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All rights reserved.Rocks - Aerosmith (Cassette 1993)
The best Aerosmith album from 1973-1988, it truly ROCKS! (Aerosmith w/o)Review created: 03/22/03
by: deadmilkboy -- a member of Epinions
Pros:
Every song kicks butt, and the band truly "Get The Lead Out"
Every song kicks butt, and the band truly "Get The Lead Out"
Cons:
Too short, needed bonus tracks.
Too short, needed bonus tracks.
INTRODUCTION
Hello, everybody. This is John Bishop typing, the DeadMilkboy of Epinions.com. Before I launch into the following review, I d like to mention that this is part of a series of reviews I m writing based on one of the greatest American rock n roll bands in history, AEROSMITH! I d like to thank Aerocat (another Arizona native, bless her soul) for giving me the chance to do something other than write reviews of classic B-movies and current CD/DVD releases, and besides AEROSMITH F*CKING ROCKS! Posted here is the URL to Aerocat s official Epinions.com Aerosmith Write-Off page, and a list of names of other hopeful Aero Force fellas and freaks joining me in the write-off. For reference purposes, I got the lyrics and and quotations/information from www.rockthisway.de and aerosmithlyrics.homestead.com.
URL: http://aerowriteoff.bravepages
MEMBERS: Aerocat, hipyx, matta75, thevoid99, deaser26, netnut746, pt-paratroopa, pmills1210, pearl-drum-man, jeff_wilder78, kcfoxy, fartzarellah, sparkospunky, joubert, mattbjorke, shilmafone, donignacio, ned1, fuche_bu, and frostiepekkle.
ROCKS
In 1975, Aerosmith had released TOYS IN THE ATTIC, which earned the band a gold disc and would go on to sell over eight million copies. But Aerosmith were starting to really get into the drug habit by that time, and escalating substance abuse would cripple the band from the late 1970s and into the mid-80s. Normally, drugs would interfere with work big time (look at ROCK IN A HARD PLACE), but in February of 1976, Steven Tyler, Brad Whitford, Joe Perry, Joey Kramer and Tom Hamilton went into the Record Plant (and also the Wherehouse) in NYC to begin recording on a new album. Little did we know that the album borne would become the loudest, hardest, ballsiest Aerosmith album to date. I m talking about the five little diamonds on the cover of their fourth album, yet it also described perfectly the sound of the complete album
Aerosmith f*cking ROCKS!
I picked up a copy of GREATEST HITS from my uncle before I truly got into Aerosmith, and there was a song on that album, the first song on this album, which cemented my devotion towards the Aerosmith sound (as well as the five guys in the band they made this glorious noise). It s called Back In The Saddle. It was a masterpiece of hard rock, and truly my favorite rock song of that decade. When I later got into Aerosmith, ROCKS became an essential album to me, as did PUMP, TOYS IN THE ATTIC, NINE LIVES and GET YOUR WINGS. There is no denying the power that Aerosmith captured on their 1976 LP, a nine-song affair that hardly runs 35 minutes (hey, albums in those days were short, but with the advent of technology became able to cram more stuff in). ROCKS was a raw force, which made a lot of the songs on previous Aerosmith releases seem ambient. And it all started with one of their greatest hits.
Back In The Saddle featured a six-string bass contribution from Joe Perry (a wonderful chorus riff that sticks like crazy glue), whose lead guitar catches fire throughout this song, too. Now I would say mostly at the end, but I stress the fact that Joe s guitar smokes a lot throughout the verses and bridge also. It s a performance that merits repeated listens. There s also, if you have a trained ear, many real nifty sound effects. Spurs and shoes pop up in the first verse, and when you get to the end of the song, you can hear galloping, cracking whips, and Steven Tyler calling his horsey to Gidd up
Like a cowboy riding up to a saloon, the beat comes at you kind with a kind of ease. The guitar pulls out power chords and a galloping percussion helps bring the song to its exploding point. Throughout this song, the beat is as quick as a road runner, with Joey Kramer s drumming setting a nice beat for the bass riffs and guitar riffs to jam on. And I wouldn t want to forget Steven Tyler, too. Here, his patented wailing and vocal ad libs are as energetic as the music itself. His screams peel your speakers outside protection, and this is one of his most impressive deliveries I ve ever heard. The lyrics is about being not just a wild boy, but a wild cowboy:
Ridin' into town alone by the light of da moon
I'm looking for ole' Sukie Jones, she crazy horse saloon
Barkeep gimme a drink, that's when she caught my eye
She turned to gimme a wink that'd make a grown man cry
I'm back in the saddle again/I'm back
I'm back in the saddle again/I'm back
I'm riding I'm loading up my pistol
I'm riding I really got a fistful
I'm riding I'm shining up my saddle
I'm riding this snake is gonna rattle.
Sidenote: Sukie Jones was a groupie that followed Aerosmith, and I guess she really caught Steven s eye.
Last Child was the first single from ROCKS, and fared better than Back In The Saddle (the former went to #21, the latter was the third single which went to #38). But it s a vital song, that Last Child, written by Tyler and Tom Hamilton, who said this about the song: "I remember putting it together at the Wherehouse. It was a big room with a high ceiling. We hung up all these drapes. We were basically like a bunch of kids building forts." On this one, it opens with a jangling guitar and solid bass line ( I m dreaming tonight, I m leaving back home RIGHT! ), but then kicking into drum beat ripe with snare, and the rhythm throughout is downright funky. With Perry s wild guitar solo, Steven s soulful vocals of alternating range, and the classic closing chant of I was the last child, I m just a punk in the street, the song is a charging mid-tempo rocker about life in old home sweet home as opposed to city life:
Take me back to a south Tallahassee
Down cross the bridge to my sweet sassafrassy
Can't stand up on my feet in the city
Gotta get back to the real nitty gritty
Yes sir no sir don't come close to my home sweet home
Can't catch no dose of my hot tail p**n tang sweetheart
Sweathog ready to make a silk purse from a J. Paul Getty and his ear
With her face in her beer
Home sweet home.
Rats In The Cellar evokes memories of Toys In The Attic, only this song is louder, lower, and quicker than said song. The lead guitar of the opening, supported by shots of rhythm guitar and drums, bursts into a rabid crunch rocker, punctuated by a chorus of considerable style. The lead guitar bursts into a solo of insanely connected eighth notes delivered in rabid succession, and Steven Tyler pulls out the harmonica for the glass-smashing coda. Written by Perry and Tyler, here s a song about the low-life of living in the Big Apple:
We're goin' under, rats are in the cellar/Goin' under, skin's turnin' yellar
Nose is runny, losin' my connection/We're losin' money, gettin' no affection
New York City blues/East side, West side news
Throw me in the slam/Catch me if you can
I believe that'chor wearin', tearin' me apart.
Combination rocks like a motherf*cker, with a spitting rhythm guitar riff, punctuated by Joe Perry s lead guitar. Speaking of Perry s lead, this is where he sings lead vocals, but supported by Steven Tyler. And it s also a sole songwriting credit to Perry too. Tyler and Perry s vocals are hard to dissimilate, though. But even with that, the song gets into a dirty groove, and relies on mad percussion beats in the final breakdown. As a lyrical piece, it paints a portrait of looking for balance with the perils of fame and drugs:
I forgot my name/I took the shots on the chin
I'm re-arranging my game/Tell by the shape I'm...
In the line of fire you know what to say/They gave us no choices just one shade of gray
My legs keep moving don't seem to stray/But I know each step we take they're one step away
I find my own fun sometimes for free/I got to pay it to come lookin' for me
Walking on Gucci wearin' Yves Saint Laurent/Barely stay on 'cause I'm so G*d damn gaunt
I found the secret, the key to the vault/We walked in darkness, kept hitting the walls
I took the time to feel for the door/I found the secret, the key to it all.
The underrated album track Sick As A Dog weaves many bass licks and electric guitar rhythm into another powerhouse tapestry. Steven Tyler and Joe Perry play electric bass on this one, and bassist Tom Hamilton (this track s songwriter) plays guitar here. The bridge of the song takes it easy, reviving a sweet-sounding melody introduced in the opening before kicking into a hand-clapping finale with harmonic chants of Take it light. The lyrics are basically about a love that alternates between love and barbs:
Please... you were much to my surprise/Please... you're the lady in disguise
Please... you're the only a friend I got/Please... you'll be the last to see me rot
Sick as a dog, what's your story/Sick as a dog, cat got'chor tongue
Sick as a dog, you'll be sorry/Sick as a dog, 'cause ya really ain't that young.
Nobody s Fault opens with looming keyboards before catching hell fire and spewing apocalyptic bile with every verse and chorus. The drum beats are like a death march, augmented by a sharp-as-ginsu distorted rhythm. The vocals scream like the voice of reason in rage, and Steven Tyler highlights the doom in the many dark images:
Eyes are full of desire, mind is so ill at ease
Everything is on fire, sh*t piled up in debris
California showtime, five o'clock's the news
Everybody's concubine was prone to take a snooze
Sorry, we're so sorry, don't be sorry
Man has known and now he's blown it
Upside down and hell's the only sound
We did an awful job and now we're just a little too late.
Get The Lead Out is another song with an up-tempo party rock groove, with an excellent R&B rhythm and a brief call-and-response harmonica/guitar solo. But the song is pretty short, and still takes a while to bow out at the end (even though it s a sweet thing to hear Steven wail at the end).
Do... you like good boogie like a real boogie woogie
Hear the juke box singin', get the dance hall swingin'
Won'tcha grab my shaker, I gotta meet'chor maker
Uumm... get out the lead, get out on up there, get the lead out.
Lick And A Promise is straight swagger, with a charging rhythm a la Chuck Berry. Joey Kramer does some impressive beats here, and the song even packs some na na na na na lines for catchy good measure. The guitars are all on the dot, and Joe Perry s leading rhythm properly closes this song. Aerosmith had risen to fame and fortune, and here they tell the story of another rocker with luck:
Johnny come lately on a Saturday night singin' how de do
Backstreet boogie in the house of delight where they steal the show
The money come sour but the ladies are sweet, it's a love affair
Whole place rockin', people stompin' their feet when the gang's all there
He gets his woman every night for free
He's out there rockin' like you wouldn't believe
He gave the ladies a lick and a promise.
But Aerosmith have to close the album on some good note, and here it s with Home Tonight. The opening sounds like a reprise of Last Child before Steven comes in bidding his goodnight wishes. This is a ballad, make no mistake about it, and was released as a second single, hitting a dismal #71. Written exclusively by Tyler, and featuring Joe Perry on lap steel guitar, this 3:16 quickie is the original album stopping anthem, before Amazing and What It Takes came along. Steven Tyler hones his voice to make a beautiful farewell to faithful listeners, and to the lovely lady waiting for him.
Now it's time to say good night to you
Now it's time to bid you sweet adieu
And maybe drink a cheers to yesterday
And maybe you'll drink those tears away
So baby don't let go, hold on real tight
'Cause i'll be home tonight, tonight.
ROCKS is a five-star album, make no mistake about it. Aerosmith s songs got the attitude and ambition to rock in ways few bands could in those days, and every performance never even gets lazy for a second. It s a testament to Aerosmith to have so many good albums in my music library, and ROCKS, if not the best, obviously and infinitely rank in the Top 5. Let s get back home sweet home, now.
Hello, everybody. This is John Bishop typing, the DeadMilkboy of Epinions.com. Before I launch into the following review, I d like to mention that this is part of a series of reviews I m writing based on one of the greatest American rock n roll bands in history, AEROSMITH! I d like to thank Aerocat (another Arizona native, bless her soul) for giving me the chance to do something other than write reviews of classic B-movies and current CD/DVD releases, and besides AEROSMITH F*CKING ROCKS! Posted here is the URL to Aerocat s official Epinions.com Aerosmith Write-Off page, and a list of names of other hopeful Aero Force fellas and freaks joining me in the write-off. For reference purposes, I got the lyrics and and quotations/information from www.rockthisway.de and aerosmithlyrics.homestead.com.
URL: http://aerowriteoff.bravepages
MEMBERS: Aerocat, hipyx, matta75, thevoid99, deaser26, netnut746, pt-paratroopa, pmills1210, pearl-drum-man, jeff_wilder78, kcfoxy, fartzarellah, sparkospunky, joubert, mattbjorke, shilmafone, donignacio, ned1, fuche_bu, and frostiepekkle.
ROCKS
In 1975, Aerosmith had released TOYS IN THE ATTIC, which earned the band a gold disc and would go on to sell over eight million copies. But Aerosmith were starting to really get into the drug habit by that time, and escalating substance abuse would cripple the band from the late 1970s and into the mid-80s. Normally, drugs would interfere with work big time (look at ROCK IN A HARD PLACE), but in February of 1976, Steven Tyler, Brad Whitford, Joe Perry, Joey Kramer and Tom Hamilton went into the Record Plant (and also the Wherehouse) in NYC to begin recording on a new album. Little did we know that the album borne would become the loudest, hardest, ballsiest Aerosmith album to date. I m talking about the five little diamonds on the cover of their fourth album, yet it also described perfectly the sound of the complete album
Aerosmith f*cking ROCKS!
I picked up a copy of GREATEST HITS from my uncle before I truly got into Aerosmith, and there was a song on that album, the first song on this album, which cemented my devotion towards the Aerosmith sound (as well as the five guys in the band they made this glorious noise). It s called Back In The Saddle. It was a masterpiece of hard rock, and truly my favorite rock song of that decade. When I later got into Aerosmith, ROCKS became an essential album to me, as did PUMP, TOYS IN THE ATTIC, NINE LIVES and GET YOUR WINGS. There is no denying the power that Aerosmith captured on their 1976 LP, a nine-song affair that hardly runs 35 minutes (hey, albums in those days were short, but with the advent of technology became able to cram more stuff in). ROCKS was a raw force, which made a lot of the songs on previous Aerosmith releases seem ambient. And it all started with one of their greatest hits.
Back In The Saddle featured a six-string bass contribution from Joe Perry (a wonderful chorus riff that sticks like crazy glue), whose lead guitar catches fire throughout this song, too. Now I would say mostly at the end, but I stress the fact that Joe s guitar smokes a lot throughout the verses and bridge also. It s a performance that merits repeated listens. There s also, if you have a trained ear, many real nifty sound effects. Spurs and shoes pop up in the first verse, and when you get to the end of the song, you can hear galloping, cracking whips, and Steven Tyler calling his horsey to Gidd up
Like a cowboy riding up to a saloon, the beat comes at you kind with a kind of ease. The guitar pulls out power chords and a galloping percussion helps bring the song to its exploding point. Throughout this song, the beat is as quick as a road runner, with Joey Kramer s drumming setting a nice beat for the bass riffs and guitar riffs to jam on. And I wouldn t want to forget Steven Tyler, too. Here, his patented wailing and vocal ad libs are as energetic as the music itself. His screams peel your speakers outside protection, and this is one of his most impressive deliveries I ve ever heard. The lyrics is about being not just a wild boy, but a wild cowboy:
Ridin' into town alone by the light of da moon
I'm looking for ole' Sukie Jones, she crazy horse saloon
Barkeep gimme a drink, that's when she caught my eye
She turned to gimme a wink that'd make a grown man cry
I'm back in the saddle again/I'm back
I'm back in the saddle again/I'm back
I'm riding I'm loading up my pistol
I'm riding I really got a fistful
I'm riding I'm shining up my saddle
I'm riding this snake is gonna rattle.
Sidenote: Sukie Jones was a groupie that followed Aerosmith, and I guess she really caught Steven s eye.
Last Child was the first single from ROCKS, and fared better than Back In The Saddle (the former went to #21, the latter was the third single which went to #38). But it s a vital song, that Last Child, written by Tyler and Tom Hamilton, who said this about the song: "I remember putting it together at the Wherehouse. It was a big room with a high ceiling. We hung up all these drapes. We were basically like a bunch of kids building forts." On this one, it opens with a jangling guitar and solid bass line ( I m dreaming tonight, I m leaving back home RIGHT! ), but then kicking into drum beat ripe with snare, and the rhythm throughout is downright funky. With Perry s wild guitar solo, Steven s soulful vocals of alternating range, and the classic closing chant of I was the last child, I m just a punk in the street, the song is a charging mid-tempo rocker about life in old home sweet home as opposed to city life:
Take me back to a south Tallahassee
Down cross the bridge to my sweet sassafrassy
Can't stand up on my feet in the city
Gotta get back to the real nitty gritty
Yes sir no sir don't come close to my home sweet home
Can't catch no dose of my hot tail p**n tang sweetheart
Sweathog ready to make a silk purse from a J. Paul Getty and his ear
With her face in her beer
Home sweet home.
Rats In The Cellar evokes memories of Toys In The Attic, only this song is louder, lower, and quicker than said song. The lead guitar of the opening, supported by shots of rhythm guitar and drums, bursts into a rabid crunch rocker, punctuated by a chorus of considerable style. The lead guitar bursts into a solo of insanely connected eighth notes delivered in rabid succession, and Steven Tyler pulls out the harmonica for the glass-smashing coda. Written by Perry and Tyler, here s a song about the low-life of living in the Big Apple:
We're goin' under, rats are in the cellar/Goin' under, skin's turnin' yellar
Nose is runny, losin' my connection/We're losin' money, gettin' no affection
New York City blues/East side, West side news
Throw me in the slam/Catch me if you can
I believe that'chor wearin', tearin' me apart.
Combination rocks like a motherf*cker, with a spitting rhythm guitar riff, punctuated by Joe Perry s lead guitar. Speaking of Perry s lead, this is where he sings lead vocals, but supported by Steven Tyler. And it s also a sole songwriting credit to Perry too. Tyler and Perry s vocals are hard to dissimilate, though. But even with that, the song gets into a dirty groove, and relies on mad percussion beats in the final breakdown. As a lyrical piece, it paints a portrait of looking for balance with the perils of fame and drugs:
I forgot my name/I took the shots on the chin
I'm re-arranging my game/Tell by the shape I'm...
In the line of fire you know what to say/They gave us no choices just one shade of gray
My legs keep moving don't seem to stray/But I know each step we take they're one step away
I find my own fun sometimes for free/I got to pay it to come lookin' for me
Walking on Gucci wearin' Yves Saint Laurent/Barely stay on 'cause I'm so G*d damn gaunt
I found the secret, the key to the vault/We walked in darkness, kept hitting the walls
I took the time to feel for the door/I found the secret, the key to it all.
The underrated album track Sick As A Dog weaves many bass licks and electric guitar rhythm into another powerhouse tapestry. Steven Tyler and Joe Perry play electric bass on this one, and bassist Tom Hamilton (this track s songwriter) plays guitar here. The bridge of the song takes it easy, reviving a sweet-sounding melody introduced in the opening before kicking into a hand-clapping finale with harmonic chants of Take it light. The lyrics are basically about a love that alternates between love and barbs:
Please... you were much to my surprise/Please... you're the lady in disguise
Please... you're the only a friend I got/Please... you'll be the last to see me rot
Sick as a dog, what's your story/Sick as a dog, cat got'chor tongue
Sick as a dog, you'll be sorry/Sick as a dog, 'cause ya really ain't that young.
Nobody s Fault opens with looming keyboards before catching hell fire and spewing apocalyptic bile with every verse and chorus. The drum beats are like a death march, augmented by a sharp-as-ginsu distorted rhythm. The vocals scream like the voice of reason in rage, and Steven Tyler highlights the doom in the many dark images:
Eyes are full of desire, mind is so ill at ease
Everything is on fire, sh*t piled up in debris
California showtime, five o'clock's the news
Everybody's concubine was prone to take a snooze
Sorry, we're so sorry, don't be sorry
Man has known and now he's blown it
Upside down and hell's the only sound
We did an awful job and now we're just a little too late.
Get The Lead Out is another song with an up-tempo party rock groove, with an excellent R&B rhythm and a brief call-and-response harmonica/guitar solo. But the song is pretty short, and still takes a while to bow out at the end (even though it s a sweet thing to hear Steven wail at the end).
Do... you like good boogie like a real boogie woogie
Hear the juke box singin', get the dance hall swingin'
Won'tcha grab my shaker, I gotta meet'chor maker
Uumm... get out the lead, get out on up there, get the lead out.
Lick And A Promise is straight swagger, with a charging rhythm a la Chuck Berry. Joey Kramer does some impressive beats here, and the song even packs some na na na na na lines for catchy good measure. The guitars are all on the dot, and Joe Perry s leading rhythm properly closes this song. Aerosmith had risen to fame and fortune, and here they tell the story of another rocker with luck:
Johnny come lately on a Saturday night singin' how de do
Backstreet boogie in the house of delight where they steal the show
The money come sour but the ladies are sweet, it's a love affair
Whole place rockin', people stompin' their feet when the gang's all there
He gets his woman every night for free
He's out there rockin' like you wouldn't believe
He gave the ladies a lick and a promise.
But Aerosmith have to close the album on some good note, and here it s with Home Tonight. The opening sounds like a reprise of Last Child before Steven comes in bidding his goodnight wishes. This is a ballad, make no mistake about it, and was released as a second single, hitting a dismal #71. Written exclusively by Tyler, and featuring Joe Perry on lap steel guitar, this 3:16 quickie is the original album stopping anthem, before Amazing and What It Takes came along. Steven Tyler hones his voice to make a beautiful farewell to faithful listeners, and to the lovely lady waiting for him.
Now it's time to say good night to you
Now it's time to bid you sweet adieu
And maybe drink a cheers to yesterday
And maybe you'll drink those tears away
So baby don't let go, hold on real tight
'Cause i'll be home tonight, tonight.
ROCKS is a five-star album, make no mistake about it. Aerosmith s songs got the attitude and ambition to rock in ways few bands could in those days, and every performance never even gets lazy for a second. It s a testament to Aerosmith to have so many good albums in my music library, and ROCKS, if not the best, obviously and infinitely rank in the Top 5. Let s get back home sweet home, now.
Review ID: 10000000000210717
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