|
The 70s
Apr 11, 2013 12:52:04 GMT -5
Post by Admin on Apr 11, 2013 12:52:04 GMT -5
Aerosmith Reflect on 43 Years of Rock Joe Perry: 'We made a deal with the devil and haven't been able to get out of it.' Steven Tyler and Joe Perry of Aerosmith attend a press conference and presentation of the ASCAP Founders Award at Sunset Marquis Hotel & Villas in West Hollywood, California. By Steve Baltin Steven Tyler and Joe Perry of Aerosmith attend a press conference and presentation of the ASCAP Founders Award at Sunset Marquis Hotel & Villas in West Hollywood, California. Jason LaVeris/FilmMagic Steven Tyler and Joe Perry will be honored with the Founder's Award for songwriting at this year's ASCAP Expo, to be held next week in Los Angeles. It's part of a banner spring for the duo, who were also selected for induction into the Songwriting Hall of Fame and are co-headlining in Australia with Van Halen. Shortly before takeoff, the veteran rockers sat down with Rolling Stone at NightBird Recording Studios in West Hollywood, where they discussed the pleasures of live performance and how they dealt with early criticism, which Tyler admits "Hurt the first few years." Awards offer an opportunity to reflect. When you look back, which moments stand out? Steven Tyler: We come from an era when "Sweet Emotion" and "Back In The Saddle" were considered dark and we weren't accepted. We were just a B-side album band. We were never a singles band. Then the Eighties came along with "Dude (Looks Like A Lady)." I listen to that now and I think, "What?" It's fun to hear, kind of like "Wooly Bully," but were we trying too hard to be a singles band? It doesn't fucking matter. We've been strung out and sober. We've sold in and we've sold out. Some days we didn't even sell at all. What matters is we're still together as a band. Joe Perry: One of the things that really hits the nail on the head is the time Steven and I got a phone call from our manager telling us we went to number one with "I Don't Want To Miss A Thing." That was our first number one single. We looked at each other and said, "Holy shit! That's great, but I thought for sure we had a number one in there somewhere." And then we just put the phone down and went back to what we were doing. We've been such a live band for so many years, the only time I remember thinking, "Wow, we've got something," is when we aimed for something that would carry the day live. 'Cause that's what we do – we're here to entertain the crowd. You mentioned being a B-sides band. Does that mean songwriting awards carry an extra special weight for you? Steven Tyler: They feel really good. But we've always just played our music and haven't given a shit. Still, the "Cheap imitation of the Rolling Stones" criticism was constant. And it hurt for the first couple of years. It was constantly Mick Jagger this and Mick Jagger that – that I copied him, and Janis Joplin too. Mick was the cheapest, easiest shot. "Well, he looks like him, so let's write about that." Joe Perry: You could tell that they weren't listening, because we definitely weren't sounding like the Stones. Steven Tyler: Done our best to try to, though. Joe Perry: We steal from everybody. Amateurs copy and pros steal, and we're professionals. We make no bones about the fact that we took from the people that came before us. Joe Perry: Aerosmith Are 'Getting Along Better Than Ever' Many bands that take a break, whether forced to or by choice, come back feeling rejuvenated. Has that ever been the case for you? Steven Tyler: We've never been apart longer than two years. I've watched that premise with everybody else, though – just recently my dear friend Mick Fleetwood got back together with his guys after five years. We've toured when there were no albums, when management said, "you're not gonna make any money," but we did. Joe Perry: I've seen bands split up for five years and do nothing. That sounds great to me, but it just hasn't worked out that way. We joined this club for better and for worse – made a deal with the devil and haven't been able to get out of it. But we've been lucky enough to fall back on each other. If a couple of guys aren't working right, the others pull it back together. It's always worked like that. Are you looking forward to playing with Van Halen? Who else is on your bucket list? Joe Perry: I'm really looking forward to it. There's been talk about us co-headlining for years. But they're one of those bands that do a cycle then split, so it's been really hard. Steven Tyler: I would take a pay cut to play with AC/DC. It's one of my last things to do, go on tour with them. I don't really care about the money, and I don't care about some great review. It's more about the fans – it's always been about them. Read more: www.rollingstone.com/music/news/q-a-aerosmith-reflect-on-43-years-of-rock-20130411#ixzz2QB6Weev2 Follow us: @rollingstone on Twitter | RollingStone on Facebook
|
|
|
Post by Admin on Jun 20, 2013 12:12:11 GMT -5
Q&A With Aerosmith: Steven Tyler 'Itching' to Make Solo Album Band being inducted into Hollywood Bowl Hall of Fame; Joe Perry working on autobiography Joe Perry and Steven Tyler of Aerosmith attend the Songwriter's Hall of Fame 44th Annual Induction and Awards Dinner in New York City. By Steve Baltin June 20, 2013 This Saturday night, Steven Tyler and Joe Perry will receive yet another honor when the Aerosmith guitarist and frontman are inducted into the Hollywood Bowl Hall of Fame. Patti Austin and John Legend (who is being welcomed into the hall by Stevie Wonder) are also being recognized by the iconic venue. It's a special night on many fronts for the "Toxic Twins." In separate interviews, Tyler and Perry spoke to Rolling Stone about their history with Wonder, the importance of music education (which the event benefits) and why Tyler wants to do a solo album while Perry finishes his autobiography. What does the Bowl mean to you? Steven Tyler: Look at who played there – Billie Holiday, Judy Garland, the Stones, the Beatles, Frank Sinatra – and every time we hit that stage, don't you think I stand there and think about the people that looked out at the same thing I'm looking out at? It's just astounding. What an honor. Plus, the L.A. Philharmonic has a music program and it gives money to the schools, because they cut all these programs for kids to try to maybe play something or learn how to play. Schools, the first thing they cut is music programs. They don't realize how important music is to kids. Through song you learn, and I think school systems need to learn that. Through the rhythm you can learn better, through melody, with something you need to learn, it's a vehicle for it. I think it's a good thing the L.A. Philharmonic is doing, and they're gonna raise a lot of money from this event. Joe Perry: We've played it four times. The history of the place is not lost on us. I would rather play the Hollywood Bowl than any one of the other arenas around. It's a tough place to play for a rock band, but it sounds great, and the history of who played there, just great to be able to stand on that stage. [And] it's for a good cause. The most important thing to remember is the money goes to really help bring music to places that it's being taken away daily – the cutbacks in the government and music programs in the school. That's bigger than the event and the people that are playing it. I think that's really important, that kids get exposed to music as soon as they can – not necessarily to become musicians, but at least have an outlet. It's an art form that's easily accessible to young ears. Plus you get to play with the Philharmonic. Tyler: We're doing "I Don't Wanna Miss a Thing." That's a great song to orchestrate and I'm gonna meet with these guys from the L.A. Philharmonic a couple days earlier and go over their arrangements and throw some shit in. I love it when it's twisted and turned around like this. It's just gonna be so good – I'm so looking forward to it. The L.A. Philharmonic on "Cryin'," we'll see what happens. The critics should have a field day with this shit, right? The critics love having their way with us. I guess they're afraid of my style. I love it [laughs]. Perry: We're doing five songs. I'm always anxious to hear how the pop guys deal with some of the rockers. But we're gonna do two ballads. It's just going to sound amazing, especially in the Bowl. I think it's going to be 98 pieces [in the orchestra]. We're going over the charts and stuff, and it's gonna be good. Stevie Wonder is presenting John Legend his honor. I am sure you have a long history with him. Tyler: I've met Stevie many times. I went to his birthday party in the Bahamas, I met his family. I know him well, I love him dearly, and I've spoken to him many times about Talking Book and so forth. But the greatest joy of my life, one of them – and God knows there have been many – was on the set of Idol, I was turning 64. I came back from a commercial break, I went down to talk to some people, and I turn around and out on the stage comes Stevie Wonder. I thought, "Oh my God, what's this about?" And he sang "Happy Birthday" to me and I went "What the fuck?" And that was the first year. On the second year on my birthday Joe Perry came out. Perry: I've never met him that I recall, and I think I would remember that one. I'm obviously a huge fan, and his music has been a big influence on the way I write. Ironically, we'll be doing "Walk This Way," which is probably the song I'm most proud of, of Steven and my collaborations together. And I can remember the influences that led me to the path to write that and where I wrote it, the riff and all that. If there was any song I would pick that might work for Stevie to play [on], it would be that one. You have a few U.S. dates on the horizon. Where does Aerosmith go from here? Tyler: Joe has done, like, four solo albums. I never have, though with lyrics and arrangements and so forth a lot of Aerosmith albums are just fine for me. It's cathartic. But I had a lot of fun doing "(It) Feels So Good." I wrote that with Marti Frederiksen. I've got this itch in me to do a solo record, and that's what I'm gonna do next. I've got some great people that want to get involved in it. It's early on right now, but that's the itch I got. I got that itch to do something that's a lot different than Aerosmith. Aerosmith's never been better, but we did that album. This last album was an Aerosmith all-for-one-and-one-for-all. But my heart is in stuff like that weirder, off-the-cuff stuff that I'm not sure Aerosmith would like. I'm into electronica – I was when I used to listen to Stockhausen in '65. So there's just a lot of stuff – good, weird fucking music that I want to get off my chest. The band will be playing, and we're going to China and Singapore. It's gonna open up a whole new world for Aerosmith. So Aerosmith will always be around, but I got this itch and I know how to scratch it. Who are you looking to work with on the solo record? Tyler: There's so much good stuff out there. I am a huge Skrillex fan. I went to lunch with Deadmau5 at Mel's Diner. He's got incredible ideas for his next tour – blew me away, what he's gonna do. He's a single guy. He makes all the money himself when he puts the mouse head on, so he's got a ton of money. He knows where to take it, and he's still relevant. So it was a sick dinner, it was fucking unreal. I want to go out and explore things . . . I really want to take a little risk here and do something solo. There's no timeline – I'm gonna start in January and see where we get by March. Joe, how is the book coming? Perry: It's a lot of work. It's 42 years of keeping Aerosmith together, and then the other 20 that got me there. It's a lot to sort through. I really want this to be as close to the truth, and what I can remember, as it can be. It isn't like I'm sitting down and giving a couple of interviews and then letting my ghostwriter go off and figure it out. We're working with him almost daily. So it's cruising along. We're probably three-quarters through the first draft, I'd say. What's surprised you in writing this book? Perry: I guess some of the really hard times – going through them and looking at my part in some of the screw-ups that, if you're gonna keep going, you gotta deal with it when it happens. Say the band breaks up – when you go through that period we've all talked with each other about, the hard times and that kind of thing, and kind of made our peace with certain things and made our amends and apologies and all that. And then you go back 20 years later, you have to relive all that to really get the essence of it. You have to dig into that again, and it's really surprising. It's like digging up an old grave – you don't want to have to go back there. But in order to make the book as good as it can be, I have to. So that was a surprise. But I've been talking to a few of my old cronies, and they remember some things that certainly trigger some of the good things, too. A lot of people have been sending in pictures, snapshots, things like that. A friend of mine found a 30-second clip from the first band I was in when I was 14, and we have an 8mm clip of that. Unfortunately there's no sound – maybe fortunately [laughs]. But it's fun to watch. This has been a big year for you with awards, with you also getting into the Songwriter's Hall of Fame recently. Tyler: Music expresses what cannot be put into words I like to think, and I think the band makes a good go at it. So here we are getting an award for it, it's like, "What the fuck?" Welcome to life, wet, naked and hungry, and for some of us things get better after a while. Read more: www.rollingstone.com/music/news/q-a-with-aerosmith-steven-tyler-itching-to-make-solo-album-20130620#ixzz2WmFkpjRf Follow us: @rollingstone on Twitter | RollingStone on Facebook
|
|
|
The 70s
Oct 15, 2013 15:58:17 GMT -5
Post by steve on Oct 15, 2013 15:58:17 GMT -5
Brings back memories!
|
|
|
Post by billf on Dec 31, 2013 13:50:18 GMT -5
On my shelf since c.1970 with the great Lew Soloff on trumpet. Last saw him in the 90s with the Carla Bley Orchestra
|
|
|
The 70s
Jan 1, 2014 17:06:49 GMT -5
Post by tom1960 on Jan 1, 2014 17:06:49 GMT -5
They were kinda hip around the time I was growing up in the early 70's. I connected with there music early on and still get enjoyment from hearing the old favorites. One of my favs is "Lucretia MacEvil".
|
|
|
Post by jmuscara on Jan 2, 2014 9:25:23 GMT -5
I was starting a horn band (that failed, another story) and someone suggested to me to check them out. I stopped by the local record store and they had their first album on sale (maybe used so cheap). Even though I was familiar with Al Kooper from his Supersessions with Mike Bloomfield, what he did here was a bit out. That first album has some strange stuff that I have difficulty getting into along with some tracks I could dig on their own. Needless to say, I didn't really find anything helpful for arranging horns on that one. The band broke up before I got to check out any of their other material. I've put the greatest hits link above into my queue to listen to later. That may be a better choice for me.
|
|
|
The 70s
Jan 5, 2014 10:33:54 GMT -5
Post by jmuscara on Jan 5, 2014 10:33:54 GMT -5
I listened to that stuff. Meh, not my bag. It's funny, I hear similarities to early Chicago, which I do dig. But BST doesn't work nearly as well for me.
|
|
|
Post by Steven B on Jan 6, 2014 8:43:27 GMT -5
I kinda agree with you jmuscara. Although I did like a few of their tunes and thought their lead vocalist could really sing, then never did "mash my button" like Chicago did. Having said all that.....my favorite horn band of all time would have to be Earth, Wind, and Fire. I know that's probably hard to swallow knowing that I'm a redneck, bluegrass lover........but those guys could really blow. I still don't know how the trumpet guys could get that quick attack/staccato sound out of their instruments.
The other horn band that I remember from that period was "Tower of Power". Those guys were right fair too.
|
|
|
Post by jmuscara on Jan 7, 2014 8:22:27 GMT -5
I still love Tower of Power. And these guys...
|
|
|
The 70s
Apr 19, 2014 9:36:00 GMT -5
Post by Admin on Apr 19, 2014 9:36:00 GMT -5
My favorite Aerosmith album:
|
|
|
Post by jmuscara on Apr 21, 2014 7:09:07 GMT -5
I have a bit more respect for them after reading that. I've long liked their stuff, and I bought some of it back in the 80s/90s, but after a while, those albums started to wear on me. It sounded like they were trying to write big, epic hits. I'd get to the second half of the CD and every song sounded like they were trying to be the last one on the record. They just didn't fit together as an album.
I mean, I don't care if an artist wants to sell or sell out, but if I don't enjoy it, I'm not going to buy it.
I haven't picked up anything by them recently, nor have I ever seen them live, so maybe I should give them another shot.
|
|
|
The 70s
Jun 12, 2014 9:28:42 GMT -5
Post by Admin on Jun 12, 2014 9:28:42 GMT -5
|
|
|
The 70s
Jun 14, 2014 18:53:35 GMT -5
Post by tom1960 on Jun 14, 2014 18:53:35 GMT -5
Hard to believe. The Ramones came along at the right time when rock needed a much deserved kick in the ass. Always a sentimental favorite.
|
|
|
Post by JamesP on Mar 18, 2015 2:36:19 GMT -5
CCR is (IMHO) among the greatest groups to record Rock and Roll. Following from Rolling Stone: BIOGRAPHY Thanks largely to John Fogerty's rough, inimitable voice and seemingly bottomless supply of great melodies, Creedence Clearwater Revival were the preeminent American singles band of the late Sixties and early Seventies. John Fogerty and his brother Tommy were raised in Berkeley, where John studied piano and at the age of 12 got his first guitar. He met bandmates Cook and Clifford at El Cerrito junior high school, and by 1959 the group was performing at local dances as Tommy Fogerty and the Blue Velvets. In 1964 the quartet signed to San Francisco-based Fantasy Records, where Tom had been working as a packing and shipping clerk. The label renamed them the Golliwogs and began putting out singles. "Brown-Eyed Girl" sold 10,000 copies in 1965, but the followups were flops. Greater success came after they adopted the CCR moniker in 1967. Several Fogerty compositions appeared on Creedence Clearwater Revival, but cover versions of Dale Hawkins' "Suzie Q" and Screamin' Jay Hawkins' "I Put a Spell on You" were the group's first hits. With the release of Bayou Country, Creedence became the most popular rock band in America. Beginning with the two-sided gold hit "Proud Mary" (Number Two, 1969) b/w "Born on the Bayou," Creedence dominated Top Forty radio for two years without disappointing the anticommercial element of the rock audience. CCR's rough-hewn rockers often dealt with political and cultural issues, and the quartet appeared at the Woodstock Festival. Creedence had seven major hit singles in 1969 and 1970, including "Bad Moon Rising" (Number Two, 1969), "Green River" (Number Two, 1969), "Fortunate Son" (Number 14, 1969), "Down on the Corner" (Number Three, 1969), "Travelin' Band" (Number Two, 1970), "Up Around the Bend" (Number Four, 1970), and "Lookin' Out My Back Door" (Number Two, 1970). Although Creedence's success continued after Cosmo's Factory, it was the group's artistic peak. Internal dissension, primarily the result of John Fogerty's dominant role, began to pull the band apart in the early '70s. Tom left in January 1971, one month after the release of the pivotal Pendulum which became the group's fifth platinum album. Creedence carried on as a trio, touring worldwide; Live in Europe was the recorded result. CCR's final album, Mardi Gras, gave Cook and Clifford an equal share of the songwriting and lead vocals. It was the band's first album not to go platinum. Creedence disbanded in October 1972, and Fantasy has subsequently released a number of albums, including a live recording of a 1970 Oakland concert, which upon original release was erroneously titled Live at Albert Hall (it was later retitled The Concert). Tom Fogerty released a number of albums on his own and with his band Ruby, and worked occasionally in the early Seventies with organist Merle Saunders and Grateful Dead guitarist Jerry Garcia. He moved to Arizona in the mid-Eighties and died there from respiratory failure brought on by AIDS in 1990 at age 48. Clifford released a solo album in 1972 of Fifties-style rock & roll. Thereafter, he and Cook provided the rhythm section for Doug Sahm on his 1974 LP and the Don Harrison Band after 1976. In the mid-Eighties Cook joined country group Southern Pacific, which had several hits. Not surprisingly, John Fogerty's solo pursuits have attracted the greatest attention. Immediately after the breakup he released a bluegrass/country album, The Blue Ridge Rangers, on which he played all the instruments. Two songs, the Hank Williams classic "Jambalaya (On the Bayou)" and "Hearts of Stone," made the Top Forty. Nearly three years passed before his next LP, another one-man show titled John Fogerty. It sold poorly, and his next album, to be called Hoodoo, was rejected by Asylum Records. Fogerty and his family retired to a farm in rural Oregon. He was barely seen for the next decade. He emerged with Centerfield (Number One, 1985), a typically simple, tuneful collection that sold two million copies and produced hit singles in "The Old Man Down the Road" (Number 10, 1985), "Rock and Roll Girls" (Number 20, 1985), and "Centerfield" (Number 44, 1985). "Old Man" and another song from the album, "Zanz Kant Danz," landed Fogerty in legal trouble. The latter, a thinly veiled attack against Fantasy owner Saul Zaentz ("Zanz can't dance but he'll steal your money"), led Zaentz to sue for $142 million, not only over that song, but over "Old Man": Fantasy claimed the song plagiarized the music of the 1970 CCR B side "Run Through the Jungle." In 1988 a jury ruled in Fogerty's favor; six years later the Supreme Court ordered Fantasy to reimburse Fogerty for over $1 million in lawyers' fees. For years Fogerty refused to perform CCR songs live; he'd had to surrender his artist's royalties on them to get out of his Fantasy contract in the Seventies. But at Tom Fogerty's wedding in 1980 and the El Cerrito High School reunion in 1983 Fogerty briefly put aside his bitterness to play a handful of Creedence classics with his former bandmates. The brief sets would be the last time he'd ever perform his old band. Three years later, at the July 4, 1987 concert for Vietnam veterans in Washington, DC, he broke the boycott for the first time at a public concert, singing eight Creedence classics. He then dropped out of sight again, surfacing only for the annual Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremonies; in 1993 his own turn came when CCR were inducted into the hall. Fogerty refused to perform with Cook and Clifford that evening. The rhythm section found out they weren't going to perform hours before the ceremony, leaving them to stand awkwardly by the side of the stage while Bruce Springsteen and Robbie Robertson while Fogerty sang "Born On The Bayou." By this point any lingering hopes fans had for a CCR reunion were extinguished. Fogerty released Blue Moon Swamp (Number 37, 1997); inspired by several trips to the Mississippi Delta, the album had taken over four years to make. The single "Southern Streamline" hit Number 67 on the C&W chart. Fogerty followed up the release with an extensive U.S. tour on which he played many CCR classics such as "Proud Mary" and "Fortunate Son" along with his new material; the live album Premonition (Number 29) was released the following year. In 1995 Cook and Clifford started touring as Creedence Clearwater Revisited. Fogerty sued and won a temporary injunction barring them from using that name, but his former bandmates ultimately prevailed in the case. Both camps are now regulars on the summer concert circuit, playing shows with remarkably similar setlists. Fogerty has stayed busy as a recording artist in recent years as well. In 2004 he released Déjà vu, whose title referred to similarities between the Vietnam and Iraq wars. Fogerty followed with 2007's Revival and 2009's The Blue Ridge Rangers Ride Again, the latter a sequel to 1973's Blue Ridge Rangers. The album featured guests like Bruce Springsteen and found Fogerty singing rootsy, fiddle-laden covers of obscure songs by John Prine, Buck Owens and others. Portions of this biography appeared in The Rolling Stone Encyclopedia of Rock & Roll (Simon & Schuster, 2001). Andy Greene contributed to this article. ======================================================================================================================================================================= Their album, "Willie and The Poor Boys" ranks up there as one of their best.
|
|
|
Post by JamesP on Nov 9, 2015 9:10:48 GMT -5
November 9, 1941: Tom Fogerty's Birthday
|
|