Cryin'

This song is about a roller coaster relationship that seemed great at first but then turned a lot worse. It can also be seen as a metaphor for Steven Tyler's drug use.

This was written after Aerosmith's record company rejected most of the songs they had composed for the Get A Grip album. They were signed to Geffen Records, whose executive John Kalodner was assigned to the band. It was his job to break the bad news that the songs they had written sucked, but he felt it was more important to look after their business interests than to form a friendship. After the expected grousing from the band, they agreed to work with outside writers who Kalodner brought in to help. On "Crazy," Steven Tyler and Joe Perry worked with Taylor Rhodes, who had co-written the Celine Dion hit "Where Does My Heart Beat Now." Rhodes also had a rock pedigree, having produced the band Kix. In just one day, they were able to write the majority of this song, toeing the lyrical line between fiery passion and pathetic groveling. The song hit the sweet spot, as did two other songs written for the album with Kalodner's outside writers: "Crazy" and "Livin' On The Edge."

This was the first Aerosmith video to feature actress Alicia Silverstone, and it launched her career. She starred in Aerosmith's next two videos as well: "Amazing" and "Crazy," and has been in many movies since, including Clueless, The Crush, and Blast From The Past. Silverstone had met the band only once. Their scenes were shot separately.