Does it Rock? Steven Tyler, "(It) Feels So Good"

Ignore for a second that the music video looks like some kind of leathery bi-curious psychotropic nightmare.

I was initially very pleased with this solo single from Steven Tyler. I've been attacked by middle-of-the-road rock singles for a few years now via work, both from acts who have aged into MOR-ness and acts that were born into it. There seems to be an exact formula to creating what "the man" thinks is the ideal rock track, which always comes across as lame, uninspired, and forgettable background music. You know the ones I'm talking about.

"(It) Feels So Good" manages to avoid this sound, built on a shuffling boogie guitar riff and filled with the sort of vaguely-nonsensical yet obviously sexual lyrics that has always made Aerosmith strangely awesome. Few vocalists can sing ridiculousness the way Steven does and imbue it with such soul. Especially old white dudes. But as we know, Steven Tyler is no ordinary old white dude. He is pretty goddamn insane. I just read the first page of his book. There's some pretty brilliant madness in there.

So yes, happily, it does sound like Steven Tyler, without necessarily sounding like Aerosmith. It's not got the same musical muscle as a band-effort would have, which makes it breezy and also softens it up safely for Steven's new audience. This allows them to feel like they're hearing something edgy without necessarily getting "Love in an Elevator." "(It)" apparently, feels very good, and you can use your imagination as to what "(It)" is, although if I had to guess, I'd say it's blowjobs.

The song, I'm told, hails from the same songwriting period that begot the Just Push Play album, which I have some very particular thoughts on indeed. Remarkably, it still sounds fresh due to nothing in Top 40 pop ever having sounded like JPP anyway. So if nothing else, it's distinct, catchy, and enjoyable enough to inhabit the airwaves in 2011.

I'm not entirely sold on Steven Tyler's solo career yet. The tune is amicable enough, but I'm wondering if he cuts a whole album, whether I'll be missing the other four. But here on this site, we don't spend too much time worrying about what something isn't. The only thing that's of concern to me is whether it rocks. And this song, from a a performer coming up on 113 years in music? Yeah, it rocks.