Aerosmith 1971: The Road Starts Hear Review

The Road Starts Hear is a nice little nugget from the Aerosmith vaults. Recorded on a reel-to-reel tape machine during one of their rehearsals, it gives us a glimpse into the raw brilliance of a band working out the arrangements of their songs and musical personas, to become the Aerosmith we all know and love. 

Let us travel back in time. We disembark from the MBTA train (The 'T') at Kenmore Sq. We climb the stairs to get to street level. The wind is cold as we exit the station. We walk westward towards the Boston University women's dorm at 500 Commonwealth Avenue, where Aerosmith has their practice space in the basement. 

It is early in the afternoon, and the winter sun does not provide any warmth. The band is practicing early so they can get home by 5pm to watch "The Three Stooges."

We walk into the warm rehearsal space where Steven Tyler is chatting away while Joe Perry and Brad Whitford are jamming on a slow, bluesy groove with leads reminiscent of Peter Green and Mick Taylor. 

The band then kicks into "Somebody". Right off the bat, you can hear how good the band is. They are nice and tight but still have a loose feel. 

They then kick into "Refer Headed Woman." A slow bluesy cover, which the boys just smoke on.  

Then "Walking the Dog" segues in. Starts off into a much slower and sinister groove from the version that would end up on the first album a few years later. It goes into a trippy, psychedelic mid section with Steven tyler playing flute. 

"Movin' Out" is up next. The playing is tight and confident. You definitely hear how good they are already. They were living together in an apartment at 1325 Commonwealth Avenue in the Allston neighborhood in Boston. This song is about them 'Movin' Out' of this apartment. 

"Major Barbara" is another slow blues cover. Steven Tyler plays some great harmonica in this tune. This song would later show up on their "Classics Live" recording. 

"Dream On" seems as if it is in its early stages. Steven plays piano and the boys accompany him. They are still working out the parts of the song and sounds a little wobbly in some places. Still an impressive look into a band working out the kinks of a song to get it to perfection. Also, they end the song with a brief excerpt that would not make the final version but become a different song, "You See Me Crying" on the "Toys in the Attic" album. 

"Mama Kin" finishes things off. A little slower and janglier than the final version on the first album. 

Overall, this is a nice brief glimpse of Aerosmiths' beginnings. It shows a raw band perfecting their craft and captures all the hopes and dreams they had at this point in their lives. Plus, the recording is damn good. It captures the band nicely and is almost pristine. What a marvelous gem. 

Musicians

• Steven Tyler-Lead Vocals, Piano, Flute, and Harmonica
• Joe Perry-Guitars
• Brad Whitford-Guitars
• Tom Hamilton-Bass
• Joe Kramer-Drums