On September 10th, 1950, Joesph Anthony Pereia was born in Lawrence, Massachusetts, and is better known by Joe Perry. Perry would go on to be lead guitarist in one of Americas greatest hard rock bands; Aerosmith. Formed in Boston in 1970 alongside frontman Steven Tyler, co-lead rhythm and lead guitarists Brad Whitford, bassist Tom Hamilton, and drummer Joey Kramer the band would go on to rule the 70s and 80s with rollicking blues and hard rock anthems. Joe Perry was heavily influenced by the early Fleetwood Mac era and is schooled in the style of Peter Green. He's also stated his love for guitar comes from Jeff Beck, Eric Clapton, and Jimmy Page of Led Zeppelin. Here are some of my favorite Aerosmith songs that truly showcase Perry's blazing guitar playing.
"Walk This Way" Toys In The Attic (1975)
I know this song is one of their most famous songs, it's hard not to mention that without Perry's iconic riff the song wouldn't be as iconic as it is today. As mentioned earlier, Joe Perry was heavily influenced by Fleetwood Mac's Peter Green and drew inspiration from the iconic riff "Oh Well". Instantly recognizable and a blast to play on guitar, Walk This Way remains a romp to this day despite it being played to death on FM radio.
"Eat The Rich" Get A Grip (1993)
By 1993, Aerosmith was in the stiff competition thanks to the explosion of grunge 2 years prior. The previous decade was the band's renaissance when they recorded 1985s Done With Mirrors but they truly didn't strike gold again until 1987s Permanent Vacation. Nonetheless, Aerosmith delivered a stone-cold killer opener for their 1993 album. Perry's guitar sores with heavy distortion and that sweet Les Paul crunch and a blazing guitar solo to add. It's the best song off of Get A Grip and proved that even in the 90s, Aerosmith wasn't going anywhere.
"Toys In The Attic" Toys In The Attic (1975)
It wasn't until 1975 with the release of Toys In The Attic that the band would truly take off to worldwide fame. This whole list could be filled with songs from this album as it's personally one of my favorite Aerosmith albums. The band holds nothing back with the opening title track. Perry kicks things off with a ferocious punk approach with a lightening fast rhythm and a killer solo to add.
"Sweet Emotion" Toys In The Attic (1975)
People who follow and read this blog regularly know that I'm not the kind of guy for well-known songs as I like to explore a band's entire catalog and love deep cuts. However, I can honestly say that I will always love Sweet Emotion. From that iconic opening baseline from Tom Hamilton, the song is pure ear candy. As much as the bass gets the love, Joe Perry's guitar playing is nothing to look over. Perry's rhythmic playing is in full force here as it's punchy, groovy, and effective while the solo at the end of the song is simple yet effective.
"Stop Messing Around" Honkin on Bobo (2004)
Honkin On Bobo marks Aerosmith's 14th studio album which is a feat in itself. After 2001s Just Push Play, the band decided to track back to their roots with Honkin On Bobo which is a blues cover album. Aerosmith can play the blues without showing they're a blues band. This time, Joe Perry is on lead vocal and to his credit, he does a stellar job holding down vocal duties while also laying down some killer blues licks which once again echo his appreciation for earlier Fleetwood Mac. The band is in top form here as well as Brad Whitford lays a killer solo along with Tyler's fiery harmonica solo.
"Last Child" Rocks (1976)
Many critics and fans agree that Rocks is Aerosmith's greatest album and for good reason as it not only contains hard rock classics but it also inspired future bands like Guns N Roses and even Nirvana. I wanted to put 'Sick As a Dog" on the list but Whitford plays rhythm on that track. All that said, Last Child, is arguably the best song of the album. For starters , the song is tuned down a half step which means the guitars are tuned a half step down form standard tuning. Future bands like Guns N Roses and blues legend Stevie Ray Vaughan would capitalize on this concept. Joe Perry's rhythm delivers so much swagger you could almost call it funk. I was privileged to meet their producer Jack Douglas about 6 years ago and I wanted to ask him how they were able to get that sound of the ambulance at the end of the song. Sadly, I didn't get an answer. I did get some insight on "Back In The Saddle" though which is pretty rad.
'Adam's Apple" Toys In The Attic (1975)
This song is not only an Aerosmith deep cut, but it's quite possibly Aerosmith's most underrated song. It has classic Aerosmith written all over it as it's the band's depiction of the Bible story of Adam and Eve not without sexual innuendo of course. Not only does Joe Perry play lead, but he showcases some impressive slide guitar for the first time on wax. This song is first-rate Aerosmith in full force and defiantly worth checking out.
"No More, No More" Toys In The Attic (1975)
This song is the most unique Aerosmith song to date because of the tuning. The song uses an unusual but creative tuning. Joe Perry tunes his guitar to almost match open E tuning but with the D and G strings also tuned E. Joe Perry lays down his best rhythm parts to date with echos of Rolling Stones and Faces along with one of his greatest solos. The song chronicles the bands touring life as Tyler was the primary songwriter. He called the lyrics part of his "diary". Over time, this has become one of my favorites, and it's really fun to play on guitar.
