LOS ANGELES, (Reuters) – Veteran rock band Aerosmith has scrapped its ill-starred North American tour a little over a week after singer Steven Tyler fell off the stage and broke his shoulder.
Aerosmith’s representatives said late on Thursday the tour was canceled because Tyler needs time to recover. His injury became the latest in a series of mishaps for the band.
“Words can’t express the sadness I feel for having to cancel this tour,” guitarist Joe Perry said in a statement.
“I would like to thank our loyal fans for sticking by us through thick and thin and all the good energy they are sending our way.”
Ticket refunds for the rest of the tour Aerosmith planned to play with special guest ZZ Top will be available at the point of purchase, Aero-smith’s representatives said.
The tour, which kicked off on June 10, also saw guitarist Brad Whitford and bass player Tom Hamilton sidelined for separate stretches by health problems. Tyler also had been hobbled by a sore leg muscle, forcing the postponement of seven shows last month.
Of the 15 shows the quintet did manage to play, none was with its full complement.
The tour was supposed to run though Sept. 16, and the band had promised to reschedule the shows that were postponed when Tyler hurt his leg.
Tyler, 61, broke his left shoulder and needed 20 stitches in his head after stepping backward off a catwalk while dancing on-stage midway through a show for thousands of motorcycle aficionados attending an annual gathering in Sturgis, South Dakota, on Aug. 5.
It was just the latest misfortune for Tyler, who was stricken by pneumonia earlier this year and checked into rehab in May 2008 to recover from painful foot surgeries.
The tour was troubled before it even kicked off.
Whitford, 57, missed the first seven shows while recovering from surgery after hitting his head getting out of his Ferrari. Then, Hamilton, a 57-year-old cancer survivor, left the tour to undergo what a spokeswoman described as “non-invasive surgery.” No information was available about his status.
Aerosmith rose to fame in the early 1970s staking their claim as America’s answer to the Rolling Stones. Tyler, who models his stage swagger on Mick Jagger, teamed with Perry to write such memorable tunes as “Walk This Way,” “Back in the Saddle” and “Same Old Song and Dance.”
But their fortunes had faded by 1979 when heavy drug use splintered the band.
Aerosmith enjoyed an unlikely resurgence in 1986 when the hip-hop trio Run DMC covered “Walk This Way,” a pioneering combination of rock and rap. The song’s success prompted the band to get clean and hit the comeback trail with the help of outside songwriters and popular music videos.
