Aerosmith: Almost As Prone To Injury As The 2009 New York Mets

Last night’s Aerosmith show in biker hotbed Sturgis, S.D., was cut short after frontman Steven Tyler fell off stage during a performance of “Love In An Elevator.” The “going dowwwwn” jokes will, one hopes, be kept to a minimum, since a) they’re hacky and b) Tyler had to be airlifted to a nearby hospital after being attended to a doctor on-site. A rundown of what happened from a few eyewitnesses:

Lance Yellow Robe from Rapid City was eight feet from the stage when Tyler fell off and said he was “stunned” by the event. “I’ve never seen that happen before,” he said. “But you could kind of see it coming because he was dancing all over the stage.” Yellow Robe said Tyler was trying to keep the crowd going after the sound system failed in the middle of “Elevator” by dancing around on the catwalk portion of the stage. Tyler spun, tottered backward and fell back-first off the stage. The band continued to play as security rushed to help him, and the crowd cheered when Tyler got back up. He was quickly escorted backstage, and the concert was put on hold as his condition was assessed. About 12:15 a.m., guitarist Joe Perry came out to tell the crowd that his “brother-in-arms” was being taken to the hospital, and that the concert would not go on.

This is the latest injury to plague the band this summer: Tyler injured his leg early in this summer’s run of live dates, causing the postponement of a few dates; guitarist Brad Whitford had to undergo emergency surgery after suffering a head injury; and bassist Tom Hamilton actually wasn’t at last night’s show, having been sidelined by a recent surgical procedure. All I’m going to say is, I hope Joe Perry and Joey Kramer are taking extra care—even when they walk down stairs. You never know where a potential injury can be lurking! [Rapid City Journal] Earlier: Injuries Continue To Chip Away At Aerosmith’s Lineup