AEROSMITH — Permanent Vacation (review)

AEROSMITH — Permanent Vacation album cover

Album · 1987 · Hard Rock

4.5/5 · 2017-10-03
voila_la_scorie

Possibly one of the best comeback albums ever?

"Done With Mirrors" (i.e. done cutting lines with mirror and razor?) was more like Aerosmith's came back album. "Yo! We came back. Here's our album. Dig it." But "Permanent Vacation" sounds like a real comeback album, like a band who is ready to burst through your living room wall and out to the pool-side for an all night party of blues rock meets glam in a style that no other band could ever hope to imitate.

Whale song, air raid sirens, Indian war cries, DRUMS and BOOM! Joe Perry's guitar delivers a tricky riff that sounds like his fingers would be falling over themselves. Brad Whitford backs it with a chugging riff and we're off with one heckuvan opening track. Steve Tyler is fully on top of his game, howling with his trademark scratchy throat style.

This is Aerosmith like you've never heard them before, and that's partly because they worked with a whole slough of, a whole slew of other musicians and song-writers, and partly because they were in the Little Mountain Studios with Bruce Fairbairn. To make the album a full-on performance, the band's hard rocking blues style was augmented with clarinet, trombone, trumpet, muted trumpet, saxophone, cello, mellotron, steel drums, and organ. And to what a result! The band sound like they've been injected with a mother load of MOJO!

After the stunning opener, the band hits us again with the catchy, sing-a-long chorus of "Magic Touch", a great upbeat, hard rocker. Then we go all bluesy and swinging with the brass and slide guitar of "Rag Doll". This song has less punch and more groove than the other two. Tyler gives us some scat near the end as a clarinet and muted trumpet carry us out.

Is it ballad time now? Not yet. "Simoriah" may not be the best track on the album but it slams down another powerful pop hard rock tune.

Then comes one of the big classic singles, "Dude Looks Like a Lady". What can you say? Full swing with brass, fat sound, rocking bluesy lead guitar. Instant hit!

Side one wraps up with the blues track, "Saint John", and man, Aerosmith simply mop the floor with all those hair bands that tried to go blues in the mid-eighties. Aerosmith are just proving the cool. Full sound. Awesome!

We got croaking frogs and a creaking rocking chair. We got a steel pedal guitar and harmonica. "And if I could / I surely would / Stand on the rock that Moses stood / I say whoa boy / Dontcha lie on the track-a-la-cka". Aerosmith just come up with a style that pays tribute to the blues of yesteryear and marries it with eighties hard rock.

"Girl Keeps Coming Apart" takes us back to the big sound of brass and rock with another loud, partying song. Highlights are the spoken parts at the beginning and near the end ("There she was / buns up and kneeling / I was a-wheeling and a-dealing / My ace-in-the-hole, so to speak") and that kick ass brass. How about that guitar solo? And the instrumental close out? Great loud-in-the-car song!

And at last the ballad. And what a power ballad it is. Powerful intro and then all sweet and wow! Tyler is awesome. One of the best power ballads of the eighties. The chorus has almost an early sixties love song feel to it but buffed up for the big sound of the eighties. Love the clean guitar solo, too. When I saw Aerosmith in Vancouver in '87, this song has not yet been released as a single and they didn't play it. Wow, eh? I remember Steven Tyler doing splits off the amp stacks and cartwheels while holding on to the mic stand. What a showman!

The title track now has us on the beach with steel drums and colourful banana shirts. Break out the margaritas, the pina coladas, and the tequila!

Someone had a request? Here's a cover of the Beatles' "I'm Down" done in rocking Aerosmith style. Great job!

The album closer is a puzzling one. "The Movie" is lead by a simple guitar melody and backed by a simple heavy beat. In one part, a voice speaks in a foreign language and then the music changes to remind me of the city scenes in "Blade Runner". Thumping drums and scratching records, the production team left no instrument unturned for this album and it worked wonders.

Agreed that this is not a metal album, but there's just so much going for this one with each song crafted carefully and just stellar playing. It's a freaking awesome party rock album!

If you like that sort of thing.

more than 2 years ago
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voila_la_scorie wrote:

more than 2 years ago

You know, I like Pump and I'd even say it's really good. But Permanent Vacation is just incredible for an eighties hard rock / pseudo-glam band.

siLLy puPPy wrote:

more than 2 years ago

I listened to it not too long ago. It's one of their weakest albums ever. Permanent Vacation was truly their comeback album! I like it better than Pump for sure

voila_la_scorie wrote:

more than 2 years ago

It's been a very long time since I heard "Done With Mirrors". I remember liking "My Fist Your Face" best and Joe Perry's "Let the Music Do the Talking". The rest I've forgotten. Perhaps I'll pick it up again someday.

Unitron wrote:

more than 2 years ago

This was a great comeback album, "St. John" and "Hangman Jury" are a couple of my favorite Aerosmith songs, but I like Done With Mirrors as well. "She's on Fire" is amazing.

voila_la_scorie wrote:

more than 2 years ago

That's why I wrote Done with Mirrors was their "came back" album. Because it sounded like they just came back. This one was the real "come back" album.

siLLy puPPy wrote:

more than 2 years ago

Oh, BTW this wasn't a comeback album. That would be the previous Done With Mirrors which was crap. This was a second attempt at a comeback but yeah, best career reboot for sure :)

siLLy puPPy wrote:

more than 2 years ago

My fave too along with Get A Grip (post 70s that is)

voila_la_scorie wrote:

more than 2 years ago

Nightfly, I agree!