Maps of Music

Rocks (1976)

Where the lyrics of Rocks take you, and where it was really made.

Unlike the band's previous two records, which were recorded at the Record Plant in Manhattan, Rocks was cut in a rehearsal space in suburban Massachusetts.

Key places

Rehearsal room where Rocks was cut (1976)

Recording site The Wherehouse, Waltham — The band rented the Wherehouse, a rehearsal space in suburban Massachusetts, and used a mobile studio to cut the record. Backing tracks for six of the songs were completed there. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Record Plant sessions in New York City (1976)

Recording site The Record Plant — The band recorded their two earlier records at the Record Plant studios in Manhattan. In late February 1976 they returned to the Record Plant to finish the remaining backing tracks and vocals. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Album story

Overview

• Rocks: fourth studio album by American rock band Aerosmith
• Released in May 1976 through Columbia
• Produced by Jack Douglas and the band
• Opening track: Back in the Saddle
• Platinum at release, later quadruple platinum

Background

• Before this album, Aerosmith had recorded Aerosmith (1973), Get Your Wings (1974), and Toys in the Attic (1975)
• Despite frequent critical derision, the band built a loyal fanbase through relentless touring and ferocious live shows
• Douglas said the plan was a real hard-rock album that rocked out on every tune and sounded as live as possible
• During the sessions the band was already deep in drug use, yet many fans, critics and fellow musicians regarded Rocks as one of the highlights of their career

Recording

• Their previous two records were recorded at the Record Plant in Manhattan
• For Rocks the group rented the Wherehouse, a rehearsal space in suburban Massachusetts, and used a mobile studio
• Backing tracks for six of the songs were completed at the Wherehouse
• At the end of February 1976 the band resumed sessions at the Record Plant to finish the remaining backing tracks and record vocals

Cover

• The cover shows five diamonds, one for each band member

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Tracklist

Sources: musicbrainz.org

Artist

Formation

• Formed in Boston in 1970 by Steven Tyler, Joe Perry, Tom Hamilton, Joey Kramer, and Brad Whitford after the Jam Band and Chain Reaction merged.
• The name was suggested by Joey Kramer, who had seen the word "aerosmith" in his school notebooks.
• Their first gig was at Nipmuc Regional High School in Mendon, Massachusetts, on November 6, 1970.

Members

• Current lineup: Steven Tyler (lead vocals), Joe Perry and Brad Whitford (guitars), Tom Hamilton (bass), Joey Kramer (drums).
• Perry and Whitford left in 1979 and 1981 and returned in 1984; the original five were reunited from 1984 onward.
• Tyler and Perry are the main songwriting team, nicknamed the "Toxic Twins".

Career

• Debut album in 1973 and Toys in the Attic (1975) and Rocks (1976) established their blues-based hard rock sound.
• The 1986 Run-D.M.C. collaboration on "Walk This Way" revived their career, followed by Permanent Vacation (1987), Pump (1989), and Get a Grip (1993).
• "I Don't Want to Miss a Thing" (1998) was their only Billboard Hot 100 number one.
• Inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2001; sold more than 150 million records worldwide.
• Retired from touring in 2024 after Tyler's vocal injury; released the EP One More Time with Yungblud in 2025.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Reception

At release

• John Milward of Rolling Stone wrote that the material was Rocks' major flaw, mostly pale remakes of earlier hits
• Milward concluded that the return to the ear-boxing sound and Tyler's vocals could not save the album from mediocrity
• Robert Christgau in The Village Voice wrote that Aerosmith were doing a good job of imitating Led Zeppelin, and that the band began to lose steam after this album

Reappraisal

• Greg Prato of AllMusic described Rocks as a superb follow-up to Toys in the Attic that captures Aerosmith at their most raw and rocking
• Prato wrote that Back in the Saddle and Last Child are among the band's most renowned songs
• Ben Mitchell of Blender said the members' drug use actually helped Rocks and called the album raw
• Jon Matsumoto in the Los Angeles Times (1994) opined that the record arguably is the best heavy metal opus ever concocted
• Martin Popoff described the album as a screamin' mercury-shattering rock festival, live, overblown, decadent, and very American

Records

• Ranked number 176 on Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums list in 2003, then number 366 in the 2020 revision
• Three singles charted on the Billboard Hot 100, two of which reached the Top 40 (Back in the Saddle and Last Child)
• One of the first albums to ship platinum on release, and later quadruple platinum

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• The album's opening track was written by Perry on six-string bass.
• The hoofbeat sound was made by Tyler using coconuts from a percussion kit ordered from SIR Studio Instrument Rentals.
• Kurt Cobain listed Rocks among his favorite albums in his Journals.
• Slash has said Rocks was the album that inspired him to learn guitar.
• Producer Douglas recalled the sessions were done in the dead of winter at the Wherehouse.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

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