Aerosmith Greatest Hits Album Song List
Kody Baril
From the shotgun guitar riffs to Steven Tyler's Mick Jagger-like moves, the band rarely hid their elders' influence in the early days. But over time, they turned into one of America's best arena-sized bar bands.
Some well-documented personal battles sidelined the group in the early '80s before a triumphant comeback later that decade turned them into even bigger stars. Our list of the Top 20 Aerosmith songs spans the '70s through the late '90s. And yes, that Armageddon song is here.
All eyes were on Aerosmith following their reunion with Joe Perry and Brad Whitford. Although 1985's Done With Mirrors failed to put the rockers back on top, the opening track "Let the Music Do the Talking" proved they were headed in the right direction. A remake of a Joe Perry Project song featuring updated lyrics from Tyler, "Let the Music Do the Talking" rocks with clarity and a healthy dose of braggadocio, setting the stage for their proper comeback on 1987's Permanent Vacation. (Rolli)
We get why this song is usually dismissed by fans of the band's '70s work. The power chords, the giant-asteroid movie it comes from, the way Tyler loses control of his voice (and presumably his bowels) at the end of the song. But here's the thing: It's a great song. Sure, anyone could have recorded "I Don't Want to Miss a Thing" and had a hit. But Aerosmith racked up their only No. 1 with it. Well-played and well-deserved. (Michael Gallucci)
During the '70s, Aerosmith rarely strayed from the booze-soaked guitar rock that influenced and defined them. But on "Last Child," they get funky ... or at least as funky as a band like Aerosmith could get. Structured on top of a looping bass line, the song settles into a shuffling boogie that recalls David Bowie's "Fame." By far the funkiest cut on our list of the Top 20 Aerosmith Songs. (Gallucci)
Aerosmith made a quantum leap in songwriting on their sophomore album, best illustrated by this haunting quasi-ballad. "I used to lie in my bed at dawn, listening to the wind in the bare trees, how lonely and melancholy it sounded," Tyler said in the 1997 band autobiography Walk This Way. "One night I went down to the basement ... and took a few Tuinals and a few Seconals and I scooped up this guitar Joey [Kramer] gave me, this Dumpster guitar, and I lit some incense and wrote 'Seasons of Wither.'" Even the ballad-averse Perry called it his favorite slow jam in Aerosmith's repertoire. (Rolli)
Aerosmith's star-making third album quickly stakes its claim as a classic with its opening title track. "Toys in the Attic" rocks with punkish aggression, chock-full of crunchy riffs and a lightning-bolt solo from Perry. Tyler's vocal melodies and harmonies are one of a kind, and his evocative lyrics outline the band's mission. "It's a statement of longevity," he said in his 2011 memoir Does the Noise in My Head Bother You? "The record will be played long after you're dead." (Rolli)
Of all the hits Aerosmith scored in their comeback era, "Love in an Elevator" gets closest to the debauched hard rock of their '70s heyday. The riffs are monolithic, the rhythm section stomps like a tyrannosaurus rex and Tyler's motor-mouthed lyrics are the perfect blend of sleazy and tongue-in-cheek. The glossy production and outro trumpet solo put the song squarely in pop-metal territory, but they can't dull Perry and Whitford's razor-sharp dueling guitar solos. (Rolli)
The last thing anyone expected to hear from Aerosmith was a song about sexual abuse. Even more surprising: "Janie's Got a Gun" hit the Top 5. No small feat for a song that includes child abuse, a revenge fantasy and a hidden hook that doesn't reveal itself until more than a minute in. It's also the best song from the group's '80s comeback. (Gallucci)
The opening song on the band's fourth album just cracked the Top 40, but it's another sturdy rocker built on a killer riff and a solid performance by the entire group. The sterling production ranks among the best in the group's catalog, even if the sound of horses, whips and Tyler yodeling may be a little too much in the end. But hurtling dangerously toward excess defined Aerosmith at this point. (Gallucci)
The band's first Top 40 appearance includes one of the best uses of a talk box ever recorded (Perry is the manipulated voice you hear at the beginning of the song). But more than that, it includes one of classic rock's most memorable guitar riffs, fired off after an extended intro that builds to the point of bursting. Aerosmith would have bigger hits, but "Sweet Emotion" is where it all started. (Gallucci)
Aerosmith's first charting single was originally released in 1973 when their debut album came out. It stalled at No. 59. Three years later, following the success of Toys in the Attic, "Dream On" was reissued and reached No. 6, becoming the band's first Top 10 hit. It's since turned into one of the 1970s' most resilient power ballads and a perennial favorite among wishful garage-band rockers. (Gallucci)
Like "Dream On," "Walk This Way" boasts a twisted chart history. It was originally released as the second single from Toys in the Attic in 1975 but went nowhere. Two years later, it was reissued and made it to the Top 10. It remains one of the band's best-ever songs, a knockout combination of elastic guitar riffing and tongue-twisting rhymes. (Gallucci)
c80f0f1006