Aerosmith

Aerosmith
Aerosmith
	Aerosmith
Background information
Years active	1973–present
Members	Steven Tyler; Joe Perry; Tom Hamilton; Brad Whitford; Joey Kramer

For other uses, see Arrowsmith.

Aerosmith is a long-running classic rock band, originally forming in Boston, Massachusetts in the early 1970s. It enjoyed major popularity in the mid-1970s, but fell into decline and into temporary disunion. Nevertheless they would go on to enjoy a later resurgence in popularity starting in the late 1980s and continuing, at various levels, through the early to mid 2000s.

History

1969

Steven Tyler, the lead vocalist for Aerosmith, was in, amongst others, a band called Chain Reaction (Not to be confused with Chain Reaction that formed in 1976 with future members of The Red Hot Chili Peppers), who recorded a single in 1966 (partly available on Aerosmith's 1991 box release Pandora's Box). He met Joe Perry, who was at the time playing in a band with bassist Tom Hamilton, while Perry was selling ice-cream in 1969, which eventually led to the formation of Aerosmith.

1970s

The original lineup included Steven Tyler (lead vocals), Joe Perry (guitar) and Tom Hamilton (bass guitar), soon adding Ray Tabano as a second guitarist, then replacing him with Brad Whitford (formerly of Earth Inc.). Tyler, who was originally a drummer and singer, became a full-time vocalist when drummer Joey Kramer joined. After some local success doing live shows, Aerosmith signed with Columbia Records in 1972 and issued a debut album, Aerosmith that included a minor hit single, "Dream On". After constant touring, the band released Get Your Wings (1974), which did quite well on the charts.

It was 1975's Toys in the Attic that established Aerosmith as international stars. Originally derided as Rolling Stones knockoffs, Toys in the Attic showed that Aerosmith was a talented band in their own right. Part heavy metal, part glam rock, and part punk music, Toys in the Attic was an immediate success, starting with the single "Sweet Emotion", then a successful re-release of "Dream On", and a new song from the album, "Walk This Way". Both of the band's previous albums re-charted. Aerosmith's next album, Rocks, went platinum swiftly and featured two FM hits, "Back in the Saddle" and "Last Child".

The next album, Draw the Line, was not as successful, though the title track proved to be a minor hit (and is still a live staple). While continuing to tour and record into the late 1970s, Aerosmith acted in the movie version of Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, covering the Beatles hit "Come Together." As their popularity waned and drug abuse began affecting their output, Joe Perry left the band during the recording of their sixth studio album Night in the Ruts in 1979 and formed The Joe Perry Project. Perry was replaced first by longtime band friend and songwriter Richie Supa and then by guitarist Jimmy Crespo (formerly of the band Flame) who recorded the remainder of the album.

1980s

File:Aerosmith - Pump.jpg

Pump (1989)

Aerosmith released its mammoth-selling Greatest Hits album in 1980 and in 1981 the band suffered another loss with the departure of Brad Whitford. Whitford was replaced by Rick Dufay and the band recorded their seventh album Rock in a Hard Place. The album was considered a relative failure.

On Valentine's Day 1984, Perry and Whitford saw Aerosmith play. They were officially re-inducted into the ranks of Aerosmith once more in April of that year. Steven Tyler recalls, "You should have felt the buzz the moment all five of us got together in the same room for the first time again. We all started laughin'—it was like the five years had never passed. We knew we'd made the right move."

Aerosmith embarked on a lucrative reunion tour entitled "Back in the Saddle", which produced the live album Classics Live II. Their problems still not behind them (Tyler collapsed onstage due to drug problems early in the tour), the group was signed to Geffen Records and began working on a comeback.

1985 saw the release of Done with Mirrors, their first studio album since the much-publicized reunion. It fared relatively well commercially, but it did not produce a hit single or generate much buzz. By the time the record was released, Tyler and Perry had exited drug rehabilitation. The group appeared on Run D.M.C.'s massively successful cover of "Walk This Way", blending rock and roll and hip hop and beginning Aerosmith's comeback. The group's next release was Permanent Vacation (1987), which included the hits "Dude (Looks Like a Lady)", "Rag Doll", and "Angel". Their next album was received even better; Pump featured four Top Ten singles: "Janie's Got a Gun", "What It Takes", "Love in an Elevator", and "The Other Side", reestablishing Aerosmith as a serious musical force again. This new album was recorded under the inspiration of new born Matt Irving.

1990s

File:Get a Grip album cover.jpg

Get a Grip (1993)

Despite significant shifts in mainstream music at the beginning of the 1990s, the band's 1993 follow-up to Pump, Get a Grip, was just as successful commercially. Though many critics were unimpressed by the focus on power-ballads in promoting the album, all three ("Cryin", "Crazy" and "Amazing") proved to be huge successes on radio and MTV. The music videos featured then up-and-coming actress Alicia Silverstone; her provocative performances earned her the title of "the Aerosmith chick" for the first half of the decade. Steven Tyler's daughter Liv Tyler was also featured in the "Crazy" video.

Aerosmith signed to Columbia Records again in the early 1990s, but they had to complete two contractual albums for Geffen before recording for the new label. The next album, Nine Lives, was plagued with personnel problems, including the firing of manager Tim Collins. Reviews were generally mixed, and Nine Lives initially fell down the charts quickly, though it had a long chart life and sold double platinum in the US alone. It was followed by a series of late '90s releases (live and retrospective) that sold respectably but began a second decline in popularity and critical respect. Yet Aerosmith's biggest hit of the '90s, and its only #1 single to date, was the love theme from the film Armageddon, "I Don't Want to Miss a Thing" (conceived by Joe Perry and Diane Warren, though Warren alone received songwriting credit). (Perhaps coincidentally, Steven Tyler's daughter Liv was featured in the movie.)

In 1999, they were featured in the Disney-MGM Studios (and later in a Disney Studios Paris version in 2001) ride, Rock 'n' Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith, providing the soundtrack and theme of the ride, which is based on their recording session and following concert.

2000s

File:Aerosmith.jpg

Aerosmith performs on the National Mall in Washington, DC, September 4, 2003

The band entered its next decade with Just Push Play in 2001, which charted well. They were inducted to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in the same year.

Their long-promised blues album, Honkin' on Bobo was released in 2004. Honkin' on Bobo continues to be a success for the resurgence of blues and roots music across the US and Europe. The album was followed by a live DVD, You Gotta Move in December 2004. The band also lent its seminal "Dream On" to an advertising campaign for Buick in 2004, targeting that marque's audience which is now composed largely of people who were teenagers when the song first charted.

In 2005, guitarist Joe Perry released his eponymous solo album. Many claim that it is in many ways truer to the Aerosmith of the '70s than any of their recent output, mostly because no song doctors were used. In October 2005, Aerosmith released a CD/DVD named "Rockin' the Joint." The band hit the road for the Rockin' The Joint tour on October 30th, expecting to be on the road until some time around Spring 2006, at which time, reports currently say, they will start to focus on working on a new album.

Current Line-Up

Steven Tyler - vocals (1973-present)
Joe Perry - guitar/vocals (1973-present)
Brad Whitford - guitar (1973-present)
Tom Hamilton - bass (1973-present)
Joey Kramer - drums and percussion (1973-present)

Former members

Jimmy Crespo - guitar (1979-1984)
Rick Dufay - guitar (1980-1984)

Discography

Studio albums

Aerosmith (1973) #21 US, US Sales: 2,000,000
Get Your Wings (1974) #74 US, US Sales: 3,000,000
Toys in the Attic (1975) #11 US, US Sales: 8,000,000
Rocks (1976) #3 US, US Sales: 4,000,000
Draw the Line (1977) #11 US, US Sales: 2,000,000
Night in the Ruts (1979) #14 US, US Sales: 1,000,000
Rock in a Hard Place (1982) #32 US, US Sales: 500,000
Done with Mirrors (1985) #36 US, US Sales: 500,000
Permanent Vacation (1987) #11 US, #37 UK, US Sales: 5,000,000
Pump (1989) #5 US, #3 UK, US Sales: 7,000,000
Get a Grip (1993) #1 US, #2 UK, US Sales: 7,000,000
Nine Lives (1997) #1 US, #4 UK, US Sales: 2,000,000
Just Push Play (2001) #2 US, #7 UK, US Sales: 1,000,000
Honkin' on Bobo (2004) #5 US, #28 UK, US Sales: 700,000

Live albums

Live Bootleg (1978) #13 US, US Sales: 1,000,000
Classics Live! (Purple cover) (1986) #84 US, US Sales: 1,000,000
Classics Live! Vol. 2 (Red cover) (1987), US Sales: 500,000
A Little South of Sanity (1998) #12 US, #36 UK, US Sales: 1,000,000
Rockin' the Joint (2005) #24 US, US Sales : 1,000,000

Compilations

Greatest Hits (1980) #53 US, US Sales: 10,000,000
Gems (1988) #133 US, US Sales: 500,000
Pandora's Box (1991) #45 US, US Sales: 1,000,000
Box of Fire (1994), US Sales: 500,000
Big Ones (1994) #6 US, #7 UK, US Sales: 4,000,000
Young Lust: The Aerosmith Anthology (2001) #191 US, #32 UK, US Sales: 500,000
O, Yeah! The Ultimate Aerosmith Hits (2002) #4 US, #6 UK, US Sales: 1,000,000
Chronicles (2005)
Their Hits 1972-1997

Hit singles

from Toys in the Attic
- 1975 "Sweet Emotion" #36 US
- 1977 "Walk This Way" #10 US, #8 UK (1986 release, with Run-D.M.C.)
from Aerosmith
- 1976 "Dream On" #6 US
- 1977 "Mama Kin"
from Rocks
- 1976 "Last Child" #21 US
- 1977 "Back in the Saddle" #38 US
from Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band soundtrack
- 1978 "Come Together" #23 US
from Draw the Line
- "Draw the Line" #42 US
- "King and Queens" #70 US
from Permanent Vacation
- 1987 "Dude (Looks Like a Lady)" #14 US
- 1988 "Angel" #3 US
- 1988 "Rag Doll" #17 US
- 1990 "Dude (Looks Like a Lady)" #20 UK
from Pump
- 1989 "Love in an Elevator" #5 US, #13 UK
- 1989 "Water Song/Janie's Got a Gun" #4 US
- 1990 "What It Takes" #9 US, #10 UK
- 1990 "The Other Side" #22 US
from Get a Grip
- 1993 "Livin' on the Edge" #18 US, #19 UK
- 1993 "Eat the Rich" #34 UK
- 1993 "Cryin'" #12 US, #17 UK
- 1993 "Amazing" #24 US
- 1994 "Shut Up and Dance" #24 UK
- 1994 "Crazy" #17 US, #23 UK (double A-side with Blind Man in the UK)
from Nine Lives
- 1997 "Falling in Love (Is Hard on the Knees)" #35 US, #22 UK
- 1997 "Hole in My Soul" #51 US, #29 UK
- 1997 "Pink" #27 US (1998 release), #38 UK
from Armageddon soundtrack
- 1998 "I Don't Want to Miss a Thing" #1 US, #4 UK
from Nine Lives
- 1999 "Pink" (re-issue) #13 UK
from Just Push Play
- 2001 "Jaded" #7 US, #13 UK
- 2001 "Just Push Play"

Aerosmith and Arrowsmith

Sinclair Lewis (1885–1951) wrote Arrowsmith. Aerosmith claims that their name has no relationship to this book. According to the band's biography Walk this Way, drummer Joey Kramer came up with the name in high school when coming up with cool band names. He liked "aero" names because of Harry Nilson's album Aeriel Ballet

Miscellaneous

Aerosmith songs are featured on the Rock 'n Roller Coaster in Disney-MGM Studios located in Lake Buena Vista, Florida.
They are also featured on the Rock 'n Roller Coaster in Walt Disney Studios Paris located in Marne-la-Vallée, France.
The band was featured prominently in the movie Wayne's World 2.
The band has starred or appeared in numerous video games, such as Revolution X and Quest for Fame.
The single "Nine Lives" is the main theme for Dead or Alive 3.
The single "Dream On" is also the main theme for Dead or Alive Ultimate.
In 1994, Aerosmith released the single "Head First" for download on the internet. It is considered the first full-length commercial entertainment product online.

File:Shadowman 19-00.jpg

Shadowman by Valiant comics

In 2001, Aerosmith played the 35th Super Bowl halftime show with N'Sync, Britney Spears, Mary J. Blige, and Nelly.
The hit "Dream On" provides the background and chorus for Eminem's 2003 hit song "Sing for the Moment".
Lead singer Steve Tyler and lead guitarist Joe Perry were known as "The Toxic Twins" due to their notorious abuse of drugs on and off the stage.
The famous scarves tied to the mikestand of Steven Tyler were used to hide Quaaludes and Tuinals for Steven's use throughout their concerts in the 1970's.
Aerosmith provided the theme music for the Spider Man cartoon series. When Peter Parker first dons on the symbiote costume, his first costume change is to be "the lead singer of Aerosmith".
Aerosmith's song "Living on the Edge" was parodied by Weird Al Yankovic as "Living in the fridge".
Aerosmith guest starred in the animated series The Simpsons in the episode called Flaming Moe's.
Aerosmith appeared on MTV Unplugged on November 8 1990 at The Ed Sullivan Theater - NYC which aired on MTV on September 20 1990
Aerosmith was featured in the Shadowman series (vol.1 no.19). In the story, Master Darque creates a voodoo doll of Steven Tyler. Jack Boniface (Shadowman) trades Tyler's soul for an unnamed favor.