Get a Grip

Get a Grip is a monumental record of the late golden age on which Aerosmith bound the blues-derived roughness and a huge pop sense with heavier riffs and vivid vocal melody. One of their best-selling albums, pushing the commercial success of the previous works to its peak. Joe Perry’s guitar undulates stickily and powerfully, and Steven Tyler’s singing freely moves between provocative screams and earnest ballads. From the aggression of the opener “Eat the Rich” and the socially conscious popular “Livin’ on the Edge” to the moving classic ballad trilogy “Cryin’,” “Crazy” and “Amazing,” every song is engaging. These ballads drew great attention for their music videos too and each recorded huge hits. Hard rock songs and widely opening choruses line up powerfully with the same intensity. A record that, while carefully designed with strong awareness of hit appeal, by no means lost the raw push of the playing, vividly showing the overwhelming scale of 1990s arena rock. One wants to carefully follow the contrast between the repetition of powerful riffs and the moments the singing largely unravels its emotion. A powerful, engaging masterpiece that inscribed Aerosmith’s commercial peak — a record where the band’s golden age shines.