Aerosmith, 6.24.04 Mansfield MA, The Venue Formerly Known as Great Woods
Jun 25 '04
The Bottom Line A good show that was saved by the excellent second half.
If one needs anymore proof that God (assuming he exists) loves to mock me, there was no better proof than the fact that I attended Aerosmith's homecoming show of their 2004 Honkin on Bobo tour last night at the venue formerly known as Great Woods in Mansfield, MA.
Part of the show was being filmed for inclusion in the upcoming Get Shorty movie sequel. Unfortunately, this led to the band performing Cryin' not once, not twice, but thrice last night, replete with some chick who I'm sure is in the movie singing a duet with Steven Tyler (apparently this girl was Christina Milian, her of Dip It Low fame). I've made myself clear on what I think of Cryin on this site many times. I think what caught me most off guard was that the band was playing to a backing track, though I'm sure Tyler's vocals were live because he stopped singing a little early at one point and you could actually hear the backing track. The fact that Joey Kramer was a half second off on hitting various cymbals etc was another giveaway. Though I think my favorite part of the Cryin' trilogy was the fact that on the second run through I decided to take a bathroom break. Apparently, every other male in the facility felt the same way, so while the females sang along, the males all went potty. Guess I would have to hold it.
Once the early momentum problems from the Cryin filming was out of the way though, the band blistered it's way through the second half of their set and brought it all home with what the audience came to see: hard charging rock and roll.
The band began the show by walking out to the end of the ramp that extended into the audience. From there, they ripped into the first two numbers of the night, Toys in the Attic (which got a surprisingly tepid audience response) and a loud and rambunctious Love in an Elevator, which had the crowd singing along to their hearts' content on the "whoa yeahs." At that point, Tyler told us what was going on and how they were gonna do Cryin three times (though not in a row). It became painfully obvious to me that songs would be cut for this, and in a move that boggles my mind, one of the victims was Back in the Saddle. Blasphemy I tell you.
If there was one thing that perhaps saved the show, especially after the first half malaise, it was Joe f*ckin Perry. Perry played like a man possessed all night long, from his soloing to his two turns on lead vocals, including the blues stomper Stop Messin' Around, which sounded absolutely awesome. It also helped that the band's back of the stage setup made it feel like you were in a dingy blues bar rather than a amphitheatre. Perry's voice is vastly under-rated, though I think I've been under-rating his guitar skills for way too long after witnessing how well he played last night.
Hits like The Other Side and Jaded got tepid responses; for The Other Side, the horn section that truly drives the song was sorely missed, while Jaded got literally no response at all. The band saved up their best for last though, romping through a section that included a deafening Dream On, a careening Baby Please Don't Go, a swaggering Draw the Line, and a final one-two punch of Walk This Way and Sweet Emotion.
For the encore, Tyler came out in a white suit, and asked the audience what they wanted to hear. He gave us a choice of Livin on the Edge or the crapfest that is I Don't Wanna Miss a Thing. The Boston crowd disgusted me by choosing the latter. In protest of the crowd's moronic choice, I sat down. My friend Melissa laughed at me and asked "where's Brian Adams when you need him." Quite frankly, I would've rather heard a Brian Adams song. I would have sung along with lungs ablazing to the Robin Hood song. That folks, is how much I despise and hate and abhor I Don't Wanna Miss a Thing.
Thankfully, the band closed things out with the only way to close out an Aerosmith show: Train Kept a Rollin'. As confetti got blasted out over the lower pavillion, the crowd went nuts and Perry just went off, playing an insane solo culminating in a behind the head bit of theatrics.
While it took a while for the show to gain the proper momentum, once it did, it didn't let up. The Cryin' game sucked, and the fact that I lost Saddle for it REALLY burned me, but all in all it was a good show, especially considering I paid $17 for my ticket. I might feel a little differently if I had paid full price ($50-$75), but all in all it was a good show. Not bad, not great, but good. And the last half was really excellent (Diane Warren song excepted).
I unfortunately missed Cheap Trick's opening set, as we got to the venue rather late in the game.
Here's what Aero played:
Toys in the Attic, Love in an Elevator, Cryin, Same Old Song and Dance, Cryin, The Other Side, Cryin, Road Runner, Jaded, Back Back Train (Joe Perry on vox), Shame Shame Shame, Stop Messin Around (Joe Perry on vox), Dream On, Draw the Line, Baby Please Don't Go, Mother Popcorn into Walk This Way, Sweet Emotion E: I Don't Wanna Miss a Thing, Train Kept a Rollin'
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MattA75
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Member: Matt Aucoin
Location: South Berwick, ME
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Gonna be a daddy, April 2010!
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