Genre:
Rock
Release Date: 05/13/2008
Big Ones serves up the hits and nothing but the hits;
Aerosmith's excellent debut for
Geffen,
Done with Mirrors, is conveniently overlooked. So what's left is some of the finest mainstream
hard rock of the late '80s and early '90s -- the fruits of one of the most remarkable comebacks in
rock & roll history. Unfortunately, there's precious little of the classic
Aerosmith raunch; in fact, the two new tracks are the hardest, slinkiest tracks here. Otherwise, the up-tempo tracks bog down in over-production (
"Love in an Elevator"), and the frequently embarrassingly overwrought power
ballads (
"Angel" and
"Crazy") dominate too much of the album. So what's left? The band's best stab at social commentary (
"Janie's Got a Gun"), a sublime slinky throwaway (
"Deuces Are Wild"), deliciously sleazy blues-rockers (
"Rag Doll," "[Dude] Looks Like a Lady"), and their best
ballads (
"What It Takes" and
"Cryin'"). [The 2007 Circuit City exclusive edition came packaged with a free album cover iPod skin.]
~Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide
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