SCHOOL OF ROCK - WED 12/23: TYLER & RUNDGREN

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Aerosmith frontman Steven Tyler is back in rehab.  The 61-year-old tells "People" magazine that he's seeking treatment at an undisclosed facility for the second time in two years for pain management and a dependence on prescription painkillers.  Tyler cited a decade of performance-related injuries as a source of his addiction.  Tyler says, quote, "With the help of my family and team of medical professionals, I am taking responsibility for the management of my pain and am eager to be back on the stage and in the recording studio with my band mates.''

Tyler emphasizes that he wants to reconnect with the band he co-founded nearly 40 years ago, saying, quote, "I love Aerosmith; I love performing as the lead singer in Aerosmith.  I am grateful for all of the support and love I am receiving and am committed to getting things taken care of."  The classic rocker's attempt to regain control of his health follows months of speculation about the singer's future with Aerosmith.  After he recently announced his desire to take time off to work on solo projects, his band mates said they'd seek a new lead singer.

I’m sure one of Tyler’s supporters is TODD RUNDGREN, who, while married to her mother, was actually the father figure for Tyler’s daughter, actress Liv Tyler.  Since that makes Todd a part of the ‘family”, I wondered which one of his songs would be most appropriate to dedicate to Steven, and it was a song from his days as the leader of progressive pop quartet UTOPIA that seemed right….for someone or anyone who might be imprisoned by addiction, the perfect choice is SET ME FREE!

A note about the attached videos – while Rundgren is in fact the leader of the group, he's not the vocalist on this song, and only makes a brief appearance toward the end.  You can also tell that the band chose the motif of the Iranian Hostage Crisis as the background for set me free, with the scenes of the hostages, the former Shah of Iran and Ayatollah Khomeini.  At the time the video was made and released, the crisis had not yet been resolved.  The second video is a really great live version

This article also has 2 videos attached to it.