Motley Crue rolls on with sub for injured Tommy Lee

Sevendust drummer Morgan Rose acknowledges the audience at the end of the group's set at the Mesa Amphitheatre in Mesa, Arizona, November 4, 2003.

DETROIT (Billboard) - Motley Crue's Tommy Lee is not exactly Dr. Feelgood these days. The drummer will be off his kit for several Crue Fest 2 shows after burning his left hand while playing with a set of sparklers.

Sevendust's Morgan Rose "came charging in like a knight in shining armor" to fill in for Lee, according to a note on bassist Nikki Sixx's MySpace site.

Lee, his left thumb and forefinger wrapped in bandages since the accident last week, is still taking part in the shows, coming on first to explain his absence -- "First of all, I suck. I was having fun and I burned myself," he told Saturday's crowd at the DTE Energy Music Theater near Detroit -- then to hand a bottle of Jagermeister to the crowd and, during the encores, play piano on "Home Sweet Home" and thump on a drum with his right hand for "Girls, Girls, Girls."

There's no official word about when Lee will be able to play drums again. Crue Fest 2 runs through September 2.

In his MySpace posting, Sixx noted that "accidents do happen and, yes, frustration does happen to everybody, including Tommy, who would rather play drums (even with a damaged hand) than just about anything in the whole world. But following doctor's orders for a few shows is what we have to (do) right now (or cancel shows). We all wanna say we're sorry Tommy has to sit out a couple shows, but we hope to have him back up on the drums ASAP."

(Editing by SheriLinden at Reuters)