TOYS – that’s right! Iconic rock band Aerosmith will be playing the seminal Toys in the Attic album in its entirety at every show on their tour with ZZ Top this summer. Steven Tyler made the announcement official after the concept had been hinted at for some time. When speaking with VH1 Classic Radio earlier in the spring, Tyler stated that it “would be fun” to give Toys a full spin during the live shows. He added: “We do a lot of songs off the first four records anyway…the later records with more songs on them, they would take up too much time in the set. We need to leave some room for some of the other standards.” By the way, the tour kicks off in just a few days (June 10), so this announcement was quite timely indeed. The gang – Tyler, Perry, Whitford, Hamilton and Kramer – will play a few shows on their own before that Little Ol’ Band from Texas hooks up with them on June 21 in Bristow, Virginia. Aerosmith will split out on their own again in August for the much anticipated Sturigs Rally performance which is sure to be an attendance blowout. Melodic Rock Concerts will be on scene with photos and a review from this incredible gig.

Speaking of Texas, or at least the south, FireHouse guitarist and solo artist Bill Leverty‘s third album Deep South has now dropped into availability. Most of the songs on the album are over 100 years old, making it perhaps 2009′s most adventuresome musical outing in the rock category. Leverty stated: “Most of these songs have been around for about 100 years. I have a great new appreciation for the American music of the late 1800′s and early 1900′s, and I wanted to put my twist on it.” As with all of his solo releases, Leverty has produced this one himself. I interviewed Bill earlier this year, and although we didn’t touch on this record for the sake of keeping a lid on the details of this unique project, we did venture into some interesting territory pertaining to his solo career and history with FireHouse. You can read that interview here, and don’t forget to order your copy of Deep South at Bill’s merch page.

One more thing to touch on: Toto is set to be inducted into the Musicians Hall of Fame in Nashville on October 12, 2009. Members Steve Lukather, David Paich, Steve Porcaro, Mike Porcaro, David Hungate, and Jeff Porcaro (in memoriam) will be on tap for the induction ceremony. This band has truly earned its spot in rock history; their albums are enduring and timeless, and during their 30+ years of touring which ended (hopefully temorarily) last year, Toto amazed crowds all over the world with mindblowing musicianship and showmanship. The active presence of this group is certainly missed, but there is much of the past to celebrate at this ceremony.