November, 2001

vol 5, num 1

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This album is part of the ". . .Blues On Fire series to celebrate the influence of that mysterious and pervasive art form, known as the blues, on major rock figures. It's a celebration that applauds both the original African-American artists who created the genre and artists who, like AEROSMITH, not only appreciated the blues, but soaked their own creations in it." This is a direct quote from the liner notes of this album. There's also a quote from Steven Tyler, of AEROSMITH, stating that "The blues are our . . . roots. A lot of other bands dress up like I used to dress, but there's no . . . middle to what they play. No soul. There's no main vein runnin' down the middle of it."

Having said all that, here's my version. If you're a die hard AEROSMITH fan, and you want to hear their songs exactly the way AEROSMITH plays them, this album is not for you. Most of the tracks will have you ripping this album out of your CD player so fast your head will spin. On the other hand, if you're open to listening to ENTIRELY different interpretations of 13 AEROSMITH songs, you should give this album a listen.

Hardcore AEROSMITH fan that I am, there are certain tracks here that absolutely made me cringe, while others sound like the blueprint the band used to write the songs in the first place. A good example of that blueprint is the first track, "Cryin' ," done by Otis Clay. He's compared to the late Otis Redding in style and you can almost hear Tyler wailing the song out this way too. It's slower than the band's version, but full of soul.

Then there are 4 tracks that I personally did not like at all, although most of them are well done for what they are. "Pink" by Gerald McClendon, "Walk This Way" by Pinetop Perkins and Rusty Zinn with Ronnie Baker brooks (the worst one in my book), "Last Child" by Cathy Richardson with Wayne Baker Brooks and "Big Ten Inch Record" by Marshall Crenshaw and Sugar Blue, just did not make the grade with me. However, I'm NOT a blues fan, so that has a lot to do with it.

"One Way Street" by Lou Ann Barton and "Back In The Saddle" by Lou Gramm and Sugar Blue are good interpretations and again build that bridge of blues that AEROSMITH relies on. "Dream On" by Kim McFarland isn't bad, but this song needs a really strong vocal. Hearing a female with a sweet voice just doesn't get the emotion across in my opinion.

"Draw The Line" by Tad Robinson and "Rag Doll" by Joe Louis Walker are so different from the AEROSMITH versions that they're almost unrecognizable.

They're not bad, they're just kind of jarring because of the difference. "Sweet Emotion" by Donald Kinsey again demonstrates that blues foundation AEROSMITH built on for their rock hits. "Dude Look Like A Lady" by Crystal Taliefero with Joanna Connar doesn't really cut it with me again, but that's personal preference. I have nothing against female artists, but this song doesn't have the punch that a male band delivers.

The last track on the album, "Train Kept A Rollin' ," by David "Honeyboy" Edwards, has pretty close to an AEROSMITH delivery, since even the band leans heavily on this blues classic when they play the song.

Overall, listening to this album was a definitely a different experience. I hated it the first time I listened to it, but after listening again, at least half the songs live up to the name of "Tribute." The rest of them aren't quite as worthy of the title in my opinion. For me, nobody can sing AEROSMITH songs like AEROSMITH does and put out the vibe the band does. But some of these people come damn close.

Artist Various
Title Sweet Emotion: Songs of Aerosmith
Label Heavy Hip Mama
Reviewer Mary Ellen Gustafson
Rating
win stuff

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