Kid Rock [ tickets ], with Powerman 5000 [ tickets ], kicked off a month-long tour on Monday (11/1) sans his diminutive sidekick Joe C., who reportedly is recuperating from health problems. Joe C., a member of Kid Rock's Twisted Brown Trucker band, suffers from celiac disease, an auto-immune digestive disorder.

Those with celiac disease are unable to digest gluten, which is the protein in wheat, rye, oats, and barley. The genetic disease held Joe C.'s height to below four feet, and he requires regular dialysis treatments, according to a recent feature in Spin.

Joe C. often requires time off after extensive touring, and will likely stay off the road through the end of the year, MTV News reported.

Kid Rock and band have toured extensively in 1999. Their current headlining tour followed a quick European jaunt, and that came on the heels of a lengthy stint on the road with Limp Bizkit.

Several dates were recently added to the Kid Rock/Powerman 5000 package, which is scheduled to conclude on Dec. 10. Among the newly-added cities are Las Vegas, Mesa, Ariz., San Jose and Sacramento, Calif., Salem, Ore. and Seattle.