Aerosmith Member Joe Perry Criticizes Steven Tyler’s Country Music
Joe Perry, well-known rocker and lead guitarist for Aerosmith, has shared his thoughts about Steven Tyler's solo country music -- and he's not exactly playing his bandmate's material on repeat.
The legendary guitarist tells USA Today that he's not a fan of Tyler's new single, "Red, White & You," which the rocker-turned-country artist debuted at the end of January. Tyler's label, Dot Records, describes it as an uptempo country anthem, but in Perry's opinion, it's not a standout song.
"Hey, if I didn't know him when I heard the song, I'd go, 'It's okay, next.'" Perry says. "I'm not going to say anything else about that."
Other members of Aerosmith have different views: Tom Hamilton has voiced his support of Tyler, saying, “He wanted to do this creative exercise of going and making an album, and I can’t blame him for wanting to do it. Joe’s done it before, I’d love to do it someday. Why be angry about it?”
But another Aerosmith member, Brad Whitford has one foot in each camp. He says, “I hope it’s a hit for him. It’ll be great for Aerosmith,” but also admits that the group was “a little bit abandoned."
"Red, White & You" is Tyler's follow-up single to his country music debut, "Love Is Your Name." Though it's a country song, the lyrics aren't necessarily stereotypical country lyrics -- an intentional move on Tyler's part.
“Country’s not just about porches, dogs and kicking my boots up,” he says. “It’s a whole lot more, but it’s about being real. You know, the world’s gone so far away from that. I hope it comes back.”
However, Perry stands firm in his stance against Tyler's country debut.
"Steven is in Nashville doing whatever he's doing," he says. "He's got a [bleeping] rhinestone cowboy hat going 'Yippee ki yay.' I don't know what else to say about that."
Tyler has two solo shows planned for 2016. They're set to take place March 29 and 31, at the Avalon Ballroom in Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada. More information on tickets is available on the Fallsview Casino Resort website.
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