Top 6 unforgettable Aerosmith stage performances of all time

The Aerosmith hallmark as a stage juggernaut was not just because they had an exalted brew of tunes, but because they managed to bring those tunes to a boiling point onstage in the presence of an audience. Often contending with threats of in-fighting and imminent disintegration, the group always managed to click back into a level of understanding that made their performances seem like a homecoming of outcasts who had something to prove.

It was a magnetic performance of Steven Tyler, part circus-master, part rock shaman, that kept the shows glued to the stage. Also, Tyler's sizzling admixture with Joe Perry's rollicking guitar work literally set sparks alight.

Joey Kramer contributed a matter-of-fact intensity that pushed the band along, while Tom Hamilton and Brad Whitford anchored it all up by keeping a solid groove with a little grace.

Their performance might range between slick arena show and boisterous bar-room fight, and people adored that about it. The magic occasionally lay in a well-timed scream or guitar solo, occasionally in a miscue or an impromptu jam, which made any given performance of the night unique.

These were the moments people could not practice, and those moments made the legend of Aerosmith as a band, whose performances were not events. Rather, these were live, breathtaking shots of a group that, despite all disorder, managed to illuminate a stage like almost no other. Over time, Aerosmith has become known for their live shows, a mix of good music and wild moments that mix the planned with the unexpected.

People didn't just come for the hits. They came because they knew anything could happen, like a jam that made a song new or a real, and because of the off-the-cuff talk with the crowd. This mix of risk and surprise is what got fans to keep coming back, making each show more than just a list of songs but a one-of-a-kind experience that couldn't be done the same way again.

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Here are the top 6 Aerosmith's stage performances of all time

Here are the top 6 Aerosmith stage shows of all time that show the band at their most alive and wild. These shows were great not just for the songs they played, but for the vibe they created, the shocks that turned into tales, and the raw power that showed us why Aerosmith is still one of the top live rock bands.

Whether it was a big festival show, a sudden club gig, or a huge stadium event, each of these shows shows how the band can turn a concert into an unforgettable rock and roll show.

1) Aerosmith's live performance at the World Series of Rock in Cleveland in 1979

Aerosmith hit the World Series of Rock in Cleveland in the summer of 1979. But the rest of their tour was outshone by that event and the things that went on around it. The band gave a fiery, charged show that many fans still think back on as the top moment of the night. When folks bring up Aerosmith as the big rock stars of that era, they often talk about this show.

However, backstage things were getting out of hand as the audience partied to the raw rock's glory. Steven Tyler and Joe Perry had arguably been steaming for years now, under the pressure of the relentless touring, the drugging, and egos going wrong, but this was the point where the elephant broke out. Tyler would later assert that he never punched Perry, but he would have been inches away from punching him next to the stage.

To further compound the problem, a major scuffle ensued between the spouses of two of the band members, adding another element of personal drama to an already volatile plot. When the dust settled, Joe Perry had had enough and left the band, setting an end date to the era that had been as turbulent as it had been prosperous.

Decades later, the bandmates confess that they themselves are unable to reconstruct all the events of that night, except maybe what Brad Whitford said. According to Ultimate Classic Rock, Whitford asserted:

“Being in Aerosmith was like walking into a dog fight and both dogs bite you."

To the fans, the Cleveland performance is both an epiphany and a lesson as to how the disorder that lends rock and roll its greatness can also destroy it.

2) Aerosmith's live performance at Max's Kansas City in New York in 1972

By giving a showcase gig a try at Max Kansas City, Aerosmith had found the reversal they needed so much. They had recruited managers David Krebs and Steve Leber earlier in the same year, and they were relentless in putting the band in the eyes of the right people. That is why they booked a gig at the reputable New York club, a place that attracts cool kids and powerful producers.

When the band appeared that evening, however, they were appalled to find that they had not even been entered to appear. They were not ready to surrender, and they combined their money and paid personally to fit into the bill. That night, Columbia Records president Clive Davis, Atlantic Records founder Ahmet Ertegun, and Atlantic Records president Jerry Greenberg were in the audience to check out new talent.

Steven Tyler of Aerosmith (Image via Getty)

Aerosmith strode on with an aggressive, dirt-cheap performance consisting of bare-bones takes of Mama Kin, Make It, Movin' Out, and even their later signature power ballad, Dream On. The Atlantic Record groups had decided to pass on them, but Clive Davis found sufficient promise in their grunge and irresistible stage presence to sign them on the spot to Columbia, a contract subsequently reported to be of value of $125,000.

At Max's Kansas City that evening, financed personally by them, Aerosmith got the opportunity to become the legends of American rock.

3) Aerosmith's live performance at Club Boston in 1980

Following the departure of Joe Perry toward the end of 1979, Aerosmith tried to keep their sinking ship upright by hiring Jimmy Crespo as a guitarist. Chaos followed them even though they had new blood. Steven Tyler almost broke it all with a motorcycle accident in August, but the band had to get themselves up in order to make another special show, an occasion they were giving themselves, their 10th anniversary.

They plugged in again on December 3, 1980, in the small, now legendary Boston club, "Club Boston" (officially called the Orpheum Theatre), and the country came out to listen in on the performance, which was rough and ragged. They did not simply coast on the biggest radio hits, ripping through a bluesy set that not just revealed their dusty roots but showed their scruffy sides.

They started with the early record Rat in the Cellar, followed by covers of Rufus Thomas' Walking the Dog and James Bown Mother Popcorn, along with songs like Seasons of Wither, I Wanna Know Why, and classics like Walk This Way to remind fans they had some teeth left. However, beneath the crunching guitar and the scratchy howling of Tyler, the lines were coming apart.

It would be Brad Whitford's last curtsy with Aerosmith in that period. He made a brief appearance in the studio in 1981 during the recording of Rock in a Hard Place, but walked out as things turned into tar-water.

Joe Perry and Joey Kramer of Aerosmith (Image via Getty)

As Joey Kramer later recalled, he would spend 12 hours to get only 20 minutes of usable work — a sign that no matter how loudly the amps were cranked, amplification could not mask the anarchy that was tearing the band apart.

4) Aerosmith's live performance at the Monsters of Rock festival in 1990

After the tepid reception to their 1985 album, Done With Mirrors, Aerosmith felt that they would have to restore their image and musical status in the world of rock. They regained their chart supremacy with the release of Permanent Vacation in 1987 and Pump in 1989, establishing a mighty comeback.

This new wedge led this chapter back into an exciting climax as they appeared on the mammoth Monsters of Rock festival in London, according to Ultimate Classic Rock, and thrilled more than 80,000 fervent fans with this new force. It is unforgettable since it was none other than Jimmy Page who substituted the encore, thus connecting the revival of hard-rock of Aerosmith and the legacy of Led Zeppelin.

The magic continued two days later with a hush-hush, intimate engagement at the Marquee Club, where only 650 privileged spectators saw Joe Perry, Steven Tyler, and Page go through a sound check marathon throbbing with Zeppelin and Yardbirds standards.

In retrospect now, Perry remembered the surreal madness of playing with one of their heroes, a dream that succinctly marked the mile that Aerosmith had travelled back on its throne of rock to the hardships of the mid-80s.

5) Aerosmith's live performance at Las Vegas in 2020

With the Aerosmith decades-long run moving forward, Joey Kramer started experiencing health issues, which started to affect his work behind the drums. His health problems, which initially led to cancelations throughout the 2014 Let Rock Rule tour, ultimately took their toll on his relationship with his musical colleagues as well.

As of 2019, Kramer has been complimented by drum tech John Douglas playing select dates of the band during their Deuces Are Wild residency in Las Vegas, which found them tearing through songs such as The Train Kept A-Rollin, Sweet Emotion, and Dream On as well as covers such as the Elvis Presley song Viva Las Vegas.

In January 2020, things got really hot when Aerosmith kept Kramer from playing with them on stage at the Grammy Awards. This led to Kramer filing a short lawsuit against his own band. Yet, they made up soon so Kramer could play one final time with Aerosmith on February 15, 2020.

That night, he played big hits like Walk This Way and I Don't Want to Miss a Thing. After that last Vegas show, Kramer left the band's 2022 dates and didn't join Aerosmith on their last tour, ending his time with the band in a quiet way.

6) Aerosmith's live performance at Nipmuc Regional High School on November 6, 1970

By walking on the small stage of the Nipmuc Regional High School on November 6, 1970, Aerosmith not only kicked off their first official performance, but also started the blazing relationship and competition that would become the trademark of the band.

The grungy setlist of that evening, consisting of an emulsious mix of brute aggressiveness and old-school rock worship, included such cover songs as Route 66, Rattlesnake Shake, The Train Kept A-Rollin, and even Good Times Bad Times by Led Zeppelin was played through the amplifiers of Joe Perry, whose Marshalls exed on the maximum volume, to the horror of Steven Tyler.

In his memoir, Tyler would later describe his tussling with Perry about the pounding volume as he complained, "My ears are bleeding," to which Perry retorted, "Let 'em bleed." They would insert early originals such as Movin' Out and Somebody along with modernized standards such as Tequila and Pink Cadillac. These were all songs that would be placed on their first album in 1973.

In hindsight, that was where it all began — in that high school gym. Decades of nibbling at the edges of tension and success where every ear-deafening riff and onstage bickering brought them one step closer to being the hard rock band in America.

In the huge world of rock, Aerosmith's songs teach us about hard work and change. From the early times with bluesy songs in albums like Toys in the Attic and Rocks, to the slick hits from their late '80s and '90s hits, they have changed and yet held on to the strong soul that sets them apart.

Over time, they have shared fast tunes, soft songs, and loud choruses that lots of us enjoy. Through highs and lows and a few detours, Aerosmith's music shows that tough times which could split a group can also make their tracks strong and vibrant.