Rocks (Aerosmith album)

Rocks
Studio album by Aerosmith
Released May 3, 1976 (1976-05-03)
Recorded February–March 1976
Studio Wherehouse, Waltham, Massachussets with the Record Plant Mobile and The Record Plant, New York City
Genre Hard rock[1]
Length 34:31
Label Columbia
Producer Jack Douglas and Aerosmith
Aerosmith chronology
Toys in the Attic
(1975)Toys in the Attic1975		 Rocks
(1976)		 Draw the Line
(1977)Draw the Line1977
Singles from Rocks
  1. "Last Child"
    Released: May 27, 1976[2]
  2. "Home Tonight"
    Released: 1976
  3. "Back in the Saddle"
    Released: March 22, 1977[2]

Rocks is the fourth studio album by American rock band Aerosmith, released May 3, 1976. AllMusic described Rocks as having "captured Aerosmith at their most raw and rocking." Rocks was ranked No. 176 on Rolling Stone's list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. It has greatly influenced many hard rock and heavy metal artists, including Guns N' Roses, Metallica, and Nirvana. The album was a commercial success, charting three singles on the Billboard Hot 100, two of which reached the Top 40 ("Back in the Saddle" and "Last Child"). The album was one of the first to ship platinum when it was released, and has since gone quadruple platinum.[3]

Background

Previously, Aerosmith had recorded three albums: Aerosmith (1973), Get Your Wings (1974), and the breakthrough LP Toys in the Attic (1975), which produced Top Ten hit "Walk This Way" and the popular "Sweet Emotion." Although often derided by critics, the band had amassed a loyal fanbase, following from relentless touring and their ferocious live shows. They also began living the rock-and-roll lifestyle to the hilt, indulging their already considerable appetite for drugs. However, their hedonistic lifestyle did not appear to hamper them creatively; Rocks was considered by many fans, critics, and fellow musicians to be one of the highlights of their career. Guitarist Joe Perry later recalled, "There's no doubt we were doing a lot of drugs by then, but whatever we were doing, it was still working for us."[4]

Recording and composition

In the 1997 band memoir Walk This Way, guitarist Brad Whitford states that the band began work on the album by backing the Record Plant's mobile recording truck into their rehearsal space, named the Wherehouse, and "let fly...We were living the high life and not paying attention to anything except making this record. I had the beginnings of 'Last Child' and 'Nobody's Fault.' Tom [Hamilton, bassist] had 'Uncle Tom's Cabin' that became 'Sick as a Dog.' We had 'Tit for Tat'...which turned into 'Rats in the Cellar.' We cut all the basic tracks except two there."[5] Producer Jack Douglas later insisted:

Rocks was the album where Tom and Brad had a lot more input and songs...This was a big album for Aerosmith. It had to make a big statement about how loud and hard they were, how unapologetic they felt about being who they were - this brash, rude, sexual, hard-core rock band.[6]

The album's opening track, "Back in the Saddle", recalls the Gene Autry song "Back in the Saddle Again" (vocalist Steven Tyler yodels on the fade) and features the sound of a whip by whirling a thirty-foot cord in the middle of six Neumann mikes and adding a cap gun for the cracking sound effect. A real bullwhip was intended to be used for the whip effects and hours were spent trying to get it to crack. The band members ended up cut up and hurt without making any progress. The song is also notable for the slow buildup of the drum beat and guitar riff in the beginning of the song, as well as the sound effects of a galloping horse.[7] In 1997, Perry explained to Alan di Perna of Guitar World that he was inspired by Peter Green to write the riff on a Fender Bass VI and admitted that he was "very high on heroin when I wrote 'Back in the Saddle.' That riff just floated right through me."[8] Brad Whitford plays the lead guitar part. "Back in the Saddle" also features one of the heaviest and noticeable bass lines by Tom Hamilton. When the song is performed in concert, Steven Tyler often makes more noticeable lyrical and visible references to sex. Although the lyrics, composed by Tyler, were written with the simple idea of cowboys and sex, this song took on new meaning after Aerosmith reunited in 1984 and embarked on their Back in the Saddle tour. Today, the song remains a staple on classic rock radio and in concert. It is arguably one of the heaviest songs of Aerosmith's Top 40 singles, and is cited by rock musicians Slash and James Hetfield as among their favorite rock songs. Hamilton, who had written "Sweet Emotion" with Tyler, collaborated with the singer again on "Sick as a Dog." In 1997 the bassist explained to Guitar World, "I think I came up with the verse part first. And then I did the parts for the intro, the B to E part, and then came up with this little, jangling arpeggio thing...I'm such a Byrds fan; it comes from that."[9] In the same interview Perry added:

Tom played rhythm guitar on "Sick as a Dog." I played bass for the first half of the song. Then I put the bass down and played guitar in the end, and Steven picked up the bass and played it for the rest of the song - all live in the studio! One take.[8]

In his memoir, Tyler stated that he wrote "Rats in the Cellar" as a "tip of the hat, or an answer to 'Toys in the Attic'...Meanwhile, in real life, 'Rats' was more like what was actually going on. Things were coming apart, sanity was scurrying south, caution was flung to the winds, and little by little the chaos was permanently moving in."[10] Although it was never a popular Aerosmith number, "Nobody's Fault" remains a favorite of the band's, with Tyler calling it "one of the highlights of my creative career"[11] and Kramer insisting "it's some of the best drumming I did."[12] Tyler claims the lyrics have to do with the band's fear of earthquakes and flying, while "Lick and a Promise" is about the band's determination to deliver a rocking live show.[13] "Combination" features Perry sharing lead vocal duties with Tyler for the first time, and the guitarist admitted in 1997 that the song was "about heroin, cocaine, and me".[14] In his memoir, Tyler calls the line "Walkin' on Gucci wearing Yves St. Laurent/Barely stay on 'cause I'm so goddamn gaunt" the best lyric Perry ever wrote: "It was the truth, it was clever, and it described us to a tee".[15] Regarding his vocal on the song, Perry later commented, "This was touchy because singing was Steven's jealously guarded territory...Beyond that, anytime the spotlight shone on me I detected a bit of jealousy from the other guys. After a while, though, the band came around and supported me, as long as I sang the song as a semi-duet with Steven."[16] "Home Tonight" features Perry on a lap steel guitar as a lead guitar and his Les Paul for the rhythm guitar, and has drummer Joey Kramer, Tom Hamilton, and producer/arranger Jack Douglas performing backing vocals.[2] Of the song Perry recalled, "Steven could always be counted on to come up with some little piano riff that would be our ballad for the record. And that was it."[17]

Reception and legacy

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[18]
Blender[19]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[1]
The Village VoiceA−[20]

Contemporary reviews were mixed. John Milward of Rolling Stone wrote that "the material is Rocks’ major flaw, mostly pale remakes of their earlier hits", concluding that the return to the "ear-boxing sound" of Get Your Wings and Tyler's vocal performance cannot save the album from mediocrity.[21] In his review for The Village Voice, Robert Christgau wrote that with Rocks Aerosmith were doing a good job of imitating Led Zeppelin, and that after this album the band began to lose steam.[20]

Modern reviews are very positive. Greg Prato of AllMusic described Rocks as "a superb follow-up to their masterwork Toys in the Attic" and remarked how it captured "Aerosmith at their most raw and rocking". He wrote that "Back in the Saddle" and "Last Child" are among their most remowned songs, but all the "tracks prove essential to the makeup of the album".[18] Ben Mitchell of Blender magazine, said that the group members' drug use actually helped Rocks and he also called the album "raw."[19]

Many musicians have cited Rocks as one of their favorite albums:

In his autobiography Rocks, Joe Perry states the driving purpose of Rocks "was to reidentify us as America's ultimate garage band, with blistering guitars, blistering vocals, balls-to-the-wall smash-your-eardrums production. When it came out in May 1976, the cover showed five diamonds, one for each of us. We saw that record as a jewel, the culmination of all our angst and anger and excitement and joy as go-for-broke rock and rollers.[28]

Track listing

Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Back in the Saddle"Steven Tyler, Joe Perry4:40
2."Last Child"Tyler, Brad Whitford3:26
3."Rats in the Cellar"Tyler, Perry4:05
4."Combination"Perry3:39
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
5."Sick as a Dog"Tyler, Tom Hamilton4:16
6."Nobody's Fault"Tyler, Whitford4:21
7."Get the Lead Out"Tyler, Perry3:41
8."Lick and a Promise"Tyler, Perry3:05
9."Home Tonight"Tyler3:15

Personnel

Adapted from the liner notes[29]

Aerosmith
Additional musician
  • Paul Prestopino – banjo on "Last Child"
Production

Charts

Certifications

Country Organization Year Sales
US RIAA 2001 4x Platinum (+ 4,000,000)[3]
Canada CRIA 1976 Platinum (+ 100,000)[38]

References

  1. 1 2 Kot, Greg. "Aerosmith - Album Guide". Rolling Stone. United States: Jann S. Wenner. Archived from the original on June 28, 2011. Retrieved November 28, 2010.
  2. 1 2 3 Aerosmith's Greatest Hits (CD booklet). Aerosmith. New York City: Columbia Records. 1993. CK 57367.
  3. 1 2 "RIAA Gold & Platinum Database: search for Aerosmith". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved January 28, 2016.
  4. ↑ Davis & Aerosmith 1997, p. 252.
  5. ↑ Davis & Aerosmith 1997, pp. 250-251.
  6. ↑ Davis & Aerosmith 1997, p. 253.
  7. ↑ Davis & Aerosmith 1997, pp. 253-254.
  8. 1 2 Di Perna, Alan (April 1997). "Aerosmith". Guitar World. Vol. 17 no. 4.
  9. ↑ Di Perna, Alan (March 1997). "Aerosmith". Guitar World. Vol. 17 no. 3.
  10. ↑ Tyler & Dalton 2011, p. 126.
  11. ↑ Tyler & Dalton 2011, p. 123.
  12. ↑ Davis & Aerosmith 1997, p. 255.
  13. ↑ Davis & Aerosmith 1997, pp. 255-256.
  14. ↑ Davis & Aerosmith 1997, p. 256.
  15. ↑ Tyler & Dalton 2011, p. 134.
  16. ↑ Perry & Ritz 2014, p. 164.
  17. ↑ Davis & Aerosmith 1997, p. 257.
  18. 1 2 Prato, Greg. "Aerosmith - Rocks review". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved August 14, 2018.
  19. 1 2 Mitchell, Ben (September 14, 2004). "Review : Aerosmith - Rocks". Blender. United States: Alpha Media Group.
  20. 1 2 Christgau, Robert (1976). "Consumer Guide". The Village Voice (October 4). New York. Retrieved September 11, 2014.
  21. ↑ Milward, John (July 29, 1976). "Rocks". Rolling Stone. Retrieved May 14, 2012.
  22. ↑ Slash. "The Immortals - The Greatest Artists of All Time: 57 Aerosmith". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on May 21, 2006. Retrieved November 11, 2011.
  23. ↑ Kennedy, Thomas (May 9, 2013). "Top 50 by Nirvana (mixtape)". Joyful Noise Recordings. Archived from the original on June 18, 2013. Retrieved August 14, 2018.
  24. ↑ "500 Greatest Albums of All Time: Aerosmith, Rocks". Rolling Stone. Retrieved November 11, 2012.
  25. ↑ Sixx, Nikki; Gittins, Ian (2007). The Heroin Diaries: A Year in the Life of a Shattered Rock Star. New York City: Pocket Books. pp. 80, 100, 124, 139, 148, 260, 405, 411. ISBN 978-1-84739-614-3.
  26. ↑ Swanlund, Niclas (April 14, 2002). "Metallica Pays Tribute to Aerosmith". Metallica Official Website. Retrieved August 14, 2018.
  27. ↑ "Metallica's Hetfield, Ulrich Pay Aerosmith A Backstage Visit". Blabbermouth.net. Retrieved November 11, 2011.
  28. ↑ Perry & Ritz 2014, p. 165.
  29. ↑ Rocks (LP sleeve). Aerosmith. New York City: Columbia Records. 1976. PC 34165.
  30. ↑ "Aerosmith Chart History: Billboard 200". Billboard.com. Billboard. Retrieved July 26, 2018.
  31. ↑ "エアロスミスのCDアルバムランキング、エアロスミスのプロフィールならオリコン芸能人事典-ORICON STYLE". Oricon.co.jp. Retrieved May 2, 2013.
  32. ↑ "Top Albums/CDs – Volume 25, No. 15, July 10, 1976". Library and Archives Canada. July 10, 1976. Retrieved August 15, 2018.
  33. ↑ "Aerosmith – Rocks (Album)". Swedishcharts.com. Media Control Charts. Retrieved August 15, 2018.
  34. 1 2 3 "Aerosmith Chart History: Hot 100". Billboard.com. Billboard. Retrieved July 29, 2018.
  35. ↑ "Top Singles – Volume 25, No. 19, August 07, 1976". Library and Archives Canada. August 7, 1976. Retrieved August 15, 2018.
  36. ↑ "Top Singles – Volume 26, No. 8, November 20, 1976". Library and Archives Canada. November 20, 1976. Retrieved August 15, 2018.
  37. ↑ "Top Singles – Volume 27, No. 11, June 11, 1977". Library and Archives Canada. June 11, 1977. Retrieved August 15, 2018.
  38. ↑ "Music Canada Gold & Platinum: search for Aerosmith". Music Canada. Retrieved July 30, 2018.

Bibliography

  • Davis, Stephen; Aerosmith (October 1, 1997). Walk This Way: The Autobiography of Aerosmith. New York City: Avon Books. ISBN 978-0-380-97594-5.
  • Perry, Joe; Ritz, David (October 7, 2014). Rocks: My Life In and Out of Aerosmith. New York City: Simon & Schuster. ISBN 978-1-476-71454-7.
  • Tyler, Steven; Dalton, David (May 3, 2011). Does the Noise in My Head Bother You?: A Rock 'n' Roll Memoir. New York City: Ecco Press. ISBN 978-0-061-76789-0.

Rocks at MusicBrainz

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