Aerosmith
Mohegan Sun
Uncasville, Connecticut
September 4, 2010
Tony Pijar
Who ever thought we see Aerosmith again after last year’s follies, with most of it surrounding Steven Tyler. A little over a year ago, he fell off the stage while performing in Sturgis, South Dakota, subsequently entered into a rehab facility, and now it has been rumored that he is joining the American Idol ranks as a judge! Of course, it has been widely publicized that his band mates have been less than satisfied with Tyler’s antics and have even gone as far as seriously contemplating hiring a new singer. Well, judging by their performance at Mohegan Sun, it appears that all is well in the Aerosmith camp again.
The band opened with “Same Old Song and Dance” with Tyler and Perry sparring on the extended ramp like best friends. They both seemed in very good spirits and apparently have left any baggage at the door. Needless to say, Tom Hamilton, Brad Whitford and Joey Kramer were, as always, the inseparable, reliable anchors. “Eat the Rich” showcased Kramer’s tribal drum intro before the band ripped it up. A welcome and surprisingly early inclusion of “Train Kept a Rollin” saw Perry nail one of his signature leads. The 80s and 90s hits came and went in a flash; “Love in an Elevator”, “Falling in Love is Hard on the Knees”, “Livin’ on the Edge”, “What it Takes”, “Pink”, “”Cryin”, “Rag Doll”, and “Don’t wanna Miss a Thing”.
Like ZZ Top, there is a distinct line between the 70s rockers and the 80s-90s AOR compositions. Like many, I have both feet firmly planted in the “Toys in the Attic” and “Rocks” camp and really despise the MTV band they’ve become since. “Honkin’ on Bobo” was a welcome return to their blues roots and “Stop Messin’ Around” sounded fantastic live, but again too much reliance on their latter day material. Only “Last Child” from the immense “Rocks” album was aired and stables “Walk this Way” and “Sweet Emotion” from “Toys…” Two wonderful surprises were “Movin’ Out” from their debut and “Draw the Line” from 1977. A cool segment occurred during Perry’s guitar solo – on the huge screen above, ‘Guitar Hero Joe Perry’ appeared and the two battled it out trading solos – very entertaining and clever.
There’s no telling what will happen next for the band, but rest assured they delivered on the live front as only a band with their experience, longevity, professionalism, and showmanship can. My only gripe, and it’s a huge one, is that they should have dusted off more of the classics.
