Tom Hamilton is Back in the Saddle

[Crab Key]

Saw several clips of his new band "Close Enemies" on YT. Happy to see him back in action.
One of my favorite rock bassists - He just brings it without a lot of fanfare.
As I get older I gravitate to many of these senior players who still have something to say with their instrument. (Mr Sklar, John Lodge, Roger Glover etc..)

 

[HardNHeavy]

aerosmith were one of my first influences, not really Tom persay, tho a solid player and a good guide for me when i was first starting out. Good to see him still playing, seems like aerosmith since Stevens throat injury, just disappeared off the radar....So many hits and a long career to just fade away and had to cancel their farewell tour altogether.

 

[lordradish]

Is he doing anything actually new and original or just playing Aerosmith tunes?

 

[Crab Key]

It's an original project- Sweet E was the only Aerosmith song posted on YT. There's plenty of others.

 

[fhm555]

It's an original project- Sweet E was the only Aerosmith song posted on YT. There's plenty of others.

Here’s another one.

 

[MotorCityMinion]

Is he doing anything actually new and original or just playing Aerosmith tunes?

I'm good with just original Aerosmith tunes re-imagined. New works too if it sounds like Aerosmith.

 

[40Hz]

Definitely has that late 70s early 90s vibe.

 

[Gilmourisgod]

A great player and a decent guy by all accounts, minus the constant drama and Toxic Twin history of Steven and Joe.

Quick Aerosmith story:
Back in the 70's-80's there were a bunch of guitar stores (Pre GC) around Berklee School of Music in Boston, and my musically inclined friends and I used to haunt them, drooling over gear we couldn't afford. It was commonplace to see members of Boston bands like the Cars, Aerosmith, and Boston trying out gear, particularly at the biggest one, EU Wurlitzer.

There was another big store called Daddy's Junky Music on Mass Ave. I came out once (having bought nothing, per usual) and saw two "bums" sitting on an old truck bench seat left on the curb for trash. They both looked like the typical run of haggard Boston street guys, but as I got closer, I realized it was Joe and Steven. I was too chicken to ask for an autograph, so I called out "Joe Perry!, and he raised three fingers, like the Pope giving a benediction. Glad to see that they are both(?) sober these days. I'm sure Tom had his share of rock-star behavior, but weathered it better.

I only recently found out that my favorite Aerosmith Tune, Back in the Saddle coincidentally, was Joe Perry on a Bass VI. Here's an isolated bass track. sloppy as hell, and the timing is bad, but through the magic of recording, it sounds great on the track. I don't know if Tom doubled this on 4-string bass, the one time I saw them in concert, Tom played it fingerstyle on a 4-string.

 

[Michedelic]

As I get older I gravitate to many of these senior players who still have something to say with their instrument. (Mr Sklar, John Lodge, Roger Glover etc..)

But do they, really? Or just keep on doing what they’ve always done. As I get older, I seek out new blood, new ideas. I’ve heard that old stuff enough times, too many, actually.

New works too if it sounds like Aerosmith.

Wouldn’t that be stagnation?

There’s this newer band, Crossbone Skully, featuring bassist Chris Wyse(Ace Frehley, The Cult, Hollywood Vampires)that is an amusing throwback, but in the end, how long are they going to trade on the AC/DC-isms?



Plus a little Slade, huh?

 

[Gilmourisgod]

Is Tom pretty much 100% fingerstyle now? Some of the older stuff, like Emotion, sounds like pick bass on the record. I haven't seen any recent videos of him doing anything but fingerstyle.

 

[Crab Key]

But do they, really? Or just keep on doing what they’ve always done. As I get older, I seek out new blood, new ideas. I’ve heard that old stuff enough times, too many, actually.

Wouldn’t that be stagnation?

There’s this newer band, Crossbone Skully, featuring bassist Chris Wyse(Ace Frehley, The Cult, Hollywood Vampires)that is an amusing throwback, but in the end, how long are they going to trade on the AC/DC-isms?



Plus a little Slade, huh?

But do they, really? Or just keep on doing what they’ve always done. As I get older, I seek out new blood, new ideas. I’ve heard that old stuff enough times, too many, actually.

Wouldn’t that be stagnation?

There’s this newer band, Crossbone Skully, featuring bassist Chris Wyse(Ace Frehley, The Cult, Hollywood Vampires)that is an amusing throwback, but in the end, how long are they going to trade on the AC/DC-isms?



Plus a little Slade, huh?

Well, He and the band seem to be having fun playing music they like & the crowd was their most likely by their choice so I'd say it's a win - win.

 

[wboyd68]

A great player and a decent guy by all accounts, minus the constant drama and Toxic Twin history of Steven and Joe.

Quick Aerosmith story:
Back in the 70's-80's there were a bunch of guitar stores (Pre GC) around Berklee School of Music in Boston, and my musically inclined friends and I used to haunt them, drooling over gear we couldn't afford. It was commonplace to see members of Boston bands like the Cars, Aerosmith, and Boston trying out gear, particularly at the biggest one, EU Wurlitzer.

There was another big store called Daddy's Junky Music on Mass Ave. I came out once (having bought nothing, per usual) and saw two "bums" sitting on an old truck bench seat left on the curb for trash. They both looked like the typical run of haggard Boston street guys, but as I got closer, I realized it was Joe and Steven. I was too chicken to ask for an autograph, so I called out "Joe Perry!, and he raised three fingers, like the Pope giving a benediction. Glad to see that they are both(?) sober these days. I'm sure Tom had his share of rock-star behavior, but weathered it better.

I only recently found out that my favorite Aerosmith Tune, Back in the Saddle coincidentally, was Joe Perry on a Bass VI. Here's an isolated bass track. sloppy as hell, and the timing is bad, but through the magic of recording, it sounds great on the track. I don't know if Tom doubled this on 4-string bass, the one time I saw them in concert, Tom played it fingerstyle on a 4-string.

I bought my EBMMSR at Daddy's in 1992.

 

[Gilmourisgod]

I bought my EBMMSR at Daddy's in 1992.

Then you must have known about EU Wurlitzer on Newbury Street. Funky old place full of lead sleds and huge beat up PA cabs as I recall it. I bought my first "real" bass, a 1978 Rickenbacker 4001 there for $450 with HSC. My, how times have changed, and time has flown. GC killed almost all those stores. The only one left standing after all these years is Mr. Music in Allston. They carved out a niche selling some pretty pricey Vintage gear, but they sell new stuff too. GC ate the rest, and with it, decades of memory and experience.

 

[wboyd68]

Then you must have known about EU Wurlitzer on Newbury Street. Funky old place full of lead sleds and huge beat up PA cabs as I recall it. I bought my first "real" bass, a 1978 Rickenbacker 4001 there for $450 with HSC. My, how times have changed, and time has flown. GC killed almost all those stores. The only one left standing after all these years is Mr. Music in Allston. They carved out a niche selling some pretty pricey Vintage gear, but they sell new stuff too. GC ate the rest, and with it, decades of memory and experience.

I think I paid just over $900 for the StingRay. I lived in Southeastern NH where we had music stores but you had to go to Newbury Street to really see anything cool.

 

[wintremute]

Is he doing anything actually new and original or just playing Aerosmith tunes?

That's what I was wondering, did he join an Aerosmith cover band. I see they have originals. I'll check them out.

 

[BASSDROID]

I was at Berklee from '94 through '96 but never saw any of the Aerosmith dudes. However Mama Kin had just opened down by Fenway.

I passed through Daddys Junky Music pretty frequently. I remember purchasing a new Fender Jazz there. I think it was a MIM, long gone now. They had a really cool late 60s Rickenbacker 4001 for a while too. There was another cool little music store at the corner of Boylston and Hemenway...forget the name. I got a good deal on a Hagstrom HB there.

Good times. Not easy times but definitely educational. I'm glad I was not around to see those stores succumb.

 

[corinpills]

I was at Berklee from '94 through '96 but never saw any of the Aerosmith dudes. However Mama Kin had just opened down by Fenway.

I passed through Daddys Junky Music pretty frequently. I remember purchasing a new Fender Jazz there. I think it was a MIM, long gone now. They had a really cool late 60s Rickenbacker 4001 for a while too. There was another cool little music store at the corner of Boylston and Hemenway...forget the name. I got a good deal on a Hagstrom HB there.

Good times. Not easy times but definitely educational. I'm glad I was not around to see those stores succumb.

Cambridge Music. I bought Steve Swallow's original 1962 Gibson EB-2 there for $500- heavily modified with all sorts of parts swapped out and some weird prototype humbucker. Sadly, it got destroyed at a gig in a bit of misguided stagecraft- turns out you really shouldn't throw vintage hollowbodies really high in the air on stage ad then miss catching them. Whoopsie. Sorry about that, jazz history.
I'm actually playing at Tom's daughter's wedding next year and really looking forward to meeting him.

 

[ThinCrappyTone2]

A great player and a decent guy by all accounts, minus the constant drama and Toxic Twin history of Steven and Joe.

Quick Aerosmith story:
Back in the 70's-80's there were a bunch of guitar stores (Pre GC) around Berklee School of Music in Boston, and my musically inclined friends and I used to haunt them, drooling over gear we couldn't afford. It was commonplace to see members of Boston bands like the Cars, Aerosmith, and Boston trying out gear, particularly at the biggest one, EU Wurlitzer.

There was another big store called Daddy's Junky Music on Mass Ave. I came out once (having bought nothing, per usual) and saw two "bums" sitting on an old truck bench seat left on the curb for trash. They both looked like the typical run of haggard Boston street guys, but as I got closer, I realized it was Joe and Steven. I was too chicken to ask for an autograph, so I called out "Joe Perry!, and he raised three fingers, like the Pope giving a benediction. Glad to see that they are both(?) sober these days. I'm sure Tom had his share of rock-star behavior, but weathered it better.

I only recently found out that my favorite Aerosmith Tune, Back in the Saddle coincidentally, was Joe Perry on a Bass VI. Here's an isolated bass track. sloppy as hell, and the timing is bad, but through the magic of recording, it sounds great on the track. I don't know if Tom doubled this on 4-string bass, the one time I saw them in concert, Tom played it fingerstyle on a 4-string.

Ah, Daddy’s! Still have an old 1990s Trace Elliot BLX 80 combo I got there. It was used, beat up and weighed about 2 tons . Has the strangest design with a weird baffle in the front, but sounded great to me. Still does. The loudest 80 watts I have ever heard! Miss Daddys Junky.

 

[lordradish]

But do they, really? Or just keep on doing what they’ve always done. As I get older, I seek out new blood, new ideas. I’ve heard that old stuff enough times, too many, actually.

My sentiments, exactly. A lot of the old guys are creatively tapped (or may just be good players but not good songwriters). The last thing I wanna hear is classic rock nowadays, but even less so is stuff that's modern and just sounds like classic rock, played by someone who's heyday was 2 decades ore more ago. I think most of these people are pretty stagnant. Very few seem to have moved forward musically. I don't listen or play like I did 30 years ago, I'm not into other players that don't really evolve. Hamilton's great at what he does in Aerosmith, but I don't know how much that really translates to making interesting music in 2025. When I saw the OP's vid, my first reaction was an eye roll.

 

[lordradish]

I'm good with just original Aerosmith tunes re-imagined. New works too if it sounds like Aerosmith.

I don't see these as 're-imagined'. They just sound like a cover band. I like hearing original new ideas, not stuff milked way past its shelf life.
But we all like different things, so it's all good.