Removing the lyrics from the bridge was a smart move IMO. Helped reduce some of the repetition. Only doing the bridge once also helped move the song along. The key change in the break and changing it to the verse chords also was a smart move IMO. However, I do like that variation on the verse melody over the bridge chords in the outro though. YMMV. PS-This version is tuned to E flat I guess to help CF sing at a more normal register for him.
Aerosmith - Live Texxas Jam '78 This is the version I have. Brazilian dvd. Quality is great (laser disc transfer possibly?), as far as extra footage, it has clips of the stage being set up, crowd building up, and shots of Steven Tyler riding around on a golf buggy backstage, if that’s the missing footage that you are referring to?
Yeah I'm guessing a little Ted Nugent too? I'm pretty sure yours has all the content of my VHS.....Which I actually still have (because I'm a terrible pack rat who never gets rid of his junk) but no way to play it anymore.. Questionable condition and cost don't warrant seeking out somebody to do a transfer.
Didn't realise you were a musician, what do you make of the 2 versions of Listen to the Rock (not sure if you saw the earlier link) https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=kA5uR1p6wUA
There are good interviews in these Podcasts with Kevin Shirley and Jack Douglass-both of whom Produced Aerosmith----go to the bottom and hit see more--you might have to do it twice. You don't have to join anything on this site, just play them. Listen to The Eddie Trunk Podcast on TuneIn
Won't be around much today due to business. Will post a short review of Whitford/St. Holmes and then to RIAHP maybe tomorrow evening.
I will give that a listen. I am not really a musician but thanks for saying! I started playing guitar and bass (lightly) when I was in my late teens. I played with bands throughout my early 20s and into my 30s but then my career took up so much time, I couldn't play in bands or even really practice much. Over the past 5 years of my retirement, I started playing again a lot. At this point I would like to get into a band again since my playing is back up to par but I am getting too old to play in clubs and such. Maybe a Wedding Band again would work for me. I played in a great Wedding Band in the 80s. Not sure if people even hire them anymore.
@van1 I like The JPP Listen to the Rock a little more. I think the Balloon version drags in the last minute since it goes right to the verse chords after the chorus and repeats too often. At 2:35 the JPP version changes it up with some variation by just grooving on the E chord making it sound like it will be a separate coda. However, at 2:51 the chorus returns. At 3:12 the verse chords return but are shortened for a surprise ending. Shortening the song by almost 40 seconds IMO makes it sound more interesting than just hearing the verse chords over and over to end the song. The Balloon version I still like but the JPP version appeals to me a little more the way the closing structure flows. No flanged guitars and dropping the key to guitar friendly E makes it sound a lot more heavy. The Balloon version is darn near power pop. BTW I like Power Pop big time. [/QUOTE][/QUOTE]
Whitford/St. Holmes Released August 1981 Recorded Axis Studios, Atlanta Whitford/St. Holmes is the first album by the hard rock collaboration of the American musicians Brad Whitford and Derek St. Holmes (of Aerosmith and Ted Nugent respectively), released in 1981. Contents 1History 2Track listing 3Personnel 4Appearances in other media 5References History In 1981, Whitford left Aerosmith. He teamed up with St. Holmes, who had previously played with Ted Nugent, to form "Whitford/St. Holmes", together with Dave Hewitt and Steve Pace who were later replaced by bass guitarist Chase Chitty and the drummer Larue Riccio (Baby and the Pacifiers). They toured the southeastern United States and performed before small audiences. In 1981, they recorded this album. It was followed by a tour but neither the album nor the tour had any big success. In 1983, Whitford reunited with Joe Perry to play live at several shows with his band The Joe Perry Project. In 1984, both Whitford and Perry returned to Aerosmith to record Done with Mirrors, released in 1985 on Geffen Records.[citation needed] St. Holmes worked with Nugent again sporadically in the following years. Their second album, Reunion, was sold during their November 2015 Reunion Tour. It was officially released in 2016 by Mailboat Records. Track listing "I Need Love" – 3:18 "Whiskey Woman" – 3:51 "Hold On" – 2:59 "Sharpshooter" – 5:30 "Every Morning" – 4:39 "Action" – 3:45 "Shy Away" – 4:12 "Does It Really Matter?" – 4:26 "Spanish Boy" – 4:09 "Mystery Girl" – 3:22 Personnel Brad Whitford – lead guitar Derek St. Holmes – lead vocals, guitar Dave Hewitt – bass guitar Steve Pace – drums Production George Pappas – engineering Tom Allom – producer
Whitford/St. Holmes A few words about a few of the songs. I Need Love Not too bad of an intro hook with some blues curls but nothing outstanding. The pre chorus rise out and chorus are standard fare. The song gets more interesting with a bridge after the second verse and a decent Brad solo guitar break. Acceptable hard rock tune with a good verse melody and chorus hook. 6/10 Whiskey Woman A riff straight from the Stones handbook. The pre chorus and chorus are by the numbers as well. The chorus does have a decent vocal hook though. 6/10 Sharpshooter Heavy power chords in the verse and the chorus gets some chimey chords in attempt to give it some light but. The standard verse-pre chorus, chorus structure starts to sound samey though. Brad does crank out a fine solo in his toney, nasally up the neck sound. 8/10 Action The boys go Zep here in the intro and then to a lighter riff in the verse. The chorus follows the verse and it rocks not too shabbily. 7/10 Shy Away Borders on power pop and my favorite song on the album. A touch of boogie with a driving chorus rhythm. The bridge sounds derivative but heck so many bands have used that riff. 8/10 Mystery Girl The intro keeps you off kilter with changes to the meter and when the verse comes in it cooks. Another lame pre chorus though leads to a chorus that never takes off. 6/10 Can’t say I listen to this album much. It is always cool to hear Brad play leads though and probably the only reason I ever listen to this album. The songs are too standard in structure and melodic invention to really keep my interest. Kind of derivative sounding overall. Brad is a great guitar player but not as innovative a songwriter as Tyler/Perry or Tom Hamilton. He is brilliant with raising the Tyler/Perry songs higher than they normally would be without him.
I’ve only heard a couple of tracks from the Whitford/St. Holmes album, but they were both pretty bland, poster children for what people used to call “corporate rock”. I was not inspired to pick up the album to hear the rest.
I like the first 2 JPP albums with the second one being the best in my opinion. The Whitford St Holmes album is very good too. LTMDTT - 7/10 IGTRNRA - 7.5/10 WSH - 7/10
It is included on the Pandora's Box compilation. Not bad but the only song I recall from the album. I no longer have it and don't recall more of the tracks.
Don't forget the third Project album, Once a Rocker Always a Rocker. It has the least distinctive of the three singers, but it's a lively record with Joe still crankin' away admirably despite being saturated with opioids at the time.
Sorry I somehow missed this earlier. I had Toys In The Attic around from the '70s, so a major touchstone LP for me along with Nazareth's Raz-A-Ma-Naz and Kansas' Point Of Know Return, played all three a lot. Since then I did get the two before and the two after it, but then I've just been a single track here and there rather than album listener, not sure why, some stuff like Chip Away, Rag Doll, Janie's Got A Gun and Crazy rank as the absolute best American rock & roll ever made, others are... Love In An Elevator. I always wondered if there was a touch of New York Dolls to these guys or if I was imagining it. They certainly went on a lot longer, lucky for us. Now I wanna play some of the early stuff, loud!
I enjoy the W/S album especially Whiskey Woman and Sharpshooter. solid rock album with an excellent singer although I’d struggle to say it was the Aerosmith guitarist if I didn’t know
Thanks for posting. I agree with your hearing the Dolls at times. I have mentioned it in my reviews. Joe Perry could do a mean JT when he wanted to.
Rock in a Hard Place Released August 1982 Rock in a Hard Place is the seventh studio album by American hard rock band Aerosmith, released in August 1982 by Columbia Records. It was certified gold on November 10, 1989. It is the only Aerosmith album not to feature lead guitarist Joe Perry, following his departure from the band in 1979. Rhythm guitarist Brad Whitford also left during the recording in 1981. The band spent $1.5 million on the recording of this album, which saw them reunited with producer Jack Douglas. Background Aerosmith had released six studio albums during the 1970s. But as the decade concluded, multiple problems arose. Guitarist Joe Perry had left the band in 1979 after incidents at the World Series of Rock in Cleveland, Ohio and was replaced by Jimmy Crespo. Meanwhile, Steven Tyler's drug abuse increased. After recording the single "Lightning Strikes," guitarist Brad Whitford also left Aerosmith in 1981 and was replaced by Rick Dufay when the recording of the album was finally complete. Track listing[edit] Side one No. Title Writer(s) Length 1. "Jailbait" Steven Tyler, Jimmy Crespo 4:38 2. "Lightning Strikes" Tyler, Crespo, Richard Supa 4:26 3. "Bitch's Brew" Tyler, Crespo 4:14 4. "Bolivian Ragamuffin" Tyler, Crespo 3:32 5. "Cry Me a River" Arthur Hamilton 4:06 Side two No. Title Writer(s) Length 1. "Prelude to Joanie" Tyler 1:21 2. "Joanie's Butterfly" Tyler, Crespo, Jack Douglas 5:35 3. "Rock in a Hard Place (Cheshire Cat)" Tyler, Crespo, Douglas 4:46 4. "Jig Is Up" Tyler, Crespo 3:10 5. "Push Comes to Shove" Tyler 4:28 Personnel Aerosmith Steven Tyler – lead vocals, keyboards, harmonica, percussion, piano on "Push Comes to Shove", producer Jimmy Crespo – lead and rhythm guitar, backing vocals, additional vocals on "Bitches Brew" Tom Hamilton – bass guitar Joey Kramer – drums Rick Dufay – rhythm guitar (credited as a band member but does not play) Additional musicians Brad Whitford – rhythm guitar on "Lightning Strikes" Paul Harris – piano on "Push Comes to Shove" John Turi – saxophone on "Rock in a Hard Place (Cheshire Cat)" Reinhard Straub – violin on "Joanie's Butterfly" John Lievano – acoustic guitar on "Joanie's Butterfly" Jack Douglas – percussion, producer, additional engineer Production Godfrey Diamond – chief engineer Tony Bongiovi – co-producer, additional engineer John Agnello, Bruce Hensal, Jim Sessody, Gary Rindfuss, Josh Abbey, Malcolm Pollack, Zoe Yanakis – assistant engineers George Marino – mastering at Sterling Sound, New York Gerard Rozhek – photography, visual direction David Krebs, Steve Leber – management
Rock In A Hard Place Jailbait I will do a detailed review. Lightning Strikes A dreamy dreary E minor based intro with crashing chords over the keyboards. A little ebb and flow in the intro and the verse comes floating in. The verse is a call and response with a derivative boogie riff but heck anything with Steven singing over it gets my interest up. The bridge at 1:45 is a standard rise out but it gets the job done. Steven adds in his trademark harmonies in the return of the verse. A key change at the break with Jimmy plying his best Johnny Thunders. The verse riff is sued to outro the songs with Steven adding in multiple vocals and its all good. The Intro ends the song as it comes full circle. 8/10 Bitches Brew I will do a detailed review of this amazing song. Bolivian Ragamuffin A pile driving hard edged boogie riff starts us off. The riff morphs rhythmically to add more shuffle. But how it gets there is killer….weird metric changes. IN the verse Steven lays down a jazzy almost scatty vocal like Bob Dylan trying to sound like Ella Fitzgerald. At 1:16 the rhythm changes and it sounds like a chorus …maybe. A touch of Beatles to my ears. The verse returns and then the chorus follows. The hard driving rhythm returns and morphs into a bridge/break that reminds me of Queen with the chord changes and thematic guitars. The hectic intro returns at 2:48 and is used to outro the song that turns loose and improvised like a glorious train wreck. Steven ends with one of his trademark drum like vocalizations. Another incredible song for me. 9/10 Cry Me A river Jazzy chord and melody from Jimmy. Dreamy harmonics to boot. Steven and Jimmy sound great together on the verse and chorus of the song. The second verse stays light until the heavy part comes in. However,……Jimmy manages to keep the jazzy guitar arrangement change slightly. Then the really really heaviness takes over with power chords. The bridge part is a real hoot. The coda at 3:26 with the sliding power chords is stunning. Man, oh man, they really make this their own enough to make me smile regardless of the song’s story. 8/10 Prelude to Joanie A weird effected prelude with some musical fragments of the song that will follow. The lyrics give some idea of the storyline of the song that follows. Joanie’s Butterfly Folk melody and chords start it off. Nice rising melody. At 2:04 a key change opens a bridge section that leads back to the verse. The verse has a false ending at 2:59 and then a killer hard version of the verse chords morphs into chorus! The bridge follows and gets hard treatment as well. At 4:13 nice sounding percussion underpins baroque sounding guitar lines from Jimmy. Hot damn. When the verse returns it gets even more emphatic. The bridge follows and rises out to the verse and the chorus comes back one more time on fire mor than ever. Another great song that brilliantly uses changes to standard structures via dynamics and arrangement changes. 9/10 Rock In A Hard Place Slash and burn heavy E chords with more power chords open this hard rock place. The verse is not too shabby but relies on the old E boogie type riff like so many songs do. Blues all the way with the chord changes except for that turnaround with the jazzy chords that go down step by step. I am always a sucker for a turnaround/blues chorus like these. IN the break, Jimmy adds texture and not a lot of melody or riffage but I ain’t complaining. The chorus repeats to bring the song to a close with power chords leading the way. Get your air guitar out. Another ending that sounds improvised. 8/10 Jig Is Up Oh well, another E boogie riff. This one is too vanilla sounding for me to get worked up. But keep in mind that bands like Extreme used this blueprint verbatim. So, somebody was listening. For me though, after all the other boogie riffs that precede this one, it starts to sound a little weary. 6/10 Push Comes To Shove An old timey jazz blues from Steven. Starts with the chorus. You can tell it was written on the piano because of the weird key. Steven does his best jazzy vocal and it agrees with me. Why don’t you come up sometime and see me. A humorous subtle way to close the album. Closing time…last call for…well whatever floats your boat. 8/10. I realize I am an outlier on this album. Close to miscreant. This album has consistently blown my doors since it was released. Gee ya think from the reviews above? I will go out on a broken limb and say there are moments of brilliance on it that are not on any other Aerosmith albums. I guess some of the songs impress me technically since they are so off base and weird. Most of the album sounds like it was improvised. It is not polished or tuneful. Nothing memorable in the riffs or the melodies but the out of nowhere treatments and odd ball approach makes it really special for me. Lots of use of the cliché boogie riff but what Jimmy and Steven do with them is astonishing. One of my favorite Aerosmith albums. Now I will duck. Don’t worry you can call me crazy, deaf, a musical idiot…I am used to it when it comes to this album.
