Aerosmith's Best Song On Each Of Their Studio Albums

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With Aerosmith’s 2024 retirement from touring following Steven Tyler’s vocal injury, we thought it would be the perfect time to revisit their entire studio catalog and pick our favorite song from each record. Aerosmith stands as one of our favorite bands of all time and could quite possibly be the greatest American rock band ever to grace the concert stage. Of course, there have been some great ones over the years—true legends like The Doors, Jefferson Airplane, The Beach Boys, and many more—but when you put it all together, it’s pretty hard to top Aerosmith. Since that retirement announcement, Steven Tyler and Joe Perry have returned for select appearances, and Aerosmith released new music with Yungblud on the 2025 EP One More Time. Even so, Music from Another Dimension! remains Aerosmith’s most recent full studio album, so here is our tribute to one of the greatest of all.

Mama Kin – Aerosmith (1973)

Runner Up – Dream On

Released January 5, 1973

We open our Aerosmith’s Best Song on Each of Their Studio Albums article with the band’s self-titled debut. While most rock fans might expect “Dream On” to take the top spot, we kept that classic as the runner-up because our favorite track from the album has always been “Mama Kin.” Steven Tyler’s writing, the raw production, and the band’s hungry early sound make this one of those songs that already contains so much of what Aerosmith would become over the next five decades.

Train Kept A-Rollin’ – Get Your Wings (1974)

Runner Up – Same Old Song and Dance

Released March 15, 1974

Continuing with our Aerosmith songs list, we turn to the band’s second album, Get Your Wings, produced by Jack Douglas. Our pick is Aerosmith’s explosive version of “Train Kept A-Rollin’,” written by Tiny Bradshaw, Howard Kay, and Lois Mann and previously recorded by Bradshaw, Johnny Burnette, and The Yardbirds. We’ve always felt Aerosmith’s recording was the ultimate rock showcase for the song, and the session was made even more unusual by the lead-guitar contributions of Steve Hunter and Dick Wagner. Our runner-up, “Same Old Song and Dance,” also benefits from the album’s expanded sound and killer horn arrangement.

Uncle Salty – Toys in the Attic (1975)

Runner Up – Sweet Emotion

Released April 8, 1975

Aerosmith’s third album, Toys in the Attic, was the record that vaulted the band into stardom, fueled by songs such as “Walk This Way” and our runner-up, “Sweet Emotion.” However, our favorite song on this album has always been the second track, “Uncle Salty,” written by Steven Tyler and Tom Hamilton. There’s just something about that opening guitar riff and the dark, strange atmosphere of the track that has always made it our favorite from one of Aerosmith’s greatest albums.

Nobody’s Fault – Rocks (1976)

Runner Up – Back in the Saddle

Released May 3, 1976

Coming in as our favorite track from Aerosmith’s fourth studio album, Rocks, is “Nobody’s Fault,” which also happens to be our favorite Aerosmith song of all time and our number-one pick on our Top 10 Aerosmith Songs list. Written by Steven Tyler and Brad Whitford, the song captures the band at its heaviest and most ominous. Our second favorite song on the album is the opener, “Back in the Saddle,” written by Tyler and Joe Perry, giving Rocks one of the strongest one-two combinations in the band’s catalog.

Draw the Line – Draw the Line (1977)

Runner Up – Kings and Queens

Released December 9, 1977

We can never get enough of that opening bass and guitar line on the title track to Aerosmith’s great Draw the Line album. Written by Steven Tyler and Joe Perry, “Draw the Line” was the album’s first single and remains one of the band’s nastiest, most aggressive rock songs. Our runner-up is “Kings and Queens,” which opened side two and was credited to Steven Tyler, Brad Whitford, Tom Hamilton, Joey Kramer, and producer Jack Douglas. This album did not always get the love it deserved when it first appeared, but over time it has become a big-time Aerosmith fan favorite.

Remember (Walking in the Sand) – Night in the Ruts (1979)

Runner Up – No Surprize

Released November 16, 1979

By the time Aerosmith released their sixth studio album, Night in the Ruts, things had begun to fall apart inside the band and Joe Perry left during the recording process. There was still some great material on the record, however, and our favorite is their remake of The Shangri-Las‘ “Remember (Walking in the Sand),” written by George “Shadow” Morton. Aerosmith brought their own hard-rock sizzle to the song, while our runner-up is the album opener “No Surprize,” written by Steven Tyler and Joe Perry.

Jailbait – Rock in a Hard Place (1982)

Runner Up – Rock in a Hard Place (Cheshire Cat)

Released August 27, 1982

Rock in a Hard Place stands out as the only Aerosmith studio album made without Joe Perry, while Brad Whitford left during the sessions and Jimmy Crespo and Rick Dufay carried much of the guitar work. Despite the lineup changes, there is still some strong material here, and our top choice is the hard-hitting opener “Jailbait,” written by Steven Tyler and Jimmy Crespo. Our runner-up is the title track, “Rock in a Hard Place (Cheshire Cat),” written by Tyler, Crespo, and producer Jack Douglas.

Let the Music Do the Talking – Done with Mirrors (1985)

Runner Up – My Fist Your Face

Released November 4, 1985

Aerosmith’s 1985 album Done with Mirrors marked the return of Joe Perry and Brad Whitford and reunited the classic lineup with producer Ted Templeman behind the board. The album’s opening track, “Let the Music Do the Talking,” had originally appeared as the title song of the Joe Perry Project’s 1980 debut, but Aerosmith’s version gave it a tougher, fuller attack and became our favorite cut on the album. Our runner-up is “My Fist Your Face,” another raw rocker that captures the renewed energy of the reunited band even though the album itself did not become the commercial comeback they were hoping for.

Rag Doll – Permanent Vacation (1987)

Runner Up – Dude (Looks Like a Lady)

Released August 25, 1987

While Done with Mirrors marked the return of Joe Perry and Brad Whitford, it was 1987’s Permanent Vacation that truly reignited Aerosmith’s commercial success. For the first time, the band made extensive use of outside songwriters, and our favorite track, “Rag Doll,” was written by Steven Tyler, Joe Perry, Jim Vallance, and Holly Knight. We had a fascinating conversation with Jim Vallance about the writing of this song, and we highly recommend checking out that interview. Our runner-up is the massive hit “Dude (Looks Like a Lady),” making this one of the albums that proved Aerosmith was back in a very big way.

Young Lust – Pump (1989)

Runner Up – Monkey on My Back

Released September 12, 1989

Aerosmith continued their commercial comeback with the release of their 10th studio album, Pump, in 1989. The record produced huge singles such as “Love in an Elevator” and “Janie’s Got a Gun,” but our favorite song is the opener, “Young Lust,” written by Steven Tyler, Joe Perry, and Jim Vallance and designed to hit the listener hard from the first seconds of the album. Our runner-up is the raw, traditional Aerosmith-sounding “Monkey on My Back,” written by Tyler and Perry.

Eat the Rich – Get a Grip (1993)

Runner Up – Shut Up and Dance

Released April 20, 1993

Not even the dominant grunge scene of 1993 could stop the Aerosmith juggernaut. The band’s 11th studio album, Get a Grip, became the biggest-selling album of their career worldwide and produced a long run of hit singles. Our favorite is the electrifying “Eat the Rich,” written by Steven Tyler, Joe Perry, and Jim Vallance, while our runner-up is “Shut Up and Dance,” written by Tyler and Perry with Jack Blades and Tommy Shaw. This was a big-time team effort and one of the defining albums of Aerosmith’s 1990s resurgence.

Fallen Angels – Nine Lives (1997)

Runner Up – Ain’t That a Bitch

Released March 18, 1997

Aerosmith’s Nine Lives continued the band’s long run of hits and even produced a Grammy-winning single in “Pink,” but what we loved most about the album was Steven Tyler delivering some of the finest vocal performances of his career. One of those is the closing track, “Fallen Angels,” a moving song centered on loss, broken hearts, and children who have vanished from people’s lives. It’s a tough one to listen to, but it earns our top spot from this record. Our runner-up is the hard-hitting “Ain’t That a Bitch.”

Trip Hoppin’ – Just Push Play (2001)

Runner Up – Beyond Beautiful

Released March 6, 2001

Just Push Play was Aerosmith’s 13th studio album and their first album of the 21st century, extending their run of hit singles across four decades with the Top 10 success of “Jaded.” Our favorite track is the cool, swinging rocker “Trip Hoppin’,” written by Steven Tyler, Joe Perry, and Marti Frederiksen, while our runner-up is the album opener “Beyond Beautiful,” written by the same trio. Rather than being Aerosmith’s final Columbia album, Just Push Play was followed by Honkin’ on Bobo and eventually Music from Another Dimension!, the final album under their Sony/Columbia recording contract.

Stop Messin’ Around – Honkin’ on Bobo (2004)

Runner Up – Road Runner

Released March 30, 2004

Three years after Just Push Play, Aerosmith took a huge left turn and released the blues-heavy Honkin’ on Bobo, produced by Jack Douglas. The album contains 11 blues and blues-rock covers plus the new Aerosmith song “The Grind,” and our favorite is the band’s fiery version of Peter Green’s “Stop Messin’ Around,” originally recorded by Fleetwood Mac. Our runner-up is Bo Diddley’s “Road Runner.” After years of polished hit singles, hearing Aerosmith dive straight back into the blues was a fantastic reminder of where so much of their sound came from.

Legendary Child – Music from Another Dimension! (2012)

Runner Up – Oh Yeah

Released November 6, 2012

Music from Another Dimension! remains Aerosmith’s 15th and most recent full studio album. It was their first studio album since Honkin’ on Bobo in 2004 and their first collection of all-new studio material since Just Push Play in 2001. Our favorite track is the lead single “Legendary Child,” written by Steven Tyler, Joe Perry, and Jim Vallance, a song whose origins reached back to the early 1990s before it was finally completed and released two decades later. Our runner-up is the Joe Perry-penned “Oh Yeah.” Aerosmith later returned with new music on the collaborative 2025 EP One More Time with Yungblud, but no new full studio album has followed this record.