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February 2, 2010
No End in Sight For Aerosmith Drama
With each passing day, the future of Aerosmith seems more uncertain. This rollercoaster ride for fans of the Bean Town rockers seems to have started when Steven Tyler took that much-publicized tumble from the stage during the group’s summer tour with ZZ Top.
Surely there had to be a lot going on behind the scenes well before the incident, but the fall seems to have been the turning point which opened the floodgates, and confirmed a lot of speculation regarding the status of the band and the relationship between Tyler and the rest of the group.
There were reports from inside the Aerosmith camp that Tyler’s behavior had taken a turn for the bizarre, and some recent public actions on the part of the iconic frontman seem to confirm the allegations.
Recently Tyler delivered an impromptu performance by singing over the P.A. system of a Home Depot store in Rancho Mirage, CA. He belted out versions of “Dude Looks Like a Lady” and “I Don’t Want to Miss a Thing,” while shoppers roamed the aisles, probably wondering what new classic rock radio station the store’s management had tuned in to.
A week or so prior to his Home Depot debut, Tyler took to the stage at a club called the Tilted Kilt in Palm Desert, and finished up a karaoke rendition of "I Don’t Want To Miss A Thing." The previous two performers had not been well-received by the audience, so Tyler apparently decided to show them how it was done – much to the surprise of the club’s other patrons no doubt!
Tyler is reportedly still in rehab for his pain-killer addiction, but is said to have earned privileges that allow him to take trips away from the facility after 30 days of treatment. Tyler’s management company says that the 61-year-old singer is still in rehab and is set to continue with the 90-day program.
As for the Home Depot performance, the same source says that Tyler just happened to be shopping there, and pointed out that Tyler is a performer 24/7, whether he’s on stage or at Home Depot. Who knows? Maybe the guy was just happy to be through his first 30 days of rehab and decided to share the joy with his fellow shoppers.
Unfortunately, more recent news developments may be putting a bit of a damper on Steven Tyler’s mood. The rest of the group is said to be continuing their efforts to find a replacement singer with names such as Billy Idol, Lenny Kravitz, Paul Rodgers, and Chris Cornell being bandied about.
As a result, it appears the relationship between Tyler and the rest of the group may deteriorate even further in light of news regarding possible legal action. Billboard reported that Tyler’s lawyer has contacted Aerosmith manager Howard Kaufman and advised the group to “…cease and desist from engaging in acts and conduct to the harm and detriment of your own client, Aerosmith, and our client who is one of its members.”
Tyler reportedly has every intention of returning to his post with Aerosmith and wants to release a new album and tour with the group in Europe and South America as originally planned.
The letter from Tyler’s attorney to Aerosmith’s management also states that, “Contrary to all common sense, you are seeing to bring about the replacement of Steven Tyler. Aerosmith without Steven Tyler is like the Rolling Stones without Mick Jagger, or U2 without Bono. While this management strategy may get the band on the road a few months sooner, it ultimately could destroy Aerosmith.”
Clearly the rest of the group is anxious to get back to the business of being a band, whether than includes Steven Tyler or not. Tyler’s ability to complete rehab successfully may be the deciding factor regarding the future of the group. It’s hard to imagine his band mates turning him away if he cleans up his act, but this could be his last chance to hold the group together and continue on as Aerosmith.
More recent details can be found in People magazine.
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July 23, 2009
Jackson Browne Prevails In McCain Campaign Lawsuit
As some may recall, veteran rocker Jackson Browne was none-too-pleased when then-Presidential candidate John McCain’s campaign aired a television commercial that featured Browne’s hit song “Running on Empty.” The use of that particular song was presumably intended to suggest that McCain’s Democratic opponent, Barack Obama, was touting energy policies that lacked substance.
There were other rockers crying foul during that time, including the Wilson sisters of Heart, Boston’s Tom Scholz, Bon Jovi, Foo Fighters and even – believe it or not – Survivor of “Eye of The Tiger” fame. None of them wanted their music associated with John McCain and his campaign for President.
Much of the hubbub was a result of music that was selected to be played inside large convention-style venues where the McCain campaign held rallies and other events. Although letters of protest were written and public statements were made regarding the use of material written by certain performers, using material at a campaign event does not appear to be as serious as using it for a television commercial. And Jackson Browne (and his lawyers) have the check to prove it.
The McCain campaign recently decided to settle the lawsuit filed by Browne when someone inside the McCain campaign organization decided that using Browne’s material for the commercial without his consent was OK. Maybe they looked at it as a calculated risk. One that was not calculated too carefully it seems.
As is normally the case in these situations, the dollar amount of the settlement is not being disclosed. We do know, however, that McCain and the Republican Party issued apologies to Browne as well as a promise to refrain from using Browne’s material in the future.
It appears that McCain’s legal team ran out of options after several unsuccessful attempts to have the case dismissed. I guess they didn’t feel too good about their chances taking it all the way to a trial and decided to offer a settlement to Browne to close the case and cut their losses.
At this point the legal scorecard appears to read: Rockers 1, politicians 0.
June 16, 2009
Eddie Van Halen Takes on Nike
Don’t mess with Eddie Van Halen’s “Frankenstein.” That seems to be the message that the veteran guitarist is conveying to sporting goods giant Nike. Van Halen has concluded that a new lines of sneakers recently introduced by Nike look a little too similar to his signature “Frankenstein” design, that was made famous by the guitar of the same name when the group broke onto the scene back in the late 1970’s.
Having recently introduced his own line of sneakers featuring the famous design under his EVH brand, Van Halen apparently sees too much similarity between Nike’s new design and the “Frankenstein” design he copyrighted back in 2001 and has field suit in Los Angeles claiming that Nike is inflicting "irreparable harm and damage" to his signature design.
Van Halen is seeking general and punitive damages, all profits resulting from the sales of Nike’s "Dunk Lows" and a permanent injunction stopping the production of the sneakers in question.
There’s little question that the design of the Nike shoe bears a resemblance to Van Halen’s design, but is it similar enough to file a lawsuit over? Opinions, will vary as they always do and likely be influenced by whether or not someone sees Eddie Van Halen has a rock god or a grumpy and arrogant celebrity.
This will be an interesting one to watch, although a verdict is probably not something we should be expecting soon. I suspect that the Van Halen legal team may be hoping for an offer of a settlement from Nike which would allow them to continue using the design while cutting Van Halen in on some of the profits by way of a licensing agreement.
May 1, 2009
Boston’s Tom Scholz Speaks Out Regarding Recent Rumors
It’s always interesting to report developments that involve Boston, since a lot of what has happened with the group over the years would make decent material for a television soap opera. These latest developments are no exception and it will not be surprising if these latest comments posted by Scholz on the group’s official website stir up some new controversy.
According to Scholz, rumors have been circulating recently about plans for performances by Boston or original members of Boston this year. Scholz states that there are no plans for Boston to perform this year and that many of the group’s members are busy with their own projects, including Kimberley Dahme, who is releasing a new CD and Michael Sweet who is touring with Stryper later on this year.
Scholz says that the group would like to do some touring next year, and is currently working on completing the next Boston album. But, that’s just the beginning. There’s plenty more from Scholz for those who like to stay abreast of the latest controversies that always seem to be swirling around some of the people who have been involved with Boston 
through the years.
In an interesting new twist to the whole drawn-out battle that has been raging between Scholz and certain former members of the group, the popular website Wikipedia became a sort of battleground where Scholz says that inaccurate information was posted about the origins of the group, and who actually deserves credit for landing the deal with Epic records which introduced Boston to the world.
As some readers may know, Wikipedia, which refers to itself as “The Free Encyclopedia,” is an excellent source of information on a myriad of subjects. I have consulted it myself on countless occasions, but what’s really unique about Wikipedia is that it welcomes contributions from readers. In other words, I could visit the site and edit the section about former President Richard Nixon to include the fact that he was actually an alien from the planet "Gliese 581 e” (go ahead, look it up!).
Now we all know that Nixon was (probably) not an alien, and the folks who run Wikipedia would probably remove that nonsense pretty quickly. However, when it comes to matters that Wikipedia staff or contributors have absolutely no knowledge of, it becomes much more difficult – if not impossible – to separate fact from fiction. In situations like this, it can boil down to one person’s word against another.
For regular folks like myself, we have little to worry about where Wikipedia is concerned, since there are only a small group of people interested in our lives when compared to the lives of celebrities. There’s little incentive for anyone to create a Wikipedia entry about me, much less use it as a platform to publish their version of some significant event in my life. Basically, nobody with the possible exception of my family and friends would care.
This is not the case with Tom Scholz however, and he goes into some detail on the official Boston website regarding information that was posted on the subject of the group’s origin, who was actually involved and who contributed to the effort. Scholz says that he has made corrections to the information that was posted, only to have it reappear later on in a different form.
Checking the Wikipedia entry for guitarist Barry Goudreau, who was a member of the group, I see that at least some of the disputed information still remains. Perhaps Scholz has simply given up on the back-and-forth over this particular issue and has decided to spend his time doing other things.
As far as I know, there has been no final judgment regarding the lawsuit that Scholz filed back around the beginning of last year, claiming that the wives of late singer Brad Delp and former Boston guitarist Barry Goudreau had defamed him.
Some readers on the Boston Globe website have suggested that all of this nasty business involving current or former members of Boston is all about the money. Ultimately it appears that it will be the courts that decide how this mess gets sorted out.
You can read Tom Scholz’s comments regarding this latest flare-up on the Band Boston website.
April 28, 2009
Aerosmith Settles With Disgruntled Fans Over Canceled Maui Show
There is a saying that rather boldly proclaims: “You don’t mess with Texas.” Recent developments from the legal world suggest that the same may hold true for the state of Hawaii. At least if you ask Boston-based rockers Aerosmith and their legal team.
It all started last fall when Aerosmith canceled a concert that had been scheduled for the end of September on the island of Maui. The veteran rockers were accused of ditching their fans in Maui in favor of the opportunity to perform a show in the Chicago area where they would collect a bigger paycheck. The group was also invited to perform a private show for automobile giant Toyota around the same time, which was also thought to be quite lucrative.
Many fans who had tickets for the Maui show were determined to take action and make the group pay for ditching the show on the Pacific island and opting to grab for a different variety of green in the windy city. That, in so many words, was the way the story was presented by the legal team that was enlisted to level a class-action lawsuit against 
Aerosmith at the time.
Many fans were alleged to have been greatly inconvenienced due to extraordinary travel expenses associated with attending the show on Maui, and has also suffered monetary losses due to hotel and rental car reservations that had to be canceled and were not refundable.
Whether Aerosmith and their legal team recently decided on a settlement due to the goodness of their hearts or due to the concern over losing a few millions bucks is something that some fans may argue about for a while, but the settlement that was reached just days ago appears to be a clear win for the fans, and surely must be cause for smiles on the faces of Aerosmith fans in that region of the world.
Aerosmith has agreed to perform on Maui sometime this fall, after the group finishes up with their North American tour. Attorney Brandee Faria, whom we also heard from back when the lawsuit was first filed, has announced that the settlement provides original ticket holders with a free ticket to the show as well as all out-of-pocket expenses, regardless of the amount.
Whether or not Aerosmith’s decision to play nice had anything to do with a recent case in South Korea where pop artist Rain was forces to shell out a cool $8.1 million after the 27-year-old entertainer and his former management were found guilty of fraud after the abrupt cancellation of a show that was scheduled back in 2007 at Hawaii’s Aloha Stadium.
The Aerosmith case was set go to trial in May, and apparently the group decided that a few hours on stage in Hawaii would be less painful than finding themselves on the losing end of a lawsuit that was said to have resulted in losses somewhere between $500,000 and $3 million for fans who had made plans to attend the show.
I can only imagine how uncomfortable those first few moments will be for frontman Steve Tyler when he walks on stage for a show that the group is essentially being forced to put on. How do you greet a crowd under those circumstances?
However the show ends up being received, the “Bad Boys From Boston” might do well to remember that “you don’t mess with Hawaii,” no matter how rich and famous you may be – a lesson that Rain will probably not forget, although I expect he might be a rare sight anywhere near Hawaii for the rest of his days!
