MTF first introduced you to Allan Mayes in 2020, and we now shine our spotlight on him once again
Condition(s):
Carpal tunnel syndrome
Date(s) of Treatment:
First surgery in 2020, second surgery in 2023
Allan Mayes is a veteran singer and guitarist from Liverpool, England, with more than 50 years in music. He started playing in 1969 and worked through the Liverpool band scene of the 1970s. He now lives in Austin, where he plays solo and in a duo with his partner LaDonna Wolf. Carpal tunnel syndrome slowly stole his touch. Surgery through the Musician Treatment Foundation gave it back.
The Beatles started it. Allan was 10 when he first wanted to play. He remembers strumming cardboard guitars and miming to “She Loves You” in the mirror. He turned that childhood dream into a working career and toured the UK, the US, Norway, and international waters before settling in Texas in 2014.
Trouble showed up in 1998. A doctor friend noticed Allan’s left hand, his fretboard hand, shaking often. A specialist ran a test and found textbook carpal tunnel syndrome.
Allan tried every workaround. He changed the height at which he held the guitar. He took off his watch. Nothing helped, and the hand slid downhill over the next 20 years. Surgery back then ran expensive, carried no guarantee, and cost him six to eight weeks off work. He could not make that math work. The hand went numb, and he played by guesswork more than by feel.
By January 2020, the numbness had grown too severe to ignore. Even with Medicare coverage, Allan faced an estimated balance of $5,000 for a $16,000 surgery. He booked the surgery anyway. Then he remembered that in 2017 he attended a benefit concert by his old friend Elvis Costello for the Musician Treatment Foundation. Allan wondered if he was eligible and sent Costello an email. Within an hour, Dr. Alton Barron called, set an appointment, and scheduled the surgery for February, all at no cost to Allan.
“The improvement was immediate. I played a couple of gigs within four or five days.”
-Allan Mayes
The timing proved fortuitous. Allan played his last gig on March 14, 2020, two days before the COVID-19 pandemic shut the rest of his work down. His hand worked perfectly, and he had nowhere to show it off. The scar faded within two weeks. He has rehearsed and played since with no lingering effects.
The Costello friendship that reached MTF also brought Allan back to the studio. In 2022, the two reunited their 1972 Liverpool band, Rusty, and released The Resurrection of Rust, an EP of songs from their old setlists, produced by Costello. Allan had waited 50 years to record those songs. His mended hand played every note.
Learn more about Allan and support his music at allanandladonna.com. You can also see him at the MTF Elvis Costello Tribute Show in early September!