Old (1970-1985) Aerosmith vs. New (1987-Present) Aerosmith

Which Version (old vs new) of Aerosmith Was The Best?

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LeftyLoungeLizard

LeftyLoungeLizard

Roadie
TGF Recording Artist
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So, who rules? (O'Doyle Rules!)

First, a little history:

Aerosmith broke up in the very early 80's and didn't do another album until 1985's Done With Mirrors (I saw them at this concert with Ted Nugent).

The album after that (1987's Permanent Vacation) is what blasted them into the stratosphere; with much more emphasis on pop tunes writing and having outside writers help them with songs.

So, stylistically, you can effectively *cough* Draw The Line between Old and New Aerosmith between those two albums (Done With Mirrors / Permanent Vacation).

Some examples of tunes from each -

Old:

Walk This Way
Sweet Emotion
Lord Of The Thighs
Same Old Song And Dance
Back In The Saddle
etc...

New:

Angel
Rag Doll
Dude (Looks Like A Lady)
Love In An Elevator
Janie's Got A Gun
Jaded
etc...

Fun fact: Aerosmith were some of the hardest partiers ever in the history of RnR. Think for a moment, "which rock band prolly partied the hardest back in the day?" and whoever you come up with, Aerosmith more than likely had them beat by a mile. I'd bet they beat Motley Crue hands-down, too.

Read the Autobiography "Walk This Way" :

en.wikipedia.org

Walk This Way: The Autobiography of Aerosmith - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org en.wikipedia.org

(my favorite Aerosmith tune is "Sweet Emotion")
 
I'd break it down to four eras.

1. Aerosmith, Get Your Wings, Toys in the Attic, Rocks

The definitive output of the band. Nothing else really matters imo.

2. Draw the Line, Night in the Ruts, Rock in a Hard Place

DRUGS and EGO destroy an awesome group.

3. Done with Mirrors

Let's give this band thing another shot......

4. Permanent Vacation, Pump, Get a Grip, Nine Lives, etc.

Tyler and Perry using outside songwriting help to make billions.
 
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Achilles said:
I'd break it down to four eras.

1. Aerosmith, Get Your Wings, Toys in the Attic, Rocks

The definite output of the band. Nothing else really matters imo.

2. Draw the Line, Night in the Ruts, Rock in a Hard Place

DRUGS and EGO destroy an awesome group.

3. Done with Mirrors

Let's give this band thing another shot......

4. Permanent Vacation, Pump, Get a Grip, Nine Lives, etc.

Tyler and Perry using outside songwriting help to make billions.
Click to expand...

100%. And Done With Mirrors really is it's own thing (like you said).

I distilled things into 2 categories for simplicity.
 
Achilles said:
I'd break it down to four eras.

1. Aerosmith, Get Your Wings, Toys in the Attic, Rocks
Click to expand...
^This is all that matters. I went to Draw The Line, which had some good songs (Kings and Queens :chef), but the song writing was falling off for me.

Fun fact- The artist who drew the cover for DTL (can't recall his name) would use strokes in the guys' hair to write his daughter's name, and iirc, it's in 3 places on that cover.

Edit- I think her name is Nina.
 
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Me and a buddy of mine in grade school were huge Aerosmith fans, and we'd see who could, by memory, write out each song in order from the 1st 5 albums, after we'd finish our math tests! Haha

Pretty sure we both nailed it.
 
And here's a great interview and some ISOs of famous Aerosmith tunes by Jack Douglas the producer

For example, did you know there's a bass marimba on "Sweet Emotion" ?

Aerosmith's "Walk This Way" & "Sweet Emotion": Inside the Songs w/ Jack Douglas - Produce Like A Pro​

 
I had to change my vote to newer Aerosmith. Like Jarick, I was born in ‘82 and grew up hearing the newer stuff. They’re a HUGE reason I’m a sucker for a big, catchy chorus. Some of my first earworms were absolutely 80’s and 90’s Aerosmith. I was big into them when Get A Grip came out when I was in 4th grade. Right at the same time I’m hitting puberty they’re putting out video after video with Alicia Silverstone and these huge choruses, or the Terminator kid throwing condoms in bushes while Tyler cups his balls somewhere. I LOVED that shit.

Wasn’t the biggest fan of Nine Lives and started working my way backwards then. I had a friend who was into Perry like I was into Vai and he was always playing me stuff I hadn’t heard before. Of course I was aware of the popular tunes but once I dug in more it was really like a different band in so many ways. It’s kind of a bummer their 80’s output tends to overshadow everything outside of “Dream On” and the “Walk This Way” remix with Run DMC with the general public. I love all of it now, up until Get A Grip.
 
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