Sorry to burst your bubble Aerosmith fans, but I guess things aren’t all peaches and cream with the aging band. Although Steven Tyler won’t be quitting Aerosmith, he does want to take two years off from touring and recording.
Despite Tyler’s onstage insistence that he isn’t quitting the band, Perry says Aerosmith is still considering touring and recording with a new singer. “He wants to take two years off from the band,” Perry says. “The rest of the band wants to keep on working. We have so many different options to fill up that time. Anything is possible at this point. Basically, any communication that we’ve had over the last couple of months has been through managers, so that’s been pretty strange.”
Perry adds, “I never won any money trying to second-guess what goes on in Steven’s mind. I guess this is just Aerosmith business as usual.”
A friend of mine wrote a great piece on Aerosmith’s album Rocks. Apparently, the band used to have a spark. Still, I think that spark lies in the songwriting and prowess of the musicianship, not Tyler’s vocals.
Two days ago, Steven Tyler threatened to leave the only band that could tolerate his antics and instead form “Brand Tyler,” a nondescript project. Last night, Tyler surprised the crowd during a Joe Perry Project show in NYC and announced that he’s not quitting Aerosmith. Yeah, nobody would care about “Brand Tyler.”
The video is below.
The guy is a big goon. Joe Perry, however, seems level-headed enough. After all, Perry wanted to make another record in the vein of their bluesy sound from the 70s. Steven Tyler, however, wanted to write simple pop songs similar to “I Don’t Want to Miss a Thing.”
Perhaps the greatest reward an older artist can have is the satisfaction of knowing a massive representation of their work is available for all to experience. Some musicians quit their bands or go on hiatus, only to reunite for all the wrong reasons. Others simply slap together one or several predictable compilations. Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers will never succumb to this level of triviality. The band has been together since 1976, constantly touring and recording. In watching them perform at last year’s Super Bowl, it’s obvious how important they are to American music.
Over the years, the band has created an impressive catalogue of studio albums, but their live act also continues to earn heaps of praise. On November 24, Reprise Records will unveil The Live Anthology, a 4-disc box set (also available for download) containing 48 tracks compiled by Tom Petty, Mike Campbell, and Ryan Ulyate from three decades worth of live material. The package also looks spectacular, featuring artwork from Shepard Fairey, who recently designed the “HOPE” poster for Obama’s presidential campaign.
Come November 22, Best Buy will have the honor of exclusively selling the deluxe version in the U.S. In addition to the standard package, buyers will receive an extra disc of live material, two previously unavailable DVDs, a Blu-ray disc featuring all 62 songs in pristine 96K 24-bit audio, and a seven LP vinyl box set of 51 tracks. Damn.
Still, retrospectives the size of Smart cars are nothing new. Tom Petty knows this, so instead of simply treating his fans to a delectable live package, his team created a one-of-a-kind sensation to up to the ante. It’s called the SuperHighway Tour, an online experience that augments The Live Anthology. By purchasing a “ticket” to the SuperHighway Tour, fans can access commentary, vintage photos, and a virtual merchandise booth, all the while surfing through its visually stunning website.
Here’s how the label describes it:
Fans will also be able to share their photos and stories from their favorite Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers shows. Then on the album’s November 24 release, ticketholders will receive the remaining 24 tracks on The Live Anthology, thereby completing the digital album.
Access to the Superhighway Tour will be available to fans that purchase “tickets” from Ticketmaster.com or through the Superhighway Tour box office.
Tickets for the entire 8-week Superhighway Tour are on sale now through Ticketmaster.com and TomPettySuperHighwayTour.com. The price of a Superhighway Tour ticket includes all 48 The Live Anthology digital tracks plus the 8-week online experience for $24.98 without any additional service fees. Downloads will be available in 256kbps MP3 or FLAC formats – fan’s choice.
A FREE PREVIEW of the SuperHighway Tour is now available at http://www.tompettysuperhighwaytour.com and includes a FREE DOWNLOAD of a track from the 1981 run of shows at Los Angeles’ Forum.
The release of The Live Anthology comes on the heels of two sold out tours, the Grammy winning documentary Runnin’ Down A Dream (directed by Peter Bogdanovich), and a headline performance at the Super Bowl XLII halftime show. Now, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers – one of rock and roll’s greatest touring bands – will mark their unparalleled string of success with the release of this landmark collection of live recordings that is unlike anything previously available – the band’s story told through the music alone.
The producers made no fixes or overdubs, letting the newly mixed original recordings showcase the invention, spontaneity, craft, and the musicianship that has made Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers among the most celebrated live performers of their time. Along with powerful interpretations of their own classic hits and originals, The Live Anthology features the band tackling some of their best-loved cover material, from classics to obscure beauties to unexpected adaptations. The theme from Goldfinger, the Zombies’ “I Want You Back Again,” the Grateful Dead’s “Friend of the Devil,” early Fleetwood Mac’s “Oh Well,” Booker T. and the MGs’ “Green Onions,” James Brown’s “Good, Good Lovin'” and many more. Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers travel wide, paying their musical debts through song and showing just how confidently the band moves across genres and over time.
It’s like going to a concert and avoiding the long lines, body odor, and drunken idiots. Seriously though, this is an innovative idea — one that guarantees weeks of staring at your computer and rocking out like you’re actually in attendance.
I could care less about Aerosmith, but I understand this is big news.
Aerosmith guitarist Joe Perry said today that singer Steven Tyler quit the band following a recent concert in Abu Dhabi.
Bassist Tom Hamilton told the Boston Herald’s Inside Track that there is dissension among the “Bad Boys From Boston,” but that he hopes things can be worked out. He dismissed a report that guitarist Brad Whitford discussed the possiblity of Aerosmith finding a new frontman.
However, Perry told the Las Vegas Sun today that he believes Tyler is history.
“Steven quit as far as I can tell,” Perry said from his Boston home. “I don’t know anymore than you do about it. I got off the plane two nights ago. I saw online that Steven said that he was going to leave the band. I don’t know for how long, indefinitely or whatever. Other than that, I don’t know.”
The band will continue whether or not Tyler comes back. Either way, Joe Perry still has his own solo project, which is probably more interesting than anything Aerosmith will put together in the future.
Pavement guitarist Spiral Stairs recently spoke with NME about the possibility of a best-of Pavement compilation. As previously reported, the band will tour for the time since their breakup in 1999, including stops at various festivals across the globe.
Most Pavement crazies already own all of the band’s available material, so it’s nice to know that this prospective compilation will contain previously unreleased radio sessions.
The guitarist, real name Scott Kannberg, told NME.COM that the album would be likely to feature outtakes as well as the band’s best-known songs, and be released around the same time of their reunion gigs next year.
“There’s talk of doing a best of, with some really cool outtakes on that,” he explained. “The very first radio show that Pavement ever did has never been released. I don’t think anyone’s heard it, so we’ll put that out there sometime.”
The Pavement deluxe reissues are incredible. Each package contains the standard album, b-sides, outtakes, and live performances. For a price hovering around 16 bucks, it’s a great deal. I didn’t think Pavement would be the type of band to release a best-of, but I’m game if we get to hear an ancient radio session. The compilation will coincide with the reunion tour, so I guess it’s good to a have a new release out there.
They should just make an album of original material and be done with it. I’m sure they’ll get the itch later in life, but fans won’t want to hear Stephen Malkmus waxing nostalgic. We want their strange brand of rock and we it now!
