Aeromsith's Crown Jewel Album

Pump is what can be best described as brilliant. Brilliant mainly because you get a raw form of rock on this album that is rarely accomplished, and nearly non-existent today. Young Lust, Love in Elevator, and The Other Side are staple good feel rock hits. What it Takes does what no rock ballad has ever done before... stay cool and well played and liked from its release to 16 years later (My god has it really been that long!) The backbone of the album is of course the mega smash hit Janie's Got a Gun which is a true classic rock gem. Telling of the story of child abuse it delves right into the soul of all that listen by being as cut-throat as it gets but while not being preachy. The MTV videos also took these singles to a new level of iconic status as well. All in all, A masterpiece album of great writing and performance levels. A true 10 out of 10.

JANIES GOT A GUN

GREAT SONG! ROCKS THE HARDEST AND PLAY THIS SONG OVER A THOUSAND

GOD DAMN TIMES! AND I WILL BUY YOU THIS CD FOR FREE! THANK YOU.

GOODBYE

Not F.I.N.E. but pretty G.O.O.D. anyway

While I'm not into metal, I do enjoy some good hard rock every now and again. Steven Tyler's crew, at least on this CD, are a lot better than much hard rock in that it dares to mess with the "bass/guitar/drums" formula.



Among the unusual instrumentation/ideas you'll hear here are: the subtle accordion (PERHAPS it's harmonica, since Tyler is credited with that, but the liner notes are almost non-existent, and it SOUNDS like accordion to my ears..) on bluesy ballad "What it Takes", dulcimer and banjo ("Dulcimer Stomp"), Australian didjeridoo at the intro to "Don't Get Mad, Get Even", and the guitar solo on "The Other Side" that sounds like a crazed Sun records era rockabilly solo. These things elevate it above other 80s hard-rockers that don't wear well with time (Tesla, Warrant, etc.)



Another surprise is a rock band actually taking an ANTI-drug stance (probably through hard experience as several members once had serious drug habits..) in "Monkey on my Back". "Janie's Got a Gun" drew attention to parent sexual abuse of their children.



Now, the downside: As you'd expect from the cover, an awful lot of these songs deal with sex, which isn't in and of itself so bad, but given the ages of the guys singing, there's a big creepiness factor to songs like "Young Lust" (with gems like "checkin' out the ladies who didn't bring their boyfriends

who love to get in trouble, I got to say I'll see you later, meet me in the elevator...") and "F.I.N.E." ("Let's put our clothes back on, and by the way girl..What's your name again?").

They also tend to undercut the serious message in "Janie's Got a Gun" (sure, 'Janie' was is making it with his daughter, but for crying out loud, the skirts Aerosmith's chasing in "Young Lust" are SOMEONE'S young daughters!)



At least in "My Girl" the testosterone factor is leavened with a witty line ("day after day it's the same ol' grind...and grind..and grind..and grind..and grind..."). As it is, the album's still very listenable and holds up well nearly 15 years later.



3 3/4 stars

The Come-Back Kids Strike Gold ****

Aerosmith broke up at the end of the 80's, in part due to Steven Tyler's motor cycle accident. But the band wasn't working well. It had been a good five years since they released a really great album and with the failed blues-rock of "Rock and a Hard Place," recovery looked like a thing of the past. Joe Perry walked and made his own album. The band finally split.



Upon the bands reunion, hopes were high but songwriting was weak. "Done With Mirrors" remains today one of the bands most uninspired works. Time seemed to have alluded "America's greatest rock and roll band." But they kept on and were rewarded with "Premanent Vacation," a good pop-rock gem sporting no less than 3 blockbuster singles. On their next album, "Pump," Aerosmith had returned to form, and the album remains one of their best.



The one-two punch of "Young Lust" and "F.I.N.E." set the adventurous, amourous tone and the band never lets up or looks back for a second. The Stonesy aforementioned rockers combine with some of the band's finest ballads ("What It Takes") to make a consistent and interesting listen. Aerosmith even dive into uncharted territory on the child-abuse concious "Janie's Got a Gun," one of the band's most humanitarian songs. And "Pump" has lost none of its savor. Rock and Roll.



Overall: 8 out of 10.

This one is right behind TOYS and ROCKS!!!

PUMP is in my opinion AEROSMITH'S third best album behind TOYS and ROCKS, and that is saying alot. From the start of YOUNG LUST with is balls to the walls, full speed ahead rock, to the folk-blues outro to WHAT IT TAKES, the band found the roots once again and shows all the younger bands of the era how it really is done. The band shows even though they are clean and sober, they havent lost their BAD-BOYS FROM BOSTON edge. LOVE IN AN ELEVATOR, JAMIE'S GOT A GUN, MY GIRL, THE OTHER SIDE, MONKEY ON MY BACK, FINE every song here is great and this is an album that I find myself going back to and listening to even after 13 years or so. Some might say the band soldout and got soft, but I cant find any of that on this album. This is an essential for any serious music fans collection.

uhjtrjbiaek xvn2734925810[4r (couldn't think of a title)

Well lets just say it started when I heard sunshine on VH1, and I Enjoyed it. So life goes on for about half a year.Until about a couple of months ago when I was bored and decided to look at the reviews for the CD it was on (Just push play),and a few of the reviews said that the CD was ok but the real good ones were, "Rocks","Toys in the attic", and this.
So earlier today I went to the library and borrowed "Pump", listened to it,and loved it. (the end)
Sorry I couldn't put in more detail,but it would turn out to be a novel.Now if I could I would rate it 4.5 stars but I can't do that (and it deserves better than 4 stars),so I'll give it 5.
All in all,Aerosmith fan + $, = let's just say a little trip to the record store (favorite track: "Young Lust" )