Wayne seeks John advice on his superb training regime Photo: Joe Perry
As of this writing the guys have 1 show left to play in Sacramento tonight. Hinder played last night and seem to be going over really well. I will have to check out a few songs tonight. It was great having Motley Crue aboard. Those guys were a lot of fun and Tommy and Nikki help provide some comic relief backstage. Mick seemed to really enjoy being around our guys especially Joe and Brad. We didn’t get to see much of Vince. Nikki came out and played Helter Skelter and proclaimed that for 5 minutes he was in Aerosmith. I will not miss those damn fireworks and concussion bombs. They would set them off in the same place every night but they would still catch you off guard and scare the living you know what out of ya!
Some of the highlights had to have been:
Tom coming out and playing in Mansfield. It was very emotional and you guys let him know how much he means to this band.
The NASCAR shoots! I can’t wait to see what Aerosmith/Nascar and ESPN have in store for Saddle.
Rich Feinberg presents Joe with NASCAR Helmet Photo: John Bionelli
Joe, Steven and Joey playing with the Refugee All Stars at their studio. Look for those collaborations to come out in 2007.
Joe with The Refugee All Stars Photo: John Bionelli
It was also great seeing hockey legends Joe Thornton and Wayne Gretzky out on the road. It is still one of the biggest shames in Boston sports history that the Bruins brass traded the greatest center man in the last 25 years to go to San Jose for 3 guys that may not be in the league in 3 years. How do you sleep at night Mike O’Connell?
Steven makes good use of his table with Joe Thornton Photo: John Bionelli
2 Great ones in one picture! Photo: John Bionelli
Joe arranged to have his favorite sushi chef “Tojo” at the Vancouver show. The night before the show Joey, Brad and David went to Tojo’s restaurant and saw Nikki Sixx and Tommy Lee there. This time the restaurant came backstage. The guys all sat down in their Hospitality room and snacked on Sushi before and after the show. The next day Joe checked out a couple of studios in the Vancouver area. Aerosmith producer Bruce Fairbairn owned one studio called “The Armory”. Bruce passed away a few years ago but the studio is still run by his family. The studio is absolutely beautiful and has a lot of Aerosmith touches inside including all of Bruce’s Gold and Platinum albums and also the track boards from Pump and Get a Grip complete with unreleased tracks that were either discarded or never finished. It was a trip down memory lane for Joe. The guys did 3 albums in Vancouver and Joe considers it a home away from home. Then it was off to “The Warehouse” were Mike Fraser works out of. Mike worked on the albums I mentioned at Little Mountain studios. Now he keeps busy mixing and recording Nickleback and others. This was another classy studio right in the “Gaslight” district. Who knows maybe the guys will make their way back up to Vancouver for a record one of these days.
Speaking of Nickleback, Chad Kroeger came back to say hi to the guys before the show. Believe it or not it was his first time to see Aerosmith.
The guys each taped a little Holiday wish for the fans so keep an eye on the websites.
Joe with Tojo Photo: John Bionelli
Brad hanging with Tojo Photo: John Bionelli
Employee of the Week:
Lisa and Liz with the silent one Photo: John Bionelli
EOTW honors go to Lisa Bruno and Liz Meyer. They are the girls behind the scenes that make things happen. Liz owns her own antiques shop in Chicago and does all those great drawings on Steven’s arm although she may blush when she tells you what she has Steven write on his stomach. Lisa is a little Betsy Ross and can be found at her sewing machine putting finishing touches on Joe’s pants or Brad’s jacket. She also plays a role in getting Joey’s hands ready to attack the drums.
Happy Holidays to everybody! It’s been a great tour and I look forward to seeing everybody from all over the world in 2007.
See you on the road!
John B.
