aerosmith 1979 tour dates

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Reviewing aerosmith’s tumultuous 1979.

AEROSMITH 1979

The Aerosmith that shipped off to tour North America in early 1979 represented, more so than a reinvigorated, galvanized musical entity celebrating its survival in the face of stupidity, a very fortunate group of musicians who were sufficiently conscious to appear before paying crowds. Having consumed a lifetime’s worth of drugs and other potentially undiscovered substances during the sessions for 1977’s Draw the Line , America’s champions were found relatively intact at the outset of 1979. Related for posterity in Walk This Way , the ordeals of Joe Perry’s final days with the band stemmed more from the contention of those not paid to perform in Aerosmith than artistic differences or even the mounting personal discord between the guitarist and Steven Tyler, which had not yet stymied Aerosmith’s professional career. However, the sessions for the group’s sixth studio album, to be known as  Night in the Ruts , proceeded as efficiently as ever, and the band gave in to financial necessity in embarking upon yet another tour to fund the stalling project.

ON THE ROAD

Wary of revisiting the exhaustion that had set in following the extensive 1977-78 touring, the group wisely opted for intermittent appearances at major festivals in April and July prior to any large-scale undertaking. Accordingly, the band got itself together enough to provide solid (or at least uninterrupted) shows and, perhaps due to the lack of an alternative, may have fulfilled its obligations more consistently than in 1978 had sentiments not taken a turn for the worse. With Joe Perry’s departure on July 28, 1979, whatever vestiges of artistic promise the group had left vanished, undoing all of the work done in 1979 up to that point. Though Aerosmith’s collapse might have been necessary for the health of all involved and the possibility of professional longevity, the decay process did manage to spawn some fine moments from the original line-up.

Despite the scarcity* of recordings from Aerosmith’s 1979 tour, the existing record suggests that the decision to pace themselves worked out quite well for all five musicians. The majority of Aerosmith’s performance at the July 21, 1979 “Monsters of Rock” bill–part of Oakland’s annual Day on the Green shows– survives as an above-average video-sourced tape accompanied by some invaluable footage. Partially shot from stage left (Mr. Perry’s side), the film was liberated from Bill Graham’s archives and marks the only substantial footage of the band from 1979. Though seen here only a week shy of Joe Perry’s fabled departure following the “World Series of Rock” show in Cleveland, the group is in stellar form and incorporates several numbers from the then-unreleased Night in the Ruts album. Heading a lineup that included a near-cultural icon Ted Nugent, a near-superstardom AC/DC, and a near-commercially viable Frank Marino and Mahogany Rush, Aerosmith legitimately rises to the occasion for a compelling performance sporting (save the absence of “Dream On”) quite an attractive set list . Tyler gives some of his best vocal performances of the 1978-9 tours, and the Whitford/Perry team is in great form. Strong renditions of “Seasons of Wither” and “Lord of the Thighs”, an advance airing of the unfinished “Bone to Bone”, Joe Perry’s wailing wah-wah blues on “Reefer Head Woman”, and a version of The Yardbirds ‘ incendiary “Think About It” distinguish a very satisfying concert. The full 70-minute video is posted separately alongside the individual tracks on YouTube, but some personal favorites have been included below.

NIGHT IN THE RUTS

The final product Night in the Ruts saw release late in 1979 and, though perhaps unnecessary, the album actually had more redeeming qualities than it deserved. Joe Perry’s withdrawal from the band only halfway through the recording process remains, despite Brad Whitford and the newly-conscripted Jimmy Crespo’s best efforts, noticeable at times, but for the most part it seems the band overcame its troubles in the studio nearly as well as on stage that year. Light on original material, the band leaned on the covers of “Reefer Head Woman”, “Think About It”, and The Shangri-Las’ unparalleled “Remember (Walking in the Sand)”. Though “Remember” may have been a less obvious inspiration to Aerosmith than the first two songs–critics evidently interpreted this as justification for dismissing the recording altogether–Tyler had carried a life-long appreciation for Mary Weiss (who appears on this version as well) and The Shangri-Las and makes every effort to show it. Aerosmith’s version may not surpass the original, but the band succeeds in adapting it for hard rock and adds a beautifully-composed, brief solo section that fits the track seamlessly. Among the originals, “Bone to Bone (Coney Island Whitefish Boy)” represents by far the strongest cut. As convincing as anything on the group’s first five albums, the track features the strongest riff since Rocks and excellent group play and, coming directly after “Reefer Head Woman”, gives Perry yet another moment to shine with an extended solo break. Tyler’s work, along with that of “Remember”, also constitutes a personal best on the album. While it should be noted that nothing on  Night in the Ruts is “bad”, the rest of the album does not quite reach the level of these four recordings. “Cheese Cake” comes closest with a heavy slide showcase, while “Three Mile Smile” and “Chiquita” are enjoyable but less distinctive. “No Surprize” has found favor among fans, but this is due almost exclusively to Tyler’s lyrics, which recount the group’s history, rather than the music. Functioning solely as a platform for the lyrics, the music remains static, lacking even substantial fills from the guitars or drums. Nevertheless,  Night in the Ruts makes it through Tyler’s writer’s block, Perry’s departure, and less prominent original material to provide a relatively strong and stylistically-varied final statement from Aerosmith in the 1970s.

*Note: The April 8 performance at the California World Music Festival exists on a rough if not hostile audience recording, while the enjoyable July 2 Toronto show can be found on a more agreeable tape; only the last third of the April 14 set in Orlando (during which Ted Nugent joined the band for Chuck Berry’s “Carol”) is available on tape. Brief news coverage of the CA stop includes excerpts from “Train Kept A Rollin”, “S.O.S. (Too Bad)”, and “Mama Kin” in marginally better quality and interviews with Tyler and Perry, though little more can be gleaned as to the show’s artistic merit aside from the fact that the group sounds fine for these few minutes and everyone remains upright. J.J. Jackson narrates and turns up for a few seconds to bookend the segment. Joe Perry’s final appearance with Aerosmith in 1979, the July 28 Cleveland show, was by all accounts as convincing a show as the group had put on in years, and hopefully a recording will surface to corroborate this.

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The wild and deadly story behind the 1979 World Series of Rock

With Aerosmith, Ted Nugent, Journey, Thin Lizzy and AC/DC lined up to play, chaos reigned in the streets and backstage... and five people were shot

Not since Woodstock had the United States witnessed such a wild, momentous and ultimately deadly showcase of pure rock'n'roll excess. 

July 28, 1979 began as a glorious summer day, with some of the biggest bands on the planet assembling for a day-long rock festival in Cleveland, Ohio. By the day’s end however, the stadium grounds lay in shambles, the headliners ripped at each others’ throats and two people lay dead.

Hatched in Cleveland in 1974, the World Series of Rock (“WSOR”) was a series of day-long festivals spread throughout the summer. Talent-wise, it was a very big deal. Held in Cleveland Stadium — home to the Cleveland Indians — the event adopted a baseball theme, with each festival day representing one inning. 

1978 featured three innings, with headliners Rolling Stones , E.L.O. and Fleetwood Mac , respectively. The 1979 season kicked off on July 28, boasting an absolutely mouthwatering feast of powerhouse bands, all of whom were enjoying considerable radio play at the time: Boston’s legendary Aerosmith would headline, supported by Ted Nugent, Journey , Thin Lizzy and a heatseeking act from Australia called AC/DC .

The sirens of chaos sounded long before the first band took to the stage. On the eve of the festival, surging throngs of concertgoers amassed outside of the stadium with an eye towards claiming prime real estate when the doors opened in the morning. 

Unsurprisingly, Bacchanalian revelry ensued throughout the night and as the hours wore on, local criminal gangs targeted many of the fans who lined the stadium perimeter, unguarded and unprotected. Reports flooded in of gang violence, robberies and theft. In separate incidents, a jaw-dropping five people were shot — one fatally — imbuing the scene with bad vibes and chaotic urgency. It would not be the day’s only fatality.

Over at local station WMMS, Aerosmith turned up for an interview with DJ Denny Sanders. The band were in damage control mode, having cancelled a number of Cleveland gigs in the past (including the cancelation of a make-up gig for a previous cancelation). Aerosmith were badly behind schedule with the release of their forthcoming album, Night In The Ruts and by the tour was plagued with arguments and petty squabbles — troubles which were only amplified by the band’s prodigious appetite for booze and drugs. 

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Renowned Cleveland DJ John Gorman was in the studio that evening and recalled, “As I walked by the newsroom I heard an unusual commotion. Looking in I found Steven Tyler on top of a table and on all-fours, snorting a line of cocaine that looked long enough to be a mile marker, extending from one end of the table to another.”

From a talent perspective, the WSOR delivered a stunning roster of heavyweights. When the festival opened, perhaps the biggest shock of the day occurred at the very outset, when none other than the Scorpions took the stage as unbilled surprise openers. Supporting Lovedrive — their sixth studio outing and first featuring the now-classic lineup — this historic set marked the Scorpions’ United States debut.

Angus Young in the World Series of Rock concert at Cleveland Municipal Stadium, 1979. pic.twitter.com/Isx3tkPfWY June 27, 2017

No matter how big the band, at one point in their career, every band plays early, mid-day sets way at the bottom of the bill and in 1979, AC/DC were at that very juncture. At least in the States. 

They were, however, in rapid ascent on the back of the Highway To Hell album, and the Aussie rockers followed the Germans with an utterly scorching set that remains one of the WSOR’s all-time highlights. Thin Lizzy also emerged as one of the day’s highlights, unleashing a ferocious set of dual-fretted bangers, peaking with Jailbreak . Despite its rocky start, 1979’s first inning was shaping up to be one for the ages.

Over in the Aerosmith camp however, years of stress, bickering and drug-fuelled resentments had reached a tipping point. Backstage, Tom Hamilton’s wife Terry took a verbal swipe at Joe Perry’s wife Elyssa, who responded by hurling a glass of milk at Terry, launching the two into a fight. 

As Tom and Joe attempted to separate the two, Steven railed at the men to reign in their wives. Similar blowouts among band members were not particularly out of the ordinary for Aerosmith. Guitarist Brad Whitford would later describe that period by saying, “Being in Aerosmith was like walking into a dog fight and both dogs bite you.”

Meanwhile, inside the stadium, Journey were finishing up a spectacular set. They had released Evolution in the spring and the single, Lovin', Touchin', Squeezin' had infiltrated the US top 20 – a first for the band. This was their second album with Steve Perry and it would go on to sell over three million copies. 

Ted Nugent had released State Of Shock earlier that year but he was still riding on the strength of 1978’s sizzling Double Live Gonzo and by all accounts, the Nuge turned in an electric show.

Finally it was time for the headliners. If they had hoped to earn back the goodwill of the people of Cleveland after their previously-cancelled shows, their efforts fell well short, with a set that was widely panned. Many reported that Steven couldn’t seem to remember lyrics and that Joe appeared wholly disinterested in the entire affair. For the band, it was an unqualified disaster. 

When they finished, Steven, admittedly very drunk, started back in on Joe. In his biography Walk This Way , Tom recalls, "We came offstage and went right into the trailer and we were freaked at Joe and started yelling at him. And then Joe's answer finally was, 'Well, maybe I should leave the band then.' And Steven said, 'Yeah, well, maybe you fuckin' should.' And the rest of us stood there, basically agreeing with Steven. And then Joe stormed out." 

He would not play with Aerosmith again until 1984.

Despite the ragtag performance, fans filing out had little idea that they had just witnessed the end of the classic Aerosmith lineup — for several years, anyway. Adding to the misfortunes, areas of the stadium had been badly vandalised and local news would later report that another fatality had occurred when a fan fell to his death after trying to scale the stadium wall.

The WSOR promoter rescheduled and eventually cancelled the second inning that year, amid concerns for safety. Grimly, on December 3, 1979, eleven people would be trampled to death at a Who concert only a few hours away in Cincinnati. The WSOR held its swan song the next year, with headliner Bob Seger supported by the J. Geils Band , Eddie Money and an up-and-coming outfit from England called Def Leppard .

9. World Series of Rock (1979) #10KonserMusikRockBerdarahDiDunia pic.twitter.com/aVg5FnCmG9 August 9, 2014

Hailing from San Diego, California, Joe Daly is an award-winning music journalist with over thirty years experience. Since 2010, Joe has been a regular contributor for Metal Hammer , penning cover features, news stories, album reviews and other content. Joe also writes for Classic Rock, Bass Player, Men’s Health and Outburn magazines. He has served as Music Editor for several online outlets and he has been a contributor for SPIN, the BBC and a frequent guest on several podcasts. When he’s not serenading his neighbours with black metal, Joe enjoys playing hockey, beating on his bass and fawning over his dogs.

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