Top Artists – Aerosmith

Aerosmith – Toys in the Attic – Our Shootout Winner from 2011

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Looking for killer sound for both sides of this fun album? You’ve come to the right place! This unusually lively pressing combines a stunning A+++ side one with an equally wonderful, giving you White Hot Stamper sound from start to finish! The transparency here is exceptional, allowing you to hear all the musician’s contributions without the veiling and congestion that you get on most pressings. Sweet Emotion is a KNOCKOUT on this copy.

Both A+++ sides have the kind of tight, meaty bottom end that is absolutely essential to this kind of music. While many copies we played suffered from a grainy, unpleasant top end, this one is smooth in all the right ways. It’s also got the kind of energy that makes this music still work well all these years later. Hot Stampers give you more presence, more weight down low and more fullness all around — the qualities that you really want for music like this.

I never really cared much for this band until recently, when I heard Sweet Emotion on my local classic rock station (The Octopus!) and realized that it would probably sound pretty amazing on a Hot Stamper vinyl version. Boy, was I right! It took quite a few copies and a whole lot of work, but the best sounding tracks on this one sound AMAZING. Sweet Emotion and Walk This Way are going to rock you!

Of course, not every copy sounds like this one. We’ve been picking these up for the last few months and I’m sorry to report that most of them leave much to be desired. This is bluesy hard rock a la The Faces, and if your copy is dull or smeared (as many of them are) you won’t get the full effect of this raw, ballsy rock ‘n’ roll. This ain’t polite music — you’re playing it for one reason and one reason alone: to ROCK OUT.

It’s hard to understand why this album didn’t get more love from audiophiles, while bands like Boston and Foreigner have gotten the full MoFi treatment. [No doubt somebody has recut this record on Heavy Vinyl by now.] All you have to do is drop the needle on the intro to Sweet Emotion and you’ll see why we decided to roll with this shootout. That’s not to say this is an amazing, top-shelf recording, but it certainly beats most of the dreck out there that passes for Audiophile-style classic rock. (If you disagree, I’ve got a nice copy of the Sheffield Track Record to sell you.)

TRACK LISTING (more…)

Aerosmith – Rocks

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This outstanding copy of Rocks earned Top Honors in our recent shootout — Triple Plus (A+++) sound throughout
The sound here is tonally Right On The Money – big, rich and Tubey Magical, with plenty of driving bass
Exceptionally quiet vinyl, Mint Minus to Mint Minus Minus – they don’t play any quieter, and that makes this a very special copy indeed
5 Stars: “Few albums have been so appropriately named as Aerosmith’s 1976 classic Rocks… Aerosmith produced a superb follow-up to their masterwork Toys in the Attic, nearly topping it in the process… out of all their albums, Rocks did the best job of capturing Aerosmith at their most raw and rocking.”

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Aerosmith – Done With Mirrors

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Done With Mirrors finally arrives on the site with superb Nearly Triple Plus (A++ to A+++) sound on both sides – just shy of our Shootout Winner
Big and solid guitars, with great bass, full vocals, and tons of Tubey Magic – this the way to hear the band
4 stars: “Unlike the records that preceded it, Done with Mirrors is powered by the same smart-assed lyrics and filthy guitars that formed the core of Aerosmith’s best songs… it marks the beginning of their remarkable comeback.”

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Aerosmith – Get Your Wings

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This outstanding copy of Aerosmith’s dynamic sophomore release boasts excellent Double Plus (A++) sound or BETTER from top to bottom – fairly quiet vinyl too
This album launched the band’s collaboration with Jack Douglas, who helped develop their distinctive sound and propel them from obscurity to stardom
4 1/2 stars: “Get Your Wings, is where Aerosmith became Aerosmith … it’s where they shed much of their influences and developed their own trademark sound, it’s where they turned into songwriters…they’re doing their bloozy bluster better and bolder, which is what turns this sophomore effort into their first classic”

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Aerosmith – Night In The Ruts

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A KILLER copy of Night In The Ruts with Shootout Winning Triple Plus (A+++) sound from start to finish – we’ve never heard the record sound better
Both sides of this original Columbia pressing are doing everything right — big, rich and full-bodied yet still clean, clear and lively
Lauded by Steven Tyler as his favorite Aerosmith album, this collection includes “Mia,” a lullaby Tyler wrote for his daughter
“While the band looks back upon this period as hazy and frustrating, Night in the Ruts is a surprisingly coherent and inspired album. … it was definitely leaner and more focused than their last studio release.”

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Aerosmith – Aerosmith

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A stunning copy of Aerosmith’s debut — Shootout Winning Triple Plus (A+++) sound from the first note to the last
With plenty of energy, killer rock bass, and clear, present vocals, this pressing has all the key qualities we look for in an Aerosmith record
Dream On sounds incredible on this one – worth the price of admission alone
“In retrospect, it’s a bit shocking how fully formed the signature Aerosmith sound was on their self-titled 1973 debut… Aerosmith clearly showcases all the attributes of the band that would become the defining American hard rock band of the ’70s… “

KILLER sound for this copy of Aerosmith’s debut album! Mama Kin, a perennial staple of the band’s live performances and arguably the best rocker on the album, sounds fantastic here, huge and open with some serious presence. As you might expect from a debut, the sound here is a bit rougher and rawer than later albums like Toys in the Attic, but that’s not altogether a bad thing for this kind of loose, greasy hard rock! (more…)

Aerosmith – Toys in the Attic

•Shootout Winning Triple Plus (A+++) grades on both sides mean that this is the consistently best sounding Toys in the Attic we have ever played
•Sweet Emotion and Walk This Way are killer here, but to be honest, with a copy this good every song sounds the best it can
•Our favorite Aerosmith album in every way, and a true Must Own for fans of the band
•Forget whatever dead-as-a-doornail Heavy Vinyl they’re making – the Tubey Magic, size and rock and roll energy of this very special vintage pressing simply cannot be beat
•5 Stars: “Aerosmith finally perfected their mix of Stonesy raunch and Zeppelin-esque riffing with their third album. The success of the album derives from a combination of an increased sense of songwriting skills and purpose.”

If you’re looking for great sound for this fun album, you’ve come to the right place. This is raw, down-and-dirty blues-rock in the tradition of the Stones and the Faces, and when it sounds this good it sure is a blast to listen to.

I never really cared much for this band until recently, when I heard Sweet Emotion on my local classic rock station (The Octopus!) and realized that it would probably sound pretty amazing on a Hot Stamper vinyl version. Boy, was I right! It took quite a few copies and a whole lot of work, but the best sounding tracks on this album sound amazing. Sweet Emotion and Walk This Way are going to rock like they have never rocked before.

Of course, not every copy sounds like this one. We pick these up when we find them and I’m sorry to report that most of them leave much to be desired. If your copy is dull or smeary as so many of them are, you won’t get the full effect of this raw, ballsy rock ‘n’ roll. All you have to do is drop the needle on the intro to Sweet Emotion and you’ll see why we decided to roll with our shootout.

That’s not to say this is an amazing, top-shelf recording, but it certainly beats most of the dreck out there that passes for Audiophile-style classic rock. (If you disagree, I’ve got a nice copy of the Sheffied Track Record to sell you.) (more…)

Aerosmith – Live Bootleg

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Insanely good sound throughout with Shootout Winning Triple Plus (A+++) sound on the first side and nearly Triple Plus (A++ to A+++) sound on the remaining sides
These sides are doing just about everything right — big, full-bodied, dynamic and present with a huge punchy bottom end
“Unlike other live albums at the time, it’s obvious that not a lot of overdubbing was involved to fix up the tracks, which results in a refreshingly authentic representation of Aerosmith at the group’s most drugged-out and rocking…Live Bootleg is an excellent representation of one of rock & roll’s elite live acts.” – All Music

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Aerosmith – Draw The Line

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A KILLER copy with a Shootout Winning Triple Plus (A+++) side one and solid Double Plus (A++) sound on the second – exceptionally quiet vinyl too
These sides are doing it all right — richer, fuller, better bass, more Tubey Magic, and the list goes on!
“Renting out an abandoned convent on the outskirts of New York City to record the follow-up to the hellacious Rocks may not have been the best idea, but 1977’s Draw the Line still managed to be another down-and-dirty Aerosmith release… Draw the Line catches fire more times than not. Unlike their most recent album successes, the band shies away from studio experimenting and dabbling in different styles; instead they return to simple, straight-ahead hard rock.” – All Music

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