Song Review – Steven Tyler’s “Love Is Your Name”
No matter how many banjos, fiddles, and mandolins you infuse in the music, a song from Steven Tyler is not going to be country, because Steven Tyler is not country. Just like it doesn’t matter that Willie Nelson never uses fiddles, banjos, or mandolins in his music. He couldn’t stop from making a country song even if he tried. But unfortunately we can’t stop Steven Tyler from trying to make country music, and today, we get the first single from the Aerosmith frontman’s upcoming country music release.
The people who read that Steven Tyler was making a country record with Scott Borchetta’s Big Machine Records and let out a big belly laugh probably didn’t truly appreciate the legacies of either of these two men. If you thought this was going to be like Bret Michaels from Poison flying into Nashville for a Saturday to cut a country album and have some intern make a video for it with a borrowed Go Pro and a Jib Jab plugin, you just don’t understand the importance some people are putting behind this record. Scott Borchetta didn’t become the most powerful man in country music by being flippant; evil as his intentions may be. Though it may have been impossible to predict the exact flavor of Steven Tyler’s “country” music once it hit our ears, it was near impossible that it was going to be something that could be used for evening talk show fodder or would send Tyler flying back to Boston holding his own ass in his lap after it was just handed to him.
Steven Tyler spent months in Nashville just as part of the writing process—acclimating himself to the lay of the land, the customs, the trends, and trying to do the best he could to make a record that is no laughing matter. And by the way, all of those that would laugh off the Aerosmith legacy in one lump sum are probably doing a disservice to Steven Tyler, Aerosmith, and themselves too. Those early records—Get Your Wings, Toys In The Attic and such—these are some of the most influential moments in American music, like them or not. It was when Geffen brought in Desmond Child to write super hits when Aerosmith became a cash cow good for little else than selling out arenas. Even then, if you say the sway of a song like “Cryin'” has no effect on you, you’re either lying, or imposing such a limited scope on your listening experience, it’s a shame.
But on to this Steven Tyler “Love Is Your Name” country song, those hoping Steven would be serving up a steaming pile of Bro-Country stool so I could then serve up a bowl of blood in retaliation, I’m sorry to let you down. “Love Is Your Name” is sappy, somewhat safe (though bold in places), not especially country, and certainly coming from someone who really has no business in country music. But bad it is not.
Co-written by Lindsey Lee and the much-underrated Eric Paslay, and cut in Nashville’s Blackbird studio during the very first recording session for Tyler’s upcoming Dot (Big Machine) Records release, if nothing else, Paslay’s involvement clued you in that this wasn’t going to be terrible.
“Love Is Your Name” works similarly to some of Paslay’s better material in how it skims close to the inspired rising action of many of the Millennial roots bands like Mumford & Sons, without being weighed down by overusing the same tired 2012 formula. Similar to a Mumford song, all of the instrumentation is sort of muddled together, but it’s hard not to appreciate that in there you can clearly hear the organic sounds of banjos and fiddles. Steven Tyler’s vocal abilities have never been a point of doubt when it comes to range and power, though your own particular listening palette may spit it out due to its unique properties. “Love Is Your Name” allows Steven to show off his range and skills, even if the vocal track, like the song, is hampered by a lack of separation in the signals.
The simple fact is these country music carpetbaggers are in a better position to make better music than some of the artists who are already in country music believe it or not, because the interest in their name alone allows them more artistic latitude, and they’re likely wanting to prove themselves as gracious to the country music community by trying not to just be country in branding only. This is what Darius Rucker did to success early on, and this is the path Steven Tyler is trying.
There’s a cornucopia of reasons to reel at the idea of Steven Tyler making a country record. From being a sexual miscreant, to dressing like a freak show, to falling squarely in the narrative of being a washed up rock singer looking for a career rebirth through country music carpetbagging, to seeing all of this transpire while Scott Borchetta stands to the side with that dumb snicker on his face. Sure, the love story here is shallow, and it evokes visions of Ben Affleck landing on a comet to save the plant from total annihilation (Armageddon reference people, which included that Aerosmith song. Keep up!), and maybe it’s more of a commentary of what country music has come to as opposed to the quality of the song itself. But overall, it’s hard to label “Love Is Your Name” anything but “not bad.”
1 1/4 of 2 Guns Up.
– – –
May 13, 2015 @ 9:33 am
This actually is close to what I imagined a Steven Tyler country influenced record to sound like. Definitely more on the soft rock side, but not bad. He could always do good stuff…especially with the ballads. I need a steel guitar in there with his voice and maybe a to push it more to country.
May 13, 2015 @ 9:45 am
Actually, I think his voice would sound great on something ultra-traditional. But then he would catch hell for trying to sound like Hank I.
July 10, 2015 @ 4:28 am
Why would you want ANYONE to fake the twang voice just to SOUND country. Thats what is wrong with country music today.. All the fake voices. Irritates me to no end.
May 13, 2015 @ 9:36 am
Love is Your Drug or Love is Your Name? I think there might either a typo or a sly Freudian slip there.
In any case, I can’t look at that guy without picturing his daughter, which weirds me out. As soft rock goes, it’s not a bad song though.
May 13, 2015 @ 9:38 am
Musically, it sounds like something I would come across on the Christian rock station. I don’t listen to the words in most love songs, because they’re basically all the same.
May 13, 2015 @ 9:59 am
Yeah, you nailed it, RD. It sounds exactly like a generic CCM song, and CCM is also based out of Nashville.
May 13, 2015 @ 10:34 pm
You’re right.
Now that I think about it, contemporary Christian radio is exactly what this song sounds like, albeit with a little added fiddle and pseudo-slide guitar for texture.
As Kevin Davis said, I have often thought that the music played on contemporary Christian radio sounds like 2000s-era mainstream country with the twang removed. So I was not the least bit surprised when the lead singer of the Christian rock band Third Day “went country” a few years ago.
May 16, 2015 @ 12:29 am
Mac Powell is a great singer, Third Day’s music has always had country roots considering the area where they are from, and have always put on killer shows. Even if you despise christian music, they have a great sound, like southern rock. Not an argument to your point, i just don’t think it should be looked at as a “gone country” moment.
May 13, 2015 @ 9:42 am
Cryin’ is not bad. This is not not bad.
If Rascal Flatts (which is what this reminds me of) released this, I don’t think they would get this much love.
May 13, 2015 @ 9:44 am
It didn’t do much for me, but it’s got acoustic guitars in it, which automatically makes it more country than anything Jason Aldeen has ever done.
May 13, 2015 @ 9:52 am
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4tZaIDo_ULk
May 13, 2015 @ 10:41 am
Jason Aldean is a cheating asshole, but you aren’t listening to his earlier albums if you’re making such statements.
May 13, 2015 @ 12:38 pm
Even his current album, “Old Boots New Dirt”, has plenty of dialed-down production set to songs that don’t fall prey to hyper-trends (almost entirely on the album’s latter half).
Aldean’s earlier style is still there. The major difference between then and now is that for whatever inconceivable reason, Aldean defiantly chooses to rely on singles that reinforce hyper-trends as a crutch, and leaves the much better tracks relegated to the fate of merely being deeper cuts.
May 13, 2015 @ 12:33 pm
It’s quite painfully obvious that you haven’t truly skimmed Aldean’s discography and this is, with all due respect, an anti-intellectual assertion.
Granted the plurality of his radio singles are earmarked with 80s arena rock guitars, so it’s understandable how any listener who hasn’t taken in his deeper cuts would be blissfully unaware of how much the rest of what he has released is chicken-fried Adult Contemporary comparatively replete with acoustic instrumentation and dialed-down guitars. Yet, even with singles, he has had a few exceptions to the rule. “The Truth” is obviously driven by acoustic instrumentation, with “Why” and “Amarillo Sky” also featuring plenty of it
There is much I can’t stand about Aldean when it comes to his arrogant personality and why he chooses to lean on hyper-macho pandering and posturing with all his recent singles when his albums as a whole clearly don’t reflect the same and expose him as more of a misty-eyed, reflective, sentimental character. But I’ve been equally as frustrated with all of the empty boasts coming from the mouths of those who clearly haven’t heard the plurality of an entertainer’s music, and which others only pay lip service to because they’re spoken with vociferous confidence.
May 13, 2015 @ 12:41 pm
Jeez, I didn’t realize how many Jason Aldeen fans there were.
Busted – I’ve never taken any time to explore his discography. But from what I’ve heard on the radio, I’ve never had any reason to. All I know is that he’s held up by more than a few people I know as the second coming of Waylon, so I took an easy shot at him. My apologies!
May 13, 2015 @ 12:55 pm
I’m neither a fan nor a detractor of Aldean, personally. He has both impressed and infuriated me with his releases.
I simply have an issue with what I like to call Pitchforking and Sputnikizing: where listeners hop on bandwagons and overtly dismiss an entertainer and one’s entire discography solely off a couple of radio singles or a public image (in this case, Aldean cheating on his former wife).
When I used the term “anti-intellectual”, I wasn’t directing it at you, personally, but a general behavior and tendency I’ve wearily discerned among many musical discussion communities that I felt in your remark; where we readily assume the rest of what anyone releases and has released is horse shit just because we heard a couple of bad radio singles or don’t like the smugness on that person’s face. We’re all prone to this, myself included, but there is a wisdom to continually trying to broaden a perspective while not compulsively playing devils advocate and bending other backwards like Taste of Country, Roughstock and The Boot do.
May 13, 2015 @ 1:15 pm
Aldean has a few good songs from his early albums. These songs come to mind ( “Grown Women” “Do you wish it was Me” “I am just a man” “Asphalt Cowboy” “Amarillo Sky”) And Jim is right. Aldean is no Waylon and is probably on his way down the ladder. I think he has hit the highest level of success that he can reach. I mean they are giving EOY awards to Luke Bryan (voice, songs, dancing all suck). I am ready for Sturgill/Whitey/Stapleton to resurrect country music. Also, this Romane guy is awesome. Check out Trigger’s article on him.
May 14, 2015 @ 6:14 am
Not to pile on, but people like you are annoying. There are numerous people on this site that bash on Jason Aldean based on a few admittedly bad singles. I would argue that out of the 6 albums that Aldean has released, one could easily assemble a play list with 30 to 40 good, solid country songs. Sure, he uses too much electric guitar and not enough fiddle for the true country purists on this site, but for a guy like me that likes a little rock in the mix, I think he has a great sound. His choice of singles on recent albums, especially and egregiously on this last, has been horrible, but I would argue that 3/4 of the recent album is pretty great country/ country-rock. He has become an easy target on this site due to some bad singles and his personal life, which really should not inform the opinion of him overall. Go listen to Too Fast or Old Boots on the last release, then tell me those are not good country songs. I love this site for helping me find great new music, but I am not sure why there needs to be so much hatred served up with the positive. If it’s not your cup of tea, drink from a different cup, but that doesn’t mean someone else doesn’t like the first cup. I have watched this in every genre: I thought G’n’R was the clear quality choice in the late eighties. I thought Bon Jovi was too lightweight and calculate for me, but that was no reason to tell his fans that he sucked. I do wish Aldean would pull a Dierks and do a real, all-out country album, or assemble a real rock band and do a southern rock album, instead of straddling the middle, but until then, that’s what playlists are for. I don’t like 1994 or Burning it Down anymore than anyone else on this site, but I can easily create a list of his good tunes and enjoy that (and for all you funny guys on here, yes, I know, it will be a short list, hah hah).
May 14, 2015 @ 6:31 am
“People like you are annoying”? Settle down. Especially since after 3-4 other people posted links to his “better” work I admitted that I wasn’t that familiar with his other stuff and apologized.
Ironic that this is in the comments section of an article about Steven Tyler’s new country song, and that half of the other comments are saying it sucked. The comment right below this says “No joke, this is the worst song that I’ve ever heard in my life.” Why isn’t everyone rushing to tell him that he needs to listen to every single Aerosmith album since 1973 before he can say that?
May 14, 2015 @ 2:19 pm
My apologies, I had not seen your second comment when I wrote mine. I did post below about an older Aerosmith song that showed, in my opinion, their true love of country, released at a time when it did not pay to jump on the country bandwagon. This song sounds too poppy for me, but I do suspect his desire to release this album is a mix of both bandwagon jumping and true appreciation for the country music genre.
May 13, 2015 @ 9:58 am
I listened to this with an open mind and here’s my opinion after listening:
I just threw up a little. Overproduced. I can’t take the over-simplistic rhythm. And the whiny vocals from Tyler make me angry. The background singers aren’t bad. Hopefully this won’t hurt their career.
Maybe whatever money Tyler makes from doing this will go to a good cause or something productive. Otherwise he just needs to go away. Away from the music studio or away in a secluded house with nothing but a band and a bunch of acid. Only then would I listen to anything else from him.
May 13, 2015 @ 10:27 pm
No joke, this is the worst song I have ever heard in my life. There is way too much going on in the song and Tyler’s voice makes me want to rip my hair out. Just an awful, awful song in every single way. I can never take Trigger’s reviews seriously after this fluke of a review, if anyone thinks this song is good lay down that freakin crack pipe or whatever you are smoking. I would rather listen to a morbidly obese truck driver take a massive diarrhea shit in a Flying J bathroom than this new garbage Steven Tyler is putting out.
July 7, 2015 @ 11:31 am
Man, if you don’t like it leave it. I think it is great, and for a guy of his age, his voice is getting more and more pure. People want to bring up his past, which by the way, is not different than most other stars of the time, country, rock, or whatever. He is having a good time, trying to entertain, and succeeding spectacularly. Either your mind is closed, or you live in a tunnel vision world.
May 13, 2015 @ 10:22 am
I like Steven Tyler, always have; he seems to be a good guy who is always himself. I hear him singing rock in this song, not country. Because he’s a decent guy and a talented instrumentalist I’m willing to give him another chance. He’s brought good things to the music industry, unlike some of the current pop country “entertainers” who are flushing music down the toilet. I was checked out at a major department store yesterday by a young woman who was gushing and gushing over her near encounter with Jason Aldean at a concert. She said, “He is just the sexiest man and the best country singer I’ve ever heard.” I wasn’t hungry for lunch to say the least.
May 13, 2015 @ 10:23 am
Good review, Trigger. I would be happy to hear traditional, acoustic music from Steven. This is better than a lot of the music on country airplay, but he still sounds like a rocker. I really dislike the sing-song element of this and why must everything be overproduced? You can picture young boys at the controls going crazy with the knobs behind all of the songs on country radio today.
May 13, 2015 @ 10:26 am
Better than what I thought it would be.
Most, if not all, mainstream country is overproduced nowadays anyway. The Mumford-comparison is dead-on, Trigger.
May 13, 2015 @ 10:57 am
Very well put. Having said that, I would much prefer to hear Eric Paslay sing it with a bit less production. As sappy as the overall message is, Paslay has a way of putting a good stamp on the solid songs he puts together, and this one is no exception.
A hell of a lot better than I was expecting, that’s for sure.
May 13, 2015 @ 11:20 am
Just read an interview where Tyler said he was directly inspired by watching Eric Paslay sing “She Don’t Love You” (which by the way, has been holding steady in the charts). Of course Tyler is not going to be as good as Paslay, but I think it speaks to Tyler’s effort to not just seek out what is popular, but what is resonant.
May 13, 2015 @ 11:10 am
At least we can hear one guy who has some talent on the radio. Tyler puts every other pop country singer to shame.
May 13, 2015 @ 11:17 am
As an old Aerosmith fan (their drug era) I think the world of Steven Tyler’s work. Even their “blues” album Honking on Bobo wasn’t bad. Had some real highlights actually. And from what “country” music has evolved into, I assumed that he would be alright. Not great, but alright. Steven Tyler on a bad day is better than 99.9% of the current radio airplay guys. He is a pro and a nice dude, and even still has a certain amount of mojo. Now…Bret Michaels on the other hand….good law a mercy that was terrible.
May 13, 2015 @ 12:03 pm
You are so good Trigger! You hit the nail on the head “country music carpetbaggers”.
May 13, 2015 @ 12:08 pm
I agree.
Even though it’s worth noting that Eric Paslay is also capable of writing lame material (“Friday Night”, “Song About A Girl”), his debut album is mostly great and I was expecting far from the worst upon listening.
In terms of composition and presentation, this is respectable. Tyler’s vocals aren’t quite as strident as during Aerosmith’s heyday, but then again that’s a bleeding obvious thing to assert when he is 67 years old and it is a bit closed-minded to be dismissive of his vocal performance just because it isn’t something with the vigor of “Permanent Vacation” or “Pump”. His vocals still have a commanding drive to them that stand out from the pack of monotone males who hide their eyes under the brims of their ball caps and cowboy hats, even if vocal histrionics aren’t your thing.
Lyrically, this is far from Paslay’s best, but definitely a big step above “Friday Night” and “Song About A Girl” too. Just a safe but pleasant and agreeable love song. Some of the poetic sentiments were fairly nice, particularly catching wind from heaven and sending it while a loved one is sleeping.
*
That said, “Love Is Your Name” only reinforces what I’ve already predicted regarding the fate of Steven Tyler’s solo country career.
Well-aware that he is signed to Big Machine, I just don’t see him having any staying power beyond the fanboy/fangirl hype driving his debut single It ultimately won’t matter much that he is signed to a label decorated with major chart accomplishments this past decade. The fact remains that 1) ageism will stand in the way, 2) Aerosmith were already well past their prime as far back as eighteen years ago, and 3) Big Machine have also demonstrated they’re human, after all, as of late with Maddie & Tae’s current single struggling badly and debut album being pushed back, Rascal Flatts continuing their recent commercial decline, Justin Moore’s last two singles faltering, Brantley Gilbert’s current single having a shockingly long chart run, and failing to break RaeLynn and The Cadillac Three out to stable mainstream success.
“Love Is Your Name” is respectable, but it fails when it comes to achieving what debut singles are designed to do: make everyone care, help you stand out and want to encircle you for the longer haul.
May 13, 2015 @ 3:03 pm
I’m interesting in how Steven Tyler will measure his success in country music. A Top 10 hit, and move on to the next Aerosmith tour? A total revitalization of his career as a solo country artist? I don’t think Tyler has as much riding on his country career as say Darius Rucker or Sheryl Crow did. I’m not sure that he’s coming to country from a place of weakness, and so he may be happy with measured success. We’ll see.
May 14, 2015 @ 6:03 pm
You COULD draw a comparison to what Robert Plant did to revitalize HIS career by jumping into the Americana fray . I think it was dreadful stuff , personally speaking , but Raising Sand won a Grammy so he found some love somewhere and probably brought his long-time fans into his new realm on his legend alone. Good for him , I suppose . Good for the genre ??….meh …
June 1, 2015 @ 12:40 pm
Come on, you know Joe Perry is rolling his eyes at this detour and will remind Steve there is still more money to be made touring with Aerosmith. Tyler doesn’t need to revive anything. He has risen from the ashes a few times and with a net worth of $100 million+ he can do whatever he wants. BTW, this is a disappointing single.
May 13, 2015 @ 11:02 pm
Personally, I see Steven Tyler’s dabbling in country as a passing phase that doesn’t seem likely to extend beyond a single one-off album release, as with Bon Jovi’s dalliance with Nashville several years ago.
As others have previously suggested, my perception is that Tyler simply wanted to play dress-up with a different style, and could have just as easily chosen to make an EDM-inspired album, or a Mumford-style pop-folk album, or whatever.
The prospect of Steven Tyler having a long term career in country music wouldn’t make any sense to me from a cultural perspective. Darius Rucker is a southern-bred South Carolina native who rose to fame playing in a rock band which was wildly popular with Southern and middle American frat guys – country music’s current audience. Sheryl Crow is from a tiny town in the bootheel of Missouri, and her music has always been a little bit country. In contrast, there’s nothing really “country” to me about Steven Tyler’s background or persona, or his voice for that matter. It would seem like an odd fit.
I bet he will retreat from the country scene when he realizes that, without big radio success, it isn’t necessarily as lucrative as he hoped it would be.
May 13, 2015 @ 11:08 pm
Speaking of Maddie & Tae, it really seems like Big Machine should have released their full-length album back when “Girl In A Country Song” was burning up the country charts.
Now they’ve lost their momentum.
May 14, 2015 @ 7:24 pm
I was just thinking about that the other day! I was trying to remember the names of those two girls who sang that song and then realized how quickly they went from “next big thing” to “possible one hit wonder.” Their label bosses are probably banging their heads on the wall for not releasing the CD when that song was big. They probably don’t even have a release date now.
May 13, 2015 @ 12:19 pm
It’s not terrible, but it’s not a song I would listen to again. Feels pretty generic overall.
May 13, 2015 @ 12:42 pm
Agree with what a lot of other people here have said. It’s not terrible and I don’t hate it, but I’m also not going to go out of my way to hear it again.
May 13, 2015 @ 1:12 pm
Unfortunately, we can’t stop Steven Tyler from growing that moustache…
May 13, 2015 @ 2:31 pm
This is about what I expected. Not terrible, but very forgettable. Beats the hat, bandana and wig off Bret Michaels anyway.
May 13, 2015 @ 2:45 pm
It’s definitely country – just in a non-country, poppy Taylor Swift kinda way…
May 13, 2015 @ 3:00 pm
I’ve decided to graduate from creeper to commenter (I feel like I know you all already ;))
My approach was cautiously optimistic- hoping for something in the same vein as this:
https://youtu.be/lL4ZXnpqtPw
(or, at least, the first 2:30 minutes)
You’re right, it’s “not bad,” but I doubt I’ll give it another listen.
May 13, 2015 @ 3:12 pm
His voice carries the generic track and song. The sappy lyric doesn’t fit the Steven Tyler we know. At least it’s better than that piece of shit song he released and debuted on American Idol a few years ago.
May 13, 2015 @ 3:31 pm
In all honesty, that was a hell of a lot better than I was expecting. As some others have pointed out, it definitely felt a little too sappy and soft rocky for me.
Definitely not a country song in any way, but definitely still better than what mainstream country’s been giving us lately. Although, I’m betting there was probably a bit of subconscious bias against Steven Tyler singing country. It just feels dirty. And it doesn’t sound country.
May 13, 2015 @ 4:36 pm
The sound early on reminded me of a Mumford and Sons sound, it was not bad. I think he was obviously holding his voice back some, because he wants to sound country and just letting his voice rip would clearly make it just seem like Aerosmith. I am curious if he is going to tour in support of this album. I would love to see him in a smaller venue as a solo act, his voice is still great in my opinion. I’m not sure someone of his stature would do a tour playing smaller venues, because unlike Darius Rucker, he isn’t necessarily looking for a long term country career I don’t believe.
May 13, 2015 @ 6:28 pm
I can’t wait to listen to Steven’s debut country song.
May 13, 2015 @ 8:02 pm
Mediocre.
Look, I’ll always have a soft spot for Aerosmith’s older material, and Steve and crew will always be memorable rockers for that alone.
HOWEVER, it’s time for him to hang it up, and not embarrass himself with attempting to sing country.
May 13, 2015 @ 8:25 pm
Aerosmith actually went a little country once before. This song was a b-side on one of the Permanent Vacation singles.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lL4ZXnpqtPw
May 13, 2015 @ 8:36 pm
This sounds like a mashup…the vocals of an Aerosmith rock ballad and the background of an old Mumford & Sons song.
May 13, 2015 @ 8:58 pm
As a musician and singer its hard reading all these “fan” comments when a fellow musician tries something different.its like people have absolutely no idea what its like being a musician.maybe steven likes country music and wants to try something new its boring playing the same style of music all the time so he puts out a country album to challenge himself, learn new things, have some fun meeting new people make a little money stay relevant in peoples minds their is nothing evil behind it.music is fun and learning new genres as a musician and singer adds to the enjoyment.
May 13, 2015 @ 9:13 pm
As a “fan” of country music, I generally like my country music to be legit country music. While I have no idea whether or not your comment referenced mine directly or not, it pretty much doesn’t matter why he did this. Plenty of people like country music, but have no idea how to make it. And as far as staying relevant and making money, isn’t he on American idol??
If “its boring” then go get a job and do something else. Shit, we all did. Oh, and here’s a pro tip: putting “fan” in quotation marks will probably not help you develop a fan base and hit it big.
May 14, 2015 @ 5:58 am
My post wasn’t directed at anyone in particular.it was directed at close minded people that seem to have no idea what its like playing music.its like people find one style of music they like when they are 16 and they never open their minds again. everything old is good and everything new is bad but you fail to realize that the old rockers and country guys were trying to push the envelope in music then by getting the best gear, best recording stuff available in their respective time.I don’t think people should get mad an artist who has been pigeon holed by his record labels,the other guys in his bandand ” fans” and hundreds of other factors that effect what gets put on an album.all I would ask is if you want to hear great new music then the “fans” have to be open minded to that music not prejudge anything.If you don’t like it don’t buy it but don’t not buy something just because it doesn’t sound like something that’s already been done.
May 13, 2015 @ 9:16 pm
How is this tune country?
Whatever you call it, it’s utterly bland and boring.
May 13, 2015 @ 9:47 pm
I like this one a lot more than I liked Bon Jovi’s “country” song with Jennifer Nettles. I was going to say that it’s heads and heels above Brett Michael’s new release, but just about everything is better than that one.
May 13, 2015 @ 10:15 pm
I just heard his new song on American idol tonight. it’s not that bad
May 14, 2015 @ 2:53 am
I thought Willie NElson was originally setting out to be a Rock ‘n’ Roll cat but got roped into writing for the like of Patsy Kline and changed gears. Then man can play a mean R ‘n’ R guitar.
May 16, 2015 @ 1:59 pm
The like of Patsy Kline? WTF
May 14, 2015 @ 3:11 am
The song itself is uninspiring. I expect Tyler has half a foot planted on the side of money grabbing bandwagon jumper, the other foot legitimately on the side of sincere fan (as pointed out above, and as I pointed out in another post on this subject, Aerosmith released the song Once is Enough 20 years ago as a b-side of one of the singles on the Permanent Vacation release, a great 1/2 country / 1/2 rock song, which predated this current rush of fading rockers to the country radio format). So while this song sucks, I believe he probably has his heart partially in the right place,much as the Rolling Stones did with Wild Horses, Dead Flowers, Sweet Virginia and a bunch of other country influenced songs in the 70s. I personally enjoy that type genre merging, when it’s done well. Sadly this particular song is not inspiring to me.
May 14, 2015 @ 6:37 am
there’s absolutely nothing sincere about this song.. it’s a “transition” song for Steven Tyler to become “country”… something easy to listen to, that won’t create waves, and will draw in the middle age mom crowd who were aerosmith fans.. complete mockery of country music, although there is worse on the radio every second of the day.
May 14, 2015 @ 8:18 am
As I have gotten into the habit of doing, I listened to the song…
Meh. Not outright bad, but not particularly worth repeated listening either. I will admit I thought he sounded pretty good, but it was just not really my bag. Like I said elsewhere, it’s certainly better than the Bret Michaels…uh…thing, but if that’s the bar for quality we might as well nuke the Opry and be done with it.
May 14, 2015 @ 5:50 pm
This is the kind of obscure , non-conversational- anything- goes kind of lyric rock/progressive music is built on . This is the furthest thing from a country lyric a writer could dream up . In fact , most writers pitching this lyric ( and comparatively weak melody ) to a ‘ country ‘ publisher would be shot down quicker than you could say “WTF “. It has no killer opening line…it has no imagery , no ‘ characters’ , no narrative , no movement from verse to verse , no use of metaphor or simile -celever or otherwise – a weak hook ( hook is EVERYTHING in REAL country music if not in the title/lyric then most certainly in the music) , no ‘discernible’ bridge ‘, the vocal arrangement doesn’t build ..its just all-in pretty-much from the get go and there is little contrast from verse to chorus . And why is the rhythm a marching snare drum ? This lyric doesn’t take a listener anywhere and leaves a listener with no feeling of having experienced anything new , traditional or unique emotionally . If I was told this something that didn’t make the cut on Avicii’s last album I’d have no problem understanding why . And on top of all of this , it doesn’t even allow Tyler to be Tyler and capitalize on his uniqueness the way he has always been able to do in a rock setting .Perhaps this is how S. T. defines ‘country music ‘ these days . I think he’s fighting WAY below his weight in an obvious attempt to remain somewhat relevant . On paper the lyric just lacks so much .
Send your kisses my way
Bring your sweet heart to me
I’ve been waiting for so long
Tell me all your stories
Leave some open for me
Write your name into this song
I’ll walk through the fire
I’ll run through the rain
I’ll wait for forever
If Love is your name
Your name
Catch a wind from heaven
Sail down while I’m sleeping
Wake me with the morning sun
Oh, oh- oh
I’ll dream of you until you come
I’ll walk through the fire
I’ll run through the rain
I’ll Wait for forever
If Love is your name
Valentines keep knocking
My heart keeps on walking
Darling I’ll hold on for you
For You, for you
May 18, 2015 @ 8:27 pm
Still more country than Sam Hunt.
May 19, 2015 @ 10:59 am
Thank goodness for those country carpetbaggers. But for them, I would not hear anything authentic on country radio these days. In fact, I have not heard authentic country music on the radio for years, and don’t bother listening anymore. I find authentic country these by accident, while searching on the internet or listening to Pandora playlists (which, thankfully, often play some unknown, unheralded country singers, and I make a new discovery.) I only recently discovered Chris Janson, and by accident and not by hearing him on the radio, and finally heard some authentic country there. And now, with Steven Tyler, I am glad he has made the effort. I like the song, but I really like envisioning what Tyler could bring to country music. He has an authentic, soulful voice. He’s got the pain and the suffering. He understands redemption. He could create some awesome country music, and I am open for that, because, Lord knows (and I do mean the Lord), what is coming out of Nashville for the most part is fake, false, heartless, soulless, country crock.
July 8, 2015 @ 1:00 am
Honestly I’m not going to say it’s bad I’m also not going to sit here and sing it’s praises. For me this isn’t country. I had hoped for something a little bit more traditional and just feel like it’s a bad bad song choice for him, not so much in the vocals but more so in the actual music. It needed to be more pure. Maybe do it as an acustic and see what happens when you strip it all away, gotta start back with the basics when you swap genres.
July 25, 2015 @ 6:16 am
I love the new song! I personally don’t think Steven Tyler could ever make a song that isn’t a hit! I grew up listening to Aerosmith, GNR’s, Bon Jovi, etc…But you have to give credit to where credit is due. Steven Tyler is 67 yrs old and still rocking and belting out the songs! This man is very talented and can still song his ass off at 67 yrs old! WAY TO GO STEVEN TYLER..KEEP ROCKING FOR YOUR FANS!
September 5, 2015 @ 10:21 pm
You people are all so busy worrying about “does it sound country enough to be country” that you are missing all that makes this song great. Get over it country music changed years ago. Do yourselves a favor. Close your eyes, open your mind and listen to this song with your soul.