‘This Is Spinal Tap’ Shook Aerosmith’s Steven Tyler to His Core: “That Movie Was Way Too Close, Way Too Real”

Even the brightest of stars fade. That is an inevitable fact in both life and in the music business, and the exact fact Rob Reiner comedically depicted in his 1984 cult classic rock mockumentary, This Is Spinal Tap. In short, This Is Spinal Tap follows a washed-up fictional band as they journey to find the success they once had. Even though it is a fictional documentary, it is a story that is very true. And one band and member the story applies to is Steven Tyler and Aerosmith.

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By the turn of the decade, Aerosmith was a shell of its former self. Particularly, in 1979, the band’s decline started with the departure of Joe Perry, and two years later, that decline continued, as Brad Whitford left the band in 1981. After 1981, well, things just continued to get worse, as Aerosmith’s public appeal tanked significantly.

That being said, Aerosmith and the fictional band, Spinal Tap, had a lot in common at the time. Thus, when Steven Tyler saw the film, he freaked, as he seemingly viewed Spinal Tap as a mirror image of himself and Aerosmith.

Rob Reiner’s Film Hit Steven Tyler in A Soft Spot

When This Is Spinal Tap was released, and when Steven Tyler saw it, Aerosmith did achieve a significant yet not too monumental victory. In 1984, Joe Perry and Brad Whitford returned to the band, but still, Aerosmith was climbing an upward slope as they were dealing with their personal addiction journeys and had yet to achieve formidable success in the 1980s.

Given these hardships, and how they relate to the film, Steven Tyler told Rolling Stone, “I was real high at the time, and Aerosmith was sinking – we were like a boat going down.” “That movie was way too close, way too real. Our last album was Rock In A Hard Place, which sold, like, maybe ten copies; Spinal Tap did Stonehenge, and our album cover looked exactly like that. I freaked. I took Spinal Tap real personal,” continued Steven Tyler.

Tyler’s internal comparison does hold some major validity, but This Is Spinal Tap incidentally parodies several other bands who were enduring similar plights at the time. Arguably, it riffs on bands such as Black Sabbath, Deep Purple, and Saxon. Luckily, this correlation faded as the 80s continued. In 1986, Steven Tyler and Aerosmith started to regain their popularity and commercial success with the release of their 1986 collaboration with Run-DMC on the single “Walk This Way”.

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