nazz

Both Eric Clapton and Aerosmith have CDs coming out that are totally blues covers.

Clapton's is traditional blues songs by the legendary Robert Johnson.

Aerosmith's are various covers and much more raucous covers.

Aerosmith delayed doing this when Clapton beat them to the punch in the 90's with From the Cradle.

Which one are you looking forward to the most?

schizopak

hmmm... sounds interesting. It's hard to imagine Aerosmith playing the blues. Clapton of course is a blues man himself so it makes sense. I guess I'll go with Clapton though I'm curious to hear Aerosmith's take on the genre.

Lara Means

uh, is this a joke?

mtucker

Well, a lot of Aerosmith's earlier stuff seemed to be very much blues-influenced, not so sure about their newer stuff. I'd be interested in hearing this latest blues album from them.

schizopak

nope. forgive my ignorance but I don't really follow Aerosmith so I can't comment on their earlier work. As for blues I think of Albert King, B.B. King, Muddy Waters, Stevie Ray Vaughn, etc. It's hard for me to imagine Aerosmith playing that type of music. I associate them more with their more recent stuff I guess. If you could point me to any of their more blues-oriented songs I'd love to give them a listen.

db27

I agree with schizopak.

Aerosmith is not blues, not even close. However, Joe Perry as a guitarist can be bluesy as all get out, and can play the bejeezus out of the guitar. However, the balance of the band does not lend itself well to the blues. Mostly Tyler and his not so good voice (imo).

The earlier Aerosmith stuff was much more blues oriented, but still not blues in the sense that I typically relate to. King(s), Clapton, SRV, etc..

Can't say I'm looking forward to the Aerosmith release, cuz Tyler is still part of the band and I cannot stand him.

However, the Clapton release should be tasty

JasonF

There's a straight line from the blues to Led Zeppelin to Aerosmith. While I wouldn't classify any of their existing stuff as blues, per se, there's a definite blues influence to their stuff.

Ergyu

Definite blues influences throught a lot of Aerosmiths early work, but a blues band they are not (at least in my opinion.) Clapton however I considered a blues artist in the first place.

dpganz

I can give some thoughts on Claptons new album, having heard it all the way through now (its on Rhapsody fyi). If you liked from the cradle, this seems like a cant miss. Everything is just top notch. His voice really sounds better than ever, and it appears hes decided to start playing the guitar again. Claptons easily my favorite musician (traveling from Michigan to Texas to see him live), and his more recent work has been a bit of a dissapointment to me. I love that hes decided to do a full blues album again. My only complaint is that it isnt original material. I've always gotten the most out of his own material rather than covers (which actually make a huge amount of his material). That said, if you've listened to RJ's original songs and compared them to EC's take on them, they're quite different. He's kept the original feeling, but just filled them out and taken to the next level.
As far as Aerosmiths new album, i've heard they were doing this for a while, but didn't know it was already coming out. I think a blues album by them will be great. I imagine their album will take a much different feel than ECs new one. ECs has a delta feel to it, and I'm guessing Aerosmiths take will be closer to blues rock. Either way, I have all faith that Perry will be able to play the heck outa the songs. It'll be nice to hear some blues harmonica too. Oh, and there's so much blues influence in early Aerosmith its funny that them doing blues suprises some. I'd be suprised if their album wasn't worth every penny, but I havent heard anything off of it yet.

dcswirl

Clapton all the way.

Celtic Bob

Aerosmith

bigjim25

I'm a fan of both but having every Aerosmith CD made in the US, I can't wait til it comes in this week from CC (ordered LE one). Now if they would only release a good DVD.

nodeerforamonth

There's a LE release of this? What is it?

Some of the soundclips I've heard sounded great! May be the first Aerosmith album I pick up in over 16 years!

oh yeah, my vote is for Aerosmith.

sataniko

Clapton.

db27

it comes with a mini harmonnica keychain with the Aerosmith wings engraved in it.

db27

btw, listening to the Clapton tonight and it is GREAT!!!

bigjim25

CC
Aerosmith 9.99
Aerosmith LE 12.99
Eric Clapton 11.99

BB
Aerosmith 9.99
Eric Clapton 11.99

db27

fye has the Aerosmith LE w/key chain for $13.99 and a $3 Mail in rebate for a total of just $10.99

DJLinus

I didn't know that Dianne Warren wrote blues songs.

Just kidding. I listened to bits of each last night and picked both of them up today at Best Buy. I prefer delta blues, so I may favor Clapton's disc just on its face. That's without listening to each full album, though.

The Cow

Aerosmith for me.

(didn't like them until I saw them live, many years ago. gave me a whole different view on Tyler)

Falc04

Haven't listened to the Clapton one yet (I plan on it shortly), but the Aerosmith CD is great! Joe Perry really shines, and they've turned around some old blue tunes just enough to keep in that "Aerosmith" sound intact.

fsubruce

My local Wal-Mart has the limited edition Aerosmith for $11.98. Anybody find a better price somewhere else?

Mad Dawg

I've been looking forward to Clapton's "Me and Mr. Johnson" since it was announced. This was the one CD I've actually been anxious for in years. I grabbed it at the local BB, opened it in the car, plugged it into the in-dash CD changer, and listened...to the changer jamming. Blarrgh! Now I've got to have the changer replaced and wait for the dealership to send away the old one and send back my CDs once they're freed.

I'm sure from the comments here that it'll be worth the wait.

cungar

Actually Time Magazine likes the Aerosmith album better:

Different Moods of Indigo
New CDs from Aerosmith and Eric Clapton show that the blues can hit where you least expect them
By JOSH TYRANGIEL
The blues are the only style of music that is also a state of being. Listen to blues pioneers like Blind Lemon Jefferson, Son House and Muddy Waters, and you might presume that this state has something to do with being short on cash and long on melanin. But Johnny Cash, Stevie Ray Vaughn and Charlie Musselwhite proved that you don't have to be poor and black to play the blues; you just have to be miserable and expressive.

So you shouldn't dismiss the new blues cover albums by Eric Clapton and Aerosmith simply because both acts are richer, whiter and scarier to look at than Dick Cheney. Clapton's blues credentials are impeccable. He first played with Sonny Boy Williamson in 1963, and his worship of Delta legends Buddy Guy and B.B. King has been acknowledged over the years by both in their use of him as a producer and collaborator. The spandexed sybarites in Aerosmith have never been much for tradition, which makes their blues obsession more subversive and dynamic. On the surface they churn out big, dumb power ballads, but Joe Perry's wailing guitar lines and Steven Tyler's lyrics ("I was cryin' when I met you/Now I'm tryin' to forget you") would have Leadbelly nodding in recognition.


Clapton and Aerosmith both know their blues, but playing blues classics convincingly is another matter. Clapton sets the bigger challenge for himself on Me and Mr. Johnson by covering 14 tracks by Robert Johnson, the most miserable Mississippian ever to strum a guitar. When he died, Johnson was 27 and had only 29 songs to his name. Clapton says those recordings (which are just Johnson and his Gibson L-1, no accompaniment) are the finest music ever made, which leads to a conceptual dilemma: if Clapton mimics Johnson's superior minimalism, he has added nothing; if he tinkers, he risks ruining perfection. He's damned both ways.

Johnson would have appreciated the double bind, but it's hard to guess what he'd make of Me and Mr. Johnson. Clapton adds a full band and as much as two minutes in length to some of Johnson's songs. The guitar playing is predictably spectacular, but in stretching the songs Clapton strips them of their intensity. His vocals don't help matters. He's ecstatic to be covering his idol, but his exuberance increases the disconnection between the music and the material. Johnson was one dark dude; when he sang, "There's a hellhound on my trail," you believed him. When Clapton sings the same line, you wonder if the hound's name is Patches. The only genuine emotion Clapton musters is reverence.

Aerosmith has never revered anything but its own double entendres, which gives it a distinct creative advantage when dipping into the past. Honkin' on Bobo isn't burdened by respect or ambition. It's just a bunch of ragged blues covers (and one bluesy original) seemingly selected with the aid of a dart board (Aretha Franklin? Fleetwood Mac?), but other than a disastrously sincere take on Jesus Is on the Main Line, Honkin' on Bobo is full of clamorous charm.

Perry isn't the guitarist that Clapton is, but his picking has a slutty vocal quality that's perfect for Bo Diddley's Road Runner and Muddy Waters' I'm Ready. It also plays well off Tyler's singing, which increasingly sounds less human and more like a rogue trumpet. Tyler can still hit all the notes, often at the same time, and his explosive incomprehensibility on Big Joe Williams' Baby, Please Don't Go will leave you laughing — in a good way. It's unclear exactly what Tyler is feeling (though it might be in his pants) but he's definitely feeling something, and Honkin' on Bobo is a reminder that the blues don't need to be profound, they just need to be profoundly felt.

Celtic Bob

Haven't heard Clapton's yet but the Aerosmith disc is smokin'. It's the best thing they've done in years.