SirAlex's Full Review: Rock in a Hard Place by Aerosmith
(Edited 5-24-00)
The years 1979 to 1982 were tumultuous ones at best for Aerosmith. Joe Perry had walked out during the recording of the Night in the Ruts album. Aerosmith then hired Jimmy Crespo to fill in. Guitarist Brad Whitford left out of frustration a year or so later. The band members all had severe drug addictions, which had caused most of the band’s problems in the studios. Rock in a Hard Place was delayed most seriously when Steven Tyler had a crippling motorcycle accident. He was hobbled for a year and during that time the band literally stopped working.
Despite all of the problems, this album is surprisingly strong. All of ten songs are fun to listen to. It is undeniably a good album, although part of me has a hard time listening to it because of the absence of Joe Perry and Brad Whitford. Of the ten songs, one is a cover song (“Cry Me a River”), longtime Aerosmith collaborator Richie Supa wrote another song (“Lightning Strikes”), and one is merely a spoken poem (“Prelude to Joanie”). Although Aerosmith was having difficulty writing new material, this album does have considerable musical value.
The opening riffs of “Jailbait” introduce us to Jimmy Crespo’s style. This song really cooks. It sounds a bit different than a song that Joe Perry would write, but it has that vintage Aerosmith attitude. This is a great song and it’s unfortunate that not many people get to hear it. You can also hear “Jailbait” on the album Gems, which is a collection of some of their best rocking tunes. Richie Supa wrote the next song, “Lightning Strikes”. Supa has worked with the band on a number of the band’s best songs such as “Chip Away the Stone”, “Amazing”, and “Pink”. On this tune, the band gets back to their roots. It is a great classic rock tune and it is also the only song that Brad Whitford played on before he left.
“B*tch’s Brew” opens with an interesting finger-picked guitar line, but it gives way to a great guitar riff. It has a feel similar to songs from the Get Your Wings album. Jimmy Crespo was able to write a number of great songs like this, and it’s a shame that he was only in the spotlight on one album. The guitars are really cranked on “Bolivian Ragamuffin”. This is a fine example of Aerosmith at their most extreme. Steven Tyler’s vocals just scat over the incredible groove the band lays down. It’s not quite my favorite on the album, but it’s nonetheless a great song.
Aerosmith slows down and plays the bluesy “Cry Me a River”. This is the only true ballad on the album, and was originally done by Julie London. This song will surely have you snapping your fingers to the mellow backbeat. Tyler and company have always had a knack for playing the blues, and this song is one of their little known gems. The great horns and harmonica groove of the cool title track certainly fits in with the other hard hitting rock songs of the album. It sounds a little bit derivative, but the horns really add a lot to this tune. It also has one of Crespo’s best guitar solos.
Tyler treated his voice with a number of sound effects including vocoders on the spoken intro to “Joanie’s Butterfly”. This shows the band really reaching for new heights and branching out in ways they hadn’t before. “Prelude to Joanie” serves as an introduction to my favorite song on Rock in a Hard Place. “Joanie’s Butterfly” starts off as an acoustic rock song. But eventually the electric guitars come in along with the rest of the band. I’ve never heard another song quite like it. Lyrically its similar to something from the Draw the Line album, but musically it speaks for itself.
“Prelude to Joanie” by Steven Tyler:
“At first we three thought
‘twas the biblical cord of life
then noticing ‘twas connected
to his head
how strange not to be believed
I reached out to feel
And the pony’s eyes they opened
The cord got hard
The head looked around
And you know who pushed and gushed
The waters of life
First two hooved feet
Then the shine of his fur
But at the first to my eyes only
Feather, feathers, wings
The butterflies flew up in such colors
Exploding all around us
The rest I did not see
Till there he stood
All eyes in wonder
Who me
Who you
Look”
“Jig is Up” is a another rock song with a fantastic groove. It has a feel very similar to “Bolivian Ragamuffin”. However, I think the drumming and overall percussive feel of this song let it stand on its own. Aerosmith continues their tradition of closing their albums with a ballad with “Push Comes to Shove”. This is a Steven Tyler piano ballad similar to “Home Tonight” or “Darkness”. “Push Comes to Shove” has an almost lounge act feel to it. You can picture the band playing this song in a Vegas hotel lobby.
Overall, I really like this album. Once you get past the fact that Joe and Brad weren’t in the band at this point, you will appreciate the album that much more. Aerosmith was able to persevere in the face of incredible obstacles and write a pretty good album. In fact, this album is better than the album where Joe and Brad reunited with the band. Fans of Aerosmith’s 70s rock would definitely enjoy this album.
Song Selection:
1. Jailbait
2. Lightning Strikes
3. B*tch's Brew
4. Bolivian Ragamuffin
5. Cry Me a River
6. Prelude to Joanie
7. Joanie's Butterfly
8. Rock in a Hard Place (Cheshire Cat)
9. Jig Is Up
10. Push Comes to Shove
Top Picks: Jailbait, Cry Me a River, Joanie’s Butterfly, Bolivian Ragamuffin
Band Members:
Steven Tyler: vocals, keyboards, harmonica, percussion
Jimmy Crespo: guitars
Rick Dufay: guitars
Joey Kramer: drums
Tom Hamilton: bass
Additional Musicians:
Brad Whitford: guitar on “Lightning Strikes”
Paul Harris: piano on “Push Come to Shove”
John Turi: sax on “Rock in a Hard Place (Cheshire Cat)”
Richard Straub: violins on “Joanie’s Butterfly”
John Lievano: guitar on “Joanie’s Butterfly”
Jack Douglas: percussion
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