When LED ZEPPELIN was considering touring without Robert Plant, they auditioned Steven Tyler for the vocalist position, but AEROSMITH guitarist Joe Perry has revealed that the tryout didn't go so well. According to Classic Rock magazine, Jimmy Page told Joe that the rehearsals were "shambolic" since Steven didn't really know ZEP's catalog. However, last year, when Steven told VH1 Radio Networks' Dave Basner about his audition, he made it seem like he was very familiar with the band's songs.
"The kid in me was dying," Tyler told VH1 Radio Networks. "I got to sing every song from 'Black Dog' up and down and I'll never forget it as long as I live."
Nonetheless, Page felt "awkward" about the situation and said the guys in ZEP decided to pass on Steven. Tyler told VH1 Radio Networks about that decision, "I don't think a band like theirs needs a singer like me. They already had the best, they were the best, in fact, there is no genre for what LED ZEPPELIN is other than LED ZEPPELIN. I've already got AEROSMITH, I'm doing what I'm doing, Robert Plant's doing what he wants to do so I don't think there was really room for that.”