A Little South of Sanity [PA] - Aerosmith (CD 1998)

Aerosmith, maligned veteran rockers from the '70s with their own little fanbase, may well be one of the only groups to release more live albums (4) than greatest hits compilations (3). "A Little South of Sanity," though, chronicling the world tours for "Nine Lives" and "Get A Grip," is above and beyond the previous live efforts Aerosmith--or anybody, really--has put forth.

Aerosmith starts out furiously, kicking in the door and swarming in with a thundering 'Eat The Rich' which includes, as sort of a bonus, a little "rap" that fans will recognize as the intro to the "Get A Grip" album. This song just begs for the live treatment, and you can easily imagine the audience chanting along with the band "EAT THE RICH!" when it's chorus time. The song range on this first CD is mostly limited to Aerosmith's "new," post-comeback songs, with the exception of 'Same Old Song And Dance,' which is, on here, very good and includes a cool improv session by frontman Steven Tyler. 'Monkey On My Back' is absolutely blistering, while, on the flip side, 'Amazing' is complete with an annoying echo. 'Amazing' is, after all, one of their best ballads, and deserves to be done right. However, the most remarkable song on this CD is 'Janie's Got A Gun,' always a favorite of mine. Apparently it's a favorite of everyone else -- listen to the crowd roar when Tyler mutters into the mic, "Dum, dum, dum, honey what have you done?" 'Janie' is easily Aerosmith's most impressive narrative and this performance is a sort of experience -- the best vocal and instrumental performance here.

If the first CD was a filling, satisfying appetizer, the second is the main course that you can't get enough of. It starts out with the classic 'Back In The Saddle,' which seems to rip at Tyler's lungs. 'Last Child' is even better than the album version, sped-up and complete with ending Brad Whitford (a very talented musician who sometimes takes a backseat to the equally great Joe Perry) guitar solo. 'Dream On' is absolutely perfect here. 'Walk This Way' eclipses the great original, and 'What It Takes,' never a favorite of mine, is better than the original as well.

The two best songs here, though, are Aerosmith classics. The first is 'Mama Kin'. The album version, great as it may be, can't hold a candle to it--that's how good it is. 'Mama Kin' is basically energy with a band and a piano. It's upbeat, it's satirical, and it's so cool here. The second CD ends with a nearly six-minute long version of 'Sweet Emotion'. 'Sweet Emotion' has always been my favorite Aerosmith song. It's a perfect rock song, and this is the way it was meant to be heard--live, adrenaline-drenched, and speaker-blowing. Of course, it ends with a guitar solo. Nothing wrong with those, is there?

Of course, there's always a flip side. In this case, a couple: first of all, 'Cryin'' and 'Crazy' are just terrible. They're terrible in the studio, they're terrible live, they're just plain bad songs. Whiny ballads. Skip 'em. Second: precious few songs from the 1997 "Nine Lives" album are included. There are so many good songs I'd love to hear live, most notably the best track from that CD, 'Taste Of India'. And what about classics 'Toys In The Attic,' 'No Surprize,' 'Train Kept A Rollin',' 'Come Together,' 'Draw The Line,' and numerous others?

No matter. I'm judging this CD by what it has, not what it doesn't have. And what it has is Aerosmith at it's energetic, furious, charged best. Kudos to all.