Draw The Line – Aerosmith

Producer: Jack Douglas

Released: December 1, 1977

Rating: **** 1/2

In the grand scheme of things, very few bands will sustain careers as long as Aerosmith. Even fewer will do so with all the original members intact. There are so many reasons why bands don’t last more than 5 years and Aerosmith has survived almost all of those pitfalls. That being said, any band who has been around for nearly 40 years will have its ups and downs. If you talk to the members of Aerosmith, this is the album where you can hear their initial success begin to crumble. It can be a hard thing to hear a band you love trash one of their own albums that you adore. Regardless, I have read countless interviews with various members of the band who count this as one of their least favorite albums because they claim this is where you can hear it all fall apart.

Do I agree? No. Perhaps some background is necessary. The album was recorded in an abandon convent outside of New York City called The Cenical. Not only was the album recorded here, but the band lived here during the recording process as well. According to everything I have read, they spent a lot of time sleeping, doing drugs and shooting guns. It was an effort to get band members out of their rooms to record their parts and the band was rarely, if ever, together during any part of the process. Drug dealers would come and go and everyone, including producer Jack Douglas, was “gacked” out of their minds. If you are familiar with the Rolling Stones, it’s not unlike what that band endured while recording Exile on Main St.

Clearly, the band was falling apart and succumbing to their many vices. Although the band was on the brink of a meltdown, I personally don’t believe this album suffered for it. In fact, the madness that had engulfed the band (and producer) may have added a certain element of wild abandon not found on the previous two albums. With Toys In The Attic, the band was focussed on making an artistic statement. Rocks saw the band embracing their success and enjoying the spoils of fame. Draw The Line seemed to be a proclamation of all their wrong doing. But damn, doesn’t it sound good. The album could have been called Snort The Line, Chop The Line or better yet, Too Many Lines.

The album opener and title track has a simple, but catchy riff, not unlike Walk This Way,  and check out Steven Tyler’s screaming fit following the guitar solo. Amazing. The next four tracks are perhaps some of the best and most underrated tunes you’ll find in the band’s catalog. I Wanna Know Why, Critical Mass, Get It Up and Bright Light Fright are easily some of my favorite Aerosmith tunes, yet I rarely hear them mentioned. Sure, the lyrical content might be coked up nonsense, but musically these are some killer songs. The arrangement on Critical Mass is remarkable enough that the listener barely notices the non-sensical lyrics. The killer guitar work on Get It Up is spectacular enough that it doesn’t seem odd when Tyler is actually singing, “Can’t get it up”. Bright Light Fright is as much a road song as it is an absolute confession of the night before. With Joe Perry handling the lead vocals and an insane horn section, this quick little number perfectly concludes the first half of the album.

Kings And Queens, nearly a full band effort in terms of writing, is as ethereal lyrically and musically as the title suggests. The Hand That Feeds might be a throw-away track, but even at that it has a pretty remarkable vocal performance from Tyler. Sight For Sore Eyes is a funk-laden little ditty with an incredibly infectious riff and a killer guitar solo. Milk Cow Blues closes out the album in classic, blues influenced Aerosmith fashion.

I think Jack Douglas deserves as much credit for this album as the band. This is truly where I think you hear his best work as a producer. The sound is so warm. Nothing recorded in the PC driven, post 2000 world sounds this good. I’ve heard that Steven Tyler wants Douglas to record the band’s next album. Based on how 2004′s Honkin’ On Bobo sounds, I can’t imagine anyone else is even being considered.

I understand why the band doesn’t like this album. It conjures up bad memories and it’s probably difficult for them to accept that anything good came out of this period. Their feelings aside, I think this album is criminally underrated. While I know Toys In The Attic and Rocks are probably better albums, it’s this one I listen to the most.

Rocks – Aerosmith

Producer: Jack Douglas

Released: May 1976

Rating: **** 1/2

In 1975 Aerosmith released the mega-hit, Toys In The Attic, and they became a household name. Because it was the band’s third album, they didn’t necessarily have to worry about the “sophomore jinx”, but that didn’t mean following it up would be an easy task. Up through Toys In The Attic the band’s sound had been steadily evolving. When they went in the studio to record Rocks, they wisely chose not to mess with the formula that made them famous. At the same time, they didn’t simply duplicate Toys In The Attic. There is no denying, however, that this is a sister album.

After Permanent Vacation I’d slowly started collecting the band’s back catalog. While I appreciated the band’s first two albums, I wasn’t necessarily blown away. Once I heard Toys In The Attic I was hooked and wanted to own everything the band ever recorded. The next album I picked up was Rocks and was stunned. The band had accomplished a near impossible feat. They had recorded a follow-up to Toys In The Attic that was not only as good, but possibly better. By the numbers, Toys In The Attic is a more popular album, which to some, is an indication that it is also better. A lot of Aerosmith purists, myself included, will tell you that Rocks is a better album.

Toys In The Attic is an accomplishment. A Classic Rock statement. I’m not sure I’d say it’s more artistic, but the songs have a certain quality to them. I think Rocks is all of that, but there’s also an outlaw element that makes this album a bit edgier and a little more exciting. This is most evident in the albums opening track, Back In The Saddle, and the ode to a drug deal, Rats In The Cellar. My favorite Aerosmith tune is Uncle Salty, which is found on Toys In The Attic, but there is no doubt that Last Child is a very close second. Depending on my mood, I may actually like it more. The entire band sounds amazing on this funk laden track. Speaking of musicianship, Joe Perry’s guitar solo on the aforementioned Rats In The Cellar is mind-boggling. An absolute drug induced frenzy. Not an inaccurate statement of the band’s frame of mind during this period.

Other album highlights include Sick As A Dog, Nobody’s Fault, Lick And A Promise and Home Tonight. Nobody’s Fault is an eerie tune that many including Slash and James Hetfield have cited as their favorite Aerosmith tune. Home Tonight is a stunning pseudo ballad, not unlike November Rain from Guns N’ Roses. This tune is truly one of Aerosmith’s unspoken gems that I have never heard anyone mention when discussing the band’s work.

Toys In The Attic will always be regarded as the quintessential Aerosmith album and I understand why. It’s a phenomenal commercial rock album that is very accessible. Rocks is a little less easy to digest, but I sincerely believe it’s a better album. Clearly, we’re splitting hairs here. The fact is, if you love Toys In The Attic there is no doubt in mind that you’d love Rocks as well. Like it’s predecessor, the production on Rocks is nothing short of amazing. This is undoubtedly the most exciting period in the band’s history, musically speaking. Jack Douglas accomplished what a lot of producers attempt, but often fail to do. He helped them create an incredible sound, while also capturing the band’s raw energy. I recently read an interview with Steven Tyler where he said that he was hoping Douglas would produce the band’s next album. To that, I say “Amen”.

Toys In The Attic – Aerosmith

Producer: Jack Douglas

Released: April 8, 1975

Rating: ****

In 1987 I was 13 years old and like many kids my age, I was quickly falling in love with Aerosmith due to their unlikely, yet extraordinary comeback album Permanent Vacation. Like a junkie, once I got that first hit I couldn’t wait for my next fix. While Permanent Vacation was an excellent album, it wasn’t enough. I quickly began collecting the band’s back catalog and this, the band’s third album, was the second that I added to my collection. Was I pleased? In a word, very.

This was the band’s second collaboration with producer Jack Douglas, but the results were much more satisfying than the band’s previous album, Get Your Wings. When I first heard Permanent Vacation I felt somewhat enlightened. Prior to this, I’d heard Run DMC’s cover of their classic tune, Walk This Way, but not much else. Because many of the bands I was currently listening to cited Boston’s Bad Boys as a major influence, I was that much more interested in exploring Aerosmith’s music. Permanent Vacation certainly had a bluesier edge than any albums the hair bands were churning out, but this was 1987. As bluesy as Permanent Vacation was, it was also very slickly produced thanks to Bruce Fairbairn. Naturally, as I began collecting the band’s older albums I was expecting more of the same of what I’d already heard.

I was blown away the first time I heard Toys In The Attic. If hearing Permanent Vacation left me feeling enlightened, after hearing Toys In The Attic, I was awakened. The bluesy sound was there, but with a much rawer energy. The frenetic album opener, Toys In The Attic literally punches you in the face. I’ve always felt that Get Your Wings failed to, well, take flight. The songs seem to drone on and on. When you first hear Toys In The Attic, it’s clear within seconds that the band raised the stakes and took their song writing to another level. The songs found on this album are a tad more concise and the arrangements are brilliant. In addition, this is the album where lead singer and front-man extraordinaire, Steven Tyler finally found his voice. That, or Jack Douglas finally figured out how to capture it in the studio. Either way, the Demon of Screamin sounds perfect.

Following the title track and album opener is perhaps my favorite Aerosmith tune of all time. Uncle Salty is one of many narrative style songs in the band’s catalog, but this one is amazing. The narrative itself is that of a young girl who is orphaned, abused and eventually turns to a life of prostitution. Only Tyler and Co. could take such seedy lyrical content and marry it with a hip swinging, boogie beat. The song is also an early example of Tyler’s unique, yet perfect sense of rhyme.

Adam’s Apple is up next, which within the context of this album is an average tune, yet I can’t imagine a band in 2011 releasing a song of this caliber. With its simple “trot up the fretboard lick”, Walk This Way is perhaps the band’s signature song. It’s hard not to like this song, but it’s also possible it suffers a bit from over exposure. Certainly not a bad thing to have your music “over enjoyed”, many band’s would count themselves lucky to have their songs celebrated for 35 years.Big Ten Inch Record is a light-hearted cover of an old R&B tune, but if you didn’t know better you’d swear Tyler penned this one himself.

The super trippy intro to Sweet Emotion gets the second half of the album started and is another one of my favorite Aerosmith tunes. I actually think this is a far better riff than Walk This Way. According to the band’s autobiography, Walk This Way, the lyrics to Sweet Emotion are about Joe Perry’s then girlfriend. Hardly flattering. The album continues on in fine fashion with the slightly ethereal No More No More and the harder driving, Round And Round. Closing out the album is one of the band’s best ballads, You See Me Crying. I’m not sure if it’s the orchestra or Tyler’s vocal performance, but there is something about this tune that most of the 90′s Aero-Supply ballads were lacking. About half-way through the song Tyler squeals out something nearly unintelligible, but stunning nonetheless, followed by a grandiose orchestral break and a spot-on perfect guitar solo.

When people speak in terms of 70′s “Classic Rock”, Aerosmith was very much a part of that scene and this is the album that catapulted them into the pantheon of rock super stardom. This is a brilliant piece of work that not only made a musical statement upon its initial release, but also sounds just as fresh over 35 years later.