Joe Perry Biography, Career, Net Worth, And Other Interesting Facts

Joseph Anthony Pereira, known as Joe Perry is a Musician born on September 10, 1950. He’s famous for being a founding member of the rock band Aerosmith, where he plays guitar and occasionally sings. Perry also has his band called the Joe Perry Project, and he’s part of the Hollywood Vampires with Alice Cooper and Johnny Depp.

He’s good at playing guitar. Rolling Stone magazine ranked him 84th on their list of The 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time. In 2001, he got into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as part of Aerosmith. Perry and his songwriting buddy Steven Tyler received the ASCAP Founders Award in 2013 and were also inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame.

In 2014, he wrote a book called “Rocks: My Life In and Out of Aerosmith” with David Ritz, which tells about his experiences in and out of the band.

Joe Perry’s Early Life and Education

Joe Perry was born in Lawrence, Massachusetts, and grew up in Hopedale, Massachusetts. His dad was an accountant from Madeira, Portugal, and his mom was an Italian gym teacher at a high school.

When he was young, Perry loved the ocean. He wanted to be a marine biologist like his hero Jacques Cousteau. But he struggled in school at Hopedale Junior Senior High. His grades were bad, and it seemed like college might not be an option. His parents even offered him a chance to intern at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution if he could improve his grades. But Joe still struggled, so his parents decided to send him to Vermont Academy, a boarding school in Saxtons River, Vermont.

Perry wasn’t happy about leaving Hopedale, but his parents hoped living at the school would help him focus on his studies. Years later, in his memoir, Perry revealed he had ADHD, which wasn’t diagnosed until later. He said it made school tough but also helped his guitar playing in some ways.

Vermont Academy was different from what Perry expected. The students came from all over, and many were from big cities like LA and NYC. They introduced him to new music and culture, like The Village Voice and underground music. Perry was already into guitar, influenced by the Beatles, but he became even more obsessed with music after hearing his classmates’ tunes.

At Vermont Academy, Perry heard Jimi Hendrix for the first time and discovered British rock bands like the Yardbirds. These bands changed his outlook, and he shifted his dream from marine biology to being in a band like the Yardbirds.

Formation and initial success of Aerosmith (1968–1979)

In the 1960s, Joe Perry started a band called The Jam Band with Tom Hamilton. Later, Steven Tyler, Brad Whitford, and Joey Kramer joined, and they became Aerosmith. At first, people thought they were copying the Rolling Stones, but they proved themselves with hits like “Toys in the Attic” and “Rocks” in the mid-1970s. Their music got a lot of play on FM radio. They also had popular songs like “Dream On,” “Sweet Emotion,” and “Walk This Way.”

During this time, Perry and Tyler were known as the “Toxic Twins” because they partied hard and used drugs a lot. Their fans were called “The Blue Army” because many of them wore blue jeans and jackets and were mostly guys with long hair.

After “Rocks,” things got rough for the band. Drug use got worse, and the band members didn’t get along well. This made it hard to make music together. When they recorded their next album, Tyler and Perry spent a lot of time apart, getting high in their rooms instead of working with the rest of the band. They had trouble coming up with new songs because they were so distracted by drugs and other hobbies like driving fast cars and shooting guns.

Their album “Draw the Line” did well, but not as well as their earlier ones. The band went on tour, but there were problems with violence at some of the shows, and the band’s drug use was becoming a big issue.

In 1978, they released a live album called “Live! Bootleg,” a single called “Chip Away the Stone,” and acted in a movie called “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” as “The Future Villain Band.” They also did a cover of The Beatles’ “Come Together,” which was their last big hit for almost ten years.

Decline of Aerosmith and formation of Joe Perry Project (1979–1984)

Back in 1979, Aerosmith was a Star, headlining major concerts with other iconic bands like Van Halen, Ted Nugent, AC/DC, and Foreigner. But behind the scenes, things weren’t so smooth. Drug problems and tensions within the band were growing.

During a concert in Cleveland on July 28, 1979, things came to a head when there was a big argument. It got so heated that one of the band member’s wives ended up throwing a glass of milk at another band member’s wife.

This argument caused guitarist Joe Perry to leave Aerosmith while they were in the middle of making their album “Night in the Ruts.” Other guitarists had to step in to finish the album. Perry took some of his music ideas with him, which later became his solo album “Let the Music Do the Talking,” released in 1980.

Perry’s solo album had some success, selling 250,000 copies. He went on tour with it, but there were changes in the lineup along the way. The band members kept changing, and sales of their albums started to drop. Eventually, the Joe Perry Project, as it was called, split from their record label and released a couple more albums with a new lineup, but they didn’t sell as well.

Despite the tough times, they went on a final tour, even bringing in another former Aerosmith member, Brad Whitford, to join them. They played with bands like Huey Lewis and the News, but it was the end of the road for The Joe Perry Project.

Reunion of Aerosmith and return to the spotlight (1984–1999)

In February 1984, Joe Perry and Brad Whitford got back together with their old buddies in Aerosmith, and two months later, they officially rejoined the band. Aerosmith got a new deal with Geffen Records, which later got bought by MCA. When Perry came back to Aerosmith, he brought his manager Tim Collins on board to help run things. Collins played a big role in the band’s success for the next ten years.

In 1984, Aerosmith went on a tour called the “Back in the Saddle Tour,” which was a big hit. The next year, they released their first album since getting back together, called Done with Mirrors. Critics liked it, but it didn’t sell as well as they hoped. In 1986, Perry and Tyler teamed up with Run-D.M.C. to remake Aerosmith’s song “Walk This Way,” which helped make rap music more popular and brought Aerosmith back into the spotlight.

Even though they were doing well, drug problems were still a problem for the band. After getting help for their drug issues, Aerosmith worked with lots of famous songwriters, producers, and directors to make some really successful albums like Permanent Vacation, Pump, and Get a Grip. They had a bunch of hit songs and music videos, won awards, and went on huge world tours.

Perry and Tyler became close again, writing songs together and hanging out with their families. But in 1996, things got rough again. Their manager started causing trouble and spreading lies, almost breaking up the band. They fired him and got new management. In 1997, they released the album Nine Lives, with hit songs like “Falling in Love (Is Hard on the Knees)” and “Pink.” They went on a big tour for three years.

During this time, Perry also did a commercial with Tyler for The Gap. They wrote a song called “I Don’t Want to Miss a Thing,” which became their first number-one single and was in a movie called Armageddon. They even had a roller coaster named after them at Disney World. In 1999, they reunited with Run-D.M.C. and Kid Rock for a performance at the MTV Video Music Awards.

The continued success of Aerosmith and solo albums (2000–present)

In 2001, Aerosmith rocked the Super Bowl halftime show and dropped the hit album “Just Push Play,” featuring the smash single “Jaded.” This was a big year for guitarist Joe Perry, as he also got inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame with Aerosmith. They hit the road for the Just Push Play Tour, keeping busy with tours every year, except for a break in 2008.

Perry didn’t slow down. He released his first solo album, “Joe Perry,” in 2005, showing off his skills on every instrument except drums. Critics liked it, and it even got a Grammy nod. He teamed up with Aerosmith’s Steven Tyler in 2006 for a special Fourth of July performance with the Boston Pops Orchestra.

Then came Guitar Hero: Aerosmith in 2008, and in 2009, while on tour with Aerosmith, Perry announced a new solo album, “Have Guitar, Will Travel.” Drama brewed within Aerosmith when Tyler fell offstage in 2009, but they patched things up, only for tensions to flare again during the “Cocked, Locked, Ready to Rock Tour” in 2010.

Aerosmith hit the studio in 2011, recording their first original material album in a decade, “Music from Another Dimension!” It was delayed but eventually released in 2012, followed by a tour. Perry stayed busy with Aerosmith and side projects, like Hollywood Vampires with Alice Cooper and Johnny Depp.

In 2016, Perry had a scary moment when he collapsed onstage but thankfully recovered. He rejoined Aerosmith for tours, including a “farewell” tour in 2017. Perry released his fourth solo album, “Sweetzerland Manifesto,” in 2018, featuring some famous friends.

Aerosmith continued rocking with a Las Vegas residency called “Aerosmith: Deuces are Wild” in 2019 and 2020. They played a ton of shows, including a festival and some gigs across the U.S. It’s been a wild ride for Perry and Aerosmith, and they’re still going strong!

Personal life

In simpler terms, Joe Perry was married twice. His first marriage was to Elyssa Jerret, and they had a son named Adrian. Then he married Billie in 1985, and they have two sons together, Tony and Roman. Billie also has a son named Aaron from a previous relationship. Adrian and Tony are in a band called Dead Boots.

Perry has homes in Vermont, Massachusetts, Florida, and Los Angeles. He supported John McCain in the 2008 election and calls himself a lifelong Republican. He loves America but doesn’t like politics, feeling that politicians don’t represent the people well.

He teamed up with Ashley Food Company to make hot sauces called Joe Perry’s Rock Your World Hot Sauces. You can even get a quesadilla with his hot sauce at the Hard Rock Cafe. He’s been on TV cooking with Rachael Ray and talked about his love for knives and cooking on tour.

Perry used to co-own a restaurant in Massachusetts called Mount Blue. Now, he lives in Massachusetts and also has a home in Vermont.

In 2018, after performing at a Billy Joel concert, Perry collapsed backstage. He had a similar incident in 2016. He blamed dehydration and exhaustion for his health problems. Because of this, he had to cancel some of his concerts to rest.

Influences

Steven Tyler, the lead singer of Aerosmith, really loves Fleetwood Mac, especially their early days with Peter Green as their guitarist. That’s why sometimes during Aerosmith concerts, you might hear them playing Fleetwood Mac classics like “Stop Messin’ Round” and “Rattlesnake Shake.”

Tyler has even said that hearing Joe Perry, Aerosmith’s guitarist, play “Rattlesnake Shake” was something special that brought them closer together. Perry, in turn, is a big fan of Jeff Beck, another legendary guitarist who he sees as an inspiration. In 1976, Beck even joined Aerosmith on stage as a surprise for Perry’s birthday.

Perry’s music is also influenced by Jimi Hendrix, especially noticeable in songs like “The Mist Is Rising” by his solo project, the Joe Perry Project. He’s covered Hendrix’s classic “Red House” both with his solo project and later with Aerosmith. Another big influence on Perry is Johnny Winter, whose music he’s loved since he was a teenager.

Led Zeppelin is another favorite of Perry’s, especially Jimmy Page’s guitar work. Perry and Tyler introduced Led Zeppelin when they were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1995. Perry even said that Aerosmith wouldn’t be the same without Led Zeppelin’s influence.

Equipment

Joe Perry loves guitars, especially Gibson ones like the Les Paul. He has a big collection, around 600 guitars! But there’s one special one, a 1959 Gibson Les Paul, that he had to sell when he got divorced in 1982.

After that, Perry missed his guitar. He asked his friends to help find it. One day, his friend Brad Whitford showed him a magazine with a picture of Slash holding the same guitar! Perry was so excited. He called Slash and kept asking him about the guitar for years. He even offered to pay a lot of money for it because its value had gone up a lot.

But Slash didn’t want to sell it. He and Perry were friends, and Perry didn’t want to make things weird by asking too much. Many years later, at Perry’s 50th birthday party, Slash surprised him by giving him the guitar as a gift! Perry was thrilled.

Besides Les Paul, Perry has other Gibson guitars too, like the ES series and Firebirds. One of his guitars even has a painting of his wife, Billie, on it!

Net Worth

Joe Perry’s Net Worth is estimated to be $140 Million as of 2024, according to Celebrity Net Worth.