Aerosmith’s Old Van Has Been Discovered In A Forest In Massachusetts!
The first ever tour van owned by Aerosmith was recently featured on an episode of American Pickers after the beat up old rockmoblie was discovered by the show’s hosts Frank Fritz and Mike Wolfe. It’s a 1964 International Harvester Metro and still has the band’s name painted on the side. The small van had spent years rusting away in a woodland near Chesterfield, Massachusetts.
According to the show, the vehicle was already there when the present property owner took ownership. The previous landowner was reported to have had some link with Aerosmith. However, it wasn’t clear what that connection could be. To shed light on that connection resenter Mike Wolfe made contact with his friend Dan Auerbach of the Black Keys.
Auerbach gave the pictures of the van to Aerosmith guitarist Joe Perry, who then got in touch with co-founding guitarist Ray Tabano, who was replaced by Brad Whitford in back in the early 70’s but remained connected to the band for some years afterward. Tabano is a nearby resident , so he came to look at the van and agreed it was the real deal even bringing a photo of himself seated inside.
@Aerosmith Saw @americanpickers Last night discovering this hidden treasure from the Greatest Rock Band ! Really Cool -AMERICAN HISTORY now in the right hands ! Excited to see what the do with it. Hope Aerosmith tell share some stories around it on the follow up. pic.twitter.com/RkTe1F1tUd
— KCONZ (@KConz20) July 31, 2018
Tabano spoke about how long he reckoned the van could have been lying idle, “I’m afraid to say how long it is, but it’s been like 40 years since we’ve been in this thing,” describing the van as Aerosmith’s “rolling hotel” in their early days. “We’d drive from Boston up to New Hampshire for $125 [show fee],” “Then after the gas, the tolls, and the food and back, we’d make like $3 apiece. … It just reminded me of the humble beginnings and I look at where (the band has) gone today — it’s just amazing.”
Aerosmith are due to make an appearance NBC’s Today on Aug. 15, with high expectations that they’ll make an announcement related to their upcoming 50th anniversary. Wolfe and Fritz paid $25,000 for the band’s former vehicle. It remains to be seen what the vans future is.
The episode, titled “Roll Like a Rock Star,” first aired on July 30 and is available to watch on demand via History.com
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