In an interview with Igor Miranda, Savatage’s Jon Oliva has confirmed that his injuries prevent him from joining the tour.
“I can’t even sing right now because of the pain,” the rocker admitted, adding that he can’t even do basic daily tasks. “I can’t stand for too long, and I need time for my vertebra to heal naturally.”
When asked about surgery as a potential solution, Oliva explained that he had considered it but ultimately chose against it after consulting medical professionals and others. “They wanted to put metal in my body. But people I spoke to told me not to do it, that I would regret it. So, I chose to let it heal naturally.”
Even though he most likely won’t make it to the shows, making an album isn’t a problem for Oliva. “I basically have an album ready,” he explained. “I’ve been working on it off and on. We were talking about touring before my accident. I’ve been working on stuff for about a year. If I get the guys together to record, it’s ready. But we wanted to do this tour first.”
Drummer Jeff Plate earlier talked about Jon Oliva’s role in the band. “Jon Oliva, several years ago… Jon is always writing music, and the plan was to do some recording — he’s got a bunch of new ideas — do some recording and get out there and let’s do this again. Jon has obviously run into a number of health problems, which are serious, and I’m sure everybody’s read about them. But in Jon’s wisdom, he’s, like, ‘You know what?’”
“The ball kind of started rolling again. He’s not going to stop it this time. Jon’s gonna be involved in everything that we’re doing from here forward. He can’t go out and do these tours right now, and he’s gonna work himself back into it. We’ve got our fingers crossed. But I tell you, man, the music in general, the fanbase, there’s just a strength behind all that that’s really kept the name alive, kept the interest alive,” he added.
Savatage announced their first headlining shows since 2002 in December last year. The 2025 tour will feature Stevens on vocals, Johnny Lee Middleton on bass, Caffery and Al Pitrelli on guitars, and Jeff Plate on drums. Oliva will not be joining the band on the road due to health issues.
The tour will start on April 19 in Brazil at the Monsters of Rock festival. On June 13, the band will head to Europe, performing in the Netherlands, Germany, the U.K., Switzerland, Belgium, Italy, Spain, and Greece until the end of the month.
The comeback will also include a new album titled ‘Curtain Call,’ their first since 2001’s ‘Poets and Madmen.’
