Just setting up the thread. Actually, I'll just work on it here, so you'll see the progress.
Aerosmithwww.aerosmith.com
Aerosmith. Rock legends. These two could be used in any sentence as long as the word "aren't" is NOT in between them. From their 11 platinum-selling albums to their 21 Top-40 singles, it's hard to say they couldn't challenge for the notion of the greatest rock band of all time.
The members of the band currently are Steven Tyler on lead vocals, harmonica, kayboard and percussion, Joe Perry on Lead guitar and secondary vocals, Tom Hamilton on bass and secondary vocals, Brad Whitford on rhythm and lead guitar, and Joey Kramer on drums. Former members were Ray Tabano on rhythm and lead guitars from 1970 to 1971, Jimmy Crespo on lead guitar from 1979-1984, and Rick Dufay from 1981-1984.
The roots of the band go back to 1964, when Tyler had his own band, as did Perry and Hamilton together. In 1970, the two bands played the same gig, and Tyler immediately liked Perry and Hamilton's band (Kramer was a part of it), and the two bands became one, with Tyler being the frontman. As we know now, this was the start of a legendary career for the band.
The band agreed on the name Aerosmith, came up with by Kramer in high school after listening to Harry Nilsson's album Aerial Ballet.
The 70s were a good decade for Aerosmith, with the band producing 6 of their 21 Top-40 Singles and 6 of their 14 total albums. Toys in the Attic, released in 1975, was the album that propelled Aerosmith to world-wide fame, at the time competing with The Rolling Stones and Led Zeppelin. Many of the band's current concert staples have come off of albums in this time period, including Lord of the Thighs, Same Old Song and Dance, and Train Kept a Rollin, a cover initially done by the Yardbirds.
In 1976, the band's possible most-recognized album came out by the name of Rocks. This album sparked such hits as Last Child and Back in the Saddle (two of my personal favorites). However, with this success came the pressures of fame, and as a result, both Tyler and Perry turned to drugs and alcohol, and during that time were nicknamed the Toxic Twins. It is a known fact that during many of the shows in the late 1970s, both Tyler and Perry were high on some sort of drug.
Because of their addiction problems, Aerosmith fell on hard times in the late 70s. This period culminated in Perry and Whitford leaving the band for a time, but eventually coming back together, the first step in the reemergence of the band in the mid 80s.
The first real step in the recovery of the band was Tyler and Perry's appearance in the music video for Run-DMC's cover of Walk This Way, which almost single-handedly kickstarted the rock and rap genre.
Aerosmith's popularity continued to grow again into the 90s, with albums such as Permanent Vacation and Pump being released, which spawned a total of 6 Top-10 Singles. Pump was certified 7x Diamond, one of the band's best selling albums, and as a result they were from there onto now considered back into the music scene.
So far, from the mid-90s to now, the band has remained mostly clean and very successful, and continues to tour to this day. In 2007, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith was released, exposing the band to younger people. However, on the 2009 tour, which featured ZZ Top as the opener (I attended one of the concerts), Tyler fell off the stage and injured his leg, and consequently the rest of the tour was cancelled.
As popular as Aerosmith still is, the band has had their internal issues, notably a feud between Tyler and Perry recently concerning Tyler's relapse into the abuse of prescription drugs, most likely stemming from his severe injuries.
The latest news is that the next Aerosmith album will be released sometime around May of 2012.
REVIEW:
The albums and songs I would specifically recommend are:
Albums:
Aerosmith
Toys in the Attic
Rocks
Permanent Vacation
Songs:
Walk This Way
Dream On
Sweet Emotion
Round and Round
Love in an Elevator
Their cover of Come Together
Rag Doll
The Other Side
Same Old Song and Dance
Young Lust
Just Push Play
There are other songs I like, but these would be my personal favorites.
Based on personal taste and the history of the band, I have to give Aerosmith a solid 4.8 out of 5. They've had their fair share of problems, but the way that they have been able to come back has been nothing short of extraordinary.
This concludes my review of Aerosmith. Thanks for reading, and as always, any further questions can be posted or PM'd to me, and I will be glad to respond.
