The patron saint of the bum Todd Snider will get back on the road this summer with his first run of tour dates since 2022. The influential singer-songwriter has been sidelined for the past three years by an ongoing battle with spinal stenosis, when the spaces in the spine narrow and create pressure on the spinal cord and nerve roots.
The stretch of five shows in three states will begin with a previously announced (and already sold-out) show on July 25th at the Variety Playhouse in Atlanta. This concert will feature the debut of the Todd Snider Band, which he assembled with longtime friend and collaborator, Sterling Finlay. That lineup includes Finlay on bass, Joe Bissiri and Aaron Lee Tasjan on guitars, and Robbie Crowell (Sturgill Simpson) on drums. This roster will also appear on Snider’s yet-unannounced new album coming this fall.
The following month, Snider will hit the road for solo shows in Asheville, NC (8/6), Winterville, GA (8/7), Birmingham, AL (8/8), and Decatur, AL (8/9). These concerts will see Snider backed by Finlay and Bissiri. After his August dates, Snider will reconvene his immersive Camp What the Folk in Big Indian, NY (9/2–9/5), featuring additional performances and workshops by Elizabeth Cook, Kevn Kinney, and Aaron Lee Tasjan.
Tickets for all newly announced 2025 Todd Snider tour dates are on sale now via his website.
This welcome development comes after the first (non-COVID) break Snider took from the road in his 30-plus-year career. The self-described “sock you can’t find in the dryer” took an extended leave from touring to treat an unrelated stomach ailment and his stenosis, and to wean himself off the medically-prescribed “hard drugs” he needed to endure touring with his nerve damage.
“My bones, they’re just awful. And they’re not going to get better,” Snider told Live For Live Music in an interview last fall. “I’m kind of in denial about it. It’s hard for me to stand up for very long. It’s a weird disease. If you walk, it’s okay. But just standing there is really hard. … It’s been coming for a while. … It’s like this thing where the holes that your nerves go through are getting smaller, so it’s like ‘Where does it hurt?’ ‘Yep.’ Because they all [hurt], it’s like you’re one nerve and it’s pinched.
“This world’s getting on my nerve,” he chuckled.
Related: A Wellness Check-In With Todd Snider [Interview]
While he was off the road, Snider released the exhaustive Purple Versions series. During the pandemic, Snider went live every week from his Purple Building studio in East Nashville and played through his entire discography front to back, then while he was laid up, released all of the recordings as live, acoustic reduxes (all for free). Earlier this year, he distilled the series into the Best of All My Songs box set of 6LPs and 49 tracks culled from the sessions.
“This one that’s coming out [Best of All My Songs] is my favorite stuff I’ve done,” Snider said. “‘Cause I can sit by myself, tell bullshit about why I made up a song, play the song. I feel like I fell out of my mom doing that. And then if you hear my records, it’s always like that mixed with whatever I’m interested in at the time. And now it’s just distilled down to the busker and I feel like that’s what I have to offer.”
Along with the concert announcements, Snider got back to doing what he does best on Saturday with a surprise pop-up livestream from the Purple Building, just like old times. This show was a thank you to the people who purchased merch from Aimless Records last year while Snider was off the road, and those who purchased the majority of the monthly merch bundles were invited to attend the show in person. About 100 showed up and squeezed into The Purple Building, with the vast majority coming from out of town, per Snider’s management. Check out the stream below, with Todd coming on at 35:00.
Todd Snider — The Purple Building — Nashville, TN — 5/31/25 — Full Video
Todd Snider 2025 Tour Dates
July 25 – Atlanta, GA – Variety Playhouse (SOLD OUT) (w/ Todd Snider Band)
August 6 – Asheville, NC – The Orange Peel
August 7 – Winterville, GA – Marigold Auditorium
August 8 – Birmingham, AL – WORKPLAY
August 9 – Decatur, AL – Princess Theatre Center for the Performing Arts