From Yahoo Music News

Feuding Rockers Aerosmith Looking for New Singer

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Who wants to become the new singer for Aerosmith?

The lead guitarist with one of America's most successful rock groups said on Monday that he and his bandmates were "positively looking for a new singer to work with," following a rift with energetic frontman Steven Tyler.

Joe Perry, 59, made the announcement on his Twitter page, ratcheting up an unusually public feud with his songwriting partner of 40 years.

The duo, dubbed the "Toxic Twins" for their hard-living days of yore, wrote such classic-rock staples as "Walk this Way" and "Love in an Elevator." Their musical relationship has been likened to that of their role models, Mick Jagger and Keith Richards of the Rolling Stones.

But Tyler, 61, recently said he wants to concentrate on solo endeavors, a claim he has made in the past but never followed through on. He also stopped communicating with the rest of the band several months ago, and hired his own manager.

Perry told Reuters last month that Tyler has refused to write a song with him for a decade. More recently, Perry said that the last time he phoned Tyler, the singer hung up on him.

Incredibly, the band has still managed to perform concerts, but a summer trek through North America was cut short in August when Tyler fell off the stage and broke his shoulder. None of his bandmates accompanied him to the hospital.

"BRAND TYLER"

In recent weeks, Aerosmith reunited for a pair of shows in Hawaii, and then performed at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix on November 1, temporarily papering over the cracks to recoup some of the revenue lost by the canceled American tour.

But Tyler surprised his bandmates by telling Britain's Classic Rock magazine, in an article published last Wednesday, that he would focus on his own projects, "Brand Tyler," as he dubbed it.

His bandmates were less than enthusiastic about being sidelined. In the same article, guitarist Brad Whitford raised the possibility of bringing in a new vocalist.

Tyler was "one of a kind," it quoted Whitford as saying. "But if somebody was willing to do it and the chemistry was right, why not?"

Perry quickly took to Twitter to express his dismay at learning about Tyler's apparent departure online, and he described Tyler's attitude as "a bit cold."

In his Twitter messages on Monday, in which he referred to Tyler simply as "one of the members," Perry denied Aerosmith would break up, saying the band was playing "hotter than ever."

"You just can't take 40 years of experience and throw it in the bin!"

At any rate, Perry is now focusing on his own endeavors. He just released his fifth solo album, and plans an extensive world tour early next year.

Aerosmith previously fell apart in 1979, when Perry quit the band during its drug-fueled nadir. Whitford soon followed, leaving the rest of the band to limp along. The original lineup reconvened in 1984, sobered up, and eventually enjoyed a successful 1990s comeback fueled by MTV videos.

But the band has not released a studio album of new material since 2001. Recording sessions since then have been interrupted by ailments affected virtually every band member. For his part, Tyler did a stint in rehab last year.

While Perry has been vocal about the feud, Tyler has largely kept silent. But his daughter, Mia, also took to Twitter on Monday to defend him and to make a dig at Perry.

"They are in their 60s now," she wrote. "Let them do what they wanna do! & can someone please tell (Joe Perry) that gossiping on Twitter is uncalled (for)!"

The online encyclopedia Wikipedia wasted no time marking the personnel shift. Tyler is now mentioned among the former members.

DakutiusMaximus said:

They can get GARY CHERONE (of EXTREME and vocalist for the 3rd version of VAN HALEN)!!!!!

I was totally surprised when I read that. Steven Tyler is Aerosmith. It won't be Aerosmith without him

I can't see starting a new brand in rock 'n roll at age 61 as a winner.

Especially when you look 91.

who knew they were even together anymore?

Hell naw.

This is why the Rolling Stones will remain together. BEEYATCH!

Timmy84 said:

Oh this is why i am so glad that a-Ha has the "class" to go out do a real tour one last time next year and close the book, rather than dragging it on like other bands, im glad i dont have to see Morten Mags and Paul of a-Ha in 10-25 years twittering how much of a dick they think the other is, what the hell happend to Aerosmith? this used to be a band that would kick you in the balls, now they are "twittering" and posting on Facebook their inner feelings?? What are they Miley?
[Edited 11/10/09 16:55pm]

In a shocking turn of events, Aerosmith's rubbery front-man Steven Tyler has announced he is NOT leaving Aerosmith. That is TOTALLY CAPS WORTHY.

"Does it look like I'm leaving Aerosmith?" the singer asked OK magazine, in a cryptic and somewhat childish comeback, leaving one to wonder, what does one look like when they're leaving a famous, creaky band. Don't worry, he clears it up.

"You know what it is, it’s those people who are putting out Joe's [Perry] album,” Tyler said, ignoring the fact that it was his own blog post that started the rumors. I suppose it's only fair, considering his blog post only mentioned his fatigue, and it was the entertainment blogs that got all huffy and speculative.

“Joe’s doing a solo album, so people are paying attention to that," he added, defying the fact that I've never heard of Joe Perry's solo album, yet Tyler leaving Aerosmith made it to the front page of The Boston Globe (supporting the theory that the only people who actually read newspapers are the ones who listened to Aerosmith 30 years ago).

So where does that leave us? Exactly where we were before the rumor was made into news.

VenusBlingBling said:

so true

lastdecember said:

It's simple really, they just became old and less bad ass.

Timmy84 said:

They should be rebeling against Twitter, their new single should be called "Twitter This" and should be them punching out people who twitter in the streets, thats the aerosmith i want

no one reading that tyler said he wasn't leaving?

ehuffnsd said:

Yeah we read it.

They must be forming dementia now or the media has it all wrong.
[Edited 11/10/09 19:25pm]

Aerosmith and Kiss need to RETIRE!!!!

Well CBS news just ran a flash that he is out and Perry and the others are looking for a new singer now.

they should give axel a shot

so tonight, November 10, 2009, Steven Tyler joined the Joe Perry Project onstage to perform.


so, uh, I guess that's the end of that, huh?

errant said:

So they ain't breaking up.

Timmy84 said:

apparently not

nurseV said:

Well, they seem to know that too

ehuffnsd said:

LOL!

It would be a shame if he would leave! I saw them twice in '07 and they still have it! Great live band!

Timmy, your comment about dementia was a hoot!

I'm thinkin' these guys may have planned the whole thing this way (first be instrumental in getting the rumors out and then, after enough controversy is stirred up, put the rumors to rest) for the publicity.

From Yahoo News 21 minutes ago:

Tyler, Onstage with Perry, Says Not Leaving Aerosmith

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Aerosmith frontman Steven Tyler joined Joe Perry on stage in New York to set the record straight about the future of the feuding rock group.

"New York, I want you to know I'm not leaving Aerosmith," Tyler told fans in a surprise appearance on Tuesday night at a concert by Perry's solo side project, music web site NME.com reported.

Tyler, 61 and Perry, his songwriting partner of 40 years, then launched into a version of "Walk This Way", one of Aerosmith's biggest hits, NME.com said.

The future of the band has been in doubt since a North American tour was cut short in August when Tyler fell off stage, and relations between Perry and Tyler deteriorated to a low this week with bitter Twitter messages and cryptic asides about whether Tyler is still with the band.

Tyler told celebrity web site TMZ.com after Tuesday's appearance that "There is absolutely no validity to the rumor that Aerosmith is breaking up."

Perry said of Tyler's appearance at his concert. "He just couldn't stay away." Asked about rumors the band was breaking up, Perry told TMZ.com: "None of that's true."

It's false of course. Last night, as dakutius noted, he showed up at Joe Perry's gig last night and basically said, "Does it look like I'm leaving Aerosmith???"

Stupid rumors.

Well, yes... he did, but Joe Perry talked to RS afterwards and he basically said, that Aerosmith is not waiting 2 years for Tyler to get his shit together...

JOE PERRY: AEROSMITH's Problems Far From Over - Nov. 11, 2009
AEROSMITH guitarist Joe Perry tells RollingStone.com that Steven Tyler's appearance at last night's (Tuesday, November 10) THE JOE PERRY PROJECT concert in New York City came as a surprise even to him. "There was all this commotion during our encore break and somebody said, 'Steven is here.' " Perry says. "And I was like, 'What?' After exchanging pleasantries, Tyler asked to join the group on stage for the final encore of "Walk This Way". "Being an acquaintance of 40 years, I said, 'Why not?'" Perry says. "So he came up and sang and that was the last I saw of him."

Despite Tyler's onstage insistence that he isn't leaving the band (see video below), Perry says AEROSMITH is still considering touring and recording with a new singer. "He wants to take two years off from the band," Perry tells RollingStone.com. "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."

http://www.roadrunnerreco...mID=130230

And when talking to paps right after the gig he kinda seemed pissed ( http://www.tmz.com/2009/1...ors-video/ )... so this little soap opera seems far from over... Grumpy old men III I guess!

Bickering old ladies is more like it.

I haven't heard any material in the last 15 years or so that indicates to me that Aerosmith has some burning creative desire to make new music, so wtf is Joe Perry talking about.

errant said:

I know right? I've been turned off by their music since "Get a Grip"!

The plot thickens...

From Yahoo Music News

Aerosmith Members Concerned Singer Back on Drugs

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Steven, we love you. But you need to get sober, and we need to find a new singer.

That appears to be the consensus among Aerosmith frontman Steven Tyler's bandmates, who are dropping loud hints that he is back on drugs.

The allegations, most recently from rhythm guitarist Brad Whitford and drummer Joey Kramer, ratchet up the unusually public feud crippling one of America's most successful rock 'n' roll bands.

Tensions have been simmering for some time, exacerbated by a troubled summer tour that was canceled in August when the 61-year-old Tyler fell off the stage and broke his shoulder.

The final straw came earlier this month, when Tyler's personal managers informed the rest of the band that he wants to take two years off to pursue various solo endeavors.

That did not sit well with the bandmates, who want to keep on touring and recording.

Perry, 59, has been especially vocal, both in interviews and on Twitter, about his differences with Tyler. He and his cohorts say Tyler has stopped communicating with them and they have decided to find a new frontman and continue without him.

They also worry about Tyler's state of mind.

"I suspect there's a lot more going on than we know about," Whitford, 57, told Reuters. "He has a well-documented history of drug abuse, and I find myself very suspicious. I haven't seen him do this or ... have any personal knowledge, but the isolation is very typical of addictive behavior, and his -- what I call -- irrational behavior."

'POOR CHOICES'

Kramer, 59, in a separate interview, declined to get specific about any drug abuse, but said: "Steven has made some poor choices as of late, and he's got some bad influences around him, and I think that for the most part he's his own worst enemy ... I just really hope that Steven puts the focus on Steven and gets healthy."

Tyler's publicist said the singer is not commenting, because he is busy writing his memoirs.

The members of Aerosmith are no strangers to drugs, debauchery and divisions. The so-called "bad boys of Boston" first achieved fame in the early 1970s with such rock perennials as "Dream On" and "Walk this Way."

But the success was accompanied by their prodigious abuse of drugs and alcohol. The band careened toward oblivion by decade's end as sales dried up and both guitarists left.

They enjoyed a comeback in the '80s after getting sober. But, as with any workplace environment, tensions exist.

Whitford said he has had a "contentious relationship" with Tyler for many years.

"I just find him ... very difficult to talk to," he said. "Most people say, 'How's it going? Nice day.' And (with Tyler) it won't be, 'Yeah, it is a nice day.' All of a sudden, it's drama."

Kramer said he loves Tyler like a brother, but was hurt when the singer failed to respond to his recent voicemail and text messages. Perry has said that the last time he called Tyler, the singer hung up on him.

The band's lineup is rounded out by 57-year-old bassist Tom Hamilton who, the others say, is on the same page as them.

As for finding a new singer, the musicians are very careful to say that no one can fill Tyler's shoes. Nor has the recruitment process begun yet.

"None of us feels like we're in a position to just retire and go off and do something else," Whitford said. "It would be nice if we could find somebody so we can go out and continue to earn a living as some sort of derivative of Aerosmith."

He said it was possible that the band might hit the road under a different name, and acknowledged that there could be legal problems if Tyler sued to stop them from using the "Aerosmith" name. (Roger Waters unsuccessfully sued his Pink Floyd bandmates in the 1980s after they reunited without him.)

Kramer hopes to tour next year to mark the band's 40th anniversary, even if it could be a hollow celebration without the energetic Tyler belting out the hits from his scarf-draped microphone stand.

"What are we gonna do? Sit around for two years and do nothing?"

That is the end of Aerosmith...