Aerosmith “Aerosmith” released 50 years ago today, January 5th, 1973. Aerosmith’s debut s/t record. Our copy certainly looks about 50 years old but it is not the first pressing (the song “Walkin’ the Dog” – originally by Rufus Thomas in ’63 – was misprinted as “Walkin’ the Dig” on the first pressings and ours is correctly printed). It is most likely a second pressing since it has the original cover art. The third pressings of Aerosmith after the success “Dream On” had bigger photograph of the band with the text “Featuring ‘Dream On'” on the cover.  The single “Dream On” was first released in 1973 and went to #59 (though it was huge in the local Boston market) but then went to #6 in 1976 in its edited down form. That track is really the only song I know from this record, and it’s the only song that actually sounds like Steven Tyler. The rest have his voice really subdued. From Tyler’s autobiography via Wiki: “”The band was very uptight. We were so nervous that when the red recording light came on we froze. We were scared shitless. I changed my voice into the Muppet, Kermit the Frog, to sound more like a blues singer.” “One Way Street” has some glimpse into Tyler’s true range and shriek, and the track “Movin’ Out” is a really great gritty blues rocker, but the rest of the record is kind of meh.

Aerosmith took a few years to really gain traction. It received mostly negative reviews, from those who bothered to review it, upon its release in ’73. After “Dream On” the album went to #21 and since has gone well over double platinum.