Live Bootleg

Performer: Aerosmith
Producer: Jack Douglas; Aerosmith
Distributor: Sony Music Distribution (

Notes: LIVE! BOOTLEG has been digitally remastered using Sony's 20-Bit Digital Super Bit Mapping process. This release includes new deluxe packaging with original release liner notes, photos and artwork. Aerosmith: Steven Tyler (vocals, piano); Joe Perry, Brad Whitford (guitar); Tom Hamilton (bass); Joey Kramer (drums). Additional personnel: David Woodford (saxophone); Mark Radice (keyboards, background vocals). Engineers: Lee DeCarlo, Jack Douglas, Jay Messina. Recorded live between 1973 and 1978. In addition to being one of the greatest American hard rock bands of the '70s (Kiss being the other one), Aerosmith developed a reputation as one of the fiercest live acts thanks to a grueling tour schedule. Inspired by the countless unauthorized live recordings circulating at the time, the band put out LIVE: BOOTLEG, a collection of performances recorded between 1977 and 1978, in addition to a pair of early cuts from a 1973 WBCN simulcast. Unlike many live albums that of this time period that were overdubbed and doctored, BOOTLEG is Aerosmith at its rawest. "Back in the Saddle" and "Toys in the Attic" contain plenty of ragged guitar playing. Despite the sub-par sound quality, the tracks triumph nonetheless thanks to the primal vibe generated by the band's chemistry. Yes, hits like "Walk This Way" and "Dream On" are included, but the true gems are oft-overlooked nuggets like "Chip Away the Stone," "Mama Kin," and an uncredited "Draw the Line" that overflow with Aerosmith's trademark sass and attitude. James Brown's "Mother Popcorn" and the blues classic "I Ain't Got You" (originally done by the Yardbirds), not only show the band's range, but its love of black music.

Q (4/01, p.92) - 3 stars out of 5 - "...Imagine thousands of Wisconsin college jocks out of their mind on Wild Turkey and their mum's diet pills, squinting at 5 midgets playing in the corner of a football stadium..."

A hard-rocking, no-holds-barred American group fronted by the wiry Steven Tyler, Aerosmith plays heavy riffs with a blues underpinning. After huge hits and sold-out tours in the 1970s, the band sank into oblivion for the first half of the '80s. They returned on the crest of Run-DMC's version of "Walk This Way" in 1986, and rode back up the charts with their rehabilitated rock, cranking out slick videos to gain a new generation of fans. Having hitched their star to MTV, they took on the role of rock's elder statesmen.

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