If I had to choose one Aerosmith album to take on a deserted Island, ‘Draw The Line’ would be it.
Written by: Eric
ARTIST: Aerosmith
ALBUM: Draw The Line
LABEL: CBS
SERIAL: JC 34856
YEAR: 1977
CD REISSUE: Discogs Reissue List
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: USA
LINEUP: Steve Tyler – vocals * Joe Perry – guitars * Brad Whitford – guitars * Tom Hamilton – bass * Joey Kramer – drums
TRACK LISTING: 01 Draw The Line * 02 I Wanna Know Why * 03 Critical Mass * 04 Get It Up * 05 Bright Light Fright * 06 Kings And Queens * 07 The Hand That Feeds * 08 Sight For Sore Eyes * 09 Milk Cow Blues
WEBLINKS: Site Link
Background
These New Hampshire hooligans defined American hard rock in the 70’s and 80’s, but they were never a band I could listen to for very long, much better on the radio or at a party in my opinion. Having said this, I have bought my share of Aerosmith product over the years and there is something in each album to recommend. But for the most part I would have rather listened to Starz or even The Rolling Stones for dirty rock ‘n roll. Although if I had to choose one Aerosmith album to take on a deserted Island, ‘Draw The Line’ would be it.
The Songs
By the time this album was recorded, the band were headed full throttle into drugs, booze and everything that goes with the excessive rock lifestyle. For this reason, the band and critics alike have said the album is lacking when compared to the previous album ‘Rocks’.
I agree, a tough act to follow, but there is some excellent material found on ‘Draw The Line’ including the title track with Joe Perry’s sleazy slide guitar work. ‘I Wanna Know Why’ while an atypical Aerosmith song, chugs along nicely. The funky ‘Get It Up’ filled with sexual double entendre’s and backing vocals by Karen Lawrence of 1994 fame is one of the better tracks on the album.
But easily the finest track on the album is the epic ‘Kings And Queens’. This is about as close to progressive rock as Aerosmith ever dared to tread and it’s a remarkable song similar in many ways to Styx‘ ‘Castle Walls’, a tale filed with drama, Vikings, guillotines and the usual fantasy fare. This song is worth the price of the CD alone.
In Summary
Legendary caricature artist Hirshfeld’s cover art is a classic, especially his impression of Steven Tyler! Following this album, Aerosmith would disintegrate further and it wouldn’t be until the late 80’s after cleaning themselves up and becoming healthy that they would return, delivering some of their best work to date. Still, ‘Draw The Line’ does it for me and when it comes to Aerosmith, the album receives my highest recommendation.
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Entire Album (Select Tracks)
