Peter Frampton revealed in a new interview with Classic Rock magazine that he’ll be performing sitting down on his upcoming final shows in Europe. Back in October 2019 Frampton wrapped an exhaustive North American trek after being forced to slowly quit the road upon discovering he’s suffering from a degenerative muscle disease called Inclusion-Body Myositus (IBM), that slowly weakens the body’s muscles.
Frampton was set to play his final shows across Europe with a full scale tour during the spring of 2020 — until the pandemic sidelined his plans. As it stands now, eight shows are now on the books, with the Grammy-winning guitarist hitting England, Scotland, Belgium, Germany, France, and The Netherlands.
Frampton explained where he’s at health-wise these days: “Well. . . my legs are not good, and I’ve decided I am going to sit down on these upcoming tour dates in Europe. I can’t stand. That would be dangerous for me now, because I get so carried away when I’m playing that I’m liable to fall over (laughs). It’s starting to affect my hands, but not enough yet, so I can still play a good lick. But I’ll be honest, I’m so anxious about it. I haven’t played over there in so long, and I have progressed in my disease. . . I sat down for the first time (at Buddy Holly‘s 85th Birthday Celebration) and. . . it felt very comfortable (laughs).”
When pressed about any specific regrets he’s had over his decades in the business, Frampton admitted, “Only two things: I would’ve waited to make an album after Comes Alive!, and never put out I’m In You. Breaking All The Rules would’ve been a much better follow-up record. And I wouldn’t have done the Sgt. Pepper movie.”
- Peter Frampton European tour dates (subject to change):
November 5 – Stoke-on-trent, England – Victoria Hall
November 6 – Glasgow, Scotland – SEC Armadillo
November 8 – London, England – Royal Albert Hall
November 10 – Paris, France – Grand Rex
November 12 – Brussels, Belgium – Cirque Royal
November 13 – Haarlem, Netherlands – Philharmonie Haarlem
November 15 – Berlin, Germany – Verti Music Hall
November 16 – Dusseldorf, Germany – Mitsubishi Electric HALLE
SIDE NOTES
- 2021’s Frampton Forgets The Words features new takes on Radiohead‘s “Reckoner,” George Harrison‘s “Isn’t It A Pity,” Lenny Kravitz‘ “Are You Gonna Go My Way?,” Roxy Music‘s “Avalon” and Jaco Pastorious‘ “Dreamland,” among others.
- Peter Frampton‘s 2019 album All Blues topped the Billboard’s Blues Chart for a whopping 15 weeks.
- His 2020 autobiography, Do You Feel Like I Do?: A Memoir, debuted on The New York Times Bestsellers list.
- In 2020, another Frampton “came alive” with the birth of Frampton’s first grandchild.Elle Frampton Homburger was born on April 6th to the guitarist’s fashion designer daughter Jade and husband, Samuel Homburger.
CHECK IT OUT: Peter Frampton’s “Dig What I Say” from 1981’s Breaking All The Rules: