Boston Globe, MA
May 30, 2009

Steven Tyler was by turns philosophical and sophomoric at the opening of BookExpo America in New York Thursday. The convention’s keynote speaker, the Aerosmith screamer rambled vaguely about his forthcoming memoir, “Does the Noise in My Head Bother You?,” finally conceding that the book, like his band’s new CD, isn’t quite finished. Tyler reminisced about boyhood summers spent in Sunapee, N.H., where he met his Aerosmith bandmates, and earlier days in the Bronx, “growing up under the grand piano” of his father, band leader Vic Tallarico. “I heard something in Debussy and Beethoven and Bach, and I wanted to get my feelings out,” said the singer, who wore alligator boots, snakeskin pants, and what can only be described as a black blouse to the event. Tyler politely mocked his interviewer, rock scribe Chuck Klosterman, who appeared as starstruck and tongue-tied as a teenaged stoner. Joining Tyler was Mark Hudson, who co-wrote “Livin’ on the Edge,” among other Aerosmith hits. Tyler isn’t the only local at the BookExpo. “Bringing Down the House” author Ben Mezrich is scheduled to speak this morning. He’ll be on a panel with “Hometown” writer Tracy Kidder, “The Glass Castle” writer Jeannette Walls, and late-night guy Craig Ferguson.

Complete article:  (here).

YouTube.com
May 28, 2009

Watch videp:  (here).

PublishersWeekly.com
May 29, 2009

BEA 2009 rocked and rolled Thursday evening for about 700 BEA attendees, as legendary rock stars Clarence Clemons, a member of Bruce Springsteen’s E Street Band, and Steven Tyler, frontman for Aerosmith, visited Javits, taking turns sitting down with author Chuck Klosterman to talk about their lives, their music, and, of course—this being BEA—their books. Grand Central Publishing is releasing Clemons’s memoir, Big Man: Real Life & Tall Tales (written with Clemons’s “best friend” Don Reo) in October. HarperCollins/Ecco is releasing Tyler’s memoir, Does the Noise in My Head Bother You?: A Rock ’n’ Roll Memoir, sometime this fall, with Tyler disclosing during the evening that the book “isn’t finished” and he’s “not sure” when it actually will be released…..

Clemons might be the “Big Man,” but Tyler was larger than life as he strutted on stage in true rock star fashion, accompanied by fellow musician Mark Hudson, who sported a multihued beard. Aerosmith fans in the audience rushed the stage, snapping photos, as the two took their seats. During an alternately witty, ribald and intellectual conversation with Klosterman that touched on everything from his schedule while on tour and the primacy of music in his life and in the very essence of his being to the metaphysics of orgasms, Tyler revealed a reflective side of himself that fans don’t often see.

Tyler started to write Does the Noise in My Head Bother You? during a “time off” period after his mother died last summer, he told Klosterman. “If there was a time to do it, last summer was it,” he explained. “I want the voice in me to be heard,” he said. “There’s a side of me that sees the world a lot differently than other people do,” ascribing it to such things as having read Grimm’s Fairy Tales when he was five years old, having immigrant parents or keeping a raccoon as a pet as a child in the Bronx.

I’ve lived this life. I’ve seen things. I’ve felt things,” he said. “I think anyone who’s seen me on stage is going to relate to [Does the Noise in My Head Bother You?].”

Complete article:  (here).

ETOnline.com
May 28, 2009

ET takes you inside the homes of the band members of Aerosmith, where we get a revealing look at how “The Bad Boys from Boston” are living nearly 40 years since forming their Grammy-winning band!

Watch the video to get a peek at their digs, and hear Steven Tyler, Joe Perry and Joey Kramer dish about why they are embarking on another tour this June!

Plus, find out what the band thinks of “Britain’s Got Talent” phenom Susan Boyle!

Watch video:  (here).

GettyImages.com
May 28, 2009

Musician Steven Tyler speaks at the keynote event for BookExpo America at The Javits Center on May 28, 2009 in New York City. (Photo by Neilson Barnard/Getty Images)

More photos:  (here).

Aerosmith on Myspace Music
May 27, 2009

Win a VIP trip to rock out with Aerosmith in NYC!

Saddle up! Nows your chance to win a flyaway to New York City to catch Aerosmith blowing the roof off of the Madison Square Garden!

One grand prize winner will be selected to receive the following:

Two seats in the first two rows
Two passes to the VIP pre-show party
A Meet & Greet with Steven Tyler and Joe Perry
Round-trip airfare to NYC
Two night hotel stay
$350 for ground transportation
Premium membership to Aero Force One
Exclusive gift bag

In addition to all these rocking prizes, Gibson Guitar and Logitech want to make sure you come home happy! The grand prize winner will also enjoy these for years to come:

A Gibson Les Paul Studio guitar
Logitech Squeezebox Boom (Wi-Fi Internet Radio)
Ultimate Ears UE 4 Pro
Ultimate Ears 700 Noise-Isolating Earphones

Enter for your chance to experience rock n’ roll heaven with ZZ Top and Aerosmith! Winner will be announced the week of June 22nd.

Enter The Sweepstakes:  (here).

Aero Force One
May 26, 2009

Watch video:  (here).

Aero Force One
May 22, 2009

Search with Aerosmith and WIN!

This is Aeropoints, YOUR own rewards program for everything Aerosmith! Points – Points – Points! Aerosmith – Aerosmith – Aerosmith!

Now when you search the web – (and you’re always searching for something) – you’ll earn Aeropoints and get the chance to WIN killer Aerosmith prizes like a phone call from a band member just to say thanks (and who knows what else they might say?!) Win a pair of tickets from Joey Kramer! Already going to the show? Your points can get you access, too – How about we upgrade you to get a backstage tour or join in on the VIP pre-show party! Every Aeropoint you earn is like a Boston Bad Boys raffle ticket – the more points you rack up, the better your chances. You can search and earn Aeropoints by using the extremely easy Aerosmith toolbar or by using the Aerosmith custom search webpage (http://points.aeroforceone.com)

You’ll even earn Aeropoints for recruiting new members. Everyone tells a friend – now you get points for it! You can track all the Aeropoints you’ve earned right from points.aeroforceone.com. And there’s even a Leaderboard so you can see who’s in the LEAD with the most points – and who it is you gotta beat!!! Here’s the best part – every week we give away new prizes in the Rock N’ Raffle.You have a chance to win awesome Aerosmith stuff, everything from AF1 memberships to merch to VIP Ticket packages! And Oh, Yeah! Come June 10th – the start of the Aerosmith tour – the person with the most points will WIN a VIP Ticket Package (for 2 of course). Hey, we told you this isn’t your grandma’s BINGO game. Aerosmith hits the road this summer, so you gotta move and start rackin’ up points ASAP!

The Aerosmith Toolbar – The easiest way to rack up points the fastest!

What’s a toolbar? It’s an internet search tool that gives you the freedom to search what you’re looking for online without having to go to a search website like Google or Yahoo! The Aerosmith Toolbar gives you the power to do this and much much more! Not only will you be able to search the internet, you will also have access to the best of the Aerosmith website, receive exclusive messages directly from the band, and also, a great way to earn Aeropoints!

You gotta download it, but trust us – it’s totally safe and there are no hidden programs. (Except for the one where the band looks through all your personal pics.) Kidding! Your privacy is 100% protected and you only download the toolbar, nothin’ else. Start earning Aeropoints for free right when you download!

Don’t be jaded – Grab the toolbar for the best Aeropoints advantage. Did you download the Aerosmith toolbar yet?

New York Times, NY
May 13, 2009

“Guitar Hero” was just the tip of the gaming iceberg for Aerosmith. Now the group, whose music is featured in a popular version of the game released last year, will put its songs and images behind a branded lottery game, Billboard reported.

On Aerosmith’s tour this summer, fans in a few states, including Rhode Island and New Hampshire, will have the opportunity to buy Aerosmith-themed scratch-off tickets; prizes include front-row seats, backstage passes, memorabilia and perhaps even a private concert. The lotto cards, developed in a partnership between GTECH, a company that creates state and private lottery games, and Primary Wave Music, the lead singer Steven Tyler’s publisher, will feature designs based on the band’s hits (”Dream On”). The group stands to benefit more than the usual lotto winner: in addition to a base fee, it will receive a bonus based on the number of tickets sold.

Ross Dalton, the senior vice president of printed products and licensed content for GTECH, said the group’s fans overlapped with the traditional lottery audience:- male, middle-aged and lower middle class. “You could probably count on one hand the number of bands that would be both palatable
in government-sponsored gaming and recognizable to a broad demographic,” he said, according to Billboard.com. “That’s why we got very excited about Aerosmith.”

Meanwhile, stellar players of “Guitar Hero: Aerosmith” have a chance to be excited too. The band is offering them an opportunity to open their tour — or rather, open for their openers, usually ZZ Top. Fans who post the best Guitar Hero performance video on YouTube will be able to take the stage in
each city the tour stops in, go backstage to meet the band, and have their moment filmed and featured on Aeroforceone.com, no scratch-offs necessary.

RollingStone.com
May 19, 2009

Photo: Mazur/WireImage

In a new interview with EW’s Music Mix, Joe Perry opened up about Aerosmith’s delayed new album and upcoming tour with ZZ Top — and also inadvertently let slip that the band’s new album might be a Walmart exclusive, like AC/DC’s Black Ice and the Eagles’ Long Road Out of Eden.

According to Perry, the band is frustrated that despite Perry’s need for knee surgery and singer Steven Tyler’s pneumonia, they haven’t finished their new album in time. “This is about the third time I’ve had to make excuses why the record isn’t out,” Perry told EW. “You line everything up just right: Brendan O’Brien producing, Walmart and Sony screaming for the record, tour coming up, and there’s no record. We’re still in shock that it’s not happening.” Perry was able to complete his own “fucking great” solo album, as well as make some culinary advances with his hot sauce and a new product called Rock n’ Roni.

Perry also confirmed that like many acts hitting the road this summer, Aerosmith will play one of their LPs in its entirety on their upcoming tour. “We’re going to pick an album and do it from front to back. Even though we do bits and pieces from all the albums, to me, there’s kind of a vibe that happens when you hear an album from beginning to end,” Perry said, though he wouldn’t specify which LP the band would play. Aerosmith kick off their tour with fellow Rock & Roll Hall of Famers ZZ Top on June 10th in Maryland Heights, Missouri.

PRNewswire.com
May 22, 2009

THE NATION’S LEADING SCIENTISTS AND TOP ROCK STARS SHINE A SPOTLIGHT ON THE PROMISE OF MEDICAL RESEARCH

GEOFFREY BEENE GIVES BACK® and GQ Magazine Launch Public Service Campaign with Designer Menswear Photo Feature

WASHINGTON, DC – MAY 22, 2009 /PRNewswire/ — GEOFFREY BEENE GIVES BACK® and GQ Magazine have joined forces to bring celebrity rock stars like nine-time Grammy Award winner, Sheryl Crow, and some of the nation’s leading medical researchers in areas like cancer, HIV-AIDS, heart disease, Alzheimer’s, genetics and personalized medicine together to showcase the need for greater funding and to capture the imagination of the next generation of “Rock Stars of Science” in the making. The public service campaign, called Rock Stars of Science (ROCK S.O.S.), will be launched through a special 6-page sponsored photo spread in the June issue of GQ Magazine, available nationally on May 25.

ROCK S.O.S. aims to bridge a serious recognition gap that, according to a recent Harris Interactive survey for Chicago’s Museum of Science and Industry, makes Britney Spears more influential than Stephen Hawking among most Americans. In fact, an earlier survey commissioned by the national organization, Research!America, found that nearly three-fourths of those polled could not name a single living scientist.

“It’s not everyday that Platinum selling artists have a chance to jam with Nobel Prize winners and recipients of the Presidential Medal of Freedom, but maybe we should,” said Sheryl Crow. “What these scientists are doing to fight diseases like breast cancer is just as much driven by inspiration and a passion for humanity as the best song ever written. Without our realizing it, they are quietly making everyone’s life healthier and fuller, so we all owe them our deepest respect and support.”

Along with Sheryl Crow, ROCK S.O.S. features Grammy-nominated Josh Groban, hip hop artist and X-Men Origins: Wolverine co-star Will-i-am, Aerosmith’s Joe Perry and multi-Platinum seller, Seal. Featured researchers include:

Francis S. Collins, MD, PhD, former Director of the National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom
Harold Varmus, MD, Nobel Prize winner for discovery of cancer genes, former director of the National Institutes of Health, and advisor to President Obama and Gates Foundation (Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center)
Anthony S. Fauci, MD, global expert on HIV/AIDS and key advisor to the White House and Department of Health and Human Services on infectious diseases and global health (National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health)
David B. Agus, MD, leading researcher and entrepreneur in personalized medicine for major diseases like cancer (University of Southern California)
Rudy Tanzi, PhD, discoverer of major new genes related to Alzheimer’s (Harvard Medical School)
Eric J. Topol, MD, pioneer in genomics-based cardiology (Scripps Translational Science Institute)
Ron Petersen, MD, clinician, Alzheimer’s investigator; President Ronald Reagan’s personal physician (Mayo Clinic)
Steven T. DeKosky, MD, pioneer in early detection of Alzheimer’s (University of Virginia School of Medicine)
Sam Gandy, MD, PhD, researcher developing drugs for prevention and treatment of Alzheimer’s (Mount Sinai Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center)
Dale Schenk, PhD, inventor of the vaccination approach for the treatment of Alzheimer’s (Elan Pharmaceuticals)
Jeffrey Cummings, MD, modernizer of brain function measurements (Mary S. Easton Center for Alzheimer’s Disease Research at UCLA)

“Scientists like to tell ourselves that we are too busy to worry about image. But the reality is that our work only has a chance of making a difference if we build a much broader base of popular support for medical research than currently exists in this country. That has to include more public pressure for congressional funding of research and more commitment to developing scientific leadership for the next century,” explained Dr. Francis S. Collins, one of the featured Rock Stars of Science. “So if that means I have to break out my old guitar, get dressed up and play with some of my all time favorite musicians – well it’s a tough job but someone has to do it.”

In addition to the GQ Magazine photo feature, ROCK S.O.S. will be supported by a website www.rockstarsofscience.org , to be launched on June 1, 2009. The site will profile the scientists, their teams and research institutions. Readers will also have the opportunity to sign a declaration calling for more funding for science research, nominate their own Rock Stars of Science, and qualify for limited edition campaign giveaways. “ROCK S.O.S. helps to mobilize Americans in a number of ways to end this moment in history when our greatest minds and dedicated public servants are too often overlooked,” explained Meryl Comer, President of the GEOFFREY BEENE GIVES BACK® Alzheimer’s Initiative and campaign coordinator. “We are so close to simply too many dramatic breakthroughs against the diseases that threaten our future to lose ground now. Whatever it takes, we must send the S.O.S. — which doubles as ‘Support Our Science’.”

ROCK S.O.S. is made possible by the designer menswear brand, GEOFFREY BEENE with a unique business model of corporate giving. One hundred percent of net profits from GEOFFREY BEENE, LLC fund philanthropic causes. Today, the GEOFFREY BEENE Foundation and the GEOFFREY BEENE Brand have supported over $145 million in charitable commitments to a variety of medical causes including the lead recipient, the GEOFFREY BEENE Cancer Research Center at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. Additional charitable support goes to its Alzheimer’s Initiative, the GoRed For Women campaign, signature CFDA and YMA Fashion Scholarships, Veterans’ support, protection of animals, and the welfare of women and children, in partnership with Macy’s through the Family Violence Prevention Fund. For more information, contact: www.geoffreybeene.com .

GQ Magazine is the leading men’s general-interest magazine with a monthly readership of 6.1 million readers. The magazine is published by Condé Nast Publications. For more information, contact: www.gqconnects.com .

Cyril Huze Blog
May 15, 2009

Dirico Motorcycles USA, the brand of Steven Tyler’s inspiration and Mark Dirico’s innovation, will be appearing at the 2009 Sturgis Bike Week. Tyler himself will be there performing with Aerosmith, the official band of the event. Dirico Motorcycles will be displaying bikes at the 7th Annual Metzeler Bike contest on Tuesday, August 4, at Buffalo Chip. Dirico will also have a full display setup of its models on Lazelle Street in Sturgis all week long, and a bike at the Deadwood Casino. A Dirico motorcycle will be raffled off on Stage at Buffalo Chip during the Aerosmith concert, Wednesday, August 5. For more information go to Buffalo Chip.

Tyler will also be taking part in the Legends Ride on Monday, August 3… starting in Silverado-Franklin Historic Hotel and Gaming Complex, in Deadwood, and ending at Buffalo Chip in Sturgis. More about the ride can be found at Legends Ride.

Zildjian.com
May 18, 2009

LOCATION: Portland, ME
ARTISTS: Joey Kramer

“Zildjian on Tour 2009″ was launched this past Saturday, May 16th at The Drum Shop of Portland in Portland, Maine. Owner Chris Dealerman and his sales staff; Josh and Stefen did a great job in promoting the event with a line forming outside the shop an hour before opening!

The event featured Zildjian ‘Sound Lab Prototypes’ as well as great buying opportunities on the existing Zildjian Cymbal line, Zildjian Drumsticks and Accessories. Given the tough economic climate, sales for the day were still five times greater than the average Saturday, thanks to the efforts of Chris and his staff.

Also on hand to help kick-off “Zildjian on Tour 2009,” was Joey Kramer of Aerosmith. Joey’s fans were out in full-force with Joey signing autographs and posing for pictures. Photos below.

A great day and a great event. Thanks to The Drum Shop of Portland for their friendship and hospitality and we’ll see you on tour!

To find out the other “Zildjian on Tour” dates, go here.

More photos:  (here).

RollingStone.com
May 19, 2009

Aerosmith Rethinking the Formula for Summer Arena Tour With ZZ Top
“It’s going to be a kickass show,” Joe Perry says

Aerosmith
Openers ZZ Top
Tickets $24-$198

WHAT TO EXPECT:
Steven Tyler’s bout with pneumonia prevented Aerosmith from getting a new studio album out in time for this amphitheater tour, but that just means more room for rarities. “The set lists have been getting stale,” says guitarist Joe Perry. “We’ve talked about doing an album front-to-back — probably one of the first three records. That’s my next battle, to see if we can pull it off.”

Also sweetening the deal for longtime Aerosmith fans this time out, another formidable act with arena-sized riffs: ZZ Top. “That’s just amazing to be able to play with them because it’s going to be a kickass show,” Perry says.

More:  (here).

MusicRadar.com
May 19, 2009

“We have a dynamite summer package”

Joe Perry has a problem: In just a few weeks Aerosmith will hit the road with ZZ Top and the Boston-based guitarist has to pick a dozen or so axes to take out with him.

So what’s the problem? Only that he has about 600 of them.

“It’s an embarrassing dilema to have,” he demurs. “My collection is certainly nice, but it does make it tough when you have to choose only a few of them.”

Perry’s beloved ‘Billie’
Among his myriad vintage Les Pauls, Strats, Teles, Gretsches, SGs and Firebirds, one piece Perry won’t have any trouble choosing is ‘Billie,’ so named because of the visage of Perry’s wife, Billie, which adorns its body.

“‘Billie’ is a beautiful instrument,” says Perry. “First off, it’s a BB King ‘Lucille’ guitar. We’ve made a few alterations, and of course it has a stunning picture of my wife on it. She’s gorgeous, the guitar is gorgeous – how can I not look good playing it?”

Touring with the Top, the new album
Perry is wildly anticipating the Guitar Hero-sponsored summer jaunt that will see Aerosmith teamed with ZZ Top (”They floor me every time. We’re honored to be paired with them”); more than that, he’s itching to get back into the studio to complete the long overdue Aerosmith album that has been years in the making.

“We made some good headway with (producer) Brendan O’Brien,” he says, “but all these health issues came up – I had knee surgery, Steven (Tyler) got pneumonia. But we’ve got some really rocking songs written, and I’m excited. It’s going to be our fiercest record since back in the day.”

MusicRadar caught up with Perry on a rainy afternoon. The guitarist admitted he wasn’t in the best of moods – he had a solo record to finish, and delays were keeping him up nights.

But a combination of Columbian coffee and a Montecristo No. 5 cigar had an ameliorating effect, and in the podcast below Perry held forth on the upcoming tour, his sense of sartorial style, Guitar Hero and his thoughts on classic Aerosmith albums.

Joe Perry audio interview: Download (right-click and Save As… here).

Entertainment Weekly
May 18, 2009

(Photo Credit: Alexis C. Glenn/UPI/Landov)

Aerosmith should be touring this summer in support of a new studio album, their first non-covers collection since 2001’s Just Push Play. But work on the CD was suspended after guitarist Joe Perry underwent surgery on his knee and singer Steven Tyler contracted pneumonia. The rock legends are still hitting the road anyway (with special guests ZZ Top) and EW spoke to Perry about what fans can expect, his (non-)proficiency on Guitar Hero, and the axeman’s side career as a food impresario.

Entertainment Weekly: How’s the knee?
Joe Perry: It’s actually doing pretty good, thanks for asking. I’m doing my bends and dips and bulls— to get it flexible for the stage.

You must be bummed the new album isn’t finished.
I feel like a f—king shoe salesman talking about it because this is about the third time I’ve had to make excuses why the record isn’t out. You line everything up just right: Brendan O’Brien producing, Walmart and Sony screaming for the record, tour coming up, and there’s no record. We’re still in shock that it’s not happening. So I finished my solo record which is going to be coming out probably in the early fall.

Is it any good?
It’s f—ing great. It’s hands and feet better than the last one. And I think the last one was really good.

What have you got planned for the tour?
We’re going to pick an album and do it from front to back. Even though we do bits and pieces from all the albums, to me, there’s kind of a vibe that happens when you hear an album from beginning to end.

Do you know which album you’re going to do?
Yeah, I do. [laughs]

But you’re not going to tell me?
Right.

The folks at Guitar Hero brought out an Aerosmith game last year and there’s also a new GH competition, the winners of which will get to play as your “opening act.” Are you any good at Guitar Hero yourself?
Of course not! The first levels being really simple and the controller being somewhat familiar for a guitar player, I can intuitively do it. But as soon as it starts veering off into the more complicated stuff then it really turns into a gamer’s game. And I’m just not a gamer. I gladly let me sons beat me.

What’s happening with your line of Joe Perry hot sauce? That stuff is delicious!
Yeah, I use it. Steven’s addicted to it.

It’s nice that you’re addicted to hot sauce these days rather than anything else.
Well, I didn’t say I wasn’t addicted to other things as well. But hot sauce is a good one. We’re going to relaunch it in a new bottle and we’re putting out another food product. I went around the house to see what the kids were eating the most and my wife said, “That’s easy, macaroni and cheese.” So, we’re putting out Rock ‘N’ Roni. There’s going to be four different flavors and it’s all natural and it’s really good.

At this rate, you’ll soon be able to retire from this whole music business nonsense!
Well, I could have retired a long time ago. But that’s not really what I’m cut out for.

Aero Force One
May 17, 2009

“Help us bring Music to underserved kids!

The Music & Youth Initiative, a non-profit organization dedicated to funding free afterschool music programs for inner city youth, is now holding an on-line auction. Want a personal drum lesson from Joey Kramer or a bass lesson from Tom Hamilton? Well, now’s your chance! How about a trip to beautiful Aruba or Hilton Head Island? Win a signed Lance Armstrong or Doug Flutie jersey or a Les Paul Guitar signed by the legendary Les Paul himself! Here’s your chance to win these and other great items!

Click on http://my09.charitybuzz.com/viewLots.do and bid generously!! Make the winning bid – all net proceeds from the auction will go directly to the Music and Youth Initiative’s programs!

Music & Youth Initiative (www.musicandyouth.org) funds an afterschool program for inner city youth who have the opportunity to take free music lessons in guitar, keys, drums, and voice, and produce and record their own music. With your help, we are able to bring these exciting programs to a greater number of deserving kids. Tom Hamilton serves on the board of Music and Youth and Joey Kramer has been a big supporter. This is a program they really believe in and we hope you do too!

We know that music opens a world of fun, creativity, and builds self-confidence and self-esteem. We know kids who take music lessons do better in school and stay in school. We also know that budget cuts in many schools have eliminated these programs for many underserved kids.

So, treat yourself to some great unique items, and do something great for these kids at the same time…a win-win!

Thanks in advance for your support!!!”

ReadJunk.com
May 14, 2009

Dropkick Murphys will be playing a one off show with Boston legends Aerosmith. The concert will be at the Comcast Center in Mansfield, MA on Tuesday, June 16th. You can buy tickets now for the event [here]. The band commented about the news in their newsletter saying “Yes, that’s right, Dropkick Murphys will be joining Aerosmith for one special show only at the Comcast Center in Mansfield, MA on Tuesday, June 16th. Tickets are available now & some special lower priced seats have been released for DKM fans.”

A statement from the Aerosmith camp reads:

“Hometown heroes the Dropkick Murphys have accepted our invitation to join Aerosmith as our special guests at the Comcast Center on June 16th. In order to provide fans of both bands with the best experience possible, open air reserved seats have been added at the lawn seat ticket price of just $35.00. Don’t miss an opportunity to see two of the most loved & electrifying Boston-bred bands as they rock the Comcast Center together this summer”.

Complete article:  (here).

Aero Force One
May 15, 2009

Winning Design Will Be Used On-Stage For The 2009 Aerosmith North American Tour!!! And, Oh, Yeah! We’ll give ya a pair of tickets to the Aerosmith show of your choice and we’ll even throw in a Joey Kramer autographed drum head (with your design!)! How cool is that?

The Bad Boys of Aerosmith are gettin’ geared up and gettin’ Back in the Saddle Again for a Down ‘N Dirty, Thumpin’ ‘N Pumpin’, In-Your-Face US Tour! And You…Yeah You!…could have your design featured on Joey Kramer’s bass drum head For the Aerosmith 2009 Summer Tour!

So…it’s time to put your devastating design skills and killer creative juices in motion to come up with something worthy of JK and his heavy hitting, pedal-to-the metal drum playin’ ways. Do You have What It Takes?! Can You Rock the Talk??!! Get it Together and when JK is pounding his way through a set of Aerosmith classics, your cymbal of success…uh, we mean Symbol of Success will be Front & Center On Stage!

How To Enter:

Send in your bass drum head designs to contests@aeroforceone.com with the subject line “Joey Bass Drum Head Contest.” Submissions/Entries are due Tuesday, May 26, 2009 by 12pm ET. You Must download this Form [at AF1], fill it out and send it in with your submission. You must be eighteen (18) years of age or older in order to submit. The winning entry will be contacted via email and or phone so please be sure to include your name, physical address, best email address(s) to reach you and best phone number(s) to reach you. Enter Now for a Chance To Win!

*NOTE: The bass drum head is 23″ in diameter. There will be a cut out at the lower right hand side of the drum head. See image [at link] below.

Official Contest Rules

Release and Agreement – Submission of Material

LiveDaily.com
By Christina Fuoco-Karasinski / LiveDaily Contributor
May 14, 2009

Aerosmith bassist Tom Hamilton sees his summertime “Guitar Hero”-sponsored jaunt with ZZ Top as a sign of the times.

“Actually, before ZZ Top, we’re putting together a huge ‘Guitar Hero’ contest in each city,” Hamilton said via telephone from his “little studio in his backyard” during an interview with LiveDaily. “The leaders of the competition are going to come up on stage before ZZ Top goes on and they’re going to play live on the giant screens. That’s going to be a freak fest for these people. I just think it’s so funny and ironic that you can get so good at a game that you can get up on a stage and be doing it in front of the crowd. It’s really funny.”

Aerosmith is taking a break from pre-production for its next album to hit the road with ZZ Top, starting in Mansfield, MA, on June 16. From what he calls his “lair,” Hamilton spoke to LiveDaily about working with knob-turner Brendan O’Brien on the new material, what fans can expect from the live shows, and what has kept Aerosmith together after 40 years.

LiveDaily: What’s it like to be working with Brendan O’Brien on new material?

He’s somebody we’ve wanted to work with for a long time. He actually mixed our “Get a Grip” album. The guy works at lightning speed, so he’s got very close tolerances with his schedule. We did about eight weeks of pre-production, including about two weeks with Brendan. We did have a date we were aiming to go down to New York and go in the studio, but we just got delayed a bit. Steven [Tyler, singer] had sort of a pneumonia thing. I don’t know if it was pneumonia or a bad bronchial infection, but it was enough to sort of screw up the schedule. We decided to put the album aside and go into getting-ready-for-the-tour mode.

So it was going well with Brendan?

Well, yeah, we got a bunch of stuff done. We worked really fast and concentrated really hard, piled up a bunch of really great arrangements for some of these originals we want to record. We’ve got that on ice. It’s ready for us to continue polishing it and finishing it and getting it ready to record.

When do you plan on going back in the studio?

It would probably be some time in the fall unless the tour gets extended. We’ll either put it off again or just do the crunch and try to get it done at the same time.

Describe the songwriting process for the new album.

Some songs evolve from jams. But everybody has a pile of riffs. As far as this album goes, it’s hard to predict how that’s all going to come down. Speaking for myself, I’ve been bearing down pretty hard on just becoming more of a rounded, self-contained entity, where I can write songs, and, if they don’t appeal to Steven as tracks, I can think of my own vocal ideas. I’ve been working really hard on that. But my scenario is to get in the studio with the band and just see what shakes out. We didn’t have enough time to cover stuff that everybody wants to work on. Hopefully we’ll get back to that and everybody will have a chance to pipe up.

How have preparations been for the tour with ZZ Top?

It’s going good. We haven’t done any full band rehearsals yet. We’ll probably start doing that next week. We did do a ton of playing [while] working on the record. That all goes on the “good” pile when it comes to being ready to tour, keeping your hands in shape and your chops reasonably fresh.

What can we expect from the shows? Are you going to play new songs?

That’s gonna come up. At this point, we’re not talking about playing any new material. We are talking about some stuff that’s a bit different than what we’ve done before, but I can’t spill the beans on it–especially until we’re actually in the process. There’s definitely some things that we’ve been thinking about doing in the set for awhile involving some of our classic material. Once the band gets into that rehearsal cauldron, then we’ll find out what we’re cooking.

It sounds like you’re looking forward to it.

Yeah. Touring can really be a ball buster, but it’s very humbling and inspiring that that many people still want to see us play. That really energizes you.

What do you think it is that has (a) kept the band together, and (b) kept audiences coming?

Well, I think it’s because we’re a very song-oriented band. We like that. We like playing the favorites and we like mixing in stuff that’s from the classic list or whatever.

So you like to mix it up to keep it fresh for yourselves as well?

Yeah, we’ll be in the middle of a tour and say, “Oh we should play that song,” and then realize we really have to be organized and have organized rehearsals before we want to do it. But we’re really psyched. We just had a bunch of meetings with our production and lighting people. We’re gonna have a dazzling light show, which I love. Some bands think it’s almost unethical to have really fancy, lots of flashing lights and stuff. Most bands really enjoy it. It’s really fun. It goes back to the old tradition of when theater lighting became a light show. That hearkens back to the psychedelic era in the late ’60s when, instead of just having spotlights so you could see the band, they had a pulsating, vibrating, flashing light show that went with the music. So we’re all still building on that tradition.

Do you ever get tired of playing the hits? If so, how do you deal with it?

Yeah, I do. Well, there’s always something you can do. You can think of new stuff, you just do it within your part. There is a lot of room for improvisation in the songs on tiny bits of it. We really like to play the arrangements the way we recorded them. Even in that framework you can find little places, little challenges, and that keeps it pretty fresh. Plus, you have all the people in the audience smiling away while you play a song; it’s hard not to like it.

It must be a real buzz to watch all the people get into your music when you’re playing it.

Well, it’s funny because the audience thinks the only watching that’s going on is them watching us. But little do they realize we’re watching them back–and they are very entertaining.

How did the summer tour come together?

It’s our rhythm these days–is to have a summer tour. We did a European tour and South American tour the year before last. Last year, we didn’t tour. It’s all built into our DNA to be taken for granted that we are going to be out on the road. I don’t think we’re overconfident. It’s just a rhythm that keeps repeating itself.

How did ZZ Top come into the fold?

I wish I could give you a real exotic explanation. It really was a phone call from my manager, “These guys might be available. What do you think?” I’m like, “Holy s—, yes.” That’s before I thought of any of the other responsible things you’re supposed to think about before you make a decision. My gut instinct was, “Wow, really great.” So I was into it right away because again those guys have so many good songs. They don’t have two or three good songs and then the audience kind of like looks at their watch for the rest. The crowd is going to be so energized. We get to go out and watch them play every night. I don’t know if people know it, but Billy Gibbons is from a previous generation and I don’t mean chronologically. I mean in terms of the depth of his guitar-playing roots. He was a contemporary of some of the really heroic guitarists of that same era I was talking about before, with the light shows. He started a band. It really started out as a blues band, and evolved into a blues-rock band and then they actually had a period when they were cranking out big hits. But they’re just–musically, they’ve got the depth.

STL Today, MO
May 13, 2009

3 Doors Down has just been announced as the opening act for the June 10 Aerosmith concert at Verizon Wireless Amphitheater. As we already know, ZZ Top is opening the rest of the tour, but is not on the tour’s first date at Verizon. Tickets are $41, $55, $79, $130, and $200, with a lawn four-pack available as well. Tickets are on sale now at www.livenation.com, 877-598-8703, at the box office, and at select Blockbuster locations.

Aero Force One
May 13, 2009

Watch video:  (here).

Aero Force One
May 13, 2009

Winners To Perform On Stage Before Aerosmith And Their Special Guests

So you wanna be a rock superstar?

Well, rock superstardom is now within your grasp courtesy of AEROSMITH and Guitar Hero®: Aerosmith®. In groundbreaking fashion, America’s Greatest Rock ‘N Roll Band and the mega-popular video game franchise are giving fans the chance to be the OPENING ACT for the massive Guitar Hero: Aerosmith Presents Aerosmith tour with special guests ZZ Top. The tour–for which tickets are available now at www.livenation.com– kicks off June 10 in St. Louis, with ZZ Top joining the tour on June 21. The catch? Fans simply have to prove their mettle on Guitar Hero: Aerosmith.

In each city the tour hits, two victorious fret-burners will perform before ZZ Top (or the support acts for the dates where ZZ Top aren’t performing), playing Guitar Hero: Aerosmith on stage in front of massive audiences. One grand prize winner will be chosen from AEROSMITH’s YouTube channel online and others will be chosen from participating radio stations. However, AEROSMITH are offering the victors way more than just rock immortality for a night.

Winners also receive two tickets to the show, a Guitar Hero: Aerosmith prize package and a personal pre-show congratulatory meet-and-greet with none other than AEROSMITH’s STEVEN TYLER (vocals) and JOE PERRY (guitar). That’s for the winners, not their guests, since the backstage area can only accommodate winners and fellow rock stars.

Further solidifying the winner’s status as a living room rock god, each opening set will be filmed and featured on Aeroforceone.com and the AEROSMITH YouTube channel. Now that’s something to post on your friends’ Facebook walls.

The contest will be showcased on social media sites including MySpace, Facebook, Twitter, iLike and official websites such as Aerosmith.com and Aeroforceone.com; and Guitar Hero web sites including GuitarHero.com and Guitar Hero’s Facebook group.

If you think you’ve got what it takes to shred the stage before AEROSMITH and ZZ Top light up their strings, here’s how to enter:

1) Create a video either ripping some serious air guitar using the Guitar Hero controller OR shredding a wicked session of Guitar Hero: Aerosmith.

2) Upload video to YouTube. IMPORTANT: EACH VIDEO ENTRY MUST BE CLEARLY TAGGED AS FOLLOWS: “AerosmithOpeningAct” (one word, no spaces) and another tag with the city you want to win (i.e. “Mansfield”). So your two tags would be: “AerosmithOpeningAct” and “Mansfield.” (Use the city name listed under the “Location” column on the Aero Force One tour page (http://www.aeroforceone.com/index.cfm?pk=viewall&cd=MAE&pid=10784).

3) Subscribe to Aerosmith’s Official YouTube Channel at www.youtube.com/theofficialaerosmith. We’ll update the contest videos on a weekly basis, so make sure to see your entry posted after a week. If it’s not there, double check that you tagged it correctly. If you entered everything correctly, email contests@aeroforceone.com with a link to your YouTube video contest entry, the city you hope to win, your first and last name and your email address.

4) AF1 will pick a winner in each city. Hint: To get your video noticed make sure your vid is crazy, cool, rockin’, funny, creative, insane or all of the above—within the letter of the law, of course.

5) Winners will be informed on a rolling basis two weeks before each show. Even if you’re not a grand prize winner, there are some fantastic runner-up prizes. There will be other winners based on videos with the most ratings, comments or creativity. Guitar Hero game packs and pairs of tickets to the shows, will be available Runners Up prizes.

6) Make sure you stay in touch with all the contest news—sign up for AeroForceOne’s official email newsletter (www.aeroforceone.com) and follow AF1 on Twitter (www.twitter.com/aeroforceone) to stay up on the leaders!

Becoming a rock star has never been this easy. There’s no touring required, no sleeping on floors, no bad catering, no bus boredom and no awkward interviews, just you and a packed amphitheatre filled to the brim with screaming fans. All you have to do is shred to some of Aerosmith’s greatest hits in Guitar Hero: Aerosmith in order to gain the golden backstage pass.

If you don’t win the Opening Act contest, there’s still a way to get on the same stage as Aerosmith. Aero Force One (AF1), the band’s official fan club, offers exclusive VIP packages for every show on the band’s massive summer tour. With the “Ultra Sweet Spot,” take a guided backstage tour to meet the cast and crew in charge of Aerosmith’s legendary live productions. Stand on stage in the same spot where Steven, Joe, Tom, Brad and Joey will play to thousands of screaming fans and rock the rafters mere hours later. Hang out at a pre-show party where Joey Kramer will make a special appearance and share up-close and personal “Joey Kramer” and of course Aerosmith stories. From your seats in the first 10 rows you’ll get close enough to see legendary guitarists at work – watch Brad Whitford and Joe Perry’s fingers fly on every note in Aerosmith’s blistering set list. AF1 offers a range of VIP packages, each tailored to the ultimate Aerosmith fan experience. (With “Wheels Up,” you can meet Steven and Joe!). If you just want to get to the show, AF1 offers tickets-only with “Premium Tickets” – and throws in some killer merchandise just for being a fan club member. Visit AeroForceOne.com for details.

Now you’ve got two ways to visit rock superstardom for that once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Good luck!

AEROSMITH–STEVEN TYLER (vocals), JOE PERRY (guitar), BRAD WHITFORD (guitar), TOM HAMILTON (bass) and JOEY KRAMER (drums)–made history last year when Activision released Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, marking the first music-based game built around the legendary music of Aerosmith. The groundbreaking partnership united “America’s greatest hard rock act” (as described by Mojo editor Phil Alexander in a May ‘07 cover story) with the massively successful videogame franchise; sales exploded and broke records, with AEROSMITH reaching another generation of fans.

Click here for official contest terms & conditions. (http://www.aeroforceone.com/index.cfm?pid=10808&Live=yes)

Guitar Hero: Aerosmith brings these quintessential rock legends to the interactive realm to create the ultimate gaming experience. As fans progress through their careers in the game, they can rock out to scores of Aerosmith’s greatest hits including various tracks re-mastered by the legendary band for Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, as well as songs from celebrated artists that the band has either performed with or has been inspired by in some way. Highlighting the list of celebrated artists is an in-game guest appearance from one of the pioneers of hip-hop and kings of rock, Darryl “DMC” McDaniels. Venues from historical moments during the band’s illustrious career offer the experience of “sweet emotion” and further capture the essence of the band’s rise to fame. For more information visit www.guitarhero.com.

“Activision Publishing, Inc. is not a sponsor of this Contest. Activision’s name and logo, and/or the “Guitar Hero” name, logo, and/or materials are used for purposes of contest and/or prize description only and such use is not intended to suggest or imply Activision’s sponsorship, participation or approval of this Contest.”

Aero Force One
May 12, 2009

Zildjian Tour 2009 – Be There 5-16-09 in Portland, Maine and meet THE Joey Kramer of Aerosmith!

Drum Legend and Rock Icon Joey Kramer of Aerosmith will be at the Drum Shop of Portland, Maine on May 16th, 2009 (from 12pm-2pm). Come Talk and ROCK with JK and hear all about his heavy hitting, pedal-to-the-metal, drivin’ and poundin’ drum playing days in and out of Aerosmith! JK will be signing autographs and talking to fans like you – yeah YOU!

Make sure you come on by to ROCK and Talk with Joey Kramer!

Who: JoeyKramer

What: Zildjian Tour 2009

Where: The Drum Shop of Portland Maine.
            262 Saint John St
            Portland, ME 04102
            (207) 874-6630

When: May 16th, 2009 from 12pm-2pm

Why: To ROCK and Talk with Joey Kramer of Aerosmith!

Aero Force One
May 11, 2009

AOL Spinner

Playing full albums in their entirety has become the latest tour fad, with everyone from Green Day and Bruce Springsteen to Liz Phair and Tortoise treating their fans to classic records in full. Aerosmith has been paying attention, guitarist Joe Perry tells Spinner. “We’ve always wanted to do a show where we played an album all the way from beginning to end,” Perry says. “We play a lot of songs, but to hear an album from top to bottom, it’s a lot of fun. We’ll probably try it this time out.”

With the band yet to enter reharsals, the album getting the full live treatment is to be determined, but Perry says, “Anything from the first album to ‘Pumped’ would probably be fair game.”

Another thing to be determined is whether the band will bust out any new material, including a song with the working title of ‘Big Groove.’ “It’s classic Aerosmith rock,” Perry says. “It’ll be interesting to hear how that stands in a big hall.”

Once the tour is done, the band will return to the studio with producer Brendan O’Brien to finish off the new record this fall. “We have all this material,” Perry says, adding there are a few show-stopping ballads in the vein of ‘Dream On’ and ‘Amazing.’

Whatever the band does on the road this summer, they know they’ll have to bring their A-game as they’ll be sharing the stage with ZZ Top. “I think they’ve been around longer than us,” Perry says. “They’re a great live band; that’s the school they came from, just as we did. This tour, for me, is a dream tour.”

Aero Force One
May 11, 2009

Watch video:  (here).

Aero Force One
May 11, 2009

Presale Tuesday, 05/12/09

Vancouver, BC, Canada — 08.15.09 — Presale Tuesday, 05.12.09, 01:00 PM ET

More info: (here).

TicketNews.com
May 11, 2009

“……Aerosmith & ZZ Top are now booked for 41 shows on their North American summer tour since the addition of another show north of the board. The newest concert in Canada is on the books for August 15 at BC Place in Vancouver, BC. A total of seven gigs are now scheduled for the Great White North during the summer-long outing, which begins June 10 at the Verizon Wireless Amphitheater in Maryland Heights, MO, and ends September 16 at the Palace of Auburn Hills in Auburn Hills, MI. When it was first confirmed, the tour was said to have an expected 40-date length…..”

Complete article:  (here).

Blabbermouth.net
May 10, 2009

Billboard.biz reports that Aerosmith and singer Steven Tyler’s publisher, Primary Wave Music, struck a deal with the gaming technology company GTECH to launch a band-branded series of lottery games based on “Dream On” and other songs from Aerosmith’s catalog.

GTECH, which creates lottery games for state and private gaming operations, has created products featuring entertainment properties like “The Three Stooges” and “World Series of Poker”. But when Primary Wave Music approached the company about creating a game based on Aerosmith, it jumped at the chance to roll the dice with classic rock.

Read more from Billboard.biz.

YouTube.com – TV Guide
May 6, 2009

“Steven Tyler visits Rock ‘n’ Roll Fantasy Camp and our Nikki Boyer gets the scoop on what turns him on. Also at Rock ‘n’ Roll Fantasy Camp, Olympic skater Scott Hamilton. Looks like everyone wants in on the action!”

Watch video:  (here).

Aero Force One
May 7, 2009

Watch video:  (here).

To Pre-Order YOUR copy of Joey’s forthcoming book “Hit Hard: A Story of Hitting Rock Bottom At the Top” go to:
www.Amazon.com

www.Barnesandnoble.com

www.borders.com

www.indiebound.com

RossHalfin.com
May 2, 2009

“….Shot at Joe Perry’s home in Boston for Guitar Aficionado Magazine….”

More of Ross’ photos:  (here).

Aero Force One
May 6, 2009

ClassicRockRevisited.com
By Jeb Wright

One of the biggest tour of 2009 will be Aerosmith hitting the road with ZZ Top. Both bands feature all original members and are all members of The Rock “n” Roll Hall of Fame. Aerosmith has been given an Icon award by MTV and ZZ Top have been given Rock Honors by VH1. The tour promises to be an amazing night of music.

In this interview, we discuss the upcoming tour, as well as when Aerosmith opened for ZZ Top and their entourage of farm animals. We also talk about how Hamilton has overcome cancer. Tom opens up to discuss how MTV played a part in the band getting back together and how he discovered just how far down his band mates, Steven Tyler and Joe Perry, fell into their drug addiction.

Tom also admits the possibility of Aerosmith performing Toys in the Attic, the entire album, from start-to-finish during the upcoming tour. While it is not 100% a sure thing, he admits it is something he would enjoy doing. While Aerosmith struggles with how to appease the old school fans, and the newer fans, with a compromising set list, one can rest assured they will find a way to have everyone go home happy.

Aerosmith has grabbed the brass ring, discarded it in a haze of drugs and, somehow, had a moment of clarity and regained the ring once again. An American iconic band, Aerosmith continues to walk their own way, only occasionally glimpsing back to the past, but more determined than ever to succeed in the future.

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Jeb: ZZ Top and Aerosmith are going on the road. When were the seeds for this tour planted?

Tom: About two months ago, we were at the point where we needed to figure out what kind of band we wanted to take out on tour. It is usually who is available that determines that process. Our manager calls out of the blue one day and says, “What do you think about touring with ZZ Top?” My initial reaction was, “Absolutely.” I love bands that have a lot of good songs and ZZ has tons of good songs.

We are in this period where people are always commenting on how old we are and how long we have been doing this. There was a point in the past where we would have thought that we had to get a different band, so it doesn’t look like an old guy show. Nowadays, the fans don’t think about that; people in the press think about that. Some of the more precious, new entertainment sites were all pointing the age factor out, as if that was something new. I am like, “Are you kidding? We get to hear Billy Gibbons play guitar every night.” A lot of people are going to look forward to that. There are other bands out there who are newer, cooler and hipper but the audience is not going to be rocking out to every single song like they will be with ZZ Top.

Jeb: Every member of both bands, all eight of you, are original members and are all members of the Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame. I wonder if you have thought of a jam with everyone on stage . . .

Tom: I hope we get some kind of jamming thing going on. We have not talked to them about it, and it is not in the least expected. I would love it if it turned into that kind of thing.

Jeb: I don’t remember ever hearing about ZZ Top and Aerosmith touring.

Tom: We opened for them at some point in the Seventies. We were playing a big stadium, I think it was in Cleveland. I remember they had Astro Turf and it was like standing on a big carpet. ZZ Top’s big visual thing for that tour was bringing out farm animals. They actually had farm animals on stage. I remember we were all laughing about how ridiculous that was. We walked out to watch their set and there was a big pile of cow shit right in the middle of that big green rug. We were laughing about that, and we sent somebody to go get some plastic forks and took pictures of us like we were about to eat it.

Jeb: With this tour, was ZZ Top cool that you were the closers? Is there any ego left?

Tom: They are coming off a period where they have not been touring a whole lot. The last few years, it seems to me, that they have not been that steady into it. There was never a question of the line up. We have been pounding it out on the road a lot over the last ten years. We have built ourselves up a little bigger than those guys. It is not like they are the opening act. It is more of a co-headline type of set. They will play a nice set that will almost be as long as ours. It is not a situation where they are going to go out and play a forty-five minutes.

Jeb: Rumors are leaking out that Aerosmith is going to play “Walk This Way” in its entirety.

Tom: We don’t have an album called Walk This Way.

Jeb: Oh Shit! I know that. I mean Toys in the Attic. I am so embarrassed.

Tom: We have been talking about it for years, and people have been asking us about it for years; that topic has been on simmer for quite a while. I don’t want to say anything to raise peoples’ expectations because there is still a lot of decision making to do before we get out there, but, yeah, we are talking about that as an idea.

I think we have always been stymied by the fact that we have this audience that spans so much time. You have less people wanting the old stuff, but they are very intense about it. You have another group that wants to hear the more recent hits. We are trying to figure out how to do that and how to make the audience go home happy. We are really inspired by the idea, and the whole concept, of how these songs will sound all brought up to date. If you look at the Toys in the Attic album, then we have been playing “Walk This Way” and “Sweet Emotion” all these years.

Jeb: I would love to hear “Uncle Salty.”

Tom: There was a period where Steven [Tyler] and I did a little duet of that. It was Steven singing the verses and me on the bass. It was kind of a solo spot we did before going into “Sweet Emotion.” I am looking forward to the whole band playing that song and hearing what it sounds like. We have not done that song, fully as a band, since those days when we recorded it.

Jeb: You went through a huge scare with cancer. Do you have a clean bill of health?

Tom: I did go through a pretty shitty period with the cancer treatment. I was very confident that they were going to get rid of it. They told me they would get rid of it but they also told me that I was going to have to go through hell. They told me, all they way through the treatment, that they were going to get me through it. They said, “We have done this tons of times and you are going to heal but it is going to suck a little bit.” I go back for checkups every couple of months and it is all clean.

Jeb: Your health and recovery are the most important thing here but you had a Lou Gehrig like streak of never missing an Aerosmith show broken due to your health issue.

Tom: That is true, it really screwed up my attendance record. It was really tough thinking about the band going out there without me. I didn’t have to agonize over the decision as there was no way that it was going to work. I was not going to be able to go on that tour. Two or three months before the tour started, I was still telling everybody around me that I was looking forward to being out on tour with the band. The doctors, and the people around me, looked at me with understanding eyes and I finally realized that I was just not ready yet.

When people have a period where they have to do cancer treatment, they have to go on a cul-de-sac for a while. A lot of people can’t accept it. People get stuck on that, “Why did I get it? Why did this happen to me?” way of looking at things. Other people say, “I am keeping my schedule full. I am not going to let this get me down.” We are all taught to admire that but people who really try to do that are the ones who don’t get through it very well. You have to accept it, which I did. It is now fading into the distance.

Jeb: On a lighter note, I was emailed a picture of you, in drag, playing the Queen of England in a production of Banned in Boston, just the other night.

Tom: I had never sung a song in public before. I have sung a little bit of background vocal parts that are blasted into the band. This was a situation where I was supposed to go up and sing with only a piano player and a drummer. I have done this show for years and years. There was a period of three years where they had me playing women, so I was always in drag. Last year, I said that I needed a break, so they made me John Adams. This year they came to me and said, “How about this… you are in drag and you sing a song.” I got kind of terrified in that moment. Once it was out in the open then I knew I was going to have to do it, so I embraced it and I looked forward to it. I have to admit that I was pretty damned nervous. It was one of those things where you have to go outside of your comfort zone. It was a really fun experience. I love slapstick comedy. I love making faces and all of that stupid shit and I got to do it even more this time.

Jeb: My son, who is an Aerosmith fan, saw the picture and said, “That is not ‘Dude Looks Like A Lady,’ that is ‘Dude Looks Like An Old Lady.’”

Tom: Oh God, I suppose so [laughing].

Jeb: Everyone knows the Aerosmith story and what depths the band sunk too. Drug addiction destroyed Aerosmith to the point that people were passing out on stage. Now, with hindsight, how miraculous is it that you are where you are at today.

Tom: I remember when I was young, in my twenties, and having conventional thoughts of what I would be doing when I was thirty-five. I just figured that I would have a regular job by that age. For years, even after the band had made it, I would go visit my parents and my mom would say, “I am glad your band is doing well but when are you going to college?” I would tell her, “Pretty soon, mom, pretty soon.” She really wanted me to be educated.

We have just slid into this, kind of like we did when we were just kids. We had that period in the early Eighties where we blew it and we threw a beautiful thing right into the trash. We have learned that lesson and still remember it to this day. I would never make a prediction as to how long this band is going to be around; you just never know. Things are usually pretty volatile and there is sort of a Crisis of the Day all the time. We can feel all of the input from all of the people who want to come and see us play. If, all of the sudden, people were not that interested in coming to see us, then we might start really seriously doing other stuff. Luckily for us, there is still enough people out there who want to see us live that we still get invited.

Jeb: I want to go way back to the showcase gig at Max’s Kansas City, where Clive Davis signed the band. I was told that Aerosmith had to pay to play that gig. I can’t believe that story but thought I would ask if that was true.

Tom: I don’t know. I never heard anybody say that. Whether some money changed hands to encourage them to let us play that night—I suppose that is possible. Somebody in management, or the record company, could have done that, but I have never heard that is what happened.

Jeb: One of the things that really helped bring Aerosmith back was MTV and the videos that you made. Was that a conceived plan or was it a happy accident?

Tom: I remember MTV came about during that period when the band was broken up. It was a revolutionary thing back then. Up until then, there were rock television shows, but it was still very scarce to be on TV. To be honest, it wasn’t cool to be on most TV shows back then. There was Don Kirshner’s Rock Concert, The Midnight Special and a couple of other shows, but for the most part, there were not any shows on TV where you would want to be caught dead on. Televison was not that interested, either, to have this loud, obnoxious music on the air.

MTV came along and changed all of that. I remember driving around during that time thinking how Aerosmith was missing that boat. We were on our way down and we were going to miss out. Maybe that was one of the things that everybody in the band noticed, and in their hearts said, “I want to be part of this. I want to be around for this stuff.” It might have motivated everyone to do whatever it took to get back in a room together and be a band again. Ever since then, there are all these things that have come along, mostly generated by new technology, where you are able to get out there and show your music. I think that we are all way into being there for these things when they come along.

Nowadays, I think the novelty of a music video has worn off. That was an amazing thing for us. We didn’t predict that. When we got the band back together, we knew we wanted to be in on that. Our management, and the people around us, suggested directors to work with and how to go about making videos. We were very receptive. We really wanted to be a part of it.

Jeb: You were no angel during the wild times of the band but I have to ask if you were amazed to learn of the level of addiction that Steven Tyler and Joe Perry had succumbed too. It had to blow you away.

Tom: You are not really supposed to compare. When the book came out then that was the end of that period of not comparing. Steven and Joe decided to be very out front and talk about all of those scarey war stories. Obviously, when we were going through it, it was terrible. It was like, “Oh my God, what is going on?” Everything was going down the tubes and there was a feeling that this was something that couldn’t be dealt with. We had absolutely no idea what to do. I knew it was bad but I was in the party too. Luckily, I never had a moment where I couldn’t get up and play. When I read the manuscript to the book I said, “Holy shit, I didn’t know that.” I am actually glad that I didn’t know some of that.

Jeb: The odds of one person getting clean and sober and then actually improving where they were at in life before their addiction hit is very rare. For all of you to do it is a miracle.

Tom: Outside of the music or movie business, just out there in life, the rates of people being able to stay clean, or at least have their lives under control, are better than they were twenty years ago, but the odds are still pretty steep.

Jeb: My last one has to do with the name of the band. Your drummer, Joey Kramer, is given credit for coming up with the name ‘Aerosmith.’ Legend holds that another name being considered was ‘The Hookers.’ I wonder what you think your career might have been like if you had been called The Hookers instead of Aerosmith?

Tom: We never would have been called The Hookers. It never really even made it into the full band discussion. One of the names we were thinking about was ‘Spike Jones.’ Joey came up with ‘Arrowsmith’ and we were like, “No, that is that book that you have to read in high school.” Joey was like, “No, man. A-E-R-O.” Right away, everybody really dug that idea. It didn’t mean anything and we weren’t trying to say anything with it. It just seemed to be a cool word that we identified with, so we kept it.

Back in those days, everybody used to hitchhike around the city. We got a hold of a bunch of blank cigarette papers and we stamped ‘Aerosmith’ on them. We would drive around in our van and every time we would pick someone up, we would give them one and say, “What do you think?” We were doing our own crude marketing research. You have to be good at self promotion, let’s face it.

Aero Force One
May 6, 2009

OnlineRockRadio.com

Aerosmith frontman Steven Tyler’s long-awaited autobiography, titled Does The Noise In My Head Bother You?, will be published on October 27th, according to a press release. The book follows Tyler’s childhood in the Bronx, his early musical career, his now-historic partnership with guitarist Joe Perry and the rise, fall and rebirth of Aerosmith. The book will also trace Tyler’s romantic liaisons, his relationship with his four children, and his dealings with the sex-and-drug-filled life of a rock star. Tyler commented, “This is not just my take — this is the unbridled truth, the in-your-face, up-close and prodigious tale of Steven Tyler straight from the horse’s lips.”

Publishing house Ecco, a division of Harper Collins, reportedly paid more than $2 million for Tyler’s memoir, according to Blabbermouth.net.

A band memoir, called Walk This Way: The Autobiography of Aerosmith, was published in 2003.

Tyler, who has been singing for more than 40 years, told us that even a recent string of injuries and illnesses wouldn’t make him think of retiring: “No, I don’t know if I know how to do that. I know that Joe and I, we questioned it a couple of times about whether, you know, whether we would go out again. We took a year off. I remember I had hep-C (hepatitis-C) and decided to take a year off, and I literally got rid of it. I mean, it’s one of the few miracles known to man. I kicked its ass.”

Tyler will promote the book at BookExpo America in New York City on May 28th, where he and E Street Band saxophonist Clarence Clemons, who has also written a book, will be interviewed by author Chuck Klosterman.

Aerosmith will hit the road next month with ZZ Top for a two-month North American trek, before returning to the studio later in the year to continue work on a new album.

Aero Force One
May 6, 2009

Watch video:  (here).

Aero Force One
May 6. 2009

Presales Begin Saturday, 05/09/09

Los Angeles, CA — 08.21.09 — Presale Saturday, 05.09.09, 01:00 PM ET
New York, NY — 09.14.09 — Presale Monday, 05.11.09, 10:00 AM ET

More info: (here).

Aero Force One
May 5, 2009

Calling All Guitar Heroes… Wanna Open For Aerosmith? Seriously!

Rock icons Aerosmith with special guest ZZ Top are gonna wreak rock n’ roll havoc this summer on a massive US tour! And you could be THE OPENING ACT. Time to put your Guitar Hero® skill to the ultimate test. This isn’t your living room couch – its the real deal! Two worthy fans will perform playing Guitar Hero®: Aerosmith® on stage as the opening act before the show roars onto the stage– one winner from online and one from radio will be chosen in each city. If that taste of rock stardom weren’t reward enough, the winner from each city also wins two tickets to the show, a Guitar Hero: Aerosmith game pack, and a personal congrats from Steven Tyler and Joe Perry before the show! (For the winner only, not their guest)

Your moment of rock glory will be captured on video and posted to Aeroforceone.com and the Aerosmith YouTube channel – let your friends try to top that!

If you think you can rule Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, here’s what you gotta do to become rock lore in your city…

1. Create a video of you either playing killer air guitar using the Guitar Hero guitar controller OR shredding a wicked session of Guitar Hero: Aerosmith. If you use music in your submission you can only submit using these songs: Make It, Uncle Salty, Draw The Line, No Surprize, Moving Out, Sweet Emotion, Nobody’s Fault, Bright Light Fright, Back in the Saddle, Dream On, Mama Kin, Toys In The Attic, Combination, Let the Music Do the Talking, Mercy, Pandora’s Box, Rats in the Cellar, Shakin My Cage, Talk Talking, Walk This Way.

2. Upload your video to YouTube. IMPORTANT! – In order for us to find your entry, YOU MUST TAG YOUR VIDEO as follows – “AerosmithOpeningAct” (one word, no spaces) AND another tag with the city you want to win, ie “Mansfield”. So your two tags would be: “AerosmithOpeningAct”, “Mansfield.” (Use the city name listed under the “Location” column on the Aero Force One tour page. If the city is two words like “St. Paul,” eliminate any punctuation and spaces so the tag reads: “StPaul”)

3. Subscribe to Aerosmith’s Official YouTube Channel at www.youtube.com/theofficialaerosmith. We’ll update the contest videos there on a weekly basis, so make sure you see your entry posted after a week! If its not there, double check that you tagged it correctly. If you entered everything correctly, email contests@aeroforceone.com with a link to your YouTube video contest entry, the city you hope to win, your first and last name and your email address.

4. AF1 will pick a winner for each city! Hint: To get your entry noticed, make sure your vid is crazy, cool, rockin’, funny, creative or insane – within the letter of the law, of course. AF1 will pick the video that displays the best combination of creativity, skill and star power.

5. In each city, two (2) Runners Up winners will score a pair of tickets to their city of choice and a Guitar Hero®: Aerosmith® game pack. Runner Up Prizes will include consideration for the videos with the most views, comments, responses and ratings on YouTube.

6. Winners will be informed on a rolling basis two weeks before each show.

7. Make sure you stay in touch with all the contest news…

Sign up for AeroForceOne’s official email newsletter!
Follow AF1 on Twitter to stay up on the leaders!
Subscribe to Aerosmith’s YouTube Channel!

GOOD LUCK FRET BURNERS!! MAY YOU BECOME ROCK GODS.

Click here for Official Contest Terms and Conditions.

Aero Force One
May 4, 2009

Watch video:  (here).

Aero Force One
May 4, 2009

Presales Begin Tuesday, 05/05/09

Winnipeg, MB — 08.07.09 — Presale 10am PT
Regina, SK — 08.09.09 — Presale 10am MT
Edmonton, AB — 08.11.09 — Presale 10am MT
Calgary, AB — 08.13.09 — Presale 10am MT

More info:  (here).

GettyImages.com
May 2, 2009

Steven Tyler Visits Campers

Steven Tyler visits campers at the Rock `n` Roll Fantasy Camp at the El Portal Theatre on May 1, 2009 in North Hollywood, California. (Photo by Mark Sullivan/WireImage)

Mark Hudson and Steven Tyler visit campers at the Rock `n` Roll Fantasy Camp at the El Portal Theatre on May 1, 2009 in North Hollywood, California. (Photo by Mark Sullivan/WireImage)

More photos:  (here).

RockCamp.com
May 2, 2009

Bruce Kulick’s Blog

After an exciting day two, Friday was of course THE day that Steven Tyler of Aerosmith would be visiting the camp. The excitement was high, as even one of my counselor buddies said, we all feel like the President is coming to visit the camp. Tyler’s talent and contribution to the rock world is obviously HUGE, and his band has been at the top of the rock heap since the 70’s with millions in record sales and huge history of sold out tours…..

It was lunch time and the buzz about Steven Tyler’s arrival was intense. We headed down the block to the beautiful El Portal Theater where Steven would do his Q and A with Mark Hudson as his interviewer. When Steven came out we all stood up and he looked like the awesome rock star that he is with his snakeskin and leather threads. He was funny, incredibly informative, and into some very eclectic subjects like acoustics in the theatre and sound waves that vibrate the room. His knowledge of music is deep and intense sharing with the campers his start when he was a child. His father was a talented piano player so that got Steven’s interest at an early age. Mark and Steven told the story of the hit “Living On The Edge” that Mark co-wrote with Steven, and then he took questions. The campers were a bit shy, and I was desperate to ask Steven what he thought about the computer age of recording with Pro Tools compared to the analog that we both started out with in our careers. To my shock, Steven remembered me, and I nearly fell out of my chair! I am just like the campers when it comes to meeting the special guests. And to think that Steven KNOWS my name, of course makes me feel so incredible. His answer by the way, was as I thought… it is a tool but the old fashioned way makes you work harder.

Back to the rehearsal rooms, as Steven was visiting them one by one, entering each camper bands room and watching them perform with him jumping in on vocals. I was frantically tuning a guitar that was misbehaving when he entered my room, but I quickly put that down said hello, and he started taking pictures with the group. Now it was time for us to play “Helter Skelter” and I was proud to say we got through it. Steven and Mark Hudson started to do the backgrounds that my band never really got a chance to rehearse. The look on all my bands faces was great to see. The hairs on the back on my neck were standing up hearing Steven singing with my band. Tyler was a total class act, and I got him to sign a baseball for my friend, and a vintage guitar strap. So once again dreams come true at the camp and my band was buzzing all day from his visit. I told them to take a break and relax a bit after all that excitement…..

Complete article:  (here).

Blabbermouth.net, NY
April 29, 2009

Aerosmith singer Steven Tyler’s much-anticipated autobiography, “Does The Noise In My Head Bother You?”, is scheduled for release on October 27, 2009. The book traces Tyler’s youth in the Bronx, his early music career and influences, his legendary partnership with Joe Perry, the meteoric rise, fall, and rise of Aerosmith over the last three decades, their music, his epic romantic life, his relationship with his four children (including actress Liv Tyler and actress and author Mia Tyler) life on the road and in the spotlight, the economics of the rock star business — and all the sex, drugs, and rock and roll a reader could ask for.

Commented Tyler: “This is not just my take — this is the unbridled truth, the in-your-face, up-close and prodigious tale of Steven Tyler straight from the horse’s lips.”

Ecco, an imprint of HarperCollins, reportedly paid more than $2 million for the rights to publish Tyler’s autobiography.

Ecco publisher Daniel Halperin, a self-described longtime Aerosmith fan, edited the book.

Tyler and his fellow band members previously came out with a memoir titled “Walk This Way: The Autobiography of Aerosmith” in 2003.

With twenty-one Billboard Top 40 hits, including “Walk This Way”, “Angel”, “Dream On”, and “Dude (Looks Like A Lady)”, Aerosmith has sold 150 million albums worldwide. The band, which has sold 66 million albums in the United States alone, holds the record for most gold and multi-platinum albums by an American group.

Aero Force One
April 29, 2009

Watch video:  (here).