Aerosmith played their first live shows in three years across two nights at the Hollywood Bowl on October 29 and November 1, billed as California, Dream On: Aerosmith & Friends. Dave Grohl sat behind the kit for most of the first night's six-song set, Johnny Depp came out to play guitar on "The Train Kept A-Rollin'," and Joey Kramer returned for the closer, "Walk This Way." The shows followed the abrupt end of the band's touring days when Steven Tyler injured his larynx.
The format carried as much weight as the setlist. Eric Church, Heart, Billy Idol, Sammy Hagar and Godsmack's Sully Erna performed before Aerosmith took the stage, with Nuno Bettencourt among the backing musicians. The Black Crowes ran through four Aerosmith songs; Guns N' Roses, direct support, covered "Nobody's Fault," "Last Child" and "Seasons of Wither." Liv Tyler and Alicia Silverstone, both veterans of the 1994 "Crazy" video, introduced the band. Night two swapped in John Douglas on drums and brought Tom Morello with Lzzy Hale on "Kings And Queens" and "Round And Round," plus Jerry Cantrell, Mike Inez and Richie Kotzen on "Draw The Line" and "Nobody's Fault"; Aerosmith added a cover of the Beatles' "Come Together."
Bill Burr, MC for both nights, told the first audience these would be the band's "final two shows in Aerosmith's history." Tyler answered him from the stage on night two: "Doesn't he know that you can't get rid of Aerosmith? In fact, at the end of the fucking world, there will only be cockroaches, Aerosmith, and, I guess, Bill Burr."
The guest list tells its own story about where Aerosmith sit now. Grohl and Kramer sharing the drum stool across two nights places the band's present next to its past, and Kramer's appearance lands on the one song that made the crossover explicit. ROMBO reported on Kramer's return to rehearsals and covered the Bowl run as it took shape; Joe Perry has also spoken about the band's future beyond touring. Tyler has stayed visible in the gap, joining Yungblud for the One More Time EP and appearing with him and Perry at the 2025 MTV VMAs for the Ozzy Osbourne tribute, and he played a brief set at Osbourne's final Black Sabbath show in 2025.
What to listen for in the footage is the rhythm section's footing: how Grohl's attack sits under "Sweet Emotion" and "Back in the Saddle," then how the same songs settle when Kramer takes "Walk This Way." Two drummers, one catalog, and a singer insisting the story has another chapter. More on Aerosmith in ROMBO's archive.
