapids concert should go to the point of purchase for refund details.
Here’s more from Mayer directly on his Tumblr account.
Email: jsinkevics@gmail.com