Phil X Interview on Eddie Trunk
 

Great interview. Phil says something really interesting here: apparently Phil was hired as a backup in 2011 before anyone knew Richie was going to go to rehab, meaning Jon went on tour knowing full well from the start that Richie wouldn't be able to make every show.

Jon has had a safety net since the start of the Circle era. Ever since Richie went off the rails at the Unplugged concert in 2007 and they had to do the show in Puerto Rico with Bobby on lead guitar, he had realized that this wasn't enough to bridge the gap if it happened again. So, knowing that history and obviously being close to Richie and knowing his circumstances, there was a backup plan in place once they hit the road for the next album.

"meaning Jon went on tour knowing full well from the start that Richie wouldn't be able to make every show." is not the same as having a back up plan. I see what you're saying and it's kind of framing it like Jon shouldn't have done the tour if Richie had any chance of relapsing. Everything I've seen of Richie seems like it's putting on a brave face and going forward with the show no matter what. Listen to the rehearsals for the HAND tour when he broke his arm, you really hear him assuring everyone it'll be fine and he'll make it work.

This isn't new information. Phil has previously told the story of how he had been hired to learn the songs and stand by before Richie actually checked into rehab.

Can you remind us in two lines what happened in the Unplugged concert ?

Richie was drunk and wasn't able to play the Wanted lick.