2009 is coming to a close, and it was quite a year for the live rock show. KISS and Aerosmith embarked on two of the year’s most successful and storied tours, and comebacks were in order for Billy Squier and Lita Ford. Although the fun and excitement was turned up to 11 for the majority of shows, there seemed to be more artist injury than normal. Steven Tyler’s stage fall in at the Buffalo Chip brought the future existence of Aerosmith into question, and David Coverdale’s vocal injury sidelined Whitesnake before its tour with Judas Priest could properly conclude.

Package tours were big once again – perhaps bigger than ever. In addition to Aerosmith and ZZ Top & Whitesnake and Judas Priest, there was Pat Benatar and Blondie, Lynyrd Skynyrd and Kid Rock, Yes and Asia, Chicago and Earth, Wind, and Fire, Eric Clapton and Steve Winwood, along with Bad Company and The Doobie Brothers. And those are just the two-band pairings.

There were plenty of triple-bills and even a 5-band outing. The Def Leppard, Poison, and Cheap Trick criss-crossed the Styx, REO Speedwagon and 38 Special tour across the United States over the summer, while Crüe Fest 2 featured Mötley Crüe, Theory of a Deadman, Godsmack, Charm City Devils, and Drowning Pool.

All of our concert coverage is available at this link, and keep checking back for the latest news and coverage of the live shows of 2010.