Aerosmith gets personal
St. Louis Post-Dispatch, MO
October 12, 2006
The new Aerosmith-Mötley Crüe road trek isn't officially known as the Bad Boys of Rock Tour, but with these two larger-than-life legends on the bill, it could be. Instead, it's the Route of All Evil tour.
It marks the first time America's greatest rock 'n' roll band has toured with the classic wild-hair metal band, though they've often crossed paths. Aerosmith was busy in an adjacent studio while Mötley Crüe was recording its 1989 album "Dr. Feelgood," and Aerosmith singer Steven Tyler was a guest on that album.
Aerosmith guitarist Joe Perry, interviewed from a Chicago tour stop last week, says he's glad touring together finally worked out. The bands perform separate sets, though Mötley Crüe's Tommy Lee sat in on Aerosmith's set during Lee's recent birthday.
"They have an almost Alice Cooper theatrical thing going on," he says of the band known for being over the top. "That makes for good contrast with what we're doing, the basic classic-rock show."
Aerosmith is getting up in fans' faces again, attempting to rival a recent tour in which the band set up a secondary stage in the audience.
"This time we're doing a ramp down the middle, like they do in indoor places," Perry says. "This gives us a chance to get out there with the fans again and make them feel like they're part of the show."
Aerosmith had hoped to have a new CD out to coincide with the tour, but medical dramas got in the way. Tyler recently announced he is battling hepatitis C; he learned three years ago that he had it. Add that to surgery for a broken blood vessel on Tyler's right vocal cord and bassist Tom Hamilton's throat cancer, and there were few recording opportunities.
Perry said Tyler took time off after the hepatitis diagnosis, allowing Perry to put out a self-titled CD last year.
"It was a tough time for him, but the throat thing was definitely the nail-biter, because you just never know. There could've been permanent damage," Perry says. "But we had a lot of faith in him, and he has an amazing set of pipes.
"In my heart I knew he would be OK. It was the same thing with Tom, who's really strong and pragmatic about things. It's really tough for him now, and he's still out (recovering)."
In lieu of a new CD, the band released another greatest-hits collection, "Devil's Got a New Disguise, the Very Best of Aerosmith." That's not to be confused with "Aerosmith's Greatest Hits" or "Young Lust: The Aerosmith Anthology."
The new greatest hits set, which Perry sees more as a career retrospective, does introduce two new songs, "Sedona Sunrise" and the title track. But it focuses on staples such as "Dream On," "Sweet Emotion," "Janie's Got a Gun" and "Crazy." Perry says his favorite is 1979's "No Surprize," because Tyler nailed the group's young, wild vibe at the time.
"I think the CD will harken back to the sound of the band in the late '70s' and early '90s," he says. "We were really hitting our stride in '77, as far as in the studio and the songwriting, and I felt the same in the '90s. We figured out the best way to make this band work."
October 12, 2006
The new Aerosmith-Mötley Crüe road trek isn't officially known as the Bad Boys of Rock Tour, but with these two larger-than-life legends on the bill, it could be. Instead, it's the Route of All Evil tour.
It marks the first time America's greatest rock 'n' roll band has toured with the classic wild-hair metal band, though they've often crossed paths. Aerosmith was busy in an adjacent studio while Mötley Crüe was recording its 1989 album "Dr. Feelgood," and Aerosmith singer Steven Tyler was a guest on that album.
Aerosmith guitarist Joe Perry, interviewed from a Chicago tour stop last week, says he's glad touring together finally worked out. The bands perform separate sets, though Mötley Crüe's Tommy Lee sat in on Aerosmith's set during Lee's recent birthday.
"They have an almost Alice Cooper theatrical thing going on," he says of the band known for being over the top. "That makes for good contrast with what we're doing, the basic classic-rock show."
Aerosmith is getting up in fans' faces again, attempting to rival a recent tour in which the band set up a secondary stage in the audience.
"This time we're doing a ramp down the middle, like they do in indoor places," Perry says. "This gives us a chance to get out there with the fans again and make them feel like they're part of the show."
Aerosmith had hoped to have a new CD out to coincide with the tour, but medical dramas got in the way. Tyler recently announced he is battling hepatitis C; he learned three years ago that he had it. Add that to surgery for a broken blood vessel on Tyler's right vocal cord and bassist Tom Hamilton's throat cancer, and there were few recording opportunities.
Perry said Tyler took time off after the hepatitis diagnosis, allowing Perry to put out a self-titled CD last year.
"It was a tough time for him, but the throat thing was definitely the nail-biter, because you just never know. There could've been permanent damage," Perry says. "But we had a lot of faith in him, and he has an amazing set of pipes.
"In my heart I knew he would be OK. It was the same thing with Tom, who's really strong and pragmatic about things. It's really tough for him now, and he's still out (recovering)."
In lieu of a new CD, the band released another greatest-hits collection, "Devil's Got a New Disguise, the Very Best of Aerosmith." That's not to be confused with "Aerosmith's Greatest Hits" or "Young Lust: The Aerosmith Anthology."
The new greatest hits set, which Perry sees more as a career retrospective, does introduce two new songs, "Sedona Sunrise" and the title track. But it focuses on staples such as "Dream On," "Sweet Emotion," "Janie's Got a Gun" and "Crazy." Perry says his favorite is 1979's "No Surprize," because Tyler nailed the group's young, wild vibe at the time.
"I think the CD will harken back to the sound of the band in the late '70s' and early '90s," he says. "We were really hitting our stride in '77, as far as in the studio and the songwriting, and I felt the same in the '90s. We figured out the best way to make this band work."
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