For more than half of his life, Todd Evans of the group Bad Hair Day has been entertaining people in NEPA. Music has been a huge part of his life, and music is for what he’s best known.
A recent medical scare, however, had Evans, a.k.a. “T.J. Spears,” wondering if he’d ever perform onstage again, or more seriously, if his life might be in danger. And although the worst appears to be over now, the experience has left him a changed man.
Evans, 36, hits the gym a few times a week, eats right, doesn’t smoke and takes pride in staying in good shape. Last fall, however, he says he began to experience nagging back pain, but he attributed the discomfort to his heavy workouts. In mid-December, after a few trips to the chiropractor, he woke one morning with intense soreness in his legs, and, later in the day, the pain had moved to his arms. He says he made an appointment to see his doctor, but later that same night, the condition worsened.
“I woke up about 3 a.m., and I literally could not squeeze my hands together,” says Evans. “I couldn’t move my arms. I couldn’t move my legs.
“I got scared.”
Evans immediately went to the hospital for X-rays and some tests, and the next day — much to his surprise — he learned he had mononucleosis, which he was told could affect the muscles. Still, a few days later, sensing that mono was not the root of his discomfort, he had an MRI.
“Three days later, I get a phone call from my doctor’s office telling me they needed me to come in that day,” he says. “As soon as they said that, I knew something was wrong, and as soon as I walked in, I knew. I could read the doctor’s expression when he walked in the room. He said, ‘You have a tumor encapsulated in your spinal chord.’ Not on my spinal chord. Literally encapsulated inside my spinal chord.”
Thus began a trying ordeal that is only now nearing its end. Evans says when he first heard the word “tumor,” he immediately thought of cancer, and that his doctor, after discovering the tumor, ordered him to see a specialist in Danville that same day. It was there, however, that he actually got some good news.
“The specialist said, ‘It’s one of two kinds of tumors, and if I’m a betting man, I’m going to bet my house that they’re both benign.’ … I joked, ‘Well, you better have a nice house.’”
Evans says he had a few options, but to be safe, he chose to have the tumor removed immediately. Though the delicate surgery posed some risks, he knew one thing: he wanted it out ASAP. Waiting for the operation, he says, was trying.
“Everything that I do to get my mind off things — working out and playing with the band, my stress relievers — I couldn’t do,” he says. “Everything was taken away from me.”
Evans says the surgery went perfectly and praises the skills of his physician. His recovery involved laying flat on is back for several days, which made him appreciate simple things such as eating in a comfortable position and taking a shower. His next step to recovery involved plenty of walking, and though he’ll need follow-up visits to make sure there is no recurrence, he’s already back to the gym and working out.
“Other than having some tightness in my back and a little bit of soreness because of the incision, I feel really, really good,” he says.
Evans’ band, Bad Hair Day, now in its eighth year, is still one of NEPA’s best-drawing groups. Its set is anchored by tunes by ’80s hard-rock bands such as Motley Crue, Poison and Bon Jovi, and surprisingly, he says many of the fans coming to see the group weren’t even born when some of those bands first topped the charts.
“The people that used to follow us eight years ago, they’ll come out, but it’s on a rare occasion, when they can get a babysitter, or on a holiday,” he says. “The new kids — the 21 to 24 years olds, and college kids — they’re the ones that really love this stuff. You’ll see kids walking around with Guns N’ Roses and Journey shirts, and they’re the ones, from my perspective, that have really enabled us to continue what we’re doing.”
Now that Evans has had to face the possibility that he might not ever sing on stage again, he says he won’t ever take such joy for granted. He says he’s well aware of the plight of fellow area musician Lou Marino, who recently suffered a life-altering stroke, and says he’s much more inclined these days to count his blessings.
“When I went down there the day of the operation, I went down two hours early, and I literally sat there inside the main lobby … and I looked around and I saw 3-year old kids in wheelchairs, people going for chemotherapy, people missing limbs, and I said ‘It could be so much worse.’ And that experience in itself literally made me say, ‘It’s going to be alright.’ ”
Evans adds that he’ll also never take for granted the many friendships he’s made though music, as was revealed by the many calls, e-mails and MySpace messages he received while he was recovering, some from people he didn’t think would be overly concerned about his well-being. Now, with his first show in two months on tap this weekend, he says he’s not only looking forward to getting back on stage, but also seeing some of those people and saying “thank you.”
“You don’t realize how many people care about you and are concerned about you,” he says. “People care. They care …
“I’m a lucky guy.”
w
go:
Who: Bad Hair Day
Where: Brew’s Brothers,
1705 River Road, Pittston
When: Sat., Feb. 23, 10 p.m.