Greg Kretschmar

Greg Kretschmar

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Aerosmith Call It A Day: Here's My "Thank You"

It was the Fall of 1978, and I went to the first real ROCK concert I have ever been to: Aerosmith at the Portland Cumberland County Civic Center.

And it was friggin AWFUL.

I was a sophomore in high school and I went with friends. We drank beer in the parking lot, and hid it under and behind the wheels of the car we came in when the cops came by. Nothing to see here, bro - keep movin!!! I was so excited and ready to see the band I fell in love with from the opening notes of the 'Get Your Wings" album! That was the record that turned me into a ROCK fan instead of the pop music I grew up hearing on the radio! C'mon man! Let's hear "TRAIN KEPT A ROLLIN, ALL NIGHT LONG!!!!" haha -

I also remember waiting for them to open the doors- and the crowd was banging and pushing on the glass! So much so, the walls were moving! It was insane- and I was thinking - "is EVERY rock show like this???". And that was before they started chanting "One two three four, OPEN UP THE F****** DOORS!". I ain't gonna lie- that kinda made me a little nervous because those people were friggin NUTS!!! Totally ROCK N ROLL!

I don't remember how much (or little) I paid for the ticket, but it must have been with the budget of my job as a bagger at the local IGA Supermarket! Haha- what I DO remember is - we were sitting in the next to last row, as far away from the stage as could be in the -what seemed like - CAVERNOUS Civic Center!! In today's world, it's a small arena - but then, it was the only game in town outside of the Boston Garden or the Worcester Centrum!

Anyway- the sound was shit. I mean - SHIT. Muffled so bad you couldn't understand what Steven Tyler was saying or singing. I mean, the drugs may not have helped in that department either- but it was really bad. So much so - I actually nodded off at one point because I - a FAN of the band who knew the tunes by heart- couldn't make heads or tails out of any song!

That was my introduction to Aerosmith LIVE.

And that's the ONLY time - of several - that I ever saw them be anything but AWESOME.

Over the weekend - Steven Tyler and the band released this statement- announcing that they were retiring from the road -

It wasn't a surprise, well - at least to anyone who really has followed the band. They've cancelled more shows and tours than most any other band I know. And I don't mean that to be critical at all. It's a simple fact that after years of Steven's vocal issues- it's gotten to the point where he just can't do it anymore. And can you be surprised at that? The man has a once in a life time rock and roll voice- and there's no way a mere human can still sing like that at 76 years old!!!

The band has frustrated me time and time again as a fan- because of the in fighting, back biting comments, back and forth sniping, cancelled shows and the drama.

But the reason for that frustration stems from the fact that they have always been one of my favorite bands! I've seen them 8 times- and with the exception of the first Portland show - they were all INCREDIBLE! They were the shows you left saying "THAT RIGHT THERE IS THE BEST ROCK AND ROLL BAND IN THE WORLD"!

From the Boston Garden (old and new), to the Worcester Centrum, the Old Orchard Beach Ballpark, the Orpheum, and the Verizon Wireless Arena - if they were playing in New England on a tour- I was going to see em.

To me, they are America's truest and greatest rock band. I know that's a totally subjective statement- but in my life- that's what they were/are. Aerosmith is America's Rolling Stones. Down and dirty rock and roll that can crunch it with the best of em, and still kill ya with a ballad. I mean - is there a better song than "Seasons of Wither"? (The answer here is - "NO").

When Tyler, Perry, Hamilton, Whitford and Kramer were on stage together- they delivered. When they reached back into that catalog and busted out songs like "Chip Away at the Stone", or "Toys in the Attic"-or "Train Kept a Rollin", I was all in. Even the later stuff like "Janies Got a Gun" or " Dude Looks Like a Lady" were awesome too!

I was at the Orpheum Theater for a special Aerosmith show that was taped for MTV's 25 Anniversary. The show started with Steven Tyler descending from the ceiling playing a white grand piano as they opened with "Dream On". The place lost it's friggin mind! Even when they had to do that song 3 or 4 more times - to get it right for TV- we all still went beserk! It was one of many really cool moments - like having them come out into the middle of the crowd and play at Great Woods (Xfinity Ctr, now) I've seen them do live.

I have such an affinity for this band- I feel like I owe them everything. Everything that I've done in radio came as a result of my love for music- and namely THIS band. They're the ones that cemented my drive to do it. I don't know why that is- but before Aerosmith, yeah- I knew I wanted radio as a career - but they brought me into the rock world, as a fan - and later as someone who actually worked in it.

I never dreamed I'd get to meet them and interview them all - several times!

I was such a huge fan, that when I realized I had interviewed every member of Aerosmith EXCEPT Steven- we arranged to do one through the record company. It was scheduled and on the morning it was supposed to happen - he never called. I was pretty bummed, but hey- that stuff happens, so i wasn't mad. Just bummed. I joked then that "We aren't leaving here until Steven Tyler calls". I was joking.......until an hour later when I wasn't joking anymore. And we all said "**** it! Let's do this!". And so we did. And after we cruised past the 10am end of our show - we started playing nothing but Aerosmith songs and vowed to stay on the air until Tyler called.

54 hours later, he did. As fun as it was- and it WAS fun- we were all exhausted when he called- but the room exploded when I brought him on the air! It was the coolest moment! He never knew about the interview- and was out of the country - and as soon as he landed- he said his MOM called him and said "Steven will you CALL THIS GUY!". It was a great interview and in it he invited us all down to their next show at Great Woods with backstage passes and more -

And when he came over to me and I introduced myself as "the guy who stayed on the air for 54 hours!" He was like- "DUDE!!!! YOU'RE INSANE!"

And that was beginning of it with us and Aerosmith. Like I've said- we've had a great relationship with them through the years and have interviewed them many times-

Through it all - anytime I got to see them do what they do best- get out on stage and crush a show filled with great rock songs- they left it all out there.

And even though they have frustrated me through the years after that first show in Portland, they never did once they got on stage.

Aerosmith has been one of the best American rock and roll bands I've ever seen in concert.

So I guess I'm writing this as a Thank You to Steven, Joe, Tom, Brad and Joey. Thank you for showing what the power of rock and roll can do- both personally and professionally.

And thank you for having a profound affect on my life.

Long live The Bad Boys from Boston.

g

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Photo: ROBYN BECK / AFP / Getty Images


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