The Back-Burner: Aerosmith Outtakes & Demos

A Band at a Crossroads

The year was 1984, and Aerosmith was at its lowest point. Their 1982 album Rock in a Hard Place had failed to recapture the magic of their earlier work, and the tour that followed struggled with poor attendance. With Joe Perry and Brad Whitford out of the picture, the band’s chemistry had shifted dramatically. Despite these struggles, the band’s management felt they were ready to get back in the saddle, and they turned to legendary producer Jack Douglas—the man behind their classic ’70s albums—to reclaim their former glory.

Assistant engineer Alan Douches was brought in to support the sessions, which took place at Grand Slam Recording Studios in West Orange, New Jersey. The studio provided the privacy and control that management hoped would keep the band focused and away from distractions, particularly drugs. But despite the attempt at seclusion, the project quickly spiraled into dysfunction. The sessions were ultimately abandoned when Douglas walked away, frustrated with what he described as “too many cooks and differences in opinions.”

The Lineup and the Sessions

At the time, Aerosmith consisted of Steven Tyler (vocals), Tom Hamilton (bass), Joey Kramer (drums), Jimmy Crespo (guitar), and Rick Dufay (guitar).

The plan was to spend three months recording basic tracks for a new album, but from the outset, progress was slow. According to Douches, the first full week was spent simply setting up gear, including an elaborate kick drum monitoring system with eight 18-inch speakers so the band could physically feel the music while playing with headphones. Despite this delay, the band managed to record keeper drum tracks for about five songs before tensions unraveled.

Douches recalls, “Initially, things went well for a couple of weeks, but eventually, the vibe started to fall apart. Jack Douglas walked out, and everything collapsed.” With Douglas gone, the sessions fizzled out, and the band was left without direction.

The Songs: What Was Recorded?

One of the few confirmed tracks from these sessions was “The Reason a Dog”, which later appeared on 1985’s Done With Mirrors. Interestingly, this track is credited to Tyler and Hamilton, with no input from Crespo, leading to speculation that it originated as a Tom Hamilton idea.

Another song that came from these sessions was “Well Run Dry,” a collaboration between Jimmy Crespo and Steven Tyler that originated from Crespo’s Renegade days dating back to 1981. There was also “On the Bus Song,” a track the band frequently jammed on while on tour, which later resurfaced in 1989 as “Written in Stone” when Rick Dufay officially released it. Additionally, “Hey You” was an extended version of Riff & Roll, originally recorded during the Rock in a Hard Place sessions and later appearing on Pandora’s Box.

Another track from this period was an untitled song featuring a riff-heavy foundation with Steven Tyler scatting over it. Some bootlegs, PureGold.999, list it as Track 05, sometimes referenced as “Whatchya Gonna Do”. Some elements from this track evolved into Jig Is Up, but the original was distinct in its composition. It is possible that this idea originated as a Crespo riff and may have had the working title “Whip It Out.”

The result was a few unfinished lyrics that were pure dirty, nasty, sexual jokes and “good times” by Tyler and company scatting over instrumental tracks.

While it has been suggested that a CD’s worth of material was written, most of it remained unfinished due to Tyler’s inability to fully commit to writing lyrics during the sessions. When asked about the extent of the work done on a Rock in a Hard Place follow-up, Jimmy Crespo later said:

“There were a lot of ideas, but not many extra tracks recorded. There were maybe a handful of extra tracks that didn’t make it, but we didn’t get very far. Columbia wouldn’t advance us any money for the follow-up album; they wanted to hear the demo recordings first. This created a stalemate situation, especially as Steven wasn’t in the best health. But there were a few ideas floating around. One of those tracks even surfaced on a bootleg CD. And another, ‘Riff and Roll,’ found its way onto ‘Pandora’s Box.’ There were maybe two or three others, and I’m not sure where they ended up. I also remember there was one other track I was working on with Renegade, which Steven and I ended up collaborating on, called something like ‘Well Run Dry’.”

Dysfunction Behind the Scenes

Alan Douches provided a fascinating glimpse into the band’s mindset at the time. He noted that despite being shielded from the outside world, the band received little to no attention from fans.

“Management was very concerned about the band being swarmed by fans and groupies, and gave us quite a warning that no one was to enter the studio that was not on a cleared list. Well… as it turned out… no one ever showed up and no one cared. I remember watching Steven walking across the street into the store – and no one even noticed who he was.”

Each band member handled the situation differently:

• Steven Tyler remained an intense, creative force, even phoning Paul McCartney during the sessions to ask about a specific recording technique.
• Tom Hamilton was described as the most composed and prepared member of the group.
• Joey Kramer struggled under scrutiny, reportedly unhappy about recording in New Jersey.
• Jimmy Crespo was diligent and professional, always ready with his parts.
• Rick Dufay had the hardest time fitting in, often making interns run pointless errands to prove his authority.

What Happened to the Tapes?

When Grand Slam Recording Studios was eventually sold, Douches returned to find that someone had bought all the used two-inch multi-track reels. He speculated that at least a half-dozen “outtake” reels from the Aerosmith sessions were among them. “Maybe someday they’ll show up. Or maybe they were just bulk erased… No one really cared about Aerosmith at that time. Too bad.”

The End of an Era

The failure of these sessions marked the end of an era for the alternate Aerosmith lineup. Soon after, discussions began to reunite the classic members. Joe Perry and Brad Whitford rejoined the band in 1984, leading to their massive comeback with Done With Mirrors and, later, their late ’80s resurgence with Permanent Vacation.

Though the Rock in a Hard Place follow-up was never completed, these lost sessions remain a fascinating “what if?” in Aerosmith’s history. While most of the recordings have vanished, their legacy lives on in small fragments—from a repurposed track on Done With Mirrors to bootlegged jams and rumors of missing reels waiting to be rediscovered.