This past Sunday, we held MusicBowl 53 where we allowed you the fans to vote as Aerosmith (representing New England) took on Motley Crue (representing LA) to coincide with SuperBowl LIII. After collecting your votes on the blog and on Twitter, Aerosmith was the winner of the MusicBowl. As is tradition on the blog, we cover an album from the winning band for the album of the week post and for this week’s we chose Toys In The Attic by Aerosmith. The bad boys of Boston which was made up of Steven Tyler (Vocals/Keyboards/Harmonica), Joe Perry (Lead Guitar), Brad Whitford (Rhythm Guitar), Tom Hamilton (Bass), and Joey Kramer (Drums) released their third studio album on April 8, 1975 via Columbia Records and was produced by Jack Douglas. The album is the band’s most successful album in the United States selling over 8 million copies while peaking at number 11 on the Billboard Top 200 Charts. Rolling Stone ranked Toys In The Attic 229 on their The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time list.
1. Toys In The Attic– The title track kicks off the album in style to which Tyler recalls, “Joe was jamming a riff and I started yelling, ‘Toys, toys, toys…’ Organic, immediate, infectious…I just started singing and it fit like chocolate and peanut butter. Joe plays his ass off on that song.” 5/5
2. Uncle Salty– Is kind of a creepy song that Tyler has said that it is about an orphanage where a man named Uncle Salty works at and has his way with a girl there. Tyler said, “Salty worked in a home for lost children and had his way with this little girl. That’s what it’s about. I’m the little girl, the orphaned boy. I put myself in that place. I’m Uncle Salty too.” 4/5
3. Adam’s Apple– a bluesy track where Steven takes the time to use the story of Adam and Eve to explore man’s behavior when it comes to sexuality. 4.5/5
4. Walk This Way-This is the original version of the track before Run DMC came around in a track that is all about a high school kid who loses his virginity. There’s a funny story about the origins of the lyrics. Tyler left the original lyrics inside a cab in New York and had to rewrite them in the studio. 5/5
5. Big Ten Inch Record-This is the band’s cover of Bullmoose Jackson’s track and Aerosmith does a great job with it. 4/5
6. Sweet Emotion– One of my all time favorite Aerosmith song’s that I first heard when I watched the film Dazed And Confused. The song was written by Tom Hamilton who came up with the bass riff that was played alongside an bass marimba in the beginning. The track also featured a talk box and what Tyler describes, “On ‘Sweet Emotion’, we used these backward handclaps and four of us in the studio chanting, ‘Fuck you, Frank.’ If you play it backward, you can hear this.” 5/5
7. No More No More-a track whose lyrics Tyler describes saying, “On a song like ‘No More No More,’ the lyrics came from my verbal diarrhea, a mishmash that I made up and eventually changed the lyrics to something cool…about life on the road: boredom, disillusion, Holiday Inns, stalemate, jailbait. My diary.” 4/5
8. Round And Round-a bad ass rock song from the band whose sound reminds me of a Kiss like track with the big bass riffs to match with the guitars in a track where Brad Whitford plays lead guitar on. The lyrics seem to be talking about life as a musician and how ti just spins out of control, but it just goes round and round like a vicious cycle. 4.5/5
9. You See Me Crying– The last track on the album that the band has stated was a pain in the ass to record because it took so long due to complex playing. It’s a piano ballad that for a while Tyler didn’t remember recording due to the memory loss from the drug use. 4.5/5
My Final Thoughts– This is definitely up there in the echelon of what is considered a classic Aerosmith record and it’s definitely top five for me, but to be honest I grew up a fan of 80’s Aerosmith. I have a new appreciation over the years for their 70’s material which is why I decided to visit it today. This album really put the band on the charts and it certainly paid off as even producer Jack Douglas saw that the band had matured while being on the road before recording this. My favorite track is Sweet Emotion, Walk This Way, the title track, and even Round And Round. Uncle Salty is my least favorite track on the album. I am giving the album 4.5 stars out of five for a final grade.