[UPDATE 4/2/25]: Just days after Spafford issued a public statement addressing bassist Jordan Fairless‘ departure from the group, Fairless has responded with a statement of his own challenging the band’s account, writing, “I am a proud co-founder and member of Spafford, and I look forward to continuing in those roles.”
Fairless’ statement originally appeared on Spafford’s official social media but was quickly taken down. However, it resurfaced on his personal page shortly thereafter.
“To the Spafford Community and Beyond,” his message began.
I had always hoped to keep the legal/business issues that inevitably seem to surround virtually every band, at one point or another, out of the mix with you, so you could focus on Spafford’s music. Regrettably, Brian recently posted some statements about my relationship with the group that are not accurate.
As Brian knows from months of communications— I simply took a break from performing with Spafford. The hope was to see if that would help us resolve certain issues that had arisen regarding Brian’s and my relationship with the group. While I continue to pursue those efforts, I thought it was time for me to resume appearing with the group at live performances, and last week I advised Brian and the group of that fact and invited Brian to reach out to me to discuss the logistics and details of my return to performing.
While I was joyful at the thought of continuing the 16-year musical journey, Brian responded with his recent “announcement” that I supposedly had left the band.
Though I felt I owed it to all of you to clarify things, I really don’t want to drag Spafford’s fans further down this road, so for now I’ll say only this: I am a proud co-founder and member of Spafford, and I look forward to continuing in those roles.
With sincere thank for all of your years of loyalty and support for what we’ve built—together.
—Jordan
View this post on Instagram
Fairless’ statement seems to contradict the one issued by the band, which said that he “notified us that he wished to conclude his time with Spafford both verbally and in writing” in the summer of 2024.
Current Spafford drummer Nick Tkachyk responded to Jordan’s statement by posting screenshots of a text conversation with Jordan dated July 22nd, 2024 in which he said, “I wanted to reach out to provide clarity and ensure there are no misunderstandings regarding my recent decision to leave Spafford or my direction afterward. … To be clear, I personally wish to conclude my time with Spafford. This decision comes after significant consideration based on the recent events of the past months. Due to that, along with other reasons, I no longer wish to be involved with Spafford after concluding necessary matters to my departure.”
Keyboardist Cory Schechtman confirmed the messages’ authenticity with screenshots of the same texts and offered his own account of Jordan’s departure:
“Brian took a break in June of last year and Jordan & the rest of us held the ship together to finish up the June dates,” he explained. “Mike & Jordan formed a friendship and just after the June tour ended Jordan informed our manager that he was done with Spafford and wanted to start a new band with Mike. It took Jordan many weeks before telling Nick, Chuck & I what his plans were and when he did, it was followed up the next morning by a text message (see screenshots) making it very clear that his desire was to leave the band.”
He continued:
Jordan did invite Nick & I to join his new band with Mike, however we both declined shortly thereafter.
We had a group call on July 24 where Nick, Brian, Chuck & I all asked Jordan to stay in the band and repair things between him and Brian, however Jordan declined and stated he was in no place to fix anything and just wanted to leave.
In the process of Jordan planning his exit, he brought lawyers in and that’s where it got really weird. With no real progress behind the scenes and the desire to not bring up particulars of this sensitive issue on socials, I called my bass player friend that I went to Berklee with and we moved forward.
Jordan posted on Nov 11 claiming we ghosted him, but in all reality the lawyers were trying to communicate and that was going poorly and I wasn’t trying to get in the middle of that mess.
Last week, we received our first communication from Jordan via his legal team that he was planning to return to the stage on April 15.
Jordan never asked us if he could rejoin the band, he just stated that he was. We had a call with him this past Friday and he declined to talk about anything from the past and only was there to hear what we had to say and talk about logistics of him wanting to return.
I even asked him why he is pretending he didn’t tell me and Nick in person he’s done, send this text and numerous emails and he just said “I’m not here to talk about the past.”
He was like a robot and honestly pretty scary.
This is all the 100% truth.
Jordan didn’t address what happened and didn’t hold any accountability for what he said and did last summer. The call ended by Jordan leaving it and we never got asked if we would have him back, nor did we get any answers as to what his motives were. From here we made the post yesterday letting fans know what happened and tried to move past it.
The reason why we didn’t share all of these details earlier was because we didn’t want to finger point at Jordan. But this has gotten really messy and he is acting crazy.
These conflicting statements have left fans uncertain as to Fairless’ status with respect to Spafford, who has continued to tour with Shon Gordon on bass. The band indicated “plans to record new music, release more Live Wax Volumes and announce multiple tours” in its statement, adding, “we still remain true to focusing on the future and are dedicated to bringing our music to the masses in 2025 with the current lineup in place.”
Spafford also acknowledged that “this time period has been confusing for many” and expressed gratitude to Jordan for his “years of dedication,” writing, “We truly wish him all the best in the future and continued healing on his personal journey.”
4/1/25: Spafford has shared a statement addressing the recent departure of bassist Jordan Fairless, who announced in November that he had no plans to return to the band after sitting out its 2024 fall tour, citing internal divisions.
In a note addressed to fans, Spafford wrote:
We typically don’t share our business affairs publicly, which is why we haven’t addressed this matter. That being said, in the summer of 2024, Jordan notified us that he wished to conclude his time with Spafford both verbally and in writing. Communication regarding this matter was challenged due to involvement of legal counsel, and out of respect to all involved, we chose to not speak publicly about it.
Understanding where to go after the news of a 15 year founding band member leaving was very challenging, in the end we decided to fill the vacant role and push forward.
In November of 2024, Jordan addressed the Spafford community via social media and shared perspectives in a video post that left us feeling shocked and confused given the conditions at that time.
The band went on to express gratitude for Jordan’s contributions to Spafford, saying, “We remain incredibly grateful for Jordan’s years of dedication and the music we created together. We truly wish him all the best in the future and continued healing on his personal journey.”
Before signing off, Spafford acknowledged that the transition “has been confusing for many,” adding, “it’s been the same for us too, however we still remain true to focusing on the future and are dedicated to bringing our music to the masses in 2025 with the current lineup in place. We have plans to record new music, release more Live Wax Volumes and announce multiple tours. Details on all will be coming soon.”
Since Fairless’ departure, Spafford has continued to tour with bassist Shon Gordon. The band has undergone various lineup changes in recent years. When guitarist/vocalist Brian Moss spent some time on the bench to heal mentally and physically from a tour vehicle accident, Mike Gantzer—whose band Aqueous went on indefinite hiatus at the end of 2023—took his place. Longtime keyboardist and vocalist Andrew “Red” Johnson also stepped away from the band at the end of 2022 after a ten-year tenure. He was replaced by current keyboardist Cory Schechtman but has sat in with Spafford as recently as New Year’s Eve.
Days before Spafford posted its statement, Fairless launched a new blog in which he wrote about the accident, mental health, leaving Spafford, and moving his life forward.
Spafford will return to the stage this week for a three-night run at Soundcheck Studios in Pembroke, MA and has a number of other upcoming shows throughout the spring and summer. For a full list of tour dates, head here.
View this post on Instagram