“AOR” equals “Album Oriented Rock”, a radio format established in the 1960s that essentially means “classic rock” by today’s standards. Therefore, this Aerosmith single would be a remix aimed specifically at those kinds of radio stations. Frequently and historically, many of these remixes are barely different at all from the album version. Additionally, “F.I.N.E.” from 1989’s Pump album was not really considered a single. It wasn’t available to buy commercially, and it wasn’t made into a music video. It was a radio single only. At 4:08, this track is not edited.
“F.I.N.E.”, which was track 2 on the album, is considered one of Aerosmith finer rock moments from the Geffen years. It was always focused on a biting heavy Aero groove, a melodic Tyler vocal, and that irresistible chorus of “It’s aaaaaaaalright!” This remix is hardly different at all. If anything, the bass might be coming through more clearly.
If you have a look at the waveform file below, you can see there isn’t much difference, though some are visible. The AOR mix is at top, the original 1989 CD file at bottom.
I don’t feel there’s any point in rating a promo CD single like on a scale of 5, because what’s the point? This CD is valuable as a collectible to fans and hoarders alike. It has an exclusive remix, and whether you can hear a difference isn’t the point to a collector. Sometimes obscure AOR mixes get reissued on greatest hits or box sets, but to date, this one has not.
“Joe Perry says I’m aaaaallright!”
Thanks again to Ash from Australia for sending me this CD which I shall file with my Pump collection!
A young Steve Anthony, just starting on his MuchMusic career, but not yet known as the on-screen madman he’d become, chatted with Aerosmith right when they were hot again, in 1987 on the Permanent Vacation tour. He opens by mentioning how sick they must be talking about the “drug thing”, and then asks about the “Toxic Twins”, a strategy that worked in getting some good comments out of Steven Tyler and Joe Perry.
Joe Perry discusses the 1984 reunion tour, and the risk of going out without a new album to promote. Common today, rare then.
An interesting flash from the past as we remember Aerosmith!
I knew — I knew!! — that if I held out long enough, there was a chance this could happen. When a bare-bones versions of the Gene Simmons Vault finally went on sale for a reasonable price, I had to have it. All 11 CDs, plus the coin and the statue, for $100 was too great a deal to pass up. All you don’t get is the actual vault and gift from Gene. In this 12 part series, we will take a good look at my new Vault.
This box set was first announced about two decades ago, originally titled Gene Simmons 100. Then it was going to be called Monster, though that title was re-used on something else instead (Gene blames Paul for “borrowing” that name). As implied from 100 title, it was supposed to be a set of 100 unreleased songs from Gene vaults. Kiss demos, solo demos, pre-Kiss music, everything. Obviously things grew and grew, and so did the price tag! In the end, there were 165 songs and a much more reasonable valuation. This will only become more collectible.
In the liner notes, Gene says he tried to split up the songs by “mood”. Please enjoy this series as we go through each and every song, disc by disc, in this massive collection.
GENE SIMMONS – The Vault – Disk 1 (2018 Rhino)
Rather than start with his earliest material, Simmons chose to sequence this box set starting with a 2011 recording called “Are You Ready”. It is, for all intents and purposes, a Kiss song without Paul Stanley. It features Tommy Thayer and Eric Singer on guitar and drums (and backing vocals). This song was written after Kiss had essentially given up on recording albums, though one lyric was used previously on Monster: “Give me [a] kiss, bite your lips”. This is a Kiss rocker, pure and simple, and had they ever recorded it, it could have been one of their best latter day songs. The chorus is right out of 1977, and the boys do a great job on it for a demo. A simple riff, and a fist-pumping beat, and you’re hooked. Great song. 5/5
“I Turn To Stone” is a hotel demo by Gene and Tommy Thayer. The title was inspired by the Biblical “pillar of salt” story, but there’s nothing holy about these lyrics. It’s all about Gene’s inability to resist the fairer sex. It’s a pretty good song that sounds very early 80s, somewhere around the Killers-Creatures era. Gene talk-sings some of the lyrics but the song is otherwise pretty melodic. There are some of “ah-ah-ah” bits in the outro that sound very Hot In the Shade. Pretty cool, and doubtless would have been polished up for an album. Great potential. 3.5/5
“Juliet” starts immediately with a riff like “Custard Pie”. Co-written by Ken Tamplin for the Revenge album, it did not make the cut. It’s a little herky-jerky sounding, and the clunky primitive drum machine used doesn’t translate it well. Again, there’s a lyric here that was used later on “Russian Roulette” from Sonic Boom. This song was probably rejected for being too close to Led Zeppelin. 2.5/5
“Hey You” is the second Tamplin co-write. It has a really cool dark vibe, but doesn’t hold together as a song. It’s more just some components stuck together that don’t necessarily fit. One guitar bit sounds like it made it onto Revenge in another song. It’s upbeat, and sounds like something that was hoped to would be a fist pumper in concert. Close but no cigar. 2/5
The Carnival of Souls album contained a lot of stuff that was written for Revenge. “I Confess” is one such song. It’s one of Gene’s more serious lyrics, regarding religion and hypocrisy. If you confess to the priest, who does the priest confess to? This demo is not very different from the final version; just as dark and with the same vocal delivery. The main differences are in the guitar parts, which Bruce Kulick later put his own stamp on. 4/5
Continuing on with things that ended up on Carnival, “Legends Never Die” was inspired by events that also inspired “Childhood’s End” later on. Co-written by Micki Free and Adam Mitchell in 1982, this power ballad could have been on an album had Paul Stanley not been the ballad guy in Kiss. When Gene went on to produce Wendy O. Williams, she recorded this song almost identically to the demo. Her vocals are more extreme, going from soft to growl, but a Kiss version sung by Gene certainly would have been interesting. This is as close as we get. Gene considers it a very personal song. 4/5
“Something Wicked This Way Comes” is a familiar song title that we have heard about for years. Gene says he recorded several versions including some with Bruce Kulick on guitar. It sounds very much like Carnival of Souls material, but not up to standards. The outro guitar stuff is great. There is potential to some of the individual parts, but as a whole there’s not much of a song here. The title was inspired by Ray Bradbury, but is otherwise unrelated. 1/5
“Hand of Fate” with Tommy Thayer and Eric Singer was considered for Sonic Boom. It’s a song Gene likes, and is a prime example of the “monster plod” groove that he is known for. There are some nice layers of backing vocals on the bridge (all overdubbed by Gene), but the song would have been one of the weakest on Sonic Boom. We already have a lot of Gene songs with this kind of groove and theme. Next! 2/5
“Hunger” is a sex song, written in the late 80s and recorded on New Year’s Eve with Bruce Kulick and Eric Carr. It’s nice to hear Carr; he has such an identifiable song. This is an unremarkable song. It’s a simple riff without a lot of melody to back it. It sounds like a Whitesnake outtake more than Kiss, but Gene wasn’t beyond being “inspired” by other bands who were having hits. 2/5
Gene prefers this demo of “In My Head” from Carnival of Souls. His idea was to do “Beatles-y” things like recording backwards cymbals, but layering them over a heavy thumping groove. The song idea is inspired by people to hear voices in their heads, and the result is a very chilling song and lyric. It’s angry, heavy and slightly psychedelic. The main differences are that Bruce hadn’t added all his layers of genius to the guitars yet. 4/5
Speaking of Carnival, one of the songs that didn’t make that album was “Carnival of Souls”. It later came out on Gene solo album called (ahem) Asshole. It was never a good enough song. Demo #1 is pretty intact. The issue is mostly the chorus, which just isn’t very good, nor fitting for the fast, almost thrashy verses. Written with Scott Van Zen, Gene says he was going to a psychedelic vibe similar to the band Love. A miss. 2/5
“Are You A Boy, or Are You A Girl” is a phrase Gene heard a lot growing up in New York, growing his hair long. People would stop him on the street and ask that question. “Are you a long haired creature from another world?” This song has Eric Carr and Tommy Thayer, which would date it back to the Hot in the Shade era. There are some musical ideas that later turned up in a Kiss song called “Hot and Cold”. What is most interesting about this song is that Gene takes a brief bass solo at 1:25 into the song. Gene’s an underrated bass player; just listen to those walking basslines on the first three albums. Too bad Kiss never did anything like that on an album. 3/5
“Say You Don’t Want It” dates back to 1979, with a problematic song Gene had called “Mongoloid Man”. This a is a re-write from 2001 with Tommy Thayer and without the troublesome lyrics. Some of these words would resurface on “Spit” from the Revenge album. “Spit” is a far better song. Just not good enough, and monotonous to boot. 2/5
If that wasn’t enough, the original version of “Mongoloid Man” with Joe Perry on guitar follows. Musically, this demo actually sounds better. It has a cool vintage vibe not unlike Gene’s first solo album (which Joe also played on). It was never going to be an amazing song, but this vintage version is definitely marginally better, despite the lyrics. Perry smokes! 2.5/5
Written by Darren Leader of Steel Panther with Gene, “I Wait” ends this disc on a powerful note. You could call it a ballad, in sort of a late 90s altera-rock way. It’s actually a great song and though not suitable for Kiss, would have made an excellent solo track. It definitely sounds a lot more like a 90s alternative band than a classic rock band, but a good song is a good song. “I Wait” is a good song with potential to be great. Re-record this one, Gene, and release it as a single. 4/5
When we tally up the 15 individual song scores, this is how Disk 1 averages out: 2.63/5 stars.
We’ll be keeping track of these scores so we can get an accurate average for the box set. This score is not surprising. Gene is known for a quantity-over-quality style of creation. At least his batting average here is over 50 (barely).
Disk 1 track length and songwriters (from Wikipedia)
1. Are You Ready [2011] (3:13) Simmons
2. I Turn to Stone (3:58) Simmons
3. Juliet (2:52) Simmons / Tamplin
4. Hey You (3:44) Simmons / Tamplin
5. I Confess (3:40) Simmons / Tamplin
6. Legends Never Die [1982] (4:24) Simmons / Mitchell / Free
7. Something Wicked This Way Comes [1988] (3:44) Simmons
8. Hand of Fate (3:15) Simmons
9. Hunger (4:14) Simmons
10. In My Head [1994] (3:30) Simmons / Van Zen / St. James
11. Carnival of Souls #1 [1994] (3:44) Simmons / Van Zen
12. Are You a Boy, or Are You a Girl (2:49) Simmons
13. Say You Don’t Want It (3:29) Simmons
14. Mongoloid Man [1976] (4:06) Simmons (with Joe Perry of Aerosmith)
15. I Wait (4:04) Leader / Simmons)
AEROSMITH – The Road Starts Hear (2021 Universal RSD vinyl)
Are Aerosmith kicking off a series of official bootlegs too? That would be just swell! The label on this record indicates it comes from the “Vindaloo Vaults”. It seems likely there would be more in the vaults besides this October 1971 recording. But even if this is all there is, we sure got lucky. This tape from Boston is Aerosmith’s earliest known recording, and sounds bloody great. Currently it’s only available on RSD vinyl, but don’t be surprised if it gets a CD reissue when Aerosmith re-release their entire catalogue.
Aerosmith’s first LP was different. Tyler hadn’t found his voice yet. The distortion wasn’t cranked up. But there is certainly a fondness for that period, which birthed “Dream On” and a number of other classics. That’s the setting for The Road Starts Hear.
This record commences with some slow, laid back guitars jamming on “Somebody” while the people in the venue chit and chat amongst themselves. Then it really starts – Tyler kicking it up, but drummer Joey Kramer being the real driving force. This recording is clear! There is some minor distortion on Tyler’s microphone, but you can hear both guitars distinctly, along with bass, drums and cymbals.
The blues cover “Reefer Head Woman” wasn’t recorded by Aerosmith properly until 1979’s Night in the Ruts, but this version predates the familiar by eight years! They’re very different but both boast a Steven Tyler harmonica solo. This transitions into “Walkin’ the Dog”, slower and bluesier than the other versions out there. This is a long jam, and for the brilliant guitar work, it’s likely the best take of “Walkin’ the Dog” that you’ll hear.
“Moving Out” leads side two, definitely edgy and sharp. Tyler is at the top of his game and the rest of the dudes provide the momentum. Then they lay back on “Major Barbara”, another song they didn’t release until much later. Though they did record it in a proper studio in 1974 for Get Your Wings, it didn’t get a release until it was added as a bonus to Classics Live in 1987! On this version, listen for a detour into “Hail to the Bus Driver”!
“Dream On” is fully realized, Tyler tinkling on the piano, but the guitar solos still in prototypical form. This brilliant version is probably the heaviest. Finally “Mama Kin” closes the record, a bit different than the way it sounds on the Aerosmith album: more garage-y.
What a band Aerosmith always were! The chemistry is evident on their earliest recordings, as is their hard edged approach to rocking the blues. You cannot go wrong with this record.
Aerosmith were out of the gates fairly early into their career when their first anthology style box set was released in 1991. They were still going strong, at the peak of their popularity. Their career had two distinct eras marked by the record labels they were signed to: first Columbia, and then a resurgence with Geffen.
There was also a long gap between Aerosmith studio albums. Pump was released in ’89 but it took them four years to come up with Get A Grip. While Geffen waited for Aerosmith to complete Get A Grip, their old label Columbia was allowed to release compilations. In late 1991 they put out a brand new video for a remixed “Sweet Emotion”, although ironically the remixed version wasn’t included in the forthcoming Pandora’s Box set. Regardless, there was a stop-gap. November saw the release of Pandora’s Box just in time for Christmas, with three CDs of music, including a whopping 25 rare, unreleased, or remixed tracks.
Disc 1
They hit you right from the start with a rarity: Steven Tyler’s “When I Needed You” from 1966 and his band Chain Reaction. You can barely tell it’s the same singer, but this quaint number is a great opener for a box set with this kind of scope. Basic 60s rock with a hint of psychedelia. Onto the first album, it’s “Make It” with an unlisted false start — another cool touch. “Movin’ Out” is a completely different take than the one from the debut. It’s superior because it’s harder and more raw. (Did Pearl Jam rip off part of the guitar lick for “Alive”?) “One Way Street” is the album version, but an unreleased “On the Road Again” is a fun laid back jam. Clearly B-side material, but it’s Aerosmith and light and loose.
A sax-laden “Mama Kin” from the first album is the first bonafide hit presented, and like most of the hits in the set, it’s the original version. It is immediately obvious from the upbeat groove just why it was a hit. Up next, it’s the slick “Same Old Song and Dance”, the heavy “Train Kept A Rollin'” and haunting “Seasons of Wither”, all from Get Your Wings. Major props for including the underappreciated “Seasons of Wither” in this box as the song has never had the exposure it deserves. According to the liner notes, it was written by Steven Tyler on a guitar found by Joey Kramer in a dumpster. The fretting on the guitar was “fucked” but it had a special tone. The tuning of that guitar “forced” the song right out of Tyler.
An unreleased live version of “Write Me a Letter” from 1976 is overshadowed by the song that follows it. It’s the “big one”, the ballad “Dream On”, and usually the centerpiece of any side that it’s on. The random placement on the second half of CD 1 is a little puzzling. The title track “Pandora’s Box” follows, a dirty slow funk.
The first disc closes on a trio of rarities. A 1971 radio jam on Fleetwood Mac’s “Rattlesnake Shake” goes on for 10 awesome minutes and dominates the disc. They swiftly follow that with “Walkin’ the Dog” from the same radio broadcast. Finally, a slinky “Lord of the Thighs” from the Texxas Jam closes CD 1. Two more Texxas Jam tracks can be found midway through CD 2, which is mildly annoying.
Disc 2
The second disc represents the musical growth of Aerosmith. A massive “Toys in the Attic” builds on the past: more energy, better production, more speed. “Round and Round” is Sabbath-heavy, a sound the band rarely explored. Only “Nobody’s Fault” (which comes later on this disc) stands as a heavier Aerosmith monolith.
Behind the scenes Aerosmith were suffering from drug-induced absences in the studio. One day when Joe Perry and Steven Tyler were late, the core trio of Joey Kramer, Brad Whitford, and Tom Hamilton just jammed. The result is “Krawhitham”, a menacing unheard jam. It’s a testament to the “other three” guys in the band and features some stunning playing even if the riff is a bit lacking. This rough and ready track is followed by four slick Toys in the Attic hits in a row: “You See Me Crying”, “Sweet Emotion” (the original mix), “No More No More” and “Walk This Way”. Each song different, each song perfect. “You See Me Crying” may be the most underrated Aerosmith ballad ever released.
Two more Texxas Jam tracks occupy the middle of disc two: “I Wanna Know Why” and “Big Ten Inch Record”. These jams are a blast, but why not bunch all the Texxas tracks together? Next, “Rats in the Cellar” from Rocks has the same energy as “Toys in the Attic” but with a nastier bite. “Last Child” is a remix, a slight one at that. The bass sounds deeper. An unreleased Otis Rush cover follows called “All Your Love”. This electric blues is fully formed with a satisfying mix and could easily have made an album. Why didn’t it make Draw the Line? That album already had a cover, “Milk Cow Blues” (included here on disc 3) so it is unlikely they wanted two. Did they choose the right song?
The aforementioned “Nobody’s Fault” is preceded with a snippet of the demo, called “Soul Saver”. It truly is a monster of a track and one of the band’s few true heavy metal songs. Nuclear holocaust is a perfect theme for metal, but Tyler’s lyrics are more thoughtful than many of his competitors. His tormented vocal is one of his career best. “Sorry, you’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 they say it’s nobody’s fault.”
“Lick and a Promise” is a necessary speedy shot in the arm. Though “Adam’s Apple” is replaced by a live version from 1977, it is the sonic blueprint for a million bands that tried to copy Tyler’s sleazy antics. Two Draw the Line tracks close the CD: the title track itself (remixed), and “Critical Mass” . Again the remix is slight.
Disc 3
The final CD is the decline, but not without plenty of high points. (“High” points, get it?) The first high point is a 1978 live version of “Kings and Queens”. “Good evenin’ boss. Been a long time coming,” greets Tyler to the hometown Boston crowd. Live versions don’t usually surpass their studio counterparts, but this one might for its seasoned, raw vibe.” Joe Perry’s backing vocals make it.
The previously mentioned “Milk Cow Blues” from Draw the Line is an upbeat shuffle, getting the blood pumping once more. A snippet of a demo called “I Live in Connecticut” leads directly into “Three Mile Smile” from Night in the Ruts. It allows you to hear how a tune evolves from an idea into a complete song. You get to hear that again on “Let it Slide” and “Cheese Cake”. If you love when Joe Perry pulls out his slide guitar, then you will love this pairing. We’re well into the Aerosmith stuff that doesn’t get enough credit when it’s good. “Bone To Bone (Coney Island White Fish Boy)” is another unsung gem…and the liner notes will tell you exactly what a “Coney Island white fish” is. The autobiographical “No Surprize” is pretty fine too.
The Beatles cover “Come Together” was one of the very few worthwhile tracks on the awful movie soundtrack Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band. Fortunately for Aerosmith fans, it has long been available on their 1980 Greatest Hits. And it’s not the last Beatles cover on this box set. But it’s the last real hit before the disc takes a serious detour.
“Downtown Charlie” is really ragged; punk rock energy with nobody at home in quality control. It sounds like one of their “drunken jams” according to Joe Perry in the liner notes. Wicked playing but no cohesion. And then they split — Brad Whitford with Whitford/St. Holmes, and Joe Perry with the Joe Perry Project. Even this is documented. “Sharpshooter” by Whitford/St. Holmes is a box set highlight, even though it sticks out like a sore thumb by sounding nothing like Aerosmith at all. This is straight hard rock, with Derek St. Holmes on lead vocals. Though an astounding vocalist, he is the Antityler and the song does not fit in any way on the tracklist. Too bad since it’s such a great track. More at home is Joe Perry’s “South Station Blues” from I’ve Got the Rock N’ Rolls Again. It’s preceded by an Aerosmith demo called “Shit House Shuffle”. Aerosmith didn’t use the riff, so Joe did on his solo album. It totally works with his lead vocal, though it’s a shame Aerosmith never used the idea themselves. Another wasted jam, “Riff and Roll”, had potential as the kernal of a song, but Tyler’s voice is completely shot. You can hear what they were going for. It could have worked on Done With Mirrors had they finished it.
Aerosmith carried on in 1982 with Jimmy Crespo and Rick Dufay replacing Perry and Whitford. The resulting album Rock In a Hard Place was inconsistent but not without some gems. “Jailbait” doesn’t indicate anything was out of place, a worthy followup to frantic manic blasts like “Rats in the Cellar”. But they only lasted one album before cooler heads prevailed and the classic lineup reunited.
With Perry and Whitford back again, Aerosmith began recording new albums for Geffen. Columbia still released Aerosmith albums regularly, like Classics Live and Classics Live II. A previously unreleased oldie from the Get Your Wings days called “Major Barbra” was included as a bonus on Classics Live. Pandora’s Box includes a second version of “Major Barbra”, a rougher alternate take. It’s a full minute longer than the version of Classics Live, including harmonica solo. Another track Columbia released was the classic “Chip Away the Stone” (written by Richie Supa), on 1988’s Gems. This obscure single never had a proper album release until then, despite its awesome nature. The Pandora’s Box version is an alternate version, with noticeably less piano in the mix.
The penultimate track is the unreleased Beatles cover “Helter Skelter”, dating back to 1975. This one got a bit of airplay in 1991 when the box set was released. It is undoubtedly rough but with suitably aggressive and heavy hitting groove. The box set is then closed by “Back in the Saddle”, an apt way to describe Aerosmith’s career since.
But wait, what’s this? “There now, ain’t you glad you stayed?” asks Steven Tyler after a few seconds of silence. Why, it’s the hidden bonus track! The unlisted instrumental was written by Brad Whitford and actually titled “Circle Jerk”. It is very similar to the previous “Krawhitham” instrumental on disc two, but heavier.
Now, what about that remixed “Sweet Emotion” that was released to promote the box set, but wasn’t actually on the box set? The remix was done by David Thoener and featured some structural changes. The music video was a smash hit. You could buy it as a standalone single, with “Circle Jerk” and another unreleased instrumental bonus track called “Subway”. All three were re-released again as bonus tracks in 1994 on the massive Box of Fire. The Thoener remix has been issued many times over the years on compilations and movie soundtracks.
There’s little doubt that Pandora’s Box was good value for the money. For the fans who didn’t have the albums, most of the hits are included in studio versions. The remixes are minor enough for them not to notice. For the rest, the wealth of unreleased bonus material justified buying three CDs. Unlike other box sets like Led Zeppelin’s four disc airship, Pandora’s Box is not designed to be an ecstatic listening experience from start to finish. It is a study in early Aerosmith from the roots to just before the reunion. It is the rise and fall, and still fighting to get back up. It is uneven with mountainous peaks of spontaneous rock and roll chemistry, and also the tired struggle to keep producing music. Much like its subject, Aerosmith, Pandora’s Box is a flawed portrait.
HOLLYWOOD VAMPIRES – Rise (2019 Edel Japanese edition) – Discs 2 & 3 Live
How do you do a Japanese edition up right? How about including 21 bonus tracks in the form of a double live album? Get your credit cards out, folks.
Hollywood Vampires Live unfortunately lacks any English documentation, but Japanese readers might know when and where this show was recorded. It focuses on the covers with a handful of originals, the basis of the first Hollywood Vampires album. Unfortunately a few more fallen heroes have been added to the list of rock casualties, and so Lemmy and Bowie are among the stars honoured.
The original tune “Raise the Dead” (featuring an intro by the late Sir Christopher Lee) opens the show, but it’s just preamble for the better known covers. “I Got A Line On You” is the first track where you realize you’re listening to Matt Sorum (Guns N’ Roses, The Cult) on drums. He’s unmistakable. The big surprise is that the bassist is Robert DeLeo (Stone Temple Pilots)! Alice first covered this tune back in ’88 and it sounds like it’s one of his own songs now. “20th Century Boy” has bite, a little more than the studio cut.
Alice pauses to explain the concept of the band. “We are the Hollywood Vampires,” he asserts. “We pay homage to all of our dead drunk friends. And here comes one now.” It’s Keith Moon and “Pinball Wizard”, a Who cover that was not on the Hollywood Vampires’ debut album. “My Generation” was however, and here it’s injected with the live fire of the sweaty concert stage. Jimi Hendrix is honoured next with “Manic Depression”. Joe Perry playing Jimi Hendrix. Cool. Alice Cooper has no problem jumping from style to style, expert performer that he is.
“This one’s for John,” states Alice. That would be John Lennon, with both “Cold Turkey” and “Come Together”. Joe Perry, of course, is no stranger to “Come Together” which Aerosmith scored a hit with themselves. “Come Together” is another nice bonus because it wasn’t on the Vampires album. It has a different feel from Aerosmith’s take even though it’s the same guitar player.
“Seven and Seven Is” (by Arthur Lee and Love) goes next, which is a late addition to the canon. The Vampires recorded it as an iTunes bonus track for the debut album where it remains an exclusive. The live version is a blitz; Matt Sorum’s sticks must have caught fire. Contrasting that is the band’s interpretation of “Whole Lotta Love”, with Alice and Tommy Henriksen singing lead instead of Brian Johnson.
“I met these guys in 1968. They were my best friends. And I drank a little bit with Jim Morrison…” The Doors are next to be saluted. “Five to One” and “Break On Through” kick ass; Alice really gives ‘er. David Bowie gets the nod on “Rebel Rebel” and “Suffragette City”. It all sounds natural to the Hollywood Vampires.
“As Bad As I Am” is an original song about Johnny Depp, and another track that was only on the iTunes version of Hollywood Vampires. It sounds a bit like “Reckless Life” by Guns N’ Roses. Joe Perry takes the next lead vocal on “Stop Messin’ Around”, the old Peter Green’s Fleetwood Mac blues number. It’s an obvious choice since Aerosmith covered it on their 2004 blues album Honkin’ on Bobo. This one is an extended jam, far beyond what Aerosmith did with it.
“My Dead Drunk Friends” is a Vampires original, sort of their raison d’etre, that being paying tribute to Alice’s deceased drinking buddies. It pales in comparison to “Ace of Spades” (lead vocals by Henriksen), easily the heaviest song that Joe Perry’s ever played on. Possibly Alice too. Check out DeLeo on bass, doing his best Lemmy. It’s sad that Lemmy Kilmister joined the list of Rainbow regulars who didn’t make it, but holy shit, what a version!
Only now, at the end of the concert, do the Vampires roll out their own past hits. “I’m Eighteen”, “Sweet Emotion”, “Train Kept A Rollin'” and “School’s Out” sound brilliant. In particular, to hear “I’m Eighteen” with Joe Fucking Perry playing guitar? “Sweet Emotion” with Alice Cooper singing? Sweet Jesus Murphy, is this a fever dream? As usual, Alice melds “Another Brick in the Wall” to “School’s Out” pretty much making it the definitive “school” song.
Closing the show, Alice reminds us: “And remember, give blood! To us!”
If the Vampires keep putting out quality releases, then that’s a distinct possibility.
HOLLYWOOD VAMPIRES – Rise (2019 Edel Japanese edition) – Disc 1
The first Hollywood Vampires was a covers album with a few originals. The second is an originals album with a few covers! It’s a little strange and kind of sounds exactly how you think it would. Alice Cooper, Joe Perry, Johnny Depp and pals obviously set out to have fun, which is audible, but there’s also a weird bent that runs through. Interestingly some of the best songs are the ones that sound like Aerosmith riffs, done up far better than Aerosmith would have lately.
At the outset, the Aerosmith flavour dominates the stew that is “I Want My Now”. It’s “Draw The Line” meets Alice Cooper. You can hear what it would have been like with Joey Kramer on drums, Tom Hamilton on bass and Steven Tyler shrieking up front, but instead it’s Alice, who has had a much more consistent output of late than Aerosmith. In other words, Perry’s riffs are in good hands and the guy deserves to have a lil’ fun. His guitar work has the looseness that Aerosmith shed years ago.
“Who’s Laughing Now” is psychedelic Alice, which could be the Depp influence. It’s a really good tune accented by 8-string bass (by Tommy Henriksen) and Joe Perry’s unmistakable guitar expertise. It’s also bookended by two weird instrumentals that appear to be Depp creations. Unfortunately all this lead-up ends at the slow and stodgy “The Boogieman Surprise”, probably the weakest tune. This starts a lull. A farcicle “Welcome to Bushwackers”, featuring Jeff Beck, is a token hillbilly country tune that doesn’t live up to its promise. The highlight, obviously, is Jeff Beck.
Course is corrected on Joe Perry’s lead vocal, a surprising “You Can’t Put Your Arm Around A Memory”, the Johnny Thunders song previously covered by Duff McKagan. Joe’s version is poignant and wise. “Git From Round Me” is a pulsing, hypnotic charge through the gates with Johnny Depp sharing vocal duties with Alice and Tommy. Depp takes one by himself on the Bowie cover “Heroes”, a surprisingly outstanding version. According to Cooper, Johnny Depp (who is currently fighting an acrimonious divorce battle with two-way accusations of domestic violence) had a lot of emotion to put into Rise. Perhaps that’s what gives “Heroes” its weight, though it’s not a heavy song.
The best of the brief instrumentals is by second bassist Chris Wyse, called “A Pityful Beauty”. The song it precedes, “New Threat”, is OK. It is not up to the better material, sounding a bit like a stock riff & rhythm. Fortunately “Mr. Spider” has a classic Cooper atmosphere, brimming with drama and horror. Also sounding like classic Alice, but a different kind, is “We Gotta Rise”. It’s “Elected” all over again with a Billion Dollar Babies mold, starring “President” Alice Cooper. Alice isn’t political, but it’s hard to read these lyrics as anything but:
“We gotta rise, let’s rise, We gotta rise, let’s rise above the lies, It’s you and I, it’s do or die, We gotta rise, let’s rise above the lies.”
Maybe that’s reading too much into it, but it sure does sound like a call to arms. Regardless, “We Gotta Rise” is the best original song on the album. Depp’s next lead vocal, the Jim Carroll cover “People Who Died” is just about its equal. A rockabilly punk rocker, “People Who Died” is catchy as the flu, but better for you.
Rise concludes with an interesting spoken word track called “Congratulations”. It works because Alice, Johnny and Joe have rich speaking voices. Tommy Henriksen gets a spoken word portion too, using his more like a beat poet. What you’d think would be a boring slog turns out to be an album highlight.
It’s hard to fathom where Rise will sit in six months time or a year. It has moments less than stellar, where fat could have been cut, but the weirder escapades could warrant many returns. Bad press aside, Johnny Depp is charismatic on record. Joe Perry sounds like he’s having fun playing rock and roll away from Aerosmith. And Alice? When has he ever sounded like he wasn’t having fun?
Rise will probably have more longevity than the Hollywood Vampires’ covers album, it just needs to lose some dead weight.
3.5/5 stars
Come back tomorrow for a look at the Japanese exclusive Discs 2 and 3: Hollywood Vampires Live.
AEROSMITH – Unplugged 1990 (2017 Zap City broadcast CD)
When Aerosmith’s MTV Unplugged aired in Canada, we didn’t get the whole show. We only got about half. Now thanks to easily acquired broadcast CDs, you can get all 14 tracks in one handy place. Because MTV were rigid about things being 100% live, you’ll get none of the annoying backing tracks that Aerosmith use today. That makes Aerosmith Unplugged a strong contender for the best live Aerosmith purchase since Classics Live II.
“Hangman Jury” is a natural for an opener, and actually superior to the Permanent Vacation album cut. “Monkey On My Back” is more surprising, being a heavier groove from Pump. Deconstructed as an acoustic jam, it lays it down hard. The first surprise of the night comes from the Air America soundtrack, to which Aerosmith contributed their Doors cover “Love Me Two Times”. Frankly the unplugged version is better. Tyler gets to honk on the harmonica and tear it up on the vocals a bit.
The first step back into Aerosmith’s past is 1974’s “Seasons of Wither”. When this set was recorded in 1990, only people who owned Get Your Wings would really have known this song. The purity of the unplugged stage is the ideal setting. Then it’s onto 1975 and “Big Ten Inch Record”, the old R&B classic they covered on Toys in the Attic. The album version with full horns is rearranged into an acoustic shuffle with individual guitar solos by Brad Whitford and Joe Perry. That’s all before Thom Gimbel shows up with his sax! This version kills.
Going even further back in time, Aerosmith pull “One Way Street” from the first album featuring a cool Perry solo. For serious fans, “Smokestack Lightning” is a treat because Aerosmith have never recorded it before. The oft-imitated Howlin’ Wolf cover is a natural jam for them. They they unload the heavy artillery exactly halfway into the set: “Dream On”. Arguably the song everybody was waiting to hear; easily a highlight. Playing with minimal instrumentation is a wise way to do it, though it picks up steam at the end.
“Milk Cow Blues” is rolled out next, a rarely played number from Draw the Line. Full steam ahead just like the album version, you don’t wanna be standing on the tracks when this one rolls by. Then, as if you’re daring them to try one that fast again, it’s “Toys in the Attic”. Tyler and Perry’s voices blend naturally together in the unforgiving unplugged environment.
Returning once more to the first album, “Walkin’ the Dog” is the fifth of six cover tunes and the first encore. It’s particularly cool because you get Tyler playing flute. “Train Kept-a Rollin'” from Get Your Wings is the final cover, though presented twice: “fast” and “slow” versions. For a solid thrills-per-second ratio, you gotta go for the fast take. Finally “Last Child” is announced to the excitement of one really hyped guy in the crowd. The funky classic works surprisingly well. A highlight from a show of nothing but highlights.
The CD had a few sonic clicks and quirks that may vary player to player. That would be its only flaw. Anyone buying broadcast CDs should be prepared for less than perfect audio.
I didn’t have any childhood friends who were into Aerosmith. I had to get into them on my own.
Well, that might not be entirely true. Next door neighbour George may have been into them, but the rest of us ignored Aerosmith because they were “the band with the singer with the weird lips”. They weren’t “metal” enough to be in my wheelhouse at that young age. There wasn’t much Aerosmith being played on MuchMusic in the early 80s. Maybe “Lightning Strikes”, but that was about it. The music video with the greasers didn’t appeal to us metal kids. The Joe Perry Project didn’t do it for us either. The video with the pink saxophone? (“Black Velvet Pants”.) Not metal enough! We were strict metal heads as kids, and pink saxophones were not metal.
What was it that finally caught my Aero-attention? Joe Perry’s plexiglas guitar.
This all seems silly from an adult perspective, but we were just kids. We loved metal, not just for the music but also that all-important image. Videos were so important to us. A band not only had to sound cool, but they had to look it. Aerosmith didn’t look cool to us, with the tights and the lips. That changed in early ’86.
Ironically enough the video was called “Let the Music Do the Talking”. It was and is a killer song. I didn’t know, or care about its history as a song by the Joe Perry Project. What caught my eye was that guitar. A transparent guitar? I’d never seen anything like that before. My best friend Bob and I were obsessed with unusual guitars.
“I have to tape this and show it to Bob,” I said.
The video itself was pretty cool. A group of bootleggers snuck a camera into a concert to make their own video. It was a glimpse at an adult activity we’d yet to experience: the live concert. “Let the Music Do the Talking” made concerts look just as cool as we imagined they would be. There was even a twist ending. And like that, Aerosmith began to chip away the walls around me. Once they got me to pay attention, I was loving the song! Sure it wasn’t “metal”, but it was fast and rocked hard. The singer may have looked kind of weird, but the guitar player was cool as hell! I’d never seen anyone use a slide before. Watching Joe Perry hammering away at that clear guitar gave me a million new air guitar moves.
What came next was “Walk This Way” with Run DMC, Permanent Vacation and mainstream recognition. Before long everybody was into Aerosmith (again). “Angel” came out when I was really into ballads, and it was a fantastic ballad. On a kid’s allowance, I wasn’t able to get the album for many years, but Aerosmith were still on my radar.
Only a year after Permanent Vacation came the song that I grew to love the most. What came out a year after Permanent Vacation, you may be asking?
Many people didn’t catch the 1988 release of Gems. It was on their former record label Columbia and didn’t get a lot of notice. What Gems had wasn’t a new song, just an obscure one dusted off: “Chip Away the Stone”.
Written by Richie Supa, “Chip Away the Stone” is one of a few hit songs the guitarist gave to Aerosmith. Others like “Amazing” might be more well-know, but “Chip Away” is special. When the music video hit in late ’88, Supa was featured in it via archival footage (look for the guy with the moustache). If anyone knew “Chip Away” in ’88 prior to Gems, it would have been through their album Live! Bootleg. The studio version was only available on a rare single! If you were a kid living in Kitchener in the late 80s, good luck finding it, or even knowing it existed. For us, and the majority of fans, “Chip Away the Stone” was a brand new song.
I was getting into piano in rock songs around this time too. “Chip Away the Stone” had just a hint of boogie-woogie and it hit the right chords for me. Even though I was expanding my musical horizons slowly but surely, the music video still had a huge impact. Considering it was made up of old live footage, it was surprisingly well edited, fresh and cutting-edge. The shots of the piano were spliced to look like somebody was playing on one super-long piano keyboard. I assumed it was Richie Supa playing piano: the credits are unclear. Either way, that video got me deeper into Aerosmith. Way deeper.
Today my two favourite songs are “Chip Away the Stone” and “Let the Music Do the Talking”. I have plenty of others — “Seasons of Whither”, “F.I.N.E.”, “Draw the Line” — but those first two just stick with me. Part of that is nostalgia, but the other is that they are just great fucking songs.
This revisit is due to your Heavy Metal Overlord, who told me that Permanent Vacation is his favourite go-to album for reunited Aerosmith. Due to the tremendous respect (and fear) I have for HMO, I decided that I needed to give it another listen.
My conclusion after hearing it again is that I had it dead wrong in my album review. Yes, there are a couple filler songs. “St. John” and “Girl Keeps Coming Apart” still don’t resonate with me. But, man, there are some bangers on Permanent Vacation. I didn’t remember how awesome “Heart’s Done Time” really is. I forgot about the cool Beatles cover “I’m Down”. I didn’t give due credit to the terrific title track. But most important of all is “Magic Touch”. Is Joe Perry playing a whammy bar in the beginning? What a song. Could it be the best song on the album? It certainly has a chorus that goes on for miles.
Permanent Vacation, as an album, might be overshadowed by its own singles “Dude”, “Angel” and “Rag Doll”. But I’ll be damned if “Angel” doesn’t still make the hair on my arms stand up to this day.
I’ve been unfair to Permanent Vacation. It’s far better than I thought it was.
AEROSMITH – “F.I.N.E.” (AOR Mix) (1989 Geffen Promo PRO-CD-3806)
mikeladano.com 