I gotta tell you! It has been a very long time since I have written an entry. I guess after doing this for a few year finally burnt me out. Today, I am writing this in order to take a baby step toward a full-time comeback. When I quit, it was like a leaky faucet, in that my writing began to slow to a trickle until I finally just stopped. Honestly, I really thought that would have ended people’s visit to this sight with my little writing experiment complete.
However, when 2023 rolled around on the calendar, I began to get comments, like and follows over the month on past entries that encouraged me. Finally, I began a half-hearted effort to begin some new writing, but my perfectionist side would get mad with how I introduced a piece. Instead of attempting to salvage the blog, I’d just delete the whole thing! Not only had the blog petered out but so did my effort to write a book. I was in a funk.
The next thing that got me going was a former athlete whom I coached kept texting me about various rock topics. This young man, Curt Martin, was my first All-State athlete that I ever coached. I remember the day of his performance at the State meet in Indianapolis so vividly. He started the meet by clearing the opening height of 6’4″ on his first attempt. Then, we waited around for the next hour as athletes cleared, passed or missed on their attempts. During that time, he and I would just talk about rock music, and I teased him about wearing his “lucky” necklace. You see, although Curt is a young Gen X-er, his favorite band in the world is Aerosmith, and he would wear an Aerosmith necklace as his good luck piece to every meet.
Well, long story short, Curt became one of nine boys to clear the next height, which was 6-foot, 6-inches. Immediately, we knew that he had earned an All-State designation thus becoming Alexandria Monroe’s first modern era All-State athlete in track and field. He missed all three attempts at 6’8″, but since he had fewer misses than his competitors with whom he was tied, Curt finished sixth in the state.
We had traveled to Indianapolis just to get some state meet experience, and we walked away with an All-State designation. The best part of the medal ceremony was that Curt asked if he could keep is Aerosmith necklace on as he got his medal. Since I am not an athlete’s parent, I did not care, I only wanted to make sure he would not cuss, flip off anyone or take off his clothes while on the podium. A silly good-luck necklace? Who cares? Let the kids express themselves. The great thing was to watch him on the big screen monitor at track with that damn Aerosmith medallion hanging around his neck as he bent his 6’4″ farm down from the sixth place step to receive his All-State medal. That moment was one of my proudest moments as a coach.
Now, Curt is a grown man with a family. But he drags his long-suffering wife Sarah to see Aerosmith multiple times on various tours. Actually, Curt should have grown up in the same time frame as his parents and me since our music is his music.
A month or so ago, I asked Curt to give me a list of his Top 20 Aerosmith songs. I knew this assignment would drive him crazy, but I would get something back fairly quickly. Within a couple of hours, Curt text me to say that he was down to 40 songs but weeding out 20 was hard. I just laughed to myself. But, within a day or so, Curt sent me his list.
Now, why did I ask him to do this? One, he makes fun of my lists, either by telling me the artist isn’t rock & roll (that’s my favorite argument with him) or asking when I was going to cover Aerosmith. I don’t know the answer to that last question since Aerosmith was one of my first favorite bands in middle school.
Now, Aerosmith is allegedly doing their farewell tour in honor of their fiftieth anniversary as a band. Of course, Curt is going. He asked me if I got my tickets. No, I didn’t. Right now, I am burned out from going to concerts. I actually sold my Peter Gabriel tickets, and I LOVE Peter Gabriel. I am tired of traveling all over to see a concert. And Aerosmith is coming to Indianapolis, but I am still not interested. I’ve been so disappointed lately watching some of my favorite artists being wheeled out to attempt to relive their glory days. Plus, I saw Aerosmith in like 2003 or 2004. I’d rather remember them that way.
Aerosmith is a great band with a fantastic catalog of music and one helluva story. They have risen like a phoenix so many times in the past that it leads one to believe they will pull off this farewell tour. I have always loved the way they integrated American hard rock with American funk beats. Why do you think rappers like their music? It’s because Aerosmith has a funky side. Unfortunately, there will be another Aerosmith in history. And that’s okay. I just got their career retrospective box set to pass down my family line so they will keep the flame alive.
Let’s begin with Curt’s Top 20 Aerosmith Songs. He did NOT include cover songs.
20. “Let the Music Do the Talking” (Done with Mirrors, 1985)
19. “Janie’s Got a Gun” (Pump, 1989)
18. “Mama Kin” (Aerosmith, 1973)
17. “Uncle Salty” (Toys in the Attic, 1975)
16. “Deuces Are Wild” (Big Ones, 1994)
15. “Magic Touch” (Permanent Vacation, 1986)
14. “Each the Rich” (Get a Grip, 1993)
13. “Simoriah” (Permanent Vacation, 1986)
12. “Livin’ on the Edge” (Get a Grip, 1993)
11. “Draw the Line” (Draw the Line, 1977)
10. “No More No More” (Toys in the Attic, 1975)
9. “Love in an Elevator” (Pump, 1989)
8. “Toys in the Attic” (Toys in the Attic, 1975)
7. “Hangman Jury” (Permanent Vacation, 1987)
6. “You See Me Crying” (Toys in the Attic, 1975)
5. “Think About It” (Night in the Ruts, 1980)
4. “Seasons of Wither” (Get Your Wings, 1974)
3. “Kings and Queens” (Draw the Line, 1977)
2. “Lick and a Promise” (Rocks, 1976)
1. “Sweet Emotion” (Toys in the Attic, 1975)
As you can see, Curt is a hardcore Aerosmith fan, as his list is stuffed full of rockers, eschewing big hits like “Dream On” and “Walk This Way.” The man is a rocker through and through – no pop crap or ballads! HAHA!
Now me, on the other hand, I’m a pop rocker. And I won’t leave the cover songs. Oh, and I have a Top 30 list, since it’s MY blog!
30. “Kings and Queens” (Draw the Line, 1977)
29. “Let the Music Do the Talking” (Done with Mirrors, 1985)
28. “No Surprize” (Night in the Ruts, 1980)
27. “Uncle Salty” (Toys in the Attic, 1975)
26. “Eat the Rich” (Get a Grip, 1993)
25. “Chip Away the Stone” (Gems, 1988)
24. “Remember Walking in the Sand” (Night in the Ruts, 1980)
23. “Rats in the Cellar” (Rocks, 1976)
22. “Draw the Line” (Draw the Line, 1977)
21. “The Other Side” (Pump, 1989)
20. “Pink” (Nine Lives, 1997)
19. “Love in an Elevator” (Pump, 1989)
18. “Same Old Song and Dance” (Get Your Wings, 1974)
17. “Girls of Summer” (Oh Yeah! The Ultimate Aerosmith Hits, 2002)
16. “Last Child” (Rocks, 1976)
15. “I Don’t Want to Miss a Thing” (Armageddon: The Album, 1998)
14. “Jaded” (Just Push Play, 2001)
13. “Seasons of Wither” (Get Your Wings, 1974)
12. “Just Push Play” (Just Push Play, 2001)
11. “Back in the Saddle” (Rocks, 1976)
10. “Big Ten Inch Record” (Toys in the Attic, 1975)
9. “Mama Kin” (Aerosmith, 1973)
8. “Train Kept A-Rollin'” (Get Your Wings, 1974)
7. “Come Together” (Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Heart Club Band OST, 1978)
6. “Dream On” (Aerosmith, 1973)
5. “What It Takes” (Pump, 1989)
4. “Janie’s Got a Gun” (Pump, 1989)
3. “Livin’ on the Edge” (Get a Grip, 1993)
2. “Sweet Emotion” (Toys in the Attic, 1975)
1. “Walk This Way” (Toys in the Attic, 1975) *Special mention goes to Run-DMC’s version for reviving the band’s long-stagnant career.
If My Records Could Talk 