Dream On (Aerosmith song)

"Dream On" is a power ballad[3] by Aerosmith from their 1973 eponymous debut album.[4] Written by lead singer Steven Tyler, this song was their first major hit and became a classic rock radio staple. Released in June 1973, it peaked at number 59 on the Billboard Hot 100[5] but hit big in the band's native Boston, where it was the number one single of the year on WBZ-FM, number five for the year on WRKO and number 16 on WMEX (AM). The song also received immediate heavy airplay on the former WVBF (FM), often showing up in the #1 position on "The Top Five at Five" in June 1973.

"Dream On"
1976 UK promotional single
Single by Aerosmith
from the album Aerosmith
B-side"Somebody"
ReleasedJune 27, 1973 (1973-06-27)[1] January 1976 (1976-01)(Re-release)
RecordedOctober 1972[2]
StudioIntermedia, Boston
Genre
Length
  • 3:25 (single version)
  • 4:28 (album version)
LabelColumbia
Songwriter(s)Steven Tyler
Producer(s)Adrian Barber[1]
Aerosmith singles chronology
"Dream On"
(1973)		 "Same Old Song and Dance"
(1974)
Audio sample
  • file
  • help
Music videos
"Dream On" (audio) on YouTube
"Dream On" (official live video) on YouTube

The album version of "Dream On" (4:28, as opposed to the 3:25 1973 45 rpm edit where most of the intro has been edited out and the first chorus is replaced with the second chorus) was re-issued in late 1975, debuting at number 81 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart on January 10, 1976, breaking into the top 40 on February 14 and peaking at number 6 on April 10. Columbia Records chose to service top 40 radio stations with both long and short versions of the song, thus many 1976 pop radio listeners were exposed to the group's first top 10 effort through the 45 edit.

In 2004, Rolling Stone magazine ranked the song at number 172 on its list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.[6] It was moved to number 173 in 2010,[7] and re-ranked at number 199 in 2021.[8] In 2007, Aerosmith would perform a re-recording of the song, amongst some of their other songs, for the game Guitar Hero: Aerosmith as the master track was missing during the game's development.[9] In 2018, the song was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.[10]

Background

In a 2011 interview, Tyler reminisced about his father, a Juilliard-trained musician. He recalled lying beneath his dad's piano as a three-year-old listening to him play classical music. "That's where I got that Dream On chordage", he said. Lyrical composition was completed when Steven was 14 years old.[11] The song is also famous for its building climax to showcase Tyler's trademark screams.

In the authorized Stephen Davis band memoir Walk This Way, Tyler speaks at length about the origins of the songs:[12]

The music for 'Dream On' was originally written on a Steinway upright piano in the living room of Trow-Rico Lodge in Sunapee, maybe four years before Aerosmith even started. I was seventeen or eighteen. ... It was just this little thing I was playing, and I never dreamed it would end up as a real song or anything. ... It's about dreaming until your dreams come true.

Legacy

Reception

Cash Box said that "the hard surface is there but Tyler's plaintive vocals and some economical muscular riffing make 'Dream On' a thinker as well as a mover."[13] Record World called it a "beauty which features strange melodic line and tight hard rock accompaniment."[14]

Live performances
"Dream On (Live)"
Single by Aerosmith
from the album Last Action Hero: Music from the Original Motion Picture
ReleasedJune 8, 1993
RecordedJune 6, 1991
VenueMTV 10th Anniversary Special
GenreSymphonic rock
Length5:42
LabelColumbia Records
Songwriter(s)Steven Tyler

Long a concert staple, the song's piano part has been played live by Tyler. The band has also played "Dream On" with an orchestra on occasion. One of these performances, conducted by Michael Kamen, was performed live for MTV's 10th Anniversary[15] (in 1991) and included on the soundtrack for the movie Last Action Hero.

On September 19, 2006, Aerosmith dedicated the song to captured Israeli soldier Ehud Goldwasser. On September 22, 2007, at a concert in Atlantic City, New Jersey, Aerosmith dedicated the song to one of their fans, Monica Massaro, who had been murdered earlier that year. On May 25, 2011, Tyler performed a brief rendition of the song live during the finale of the tenth season of American Idol.[16]

In 2006, Tyler and Joe Perry performed the song live with the Boston Pops Orchestra at their Fourth of July spectacular.[17] In August 2010, Tyler performed much of the song on a grand piano on top of the Green Monster at an Aerosmith concert at Boston's Fenway Park, joined by the rest of the band to close out the song.[18] After the Boston Marathon bombing, Tyler performed the song at the Boston Strong concert in late May 2013.[19][20] In 2014, Tyler, Slash and Train performed the song for Howard Stern's 60th Birthday Bash.[21]

In 2022, at rapper Eminem's Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction concert, Tyler performed the introductory line and the chorus to "Dream On" along with Eminem as he performed his 2002 hit "Sing for the Moment", which used the former's chorus as its chorus.[22]

Appearances on other albums

The song has appeared on almost every Aerosmith greatest hits and live compilation, including:

It also appears on both of the band's box sets.

Other
  • In 2002, the song was sampled by American rapper Eminem for the song "Sing for the Moment", from his 2002 album The Eminem Show. Joe Perry played the guitar solo on the track and the chorus features Steven Tyler singing, with Eminem adding "sing", "sing with me" and "come on" in the refrain as well.
  • In 2011, the song was sampled by Immortal Technique on his song "Angels & Demons", on his album The Martyr.
  • In the Kia Stinger TV commercial that ran during the 2018 Super Bowl, Steven Tyler appears to drive the eponymous car at high speed in reverse while snatches of "Dream On" play in a sampled fashion.
  • In 2022, "Dream On" experienced a resurgence in popularity on social media following its usage in a meme in which Kratos, the protagonist of the God of War video game series, falls off Mount Olympus while the song's chorus plays; the song subsequently rose up to 720 million streams on Spotify.[23]
  • In 2023, a remix of the song was used to underscore the trailers for Gareth Edwards' science fiction film The Creator.[24]

Personnel

Charts

Certifications
Certifications for "Dream On"
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Germany (BVMI)[39] Gold 250,000‡
Italy (FIMI)[40] Platinum 50,000‡
United Kingdom (BPI)[41] Platinum 600,000‡
United States (RIAA)[42] 4× Platinum 4,000,000‡
Streaming
Greece (IFPI Greece)[43] Gold 1,000,000†

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.
† Streaming-only figures based on certification alone.

References
  1. Greatest Hits (CD liner). Aerosmith. U.S.: Columbia Records. 1993 [1980]. CK 57367.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  2. Pandora's Box (CD liner). Aerosmith. U.S.: Columbia Records. 2002 [1991]. C3K 86567.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  3. "Top 10 Power Ballads That Don't Suck". Loudwire. April 12, 2018. Retrieved July 2, 2023.
  4. "Aerosmith | Music Videos, News, Photos, Tour Dates, Ringtones, and Lyrics | MTV". MTV. Archived from the original on June 29, 2012. Retrieved April 5, 2017.
  5. "Aerosmith Chart History: Billboard Hot 100: "Dream On" (peak position)" (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 85, no. 48. December 1, 1973. p. 56. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved April 17, 2021 – via American Radio History.
  6. "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time 2004: 101-200". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on June 20, 2008. Retrieved October 3, 2021.
  7. "Dream on ranked #173 by Rolling Stone in 2010". Rolling Stone. December 11, 2003. Retrieved October 3, 2021.
  8. "Dream On ranked #199 on Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Songs List". Rolling Stone. September 15, 2021. Retrieved October 3, 2021.
  9. "Guitar Hero: Aerosmith First Look - Xbox 360 Previews at GameSpot". June 29, 2009. Archived from the original on June 29, 2009. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
  10. "Grammy Hall of Fame". Grammy. Retrieved April 2, 2022.
  11. Hiatt, Brian (May 12, 2011). "The Emancipation of Steven Tyler". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on February 2, 2013. Retrieved April 9, 2022.
  12. Davis, Stephen (1997). Walk This Way: The Autobiography of Aerosmith. HarperCollins. pp. 171–173. ISBN 978-0-380-97594-5.
  13. "CashBox Singles Reviews" (PDF). Cash Box. December 27, 1975. p. 120. Retrieved December 11, 2021.
  14. "Single Picks" (PDF). Record World. September 15, 1973. p. 14. Retrieved March 22, 2023.
  15. "Dream On (MTV 10th Anniversary) - Aerosmith" – via YouTube.
  16. "Steven Tyler - Dream On - American Idol Season 10 Finale Results Show - 05/25/11" – via YouTube.
  17. "Aerosmith & The Boston Pops Orchestra - Dream On (Live 2006)" – via YouTube.
  18. "Aerosmith Dream On Fenway Park 8-14-2010 HD" – via YouTube.
  19. "Boston Marathon concert to feature music icons Aerosmith, James Taylor, NKOTB concert benefits One Fund". WCVB. May 30, 2013. Retrieved March 10, 2014.
  20. "Aerosmith - Dream On (with Southern California Children's Chorus) - Boston Marathon Bombing Tribute" – via YouTube.
  21. "Steven Tyler, Slash, and Train "Dream On" at the Howard Stern Birthday Bash (2014)" – via YouTube.
  22. Scarlettpublished, Liz (November 7, 2022). "Watch Aerosmith's Steven Tyler perform with Eminem at the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame ceremony". loudersound. Retrieved November 13, 2022.
  23. Wass, Mike (December 15, 2022). "Aerosmith's 'Dream On,' Lady Gaga's 'Bloody Mary,' Sia's 'Unstoppable' Among the Viral Revivals of 2022". Variety. Retrieved January 11, 2023.
  24. https://www.looper.com/1289109/whats-song-the-creator-official-trailer/
  25. "Aerosmith Chart History: Billboard Hot 100: "Dream On" (peak position)" (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 85, no. 48. December 1, 1973. p. 56. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved April 17, 2021 – via American Radio History.
  26. "Dutch Single Tip 13/03/1976". dutchcharts.nl (in Dutch). Retrieved March 1, 2023.
  27. "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 9, 1994" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 2020-04-06.
  28. "Aerosmith – Dream On" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 2020-04-06.
  29. "ČNS IFPI" (in Czech). Hitparáda – Digital Top 100 Oficiální. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: Change the chart to CZ – SINGLES DIGITAL – TOP 100 and insert 202246 into search. Retrieved November 21, 2022.
  30. "Aerosmith – Dream On" (in French). Les classement single. Retrieved 2023-01-18.
  31. "Aerosmith Chart History (Global 200)". Billboard. Retrieved November 29, 2022.
  32. "Archívum – Slágerlisták – MAHASZ" (in Hungarian). Single (track) Top 40 lista. Magyar Hanglemezkiadók Szövetsége. Retrieved November 17, 2022.
  33. "2022 46-os savaitės klausomiausi (Top 100)" (in Lithuanian). AGATA. November 18, 2022. Retrieved November 18, 2022.
  34. "ČNS IFPI". IFPI ČR. Note: Select SK SINGLES DIGITAL TOP 100 and insert 202246 into search. Retrieved November 21, 2022.
  35. "Veckolista Heatseeker, vecka 46". Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved November 18, 2022.
  36. "Top 200 Singles of '76". Archived from the original on June 10, 2016. Retrieved October 25, 2016.
  37. "Billboard Hot 100 - 1976". Archived from the original on May 21, 2011. Retrieved February 9, 2010.
  38. "Top 100-Jaaroverzicht van 1994". Dutch Top 40. Retrieved April 6, 2020.
  39. "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Aerosmith; 'Dream On')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie. Retrieved May 4, 2023.
  40. "Italian single certifications – Aerosmith – Dream On" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Retrieved December 19, 2021.
  41. "British single certifications – Aerosmith – Dream On". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved April 28, 2023.
  42. "American single certifications – Aerosmith – Dream On". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved December 19, 2021.
  43. "IFPI Charts – Digital Singles Chart (International) – Εβδομάδα: 46/2022" (in Greek). IFPI Greece. Retrieved February 3, 2023.
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