JIMMY CRESPO SAVED THE DAY FOR AEROSMITH BY STEALING SOME OF JOE PERRY'S THUNDER

 

Here is a great Aerosmith tune for you off a totally forgotten album - ROCK IN A HARD PLACE from 1982. 

It is the one and only Aerosmith album that doesn't feature guitarist Joe Perry and bassist Brad Whitford. 

Recorded in the aftermath of Aerosmith's great big drug bender of the mid to late 1970`s with the help of session guitarist Jimmy Crespo and fellow fill-in Rick Dufay on rhythm, the album is surprisingly excellent in places, regardless of the brickbats chucked at it by rock critics. 

There are a few lemons, especially the muddled incoherent drivel of BOLIVIAN RAGAMUFFIN, but two songs stand out as no-nonsense classic ballsy Aerosmith hard rock, LIGHTNING STRIKES and JIG IS UP.

Whitford actually was still in the band when recording of the album first began, and his rhythm guitar part in LIGHTNING STRIKES is one of his best performances ever. 

JIG IS UP is actually more Rolling Stones influenced, Steve Tyler was always at pains to distance Aerosmith from any comparisons with the Stones because he didn't want to be regarded ever as a second generation Mick Jagger. 

At least until this album, Aerosmith were always good for three or four songs an album which made the Rolling Stones sound mediocre so he never had too much to worry about there. 

I never have liked Aerosmith after 1987, TOYS IN THE ATTIC, ROCKS and NIGHT IN THE RUTS is what Aerosmith was supposed to sound like and a few songs off ROCK IN A HARD PLACE would have to be up there as well despite the chaos tearing the band apart. Perry and Whitford rejoined the fold in 1984 to record DONE WITH MIRRORS.