Disco de Aerosmith: “Pump [Remaster]”

Hot on the heels of their successful "Permanent Vacation" and still enjoying a resurgence as rockers, Aerosmith cranked out "Pump." It is, in my opinion, the best of their second successful run of albums. While "Vacation" set the table, "Pump" kicked things into high gear. From the opening track, "Young Lust," Aerosmith does not let up with their bluesy, dirty, driving sound. Songs like "F.I.N.E." and "My Girl" solidified this album as real rock, but it was the deep contrasts in their major releases that set this album apart from the pack. From the socially-conscious and touchy subject of "Janie's Got A Gun" to the slow, emotional "What It Takes" to the raw, sex-laden "Love In An Elevator," Aerosmith took this album in a million directions and managed to hold it all together. They also threw in a lot of experimental sounding segues as with "Dulcimer Stomp" and the wonderful "Hoodoo Voodoo Medicine Man."

In short, if I had to pick one album from their second run in rock history, I'd have to go with "Pump." It proved that older rockers could hang with the best of the young guys at the time and it came before their more homogenized and stale sounding albums like "Get A Grip."

Highly recommended.

The biggest album of Aerosmith's career? Well, some will argue Toys in the Attic was, but this album was more popular when it was first released because of the "big comeback" tag that was attached to it by many fans and disc jockeys. And how can I have a problem with that? The band had a severe drug addiction, and they were able to beat that dreadful addiction and make a quality album.

All the big hits from the album that you've heard (plenty of times) are gold, but even the lesser known songs are quite strong, melodically. Steven Tyler's singing is right on the money most of the time, and this album avoids being dominated with all kinds of stinky ballads the band would start making a couple years after this albums release. Worth picking up.

By the late 1980s, rock and roll was all about putting on a cutting-edge, exciting display of powerful guitar, drum, bass and vocals. By 1989, the third time back in the studio of the original lineup of Aerosmith (Steven Tyler- Vocals Keyboards and Harmonica, Joe Perry- Guitar, Brad Whitford- Guitar, Tom Hamilton- Bass, and Joey Kramer- Drums) proved to be the true charm for Aerosmith, and they cranked out a real rocker headed for a hall of fame.

PUMP is the second peak of the band's career (after their commercial plunge in the early 1980's due to declining record sales and inner group turmoil) It builds upon their catchy music that brought new fans who enjoyed 1987's

, and ties the classy new co-writing team of Desmond Child and Jim Vallance who helped out on several tracks on PUMP to Perry and Tyler's hard-cutting edge and sleazy, slick lyrics that earned Aerosmith immense popularity on their 1970's albums.

Most of the tracks here are so well constructed that at a first glance, the casual listener won't really skip any tracks on the first go. There have been several radio singles to have come from this album, the slick "Love in an Elevator", the catchy "Janie's Got a Gun" (A Grammy Winner), the rocker "The Other Side", and my personal favorite, the closing ballad, "What It Takes".

"Young Lust" opens as a hard hitting fast-paced rocker that will pretty much define the superiority of the record on its own. My favorite part is at the conclusion where Kramer goes on a 30-Second drumming spree that leads into the secondary rocker "F.I.N.E.". The Fun doesn't end there. If you're not at least grinning by now, then this isn't your record. "Monkey On My Back" is a bouncy number that feels ahead of its time. (It also has been featured in several car commercials). "My Girl", and "Don't Get Mad, Get Even" are both excellent tracks. "Voodoo Medicine Man" happens to be one of the most unique and interesting tracks on the CD but will definetly grow on any Aerosmith listener.

Another interesting thing to note is that there are often bookmark songs and skits on this CD that separate songs, for added touches. These are definetly unique to this specific CD. The most impressive of these cuts is "Dulcimer Stomp" which plays immediately before "The Other Side" on Track 6.

I would recommend PUMP as a CD for just about anybody. I have not found many CDs to equal its integrity or to match the impression it has left on me. If there are any fans of Late 1980's hard rock (G'N'R Fans would certainly enjoy this CD) or even hair fans (should they still exist), or if you come from the 90's and would like to know what a truly amazing 80's rock record is, look no further.

Breakdown:

"Pump" showcases Aerosmith at their very best in the 1980's. The album compliments many artists who were growing in popularity in the late 80's and early 90's and stands well amongst them. The record has many lasting hits and is arguably the best album of Aerosmith's second coming. If you purchase any record from the later half of the band's career, this one will make a fine choice.

Aerosmith: "Pump" (A)

you'll sure enjoy Pump too! I was hesitant about getting this album as I thought that Permanent Vacation was so good for a "comeback" album that the band were bound to lose their lustre. However, I was wrong and Pump is every bit as enjoyable as Permanent Vacation. Great lively rock with some tracks you'll remember from the radio back in the late 80s / early 90s (Jamie's Got a Gun, Love in an Elevator). And it's not just these tracks that stand out, overall the album's quality is consistently good in and of itself.

PUMP was an even bigger success than Aerosmith's predecessor,PERMANENT VACATION. There are a lot of BIG ONES on this album. LOVE IN AN ELEVATOR became a Top 20 hit as did JANIE'S GOT A GUN,THE OTHER SIDE and WHAT IT TAKES. FINE is an acronym for the following adjectives:F---ED UP,INSECURE,NEUROTIC,EMOTIONAL. Steven Tyler spells the acronym in WHAT IT TAKES. This was one of the best-selling albums in 1990 although it was released in fall 1989. For some reason,the band decided to leave DEUCES ARE WILD off the PUMP album which they would release on the various artists album,THE BEAVIS AND BUTTHEAD EXPERIENCE in 1993. You can see videos for some of the PUMP tracks on the video,"Things That Go PUMP In the Night".