Photo: Truscello/WireImage

Earlier this month Aerosmith surprised fans with news that guitarist Brad Whitford would miss the opening dates of the band’s summer tour with ZZ Top due to an unspecified surgery. The band is now revealing that a head injury has sidelined Whitford temporarily, and that the guitarist hopes to return to the tour in early July.

Guitarist Joe Perry tells Reuters Whitford suffered internal bleeding after banging his head while getting out of his Ferrari roughly two weeks ago. “It built up pressure and gave him this whoopin’ headache,” Perry said. “He’s not prone to getting migraines, so knew something was wrong. He went right in, they did what they had to do, and now he’s getting better.” The injury required surgery, so the band quickly recruited guitarist Bobby Schneck to replace Whitford while he recovers. Whitford’s estimated return date is penciled in for the band’s July 7th concert in Raleigh, North Carolina. The tour kicked off June 10th in St. Louis, Missouri; should Whitford return as scheduled on the 7th, he will have missed 10 shows.

Aerosmith’s tour with ZZ Top concludes September 16th in Detroit, two days after their penultimate gig at New York’s Madison Square Garden. Perry has said touring with the bearded legends will be special for Aerosmith: “That’s just amazing to be able to play with them because it’s going to be a kickass show.” And he also delivered some news about adding another full album — Rocks — to the summer set list. Read our full report here.

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