joined a "club" (the 1950s version of a gang) to stop others from beat- ing him up. This club would go on to become his first band and first set of real friends. By the age of 12, the kid who mostly kept to himself became pas- sionate about listening to, learning, and performing music. He came by his love for music honestly-his father was a classical pianist, and he would go on to play the drums for his fathers band, Vic Tallaricos Orchestra, a few years later. Stevens attuned musical ear, work ethic, and obsession with perfection made him the likely leader and soul of any group with which he would play, attributes that should not go unnoticed by entrepreneurs hoping to be CEOs of industry-changing businesses. Tyler would invest much time and energy in developing many music skills that would make him a real asset to any band. His first group, the Strangeurs, a clean-cut, Beatles-like band, played gigs from proms to birthday parties, giving Tyler experience as a drummer; but his showmanship made stepping out from behind the drums inevitable. "The truth was I had to get out front," admits Tyler in Walk This Way: The Autobiography of Aerosmith (Avon, 1999). "I was after total immortality. I couldnt sleep nights, thinking about how famous I could be. I was terrified I would die before I made my mark on the world."     Ignoring Rules   In March 1966, the Strangeurs got the job of opening for the Byrds at Westchester County Center. At the time the Byrds had the hit record "Eight Miles High," making them one of the hottest bands in the country. But ticket sales were slow in White Plains, and Peter Agosta, a Shopwell supermarket manager turned Strangeurs manager, prom- ised the promoter a sellout if he put the Strangeurs on the bill. Within a few days of the posters going up around town, the follow- ing the band had cultivated came through, and the concert sold out. The group salted the front rows with some girls they knew and told them to start screaming when the Strangeurs began playing-it     would be the first time Tyler would involve his fans in his bands step up to the next level. The band had been instructed not to play any Byrds songs-so, of course, Steven took the stage and opened with "Eight Miles High." And the girls started screaming, but the shills had been joined by hundreds of other screaming girls. Although they were supposed to do only two songs, Tyler and crew did six numbers because the kids kept yelling for more. Jim McGuinn and David Crosby were so impressed, they hired the Strangeurs to open for them in Asbury Park the next night. Another lesson learned: Break- ing the rules is sometimes okay, especially when executed well. When the result is positive, forgiveness is often granted. Even with such early successes, Tyler would return to Sunapee for the summer, each year with a greater following, creating a bigger ruckus. Kids packed the now-infamous bring-your-own-bottle dance club, the Barn, to watch Tyler. His on-stage persona was derivative of his natural personality traits-constant energy, quirky coolness, and all