Rock for the Rising Sun is a terrific Aerosmith live disc, as evidenced by the rendition of “Sweet Emotion” (check it out on YouTube). Tyler, Perry, Whitford, Hamilton and Kramer are at the top of their game, as are the camera crew and director Casey Patrick Tebo, one of those great instances when the band is clicking and the right director is there to capture the magic.
“Love In An Elevator” also rocks, the guitars a blazing and some great aerial shots and quick cuts keeping with the energy of the song. Notice the different stage clothing from the “Sweet Emotion” track as this was cut at Ishikawa Sangyo Hall, Kanazawa, Japan on November 22, 2011.
Having appreciated the work of Aerosmith for over four decades, catching early Boston shows at the wonderful Frolics Ballroom on Salisbury Beach in 1973 when “Dream On” was just breaking regionally, with the Sidewinders opening, along with the Box in Kenmore Square (under the Nickolodean Theater,) the Music Hall (now the Citi/Wang Center for the Performing Arts,) the Orpheum Theater, the Lynn Bowl, Great Woods and more, it warms the heart that almost four decades later in 2011 the band still has the crunch and punch to deliver the goods, 94 minutes of which are here with an exclamation point and an extraordinary audio mix from Grammy-winner Chris Lord Alge. They didn’t have with keyboardist Russ Irwin back in the day, but in this new era he fits the band perfectly, as Craig Frost did when Grand Funk Railroad brought him back onboard.
This Rock for the Rising Sun DVD plays with an authority and groove that is appealing, especially for long-time followers of the group. The performances are in the pocket, even when they go somewhat ragged …which is a plus. It’s all in how the sound hits you and this particular DVD has the vibe, that intangible that makes for a great soundtrack. Even the interviews in-between the songs add to the listening experience if you have the disc playing for a backdrop and are doing other things around the house. Sometimes these things just happen by cosmic accident, a band makes album after album, DVD after DVD with some totally mind-blowing and others that miss the mark. This particular package is quite wonderful, a superb 8 page booklet and 94 minutes taped in concert towards the end of 2011. Mixed by Chris Lord-Alge, as stated above, the “Train Kept A Rollin’ with guest guitarist (via video) Yusuke Todaka is terrific as the credits close is superb fan meets rock band. Maybe Tyler can sing “Looking for Yusuke Todaka at the Crazy Horse Saloon” in Back In The Saddle in future renditions. Check out Yusuke here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xH3bzj6l9hU
AEROSMITH will be performing at Great Woods “Comcast Center” out in Mansfield (Tweeter Etc. Twitter Etc., Comcast, it’s still Great Woods to me!) on Wednesday July 16, 2014.
Joe Viglione is the Chief Film Critic at TMRZoo.com. He has written thousands of reviews and biographies for AllMovie.com, Allmusic.com, Gatehouse Media, Al Aronowitz’s The Blacklisted Journal, and a variety of other media outlets. Joe also produces and hosts Visual Radio, a seventeen year old variety show on cable TV which has interviewed Jodie Foster, director/screenwriter David Koepp, Michael Moore, John Cena, comics/actors Margaret Cho, Gilbert Gottfried, Gallagher, musicians Mark Farner and Don Brewer of Grand Funk Railroad, Ian Hunter of Mott The Hoople, Ray Manzarek, John Densmore, Felix Cavaliere of The Rascals, political commentator Bill Press and hundreds of other personalities.
