Jeff Beck has canceled the second leg of his European tour.
According to a June 26 post on Beck's Facebook page and website, jeffbeckofficial.com, the guitarist, who turned 70 earlier this week, had been instructed by doctors to stop performing for six weeks. It also said he would "undertake a short hospital procedure."
This morning, however, we noticed the "official statement" is gone from both sites — and his entire website is down. Visitors are greeted with the message, "Error establishing a database connection."
Here is the full message that appeared on his website:
"It is with the greatest regret that Jeff Beck has been forced to cancel the forthcoming European dates of his worldwide tour, set to begin in Austria on June 27.
"Following many months of international touring and after seeking emergency medical attention, Jeff will now undertake a short hospital procedure, and his doctors have instructed a complete break from performance for a total of six weeks. Following the treatment, Jeff will fulfill his U.S. tour commitments beginning in Missoula, Montana, on August 8.
"He sends his profound apologies to those fans who had bought tickets for the European concerts and very much looks forward to playing for his American audiences after he has completed his treatment."
Yesterday, Guitar Player magazine's Jennifer Bergeron found a May 5 report at contactmusic.com that could shed light on Beck's condition.
Apparently, Beck experienced discomfort during his tour with Brian Wilson last year and had an endoscopy (an internal examination done with a camera at the end of a flexible tube) on an undisclosed body part or organ while in Chicago.
At the time, Beck gave the following statement to the U.K.'s Mojo magazine: "What I didn't realize was that the tour bosses wanted me to spend the whole afternoon doing promo to prop up ticket sales. So we did this meet-and-greet stuff where audiences pay good money to watch rehearsals, which robbed me of my afternoon nap. I ended up in Chicago University Hospital having an endoscopy. They still had me playing the next night. It was a bit blood and guts, but I had fallen in love with the idea of playing with Brian Wilson."
In Other Jeff Beck News
In February, Beck announced that his next studio album, which is still expected to be released later this year, will be a "very important" release. In an interview with Rolling Stone, he discussed the timing of — and process of creating — his upcoming release.
“I think I’ve drawn attention. I’ve worked, worked, worked for the last three years. Now is the time really. My [70th] birthday is coming up, if you get me. I thought it was time for a really good studio album I had control over and time to do properly instead of a budget problem. Even though I do have budget problems!”"
Guitar World wishes Jeff a speedy recovery!
