Gems [Limited Edition, Original recording remastered]

Aerosmith | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (September 7, 1993)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Limited Edition, Original recording remastered
• Label: Sony/Columbia
• ASIN: B0000029B9
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #138,447 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A great collection of their deep cuts, February 8, 2004

By 

John Alapick (Wilkes-Barre, PA United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Gems (Audio CD)

At the end of the 1970's, Columbia Records released Aerosmith's Greatest Hits. At the time of its release, just about everyone thought their best days were behind them, thus the release of a greatest hits album. Although the album had all the hits, it didn't quite tell the whole story. The beauty of Aerosmith's '70s albums was that the album tracks were just as strong as their singles, especially on Toys In The Attic and Rocks. So with Aerosmith at the beginning of their near impossible comeback of the late '80s with Geffen Records, Columbia hopped on the money train and released Gems, a stellar collection of their best album tracks.

Although this collection was released strictly for profit, it showed fans that came during the late '80s that they were more than the band that did "Dream On" and "Walk This Way." Most of the tracks here are top notch, with 8 of the collection's 12 cuts coming from their first four classic albums. These tracks are the strongest ones here, with the tracks "Rats In The Cellar", "Train Kept A Rollin", and "Mama Kin" still getting regular airplay on classic rock radio. The remaining cuts from these albums ("Lord of the Thighs", "Nobody's Fault", "Lick And A Promise", "Round And Round", and "Adam's Apple") are also excellent tracks. "Critical Mass", "No Surprize", and "Jailbait" are all strong tracks that are salvaged from their albums after Rocks, which were noticeably weaker as dissention and hard living affected the band's creativity. Also featured here is the excellent studio version of "Chip Away The Stone", which was originally only available as a live track from their Live Bootleg album. This is a strong collection of their lesser known album tracks. It definitely blows away everything they recorded after Pump. If you like the tracks on Gems, I'd highly recommend Rocks and Toys In The Attic, their best albums, and some of the best hard rock recorded in the '70s.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Aerosmiths greatest hits 2, October 18, 2003

By 

Morton (Colorado) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Gems (Audio CD)

Gems is Aerosmiths greatest hits part 2, it has everything that was left off of part one but should have really been on there. This is kinda point less cause every Aerosmith fan already owns these songs in one form or another, but I am a die hard so I had to have this. from beginning to end this is jam packed full of Aerosmith Classics 'Rats In The Cellar' 'Train Kept A Rollin' ' Lick And A Promice' and many more, this is nothing but the best of Americas, no make that the worlds greatest rock and roll band of all time! If you are a casual Aerosmith fan you might just want to get O Yeah! Ultamate Aerosmith Hits, but if you are a die hard like my self you must own Gems!

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Not a bad place to start..., February 27, 2003

By 

dbecker801 "music geek" (Oceanside, NY USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Gems (Audio CD)

When paired with the better-known "Greatest Hits", "Gems" is the second half on an excellent primer to pre-comeback Aerosmith. However, much like any compilation package, this is only supposed to begin the journey. The ideal end result for the label is that you purchase more old Aerosmith albums. And, honestly, that's what you should do. In the interests of space (the album only clocks in at 53 minutes, average length by 1988 standards), a number of classic Aerosmith songs have been left off - there is no "Big Ten-Inch Record", "Seasons Of Wither", or "No More, No More" on here. But "Gems" is what it is - a jumping-off point for the Aerosmith novice, and a boarding pass for an amazing journey. Buy this.