Rocks Album Aerosmith
Ezekiel Tulagan
"The first record that changed my life in a huge way was Aerosmith's Rocks," Godsmack's Sully Erna told us. "I'd been a musician since I was three-and-a-half years old, and I was raised on blues and more jazzy music: Buddy Rich, Ray Charles, Etta James and a lot of old-school stuff. But then I discovered Joe Perry and Aerosmith. A friend played me Last Child from Rocks. I think it was the first time I smoked a joint, and it was a really life-changing point for me, because it really lured me into the world of rock. It was super-cool for a young kid."
Every week, Album of the Week Club listens to and discusses the album in question, votes on how good it is, and publishes our findings, with the aim of giving people reliable reviews and the wider rock community the chance to contribute.
"Despite hard drug use escalating among band members, Aerosmith produced a superb follow-up to their masterwork Toys in the Attic, nearly topping it in the process. Many Aero fans will point to Toys as the band's quintessential album (it contained two radio/concert standards after all, Walk This Way and Sweet Emotion), but out of all their albums, Rocks did the best job of capturing Aerosmith at their most raw and rocking. (AllMusic)
"Steven Tyler is the band's obvious focal point, a distinction earned primarily by his adaptation of the sexual stance that missed the young Jack Flash. On the rockers, his delivery is polished and commanding and sufficiently enthusiastic to disguise the general innnocuousness of the lyrics. On the riff-dominated songs, though, such as Last Child or Back in the Saddle, he is prone to shrieks that don't bear repetition. Unlike Jagger, his vocal performance cannot save otherwise mediocre material." (Super Seventies)
John Davidson: My first introduction to Aerosmith was the highly inauspicious Night In The Ruts so its perhaps no surprise that I didn't really delve into their back catalog at the time.
They seemed more like an amped up Stones than an American Led Zeppelin and there were plenty of other bands around that played to my SF/Fantasy interests in Rush and Rainbow and then the whole NWOBHM.
So having neglected their best albums of the 70s I didn't really listen to Aerosmith again until they started having hits in the MTV years and didn't explore their back catalogue at all until I met my wife (who was a big fan).
On its own merits, without the nostalgia kick of remembering this from the 70s I still like this album. It has a real groove to it and some great riffs but it doesn't quite have that 'epic' feel to it that I enjoy most about heavy rock (though Nobody's Fault comes closest ).
In my opinion Aerosmith had their best run at the end of the 80s and beginning of the 90s with Permanant Vacation, Pump and Get A Grip, all brilliant records. In the 70s they had a few good songs, but that's it. To me it's only 5/10.
Chris Elliott: I must be listening to a different album. It's okay but not much more. This album always left me cold. It's not that heavy. There's no great track that hooks you. It plods along doing blues rock with no great spark.
There's no nostalgia. I never quite got 70s American heavy rock in general, so it's battling an uphill slope. Even so, it still seems the weakest of their "classic" albums. Mind you, it probably makes more sense in a country with Corvettes rather than the Vauxhall Viva.
Evan Sanders: Having grown up outside of Boston, we believe that Aerosmith are rock gods, and it's common to know people who have been friends with the band members over the years. It's hard to write anything bad about this album. Every song is strong, and they seemed determined to show that there would be no fourth album slump after their debut, Get Your Wings, and Toys In The Attic.
Back In The Saddle may be one of the most iconic album openers ever, setting a tone similar to Whole Lotta Love or Immigrant Song on Led Zeppelin II and III. The only criticism is that Rocks isn't quite at the level of the three albums that came before it, which is like dissing on Led Zeppelin's Houses of the Holy as being not as good as the four before it. Alas, the slump did indeed come with their next album Draw The Line, as the consequences of their lifestyle took their toll. 8/10.
Wade Babineau: Not a bad track in the bunch. I was 14 in 1984 when the video for Let the Music Do the Talking came on MuchMusic and I had heard of Aerosmith from friends, but had not acquired any music from them. Purchased the Done With Mirrors album and the record store guy asked if I had heard any of their older material. I said no and he recommended I start with Toys in The Attic and this album. I was not disappointed and they remain in heavy rotation in my playlists. Easily give this album a 10.
And the album just ramps up from there. Rats In The Cellar take it to another level. Then Combination rounds out side one with more deadly riffs. The psychotic, feedback-laced whammy bar filled breakdown at the end leaves you spinning.
As for this record, the band really sound great. Every song is a classic. After this they ended up experimenting a bit too much with certain things (not music related), but up to this point they were fantastic as a band. The groove, Tyler's voice evolving, Perrys guitar sound, it all came together on this record.
Andrew Cumming: Brilliant brilliant album chock full of classics. Rats In The Cellar, Lick And A Promise, Sick As A Dog etc. And probably their greatest deep cut, Combination. It's fair to say I like this one!
Nigel Taylor: The Verve famously sang The Drugs Don't Work and Rocks is proof that they are completely wrong. By far and and away Aerosmith's greatest album, full of great songs with a real dark heavy swagger about it.
Roy Bish: An all time classic in the true sense, from the start of Back In The Saddle to the end of Home Tonight it's a high octane ride of sheer classic rock-defining moments. In my opinion one of the greatest albums ever released.
Bill Griffin: I simply don't have enough good things to say about this album. It was my first Aerosmith record and, although the first four all have their charms (Toys is probably the most varied and their artistic zenith), it is my favourite. From Back In The Saddle through Lick And A Promise it never lets up and none of them sound the same. Even Home Tonight rocks. No wimpy ballad there.
Oddly, I saw them live three times in the next few years and was very disappointed each time (to the point that I haven't seen them since), but I've recently gotten live recordings from that era and they sound great on all of them.
Gary Claydon: If Toys In The Attic was the album that broke Aerosmith into the big league, then Rocks was the one that cemented their place there. I reckon it's a coin toss between the two for the honour of being the band's best but, for me, it's Rocks, thanks to it's slightly more 'raw' feel.
Rocks has all the elements that made Aerosmith so good when they were on top of their game. It has sass, it has groove and it has a chunk of funk. More than anything, though, it does exactly what it says on the cover.
Eric Nicholas Andrews: To some, their last great album, as the tour-record-repeat treadmill was starting to take its toll by then. Draw The Line (1977)'s reputation has improved over the years, but it was the first sign of cracks in their foundation.
Todd Schuster: I recently tried to put together a playlist of Aerosmith "deep cuts": one track from every album that are great songs and definitive of their sound. While I did have to make a couple difficult choices on a few albums, picking one from Rocks proved impossible as all seven of them are worthy (Back In The Saddle and Last Child aren't deep cuts from my perspective.)
I got my first stereo for my 10th birthday in spring of '76 - and my neighbourhood friends all shared our records and 8-tracks. One of them lent me his Toys In The Attic record and I loved it so much I wanted to trade him for it, but he wanted it back after a week. I bugged my parents for a Toys In The Attic 8-track for Christmas, but was initially disappointed when I opened the gift wrap and saw it was their new release Rocks... until I played it a couple times! Ironically, Toys ended up being the last '70s album of theirs that I bought.
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