AEROSMITH - discography (& related)

another lp I still dig alot

Great record. It took me a couple years to finally appreciate how good this was, as I always felt it was not as solid as the three studio records prior, but have since find it as strong.

Joe Perry Project - Let the Music Do the Talking (Columbia) 1980

1. "Let the Music Do the Talking? (4:43)
2. "Conflict of Interest" (4:43)
3. "Discount Dogs" (3:43)
4. "Shooting Star" (3:39)
5. "Break Song" [instrumental] (2:07)
6. "Rockin' Train" (6:02)
7. "The Mist is Rising" (6:31)
8. "Ready on the Firing Line" (3:54)
9. "Life at a Glance" (2:43)

In 1978, prompted by his wife, Joe Perry decided to leaves Aerosmith. Is this a bad thing? Of course it is, but at least we were blessed with a few awesome solo albums while he was absent from America's greatest rock and roll band. "Let the Music Do the Talking" was produced by Jack Douglas, who had also produced some of Aerosmith's best works such as "Rocks" and "Toys in the Attic". "Let the Music Do the Talking" is a guitar album that would rival anything put out by Jeff Beck, Jimmy Page, or Eric Clapton. (All of whom are heroes of Joe Perry.) The rumor was that Joe originally intended to call the album "Guitar Wars." That would have been an appropriate title for this bombastic rock and roll record. The title track was a song Joe had written for Aerosmith and was later re-recorded with Aerosmith for the "Done With Mirrors" LP. Personally, I think the Project version came out better.

Joe's band for this album consisted of Ralph Morman: vocals, guitar, David Hull: bass, vocals, Ronnie Stewart: drums, percussion and Joe performing rhythm and lead guitar, as well as sharing lead vocals. "Let the Music Do the Talking" sold well for Joe, selling over 250,000 copies in the U.S. alone.

I own this one on CD and vinyl, complete with picture sleeve.

I only have this on vinyl and I have not replaced it with a CD version, not surprising this album is loaded with guitars.

This album is a great album and the only reason it did not sell better is because it is not being fronted by Steven Tyler. This album is closer in spirit to Aerosmith's 'Draw the Line' then any other Aerosmith album. Maybe a heavier version of the Stones 'Exile On Main Street', it does not sound like either album just close to that pure rock n roll spirit if that makes sense.

The album has a looseness to it and it is far from polished. It sounds like it was recorded live in the studio and overdubs be damned.

I prefer the Aerosmith version of 'Let the Music Do the Talking' but this is a cooler version and Ralph Mormon not a great vocalist but works for this album.

This version of the Joe Perry Project could easily have toured with bands as diverse as AC/DC and The Sex Pistols and sound and attitude wise would not seem out of place. They are almost The White Stripes of their day.

I'll have to dust off my vinyl copy when I get home from work and give it a spin.

I bought this vinyl album at a flea market years ago and only listened to it a few times before my turntable died. It sat on a shelf for a few years until I traded it to Ult about a year or so ago.

I do have a Best of Joe Perry Project cd that has quite a few tracks from this album. Never heard the other 2 JPP albums, but from what I understand this debut was the strongest one of the 3.

I love this album, this album made me respect Joe Perry the guitarist a lot more than I did.

I saw this band live but do not recall what lp it was for, this one or the next. Anyways a great lp.

James B. wrote:

I saw this band live but do not recall what lp it was for, this one or the next. Anyways a great lp.

I'm jealous. I so wanted to see the Joe Perry Project in their prime.

Aerosmith - Greatest Hits (Columbia) 1980
Original vinyl version:

SIDE ONE
1."Dream On" (4:24)
2."Same Old Song and Dance" (3:02)
3."Sweet Emotion" (3:12)
4."Walk This Way" (3:30)
5."Last Child" (3:26)
SIDE TWO
6."Back in the Saddle" (4:38)
7."Draw the Line" (3:21)
8."Kings and Queens" (3:46)
9."Come Together" (3:44)
10."Remember (Walking in the Sand)" (4:03)


Australian Expanded CD version:
Aerosmith's Greatest Hits 1973-1988 (Columbia) 1997

1. "Dream On" (4:25)
2. "Mama Kin" (4:26)
3. "Same Old Song And Dance" (3:03)
4. "Seasons Of Wither" (4:56)
5. "Sweet Emotion" (3:13)
6. "Walk This Way" (3:31)
7. "Big Ten-Inch Record" (2:13)
8. "Last Child" (3:27)
9. "Back In The Saddle" (4:40)
10. "Draw The Line" (3:22)
11. "Kings And Queens" (3:47)
12. "Come Together" (3:45)
13. "Remember (Walking In The Sand)" (4:04)
14. "Lightning Strikes" (4:27)
15. "Chip Away The Stone" (4:01)
16. "Sweet Emotion" [1991 Thoener Remix] (4:34)
17. "One Way Street" [live] (6:42)

I remember when this album came out. I was already an Aerosmith fanatic and had been since "Toys in the Attic" was release. I played this thing over and over and over again. I can remember walking around with my boom box jamming my cassette version of "Greatest Hits". Something about this combination of songs was infectious, so much so that "Greatest Hits" became a huge hit for Aerosmith, going multi-platinum. Unheard of for a hits collection of previously released material. As of August 1996, "Greatest Hits" sold an amazing 9x Platinum.

In retrospect, the only reason to really own this, other than you are an Aerosmith freak like me, is "Come Together," which was formerly only available on the terrible "Sgt. Peppers Soundtrack." The version of "Sweet Emotion" on this album is a shortened radio edit that is missing the cool introduction. Also, I can't believe "Remember (Walking in the Sand)" was the labels choice from "Night in the Ruts". "No Surprise", "Chaquita" or "Three Mile Smile/Reefer Headed Woman" would have all been better choices. Probably the biggest omission is "Train Kept A Rollin?", one of the band's biggest and most well known songs.

The 1996, remastered, Australian version of "Greatest Hits" is FAR better than the American and European versions. First of all it contains TWO songs from each of the neglected first two albums and three songs from the mega-huge "Toys in the Attic." The American version omits "Mama Kin," "Seasons of Whither" and "Big Ten Inch Record." It also includes an uncut, remixed version of "Sweet Emotion" as well as the "radio edit" version from the regular "Greatest Hits" collection. The biggest surprise was the inclusion of "Lightning Strikes" from "Rock in a Hard Place." No doubt this is a killer song. I always wondered why it was never included on ANY Aerosmith compilation. The live version of "One Way Street" is the same version as on "Made in America" and was recorded at Mama Kin Music Hall, Boston, MA, Dec. '94.

RIAA Certified: 10x Platinum (02/2001). One of the best selling greatest hits collection along side The Eagles "Greatest Hits".

Good greatest hits comp that gives a good overview of the band's hits up to this point. Luckily for Steven Tyler, the band was not raking in the cash as they had been and this collection gave him some more drug money. Thankfully for Aerofans, Steve (and the rest of the band) cleaned up before the recording of "Perm Vac" giving them 2 more decades (to date) of Aerosmith.

GREATEST HITS was the album that started my Aerosmith collection in the mid-80s. I was semi-familiar with the band from hearing classics like "Sweet Emotion" on the radio growing up but never owned any of their stuff. Around this time (circa 1985) I was watching a lot of a new music video station out of New York called "U-68" (anyone else remember that?) which had a nightly block of hard rock and metal videos called "The Power Hour." The videos for Aerosmith's "Lightnin' Strikes," "Chiquita" and "Let The Music Do The Talking" got a lot of play on that show, which made me curious about checking out more of their stuff. So I went off to K-Mart with my allowance money one afternoon and picked up the GREATEST HITS album on vinyl for $4.99. Hella deal, and probably the best $4.99 I ever spent. I quickly made a tape of the LP for Walkman listening and it remained welded in there for a couple of weeks straight. I loved every song on it!! Eventually I started picking up as many of their albums/cassettes as I could find and by early '86 I had collected their entire discography up to that point. Obviously having all the other material made the GREATEST HITS album obsolete for me but it's still a sentimental fave nonetheless.

I purchased this shortly after discovering Aerosmith, at a Kmart also, for some low dough price of $4.99, like Freddy did, expect I lived in Florida. I loved it, at the time I purchased I owned 'Toys in the Attic' and 'Rock In A Hard Place' and it was an excellent overview of the band's career.

This album introduce me to 'Same Old Song and Dance' and 'Last Child', and it is an album that spun the most from my Aerosmith collection when I was a very young teenager. I believe this maybe Aerosmith's best selling album in their discography and in the era of Motley Crue and Ratt, these guys sounded more like contemperies then a band that had been slugging out close to a decade.

Played this allot when I owned it on cassette tape but I never bothered to upgrade it to cd until I got the Box of Fire. And I still haven't listened to it. The cd still has the cellophane wrapper on it. Nice collection and I love all the songs on there, but it's pretty un-essential when you've got their discography.

I have this but never really listen to it, it just completes the collection. I've always liked the cover.

the Aussie version does blow the US version to smithereens

lost connection w Aerosmith this time. Joe Perry solo project is awsome.

"Greatest Hits" is awesome. For the early stuff, it really doesn't get much better than this. Okay, there's a few songs that they probably should have included, but it's a good collection of the first era of the band.

I got this for my birthday in 1980 and I agree that having "Come Together" was awesome. It was a great collection of songs but it bothered me that not only was the "Sweet Emotion" intro chopped off but they ommited the intire guitar solo in "Same Old Song n Dance" and cut almost a minute off of the original, and they really killed "Kings And Queens" by chopping off the whole beginning and part of the middle with the bass solo. Ah, but I know back then bands only had like 45+ total minutes to work with making records so they did the best they could. So many unbelievable tracks left off but this album does give a decent overview of Aerosmith up to this point. Ive never heard the Austrailian version but it sounds like they finally did it justice. I like the inclusion of "Seasons Of Wither", great song finally gets it's due.

Joe Perry Project - I've Got the Rock and Rolls Again (Columbia) 1981

1. "East Coast, West Coast" (3:07)
2. "No Substitute for Arrogance" (3:25)
3. "I've Got the Rock 'n' Rolls Again" (4:34)
4. "Buzz Buzz" (3:42)
5. "Soldier of Fortune" (3:05)
6. "TV Police" (4:10)
7. "Listen to the Rock" (3:20)
8. "Dirty Little Things" (3:42)
9. "Play the Game" (5:21)
10. "South Station Blues" (4:08)

Perry not content with making solo Aerosmith records changes gears slightly to give us one charged guitar album. I remember reading a review somewhere that said, "this is one loud, destructive jam!" Good description, could not have said it better myself. There are four heavy rockers in "East Coast, West Coast," "Soldier of Fortune," "South Station Blues," and the manic "Once A Rocker. "No Substitute for Ignorance," has some of the worst vocals I have ever heard. Actually I sort of wish Joe would just sing all his own songs. Joe Perry's vocals remind me of Ace Frehley, another guitar legend, who has that "can't sing/don't care" vocal style that somehow just works.

On a side note, "Buzz, Buzz" had previously been recorded by bassist David Hull's band Dirty Angels. Singer Ralph Morman recorded an album titled "We Come to Play" for Capitol Records with Punky Meadows and Mickey Jones (of Angel fame) in Bux. "South Station Blues" also showed up on the Aerosmith box set "Pandora's Box." I own this one on both CD and vinyl, complete with picture sleeve.

I love this album and another one I need to upgrade to vinyl to CD. The album is raw and pure rock n roll album in its purist form. "East Coast, West Coast' 'TV Police' and ' Listen to Rock' are favorites from this Stones influenced set.

When the White Stripes and The H.I.V.E.S. made it big earlier in the decade, this album should have been issued with a big promo campaign since the album's garage rock feel would have fit right in.

"Dirty Little Things" and "Buzz Buzz' should have been released as singles, a great album.

Never heard this album, but I'm familair with quite a few songs that turned up on The Best of The Joe Perry Project.

I'm surprised more people haven't heard this one. I've Got the Rock and Rolls Again is a solid, hard rocking album.

I like this album, just not as good as the first JPP but it's garage feel fits what Perry is going for. I agree that JP should've just sang all his own songs.

always thought the title was clever, good album

Aerosmith - Rock in a Hard Place (Columbia) 1982

1. "Jailbait" (4:38)
2. "Lightning Strikes" (4:26)
3. "Bitch's Brew" (4:14)
4. "Bolivian Ragauffin" (3:32)
5. "Cry Me A River" (4:06)
6. "Prelude to Joanie" (1:21)
7. "Joanie's Butterfly" (5:35)
8. "Rock in a Hard Place (Cheshire Cat)" (4:46)
9. "Jig is Up" (3:10)
10."Push Comes to Shove" (4:28)

A bizzare record for Aerosmith as neither Brad Whitford nor Joe Perry are present on it at all. Jimmy Crespo originally replaced Perry years earlier and even recorded some of the guitar work on "Night in the Ruts". He is a great guitar player and was a suitable replacement for Perry. Of course no one could ever totally replace him as he was more than just a guitar player, but a personality in the band. Rick Duffay definitely did not fit the bill replacing Brad Whitford, even though he was a more than competentguitar player. On top of the line-up changes, Steven Tyler was still heavily involved in substance abuse. Many of the songs here are written by the team of Herion/Alcohol/Cocaine. Despite all these factors going against the band, "Rock in a Hard Place" is actually a surprisingly good album. The music is a mixture of early 1980's heavy metal and 1970's blues-based hard rock. "Jailbait" and "Lightning Strikes" are two great Aero-songs, the later being written by Richie Supa (who also wrote "Chip Away at the Stone"). Either could have been on any of the classic 70's catalog and probably would have been big hits. Unfortunately Aerosmith were not the flavor of the month anymore and only "Lightning Strikes" became a minor hit on rock radio. (The local rock station where I live still plays this song from time to time.) "Rock In A Hard Place (Cheshire Cat)" is another classic song that features great guitar and bass work. "Bolivian Ragamuffin" is a funky rocker reminiscent of "Walk this Way" and "Last Child". One of the more surprising songs is the Julie London cover "Cry Me A River." Why would Aerosmith cover a song that seems so at odds with their rock n roll roots? Well, they did it because it's Steven Tyler and he can. Personally I thought this song was very well done and Tyler never sounded so good. "Joanies Butterfly" and "Prelude to Joanie" are a bit odd, and certainly sound like nothing Aerosmith had done previously or would ever do again. The cover art took a beating due to the movie Spinal Tap. Much of the movie actually mirrored Aerosmith's career at this point. Unfortunately, unless you were fortunate like me to see them on this tour, they hardly ever play any of this stuff live. (I saw them with Pat Travers at the Spectrum in Philadelphia.) "Rock In A Hard Place" is the forgotten Aerosmith record.