Good idea, but too pricey

Aerosmith is recognized as one of America's greatest classic rock bands of all time, and why not? Their music rules! Steven Tyler and the boys were some of the world's finest musicians, and although their days as an excellent band were short, during those years they shelled out some of the finest songs in rock and roll history. And now the band has compiled a box set of their recordings! Read on for my review of this package.

PROS:
-There are two ways you can do a box set: The good way (a definitive collection of every recording you have ever done) and the bad way (a scattershot mixture of tracks.), and the Aerosmith box set does it the GOOD way! You get all of the band's studio albums in this collection from their self-titled 1973 debut up to Permanent Vacation.
-The compilation features some rare material in addition to the albums.
-The box includes a handy booket with a ton of useful and interesting liner notes.
-Buying this set is a better value than buying all of the band's material separately.

CONS:
-The problem with this set is that it's too expensive due to the fact that the band wastes a lot of CD space. To give you an example of what I mean, the band's first two albums, Aerosmith and Get Your Wings can fit onto a single CD!

OVERALL:
Overall, despite minor flaws, this is an excellent box set for one of America's greatest rock and roll bands. If you're a classic rock fan, don't bother with hits compilations - be a man and shell out the cash for this set. It's a set worthy in the collection of every fan of classic rock.

Good music, but definitely not worth the price

The "Box Of Fire" brings together all of Aerosmith's releases for Columbia records, as well as a few rare tracks (of which the excellent "Rockin' Pneumonia And The Boogie Woogie Flu" is by far the most interesting).



All twelve albums have been digitally remastered, and the packaging is exquisite, with numerous photos and memorabilia from the era when each specific album was concerned.

The only problem with this lavish box set, and the reason why I'm only giving it 3 stars, is that it doesn't really add that much to the Aerosmith legacy.

By including all of their Columbia albums, including one great, one good, and one very mediocre live album, it almost makes itself obsolete...all these records are readily available (and have also been remastered since "Box Of Fire" came out), and the previous Columbia-era box set, the superb "Pandora's Box", contains many more rarities and previously unissued songs than "Box Of Fire" - and much more interesting ones as well.



And that's why I'm not all that impressed by this collection. Sure, the packaging is excellent, but there is very, very little here that the serious Aerosmith fan doesn't already own - if anything. And the casual fan will be better served by buying the best of these twelve albums individually, and perhaps adding "Pandora's Box"...Aerosmith's classic 70s albums have all been remastered as well.



Really brilliant box sets, like Stevie Ray Vaughan's "SRV", The Faces' "Five Guys Walk Into A Bar", and Bob Dylan's "Biograph", include all the hits and most of the best album tracks, as well as many rarities and unreleased songs. But "Box Of Fire" indiscriminately throws together all of what is already there, adding five "rarities" of which only one is truly great (and truly rare).

Great Set

It doesn't matter if the set is expensive or if you already own some of the songs on other cds. This set is a great collection and well worth the cost. Any true Aerosmith fan should own this and know that the money will only go on to support the best band in America... Aerosmith. Buy this, its great!!