Crazy (Aerosmith song)

"Crazy"
Single by Aerosmith
from the album Get a Grip
B-side "Gotta Love It"
Released May 3, 1994
Format Cassette, CD
Recorded 1992
Genre Blues rock
Length 5:16 (Album Version)
4:04 (LP Edit)
Label Geffen
Writer(s) Steven Tyler
Joe Perry
Desmond Child
Producer Bruce Fairbairn
Aerosmith singles chronology
"Deuces Are Wild"
(1994)
"Crazy"
(1994)
"Blind Man"
(1994)

"Crazy" is a song performed by American hard rock band Aerosmith and written by Steven Tyler, Joe Perry, and Desmond Child. It was the final single from Aerosmith's massively successful 1993 album Get a Grip. It was released as a single in 1994 and peaked at #17 on the Billboard Hot 100, #7 on the Mainstream Rock Tracks chart, and #3 in Canada. In the United Kingdom, "Crazy" was released as a Double-A side with "Blind Man", which reached #23.

Contents

Lyrical interpretation

The song's lyrics are about a woman who comes and goes, and whose "crazy ways" drive the narrator "crazy."

Music video

The video for the song (which was directed by Marty Callner) received heavy rotation on MTV and was one of the most requested videos of 1994. It featured the third appearance of Alicia Silverstone in the band's videos, as well as the career debut of Steven's then-teenaged daughter Liv Tyler. The decision to cast Liv in the video for "Crazy" was based on the video's creators having seen her in a Pantene commercial, with absolutely no knowledge her father was in the band. The video was very film-like and depicted the two as schoolgirls who skip class and run away, driving off in a blue Ford Mustang convertible. The two use their good looks to take advantage of a service station clerk, and needing money, enter an amateur pole-dancing competition. The video is noteworthy for its very risque and suggestive sexual scenes, many of which strongly suggest lesbianism in the characters. The video also shows the similarities in stage moves of Steven Tyler and daughter Liv. In the end, the girls win the dance competition. They continue their joyride the following day, where they encounter a young sweaty and shirtless farmer (played by model Dean Kelly) tilling land in the countryside. They persuade him to join them in their journeys, where they all go for a skinny dip in a lake, and nearly abandon him. The farmer runs to join them again and his penis is briefly seen. The final seconds of the video show the word "Crazy" spelled out in cursive in the cropland by the still-running tractor.

A slightly altered director's cut of the video appears on the video compilation Big Ones You Can Look At. In addition, Jason London makes a short cameo at the end in a tag scene, reprising his character from the "Amazing" video.

Success

The song was the second highest chart performance for the band out of all the singles for Get a Grip. The song also earned the band a Grammy Award for Best Rock Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocal in 1994. This was the band's second Grammy win for Get a Grip and third Grammy award overall.

The video for "Crazy" was selected #23 in VH1's Top 100 Music Videos of All Time.

End of year charts

End of year chart (1994) Position
U.S. Billboard Hot 100[1] 68

Legacy

Despite the song bringing much success for the band in the mid 1990s and appearing on a number of compilations including Big Ones, A Little South of Sanity, O, Yeah! Ultimate Aerosmith Hits, and Devil's Got a New Disguise, the band rarely performed it during their constant touring until it was added to international shows on their 2007 World Tour due to overwhelming demand from fans.

References