A solid rock/blues collaboration

I like the fact that Aerosmith just goes for it on this one. The band does a fine job of interpreting the blues through the Aerosmith filter. Tyler sings with passion, Perry rips it up as well as any other blues guitar hero and the band provides solid rhythm. Tyler's harp playing is an eye opener for a blues fan like me. I have always felt the band had a solid foundation in the blues and I am glad they were willing to take on the thankless task (saleswise)of showing their love for the music. I'm pretty sure there are Aerosmith fans and blues fans that may gripe about this one, but I found it a nice change of pace for the band and a solid rock/blues collaboration.

An eye opener

Long gevity is something that is hard to come by in the music industry. Which is why when you condier the extensive catalougue that Aersomith has put together, it's is amazing that they don't have a few albums that are stinkers. "Done with mirrors" is the only one that comes to mind off the bat. However, with that long life a band must reinvent itself to stay relevant. Aersomith do some amazing renditions of old blues staples on Honkin' on Bobo. "roadrunner" and "You gotta move" are the standout tracks. They just have an attitude of "F*ck you we're here to rock" that most albums lack now a days. I think it is important for people of my generation ( born in the 80's) to hear music like this to understand that rock music does not have to come from drop-C tuning, but in attitude. This is an instant classic, especially if you are into a pop blues-rock fusion album.

Great bands don't stop

Who says there's an age limit for a band to have its music still be successful? While Honkin' On Bobo (seriously, does anyone know what that means?) may not be pulling HUGE sales numbers (which is a little obvious, considering it was released almost a year ago and the limited edition version is still available), it's still an above-average album.



Looking at the other reviews, though, I'm not exactly sure if everyone realizes that this is an album full of cover songs (except for "The Grind"). And I say this because a lot of people claim that they've followed Aerosmith since their emergence in the `70s, yet they don't seem to recognize a lot of these standards. Oh well, there are great renditions of songs on here, like "Road Runner", "Baby, Please Don't Go" and the traditional "Jesus Is On the Main Line".



Other good covers include Joe Perry's times to shine, like "Back Back Train" and especially "Stop Messin' Around". But the reason why I gave the album four stars is because the first few tracks are a little overproduced. Everything flows well though, making it a nice album to add to your Aerosmith collection, but it'll still have you itching for their next album of original material.



Anthony Rupert

Sorry to say, Aerosmith laid an egg with this one.

I saw from (some of) the other 164 reviews (so far) that this was reviewed very positively. All I can say is it did absolutely nothing for me. I LIKE the band, so I'm not trying to dog them. I saw them as far back as Cal Jam II (with Foreigner, Heart, Nugent, etc), and have 15 of their albums going back to 1973, but this is the first (and hopefully ONLY) one that doesn't even have one good track. It's just boring. I won't argue with the many others who like it; I'll just say it's not for me. If you're new to Aerosmith and like them, I'd suggest you get the album "Rocks" or "Toys in the Attic" instead of this one (for early albums) or "Pump" or "Get a Grip" (later albums). This just isn't that same polished hard rock I knew and liked and expected from the guys. Again, the BAND is hot, no question, but this specific album is a dud.

True spirit of Blues

I'm a long-time Aerosmith fan, and I'm also a big fan of american root music, especially blues. I don't throw my hat in the "reviewing ring" often, but some of the reviews saying "this is not blues" made me write.



This is the greatest tribute Aerosmith can do for their influences. It is amazing to listen to it, and to re-discover all those great styles.



The blues is defined as a musical framework in which every musicial develop his own style. this is precisely what Aerosmith are doing. Roadrunner, Shame Shame Shame, Baby Please Don't Go, Back Back Train, Stop Messin' Around, I'm Ready, Temprature, You Gotta Move, Jesus Is On The Mainline are all 12-bar blues form. The album is so versatile that it features songs of electric-blues inspired by the great Muddy Waters (such as I'm Ready), Country-blues spiritual (the wonderful Jesus Is On The Mainline, Back Back Train), soul (Tyler's vocals on the cover of Aretha Franklin's Never Loved A Man/Girl is crossing him over as a truly amazing soul singer), early rock'n'roll (Shame Shame Shame)and even a stint with British Blues (Stop Messin' Around).



All of these songs are done in the Aerosmith style, and that's the beauty of it. This is what blues is all about: the ability to invent yourself and create a whole new thing in 12-bars. And Aerosmith are doing it in style.



As a blues fan, this album goes together with great electric blues records and Muddy Water's "Hard Again" and SRV's "Texas Flood". ...and I still said nothing about Tyler's mezmorizing Harmonica playing, Joey Kramer's best drum works since the 70's, Tom Hamilton's fat backbone, and... well, what can you say about a guitar duo as Whitford/Perry? Just listen to them throwing licks and trading solos on Stop Messin' Around. In terms of Dynamincs and co-operation, I believe they are the best guitar duo I have ever heard.



The funny thing about blues purists is that they forget that the artists they admire weren't purists. Robert Johnson made a mayhem with his stories about the devil. Sonny-Boy Whilliamson (I) shocked many people as he played harmonica with the blues for the first time, and T-bone Walker didn't know what's going to happen when he first plugged-in his electric guitar in the 30's. Blues is about progression in a given framework, and that is exactly what Aerosmith are doing on this extraudinarre record.

Very Good

Coming off the mediocre Just Push Play album

Aerosmith decides to stray away the pop rock

they have been doing since the early 90's. The

results? A very solid album with few clunkers.



The two best songs here are Baby, Please Don't

Go and Road Runner. Some might say that Please

Don't Go doesn't sound as good as the AC/DC

version. PLEASE! I like AC/DC, but their version

did nothing for me. We also get two solid tunes

sung by Joe Perry such as Back Back Train and

Stop Messin Around and they sound great! I

honestly can't wait until his album is released

in just a few months.



There are a couple of tunes on here that really

doesn't go anywhere such as Shame Shame Shame

and the only orginal song The Grind. The first

just sounds rushed and not very good at all..

The second is just flat out boring. Songs You

Never Loved A Girl, and You Gotta Move are

really really good tracks aswell that Steven

Tyler really goes to work on.



The main problem that I have with this album is

is that other than the two Joe Perry songs I

feel Steven Tyler tries to hog the spotlight

alittle too much. If you listen to the South

Of Sanity disk you get the chance to hear

Whitford take charge on a couple of tunes with

his underrated guitar work. That really doesn't

happen here.



I've read some of the reviews of readers crying

about how this isn't a return to old form or

such. I got news for you, the 70's Aerosmith

was not really blues at all. You have to go

further back than that to really hear the

blues. I think alot people just have a problem

with the band doing a cover album. What? You

mean rock groups have never done cover albums

before? Think of Van Halen doing Diver Down

and I believe Rush released a cover album not

long ago. You say there is nothing new with

this covers? Are you really sure you understand

Aerosmith? Songs being done Aerosmith style

is something new on it's own. As they say, this

is a Aerosmith album and a solid one at that.



It doesn;t reach the 70's stuff or PC/Pump, but

it is better than Nine Lives which is a whiney

pop album, and Just Push Play a below average

studio album. Nobody with common sense would

take those two pop manufactured albums over

this one.



Pro's:



Please, Baby Don't Go

Stop Messin Around

Back Back Train

Road Runner

You Gotta Move

Never Loved A Girl

Steven Tyler on the Harmonica



Cons:



Steven Tyler tends to hog the spotlight

Shame Shame Shame

The Grind