Editing Done with Mirrors

{{Infobox album
| name         = Done with Mirrors
| type         = studio
| artist       = [[Aerosmith]]
| cover        = Aerosmith Done With Mirrors.jpg
| alt          = 
| released     = {{Start date|1985|11|04}}<ref name="Release Date">{{Cite web|url=https://www.aerosmith.com/news?n_id=2474|title = AeroHistory: Done with Mirrors}}</ref>
| recorded     = Early 1985
| studio       = *[[Fantasy Studios|Fantasy]], [[Berkeley, California|Berkeley]]
*[[Power Station (recording studio)|Power Station]], [[New York City]]
*Can-Am, [[Tarzana, Los Angeles|Tarzana]]
| genre        = [[Hard rock]]
| length       = 35:42
| label        = [[Geffen Records|Geffen]]
| producer     = [[Ted Templeman]]
| prev_title   = [[Rock in a Hard Place]]
| prev_year    = 1982
| next_title   = [[Permanent Vacation (Aerosmith album)|Permanent Vacation]]
| next_year    = 1987
| misc         = {{Singles
 | name        = Done with Mirrors
 | type        = studio
 | single1     = [[Let the Music Do the Talking (song)|Let the Music Do the Talking]]
 | single1date = September 16, 1985
 | single2     = [[Shela (song)|Shela]]
 | single2date = October 31, 1985
 }}
}}
'''''Done with Mirrors''''' is the eighth studio album by American [[rock music|rock]] band [[Aerosmith]], released on November 4, 1985.<ref name="Release Date"/> It marked the return to the band of guitarists [[Joe Perry (musician)|Joe Perry]], who left in 1979 and [[Brad Whitford]], who departed in 1981. The band's first album on [[Geffen Records]], it was intended as their ‘comeback’. However, the record failed to live up to commercial expectations despite positive reviews.

==Background==
[[Brad Whitford]] revealed that producer [[Ted Templeman]] wanted to capture the band's aggressive, "out of control freight train" sound by removing the red light indicating that recording was underway (a technique he had used to capture [[Van Halen]]'s sound). Templeman told the band to run through the songs in the studio and recorded them without their knowledge. Whitford referred to the nerves generated when knowingly recording songs as "the red light blues".

"I had a great time making that record," Templeman told ''[[The Washington Post]]'''s [[Geoff Edgers]], "and Steven was one of the most amazing guys. But we had to do that record in Berkeley because they didn't want those guys to score (drugs). They didn't want them to be in L.A. or San Francisco. I wasn't familiar with the board. As a producer, if you know your room and the mic [[preamplifier|preamps]], you know how things are going to sound. I don't think I made Joey's drums sound as good as they could have or Joe's guitar."<ref name="WashPost">{{cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/lifestyle/walk-this-way/??noredirect=on |title=The inside story of when Run‑DMC met Aerosmith and changed music forever |last=Edgers |first=Geoff |author-link=Geoff Edgers |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |date=May 18, 2016 |access-date=2018-08-26}}</ref>

Joe Perry recalled recording in a 2022 interview: "[...] with the rest of the songs, there was a vibe to them where they were just raw and dirty. I still wish I could have maybe polished a few more things or maybe put a couple more overdubs on it, but all in all, I think it did what it was supposed to do. I think it kind of showed me what we needed to do, what we were, and where we needed to be for the next one. I think we had to do that record to get to the next step and really take ourselves out of the usual way we were writing and recording."<ref>Daly, Andrew. An Interview with Joe Perry of Aerosmith. July 2, 2022. VWMusic. July 2, 2022. https://vwmusicrocks.com/2022/07/02/an-interview-with-joe-perry-of-aerosmith/.</ref>

"Let the Music Do the Talking" was a rerecording of the title track from the [[Let the Music Do the Talking|first album]] by [[the Joe Perry Project]], with altered lyrics and melody. According to [[Chuck Eddy]], Aerosmith's version is tougher than the original, "while still appropriately letting Joe's guitar talk–like an elephant, no less-–while Tyler discussed somebody being his 'brand-new drug'."<ref name="Eddy" /> The music of "The Reason a Dog" have been compared to [[the Police]]'s "[[Invisible Sun]]" (1981), while its lyrics espouse "tail-wagging canines teaching male-nagging spouses life lessons". Elsewhere, "Shela" is a syncopated song which, according to Eddy, "almost goes [[disco]], at least in the mid-1980s, [[ZZ Top]] sense of the word", while "Gypsy Boots" rides an [[AC/DC]]-esque riff until a switch to bass [[vamp (music)|vamps]] near its conclusion.<ref name="Eddy" /> The final songs on the vinyl edition are the [[blues]] song "She's on Fire" and the fast, straightforward [[rhythm and blues|R&B]] song "The Hop", featuring blues harp, whereas cassette and CD versions conclude with "Darkness", a dirge that Eddy says connects "foreboding old Aerosmith alley crawls like '[[Seasons of Wither]]' with more lucrative [[Tin Pan Alley]] moves to come."<ref name="Eddy" />

[[Viacom (2005–present)|Viacom]] (MTV & VH1) executive [[Doug Herzog]] recalled that, after this album, "Aerosmith was done… They were a little bit of a joke."<ref name="WashPost"/> Eddy speculated that the album's failure may have been due to the "kick-the-[[cocaine addiction|coke-habit]] pun" of the title, or the lead single and first song being a remake of a five-year-old Joe Perry Project song.<ref name="Eddy" /> However, they would revive their career in 1986 with a landmark remake of 1975's "[[Walk This Way]]" with hip-hop group [[Run DMC]], followed by an album that would eventually go 5× Platinum – ''[[Permanent Vacation (Aerosmith album)|Permanent Vacation]]'' – in 1987.

''Done with Mirrors'' is the last Aerosmith record written without the aid of outside songwriters, as of ''[[Music from Another Dimension!]]''

==Packaging and title==
In keeping with the title, all the text (bar the catalog number and UPC) on the original releases, including all text in the booklet of the first CD pressing, were written back to front, to be read by holding it to a mirror. Re-releases flip the artwork so it can be read without a mirror, additionally adding the band's logo. As a result, the original CD (which came in a [[longbox]]) is a collector's item.

The title refers both to illusions that are "done with mirrors", and the laying out of drugs such as [[cocaine]], traditionally snorted off a mirror.

== Reception ==
{{Music ratings
| rev1 = [[AllMusic]]
| rev1Score = {{Rating|4|5}} <ref Name=AM1>{{AllMusic|class=album|id=mw0000649812 |label=Review |first=Stephen Thomas |last=Erlewine |access-date=7 April 2020}}</ref>
| rev2 = ''[[Christgau's Record Guide: The '80s|Christgau's Record Guide]]''
| rev2score = B+<ref name="Christgau">{{cite book|last=Christgau|first=Robert|author-link=Robert Christgau|chapter-url=https://www.robertchristgau.com/get_chap.php?k=A&bk=80|chapter=A|access-date=August 16, 2020|title=[[Christgau's Record Guide: The '80s]]|publisher=[[Pantheon Books]]|year=1990|isbn=0-679-73015-X|via=robertchristgau.com}}</ref>
| rev3 = ''[[Martin Popoff|Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal]]''
| rev3Score = 7/10<ref name="martin" >{{cite book | last1 = Popoff | first1 = Martin | author-link1 = Martin Popoff | title = The Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal: Volume 2: The Eighties | publisher = [[Collector's Guide Publishing]] | date = November 1, 2005 | location = [[Burlington, Ontario]], Canada | isbn = 978-1-894959-31-5 | page=13}}</ref>
| rev4 = ''The Daily Vault''
| rev4Score = A<ref name=vault>{{cite web |url= http://dailyvault.com/toc.php5?review=322 |title=The Daily Vault Music Reviews : Done with Mirrors |first=Christopher |last=Thelen |work=dailyvault.com |year=2019 |access-date=16 February 2019}}</ref>
| rev5 = ''[[Encyclopedia of Popular Music]]''
| rev5score = {{Rating|3|5}}<ref name="Larkin">{{cite book|last1=Larkin|first1=Colin|title=Virgin Encyclopedia of Popular Music|date=1997|publisher=Virgin Books|location=London|isbn=1-85227 745 9|chapter=Aerosmith|page=23}}</ref>
| rev6 = ''[[Martin C. Strong|The Great Rock Discography]]''
| rev6score = 6/10<ref name="Strong">{{cite book |last1=Strong |first1=Martin C. |title=The Great Rock Discography |date=2006 |publisher=Canongate Books |location=Edinburgh |isbn=1-84195-827-1 |chapter=Van Halen |page=10}}</ref>
| rev7 = ''[[Kerrang!]]''
| rev7Score = {{Rating|5|5}}<ref>{{cite magazine| last = Russell| first = Xavier| magazine = [[Kerrang!]]| title = Smith's Krisp| issue = 107| publisher = Morgan Grampian| date = November 1985| location = London, UK| pages = 18–19}}</ref>
| rev8 = ''[[Rolling Stone]]''
| rev8Score = (unfavorable)<ref name="Guterman">{{cite magazine | url = https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-album-reviews/done-with-mirrors-255512/ | title = Done With Mirrors | last = Guterman | first = Jimmy | magazine = [[Rolling Stone]]| date = 1985-12-05 | access-date = 2012-05-14}}</ref>
| rev9 = ''[[The Rolling Stone Album Guide]]''
| rev9Score = {{Rating|2|5}}<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/artists/aerosmith/albumguide |title=Aerosmith - Album Guide |first=Greg |last=Kot |author-link=Greg Kot |magazine=[[Rolling Stone]] |access-date=November 28, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110628221501/http://www.rollingstone.com/music/artists/aerosmith/albumguide |archive-date=June 28, 2011}}</ref>
}}

''Done with Mirrors'' received mostly positive reviews.<ref>{{Cite web |title=How Aerosmith Got Their Wings Back on 'Done with Mirrors' |date=9 November 2015 |url=http://ultimateclassicrock.com/aerosmith-done-with-mirrors/}}</ref> In ''[[The Village Voice]]'', [[Robert Christgau]] wrote that, given the "bad records" Aerosmith had made in the preceding decade, he did not expect to enjoy the "touching reunion" of ''Done with Mirrors'', but praised it "against all odds", saying: "if you can stand the crunch, you'll find more get-up-and-go on the first side than on any dozen random [[garage rock|neogarage]] EP's."<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Christgau |first1=Robert |title=Christgau's Consumer Guide |journal=The Village Voice |date=April 29, 1986 |url=https://robertchristgau.com/xg/cg/cgv4b-86.php |access-date=July 23, 2024}}</ref> Also reviewing it for ''The Village Voice'', Eddy considered it superior to other then-recent comeback albums by [[Tina Turner]], [[the Clash]], [[Stevie Wonder]], [[Aretha Franklin]], [[Bob Dylan]] and [[John Fogerty]].<ref name="Eddy" /> ''[[Rolling Stone]]'' reviewer Jimmy Guterman wrote that unlike the best [[Heavy metal music|heavy metal]] albums, ''Done with Mirrors'' is "the work of burned-out lugheads whose lack of musical imagination rivals their repugnant lyrics." He found "Let the Music Do the Talking" to be an enjoyable, derivative opening song, but criticised the remaining songs for their "vicious sexism" as well as Perry's "rote and lazy" guitar leads and Tyler's "arena shouts".<ref name="Guterman" />

[[Stephen Thomas Erlewine]] of [[AllMusic]] called it the finest Aerosmith album since ''[[Rocks (Aerosmith album)|Rocks]]'' (1976), saying that unlike its immediate predecessors, ''Done with Mirrors'' is "powered by the same smart-assed lyrics and filthy guitars that formed the core of Aerosmith's best songs." He also considers it superior to ''[[Permanent Vacation (Aerosmith album)|Permanent Vacation]]'' (1987), the album that revived the group's commercial and critical fortunes.<ref name="AM1" /> In ''[[Martin C. Strong|The Great Rock Discography]]'' (2006), [[Martin C. Strong]] describes ''Done with Mirrors'' as Aerosmith's "best effort since the 70's heyday,"<ref name="Strong" /> while ''[[Rough Guides|The Rough Guide to Rock]]'' (1999) contributor Michael Andrews wrote that it "signalled a return to form", highlighting "Let the Music Do the Talking" as its finest track.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Andrews |first1=Michael |editor1-last=Buckley |editor1-first=Jonathan |editor2-last=Duane |editor2-first=Orla |editor3-last=Ellingham |editor3-first=Mark |editor4-last=Spicer |editor4-first=Al |title=The Rough Guide to Rock |date=1999 |publisher=Rough Guides |location=London |isbn=1-85828-457-0 |pages=10–11 |edition=2nd |chapter=Aerosmith}}</ref> [[Colin Larkin (writer)|Colin Larkin]], in ''[[The Encyclopedia of Popular Music]]'' (1997), called the album "a tentative first step" for Aerosmith, following the classic lineup's reformation but prior to Tyler's and Perry's drug rehabilitation programmes and the success of "Walk This Way" and ''Permanent Vacation''.<ref name="Larkin" />

Reviewing the album for the book ''Aerosmith'' (2011), Eddy deems it to be "the last uncompromisingly hard-rocking album Aerosmith made". He finds it superior to ''[[Rock in a Hard Place]]'' (1982), its predecessor, because ''Done with Mirrors'' is "almost entirely the guitarists' and the rhythm section's record, all big, fat chunky funky boxy [[boogie rock|boogie]] riffs. The songs are too concise to get complicated, and they don't need to. There may be no other Aerosmith album that so fully opts for rhythm over melody. Which isn't to say the songs aren't catchy, just that the band's [[Beatles]]-pomp side is nowhere to be found."<ref name="Eddy" /> He considers the opening two songs to be the best and says, while the remaining songs are not "earthshaking", the record "just keeps on punching."<ref name="Eddy">{{cite book |last1=Eddy |first1=Chuck |editor1-last=Bienstock |editor1-first=Richard |title=Aerosmith: The Ultimate Illustrated History of the Boston Bad Boys |date=2011 |publisher=Voyageur Press |location=Minneapolis |isbn=978-0-7603-4106-3 |pages=126–127 |chapter=Done with Mirrors Album Review}}</ref>

===Band opinions===
On [[VH1 Classic]]'s ''[[That Metal Show]]'', [[Joey Kramer]] expressed his dislike of ''Done with Mirrors'', claiming the band "never really finished it".<ref>{{cite web |year=2009 |title=That Metal Show Season 3 Episode 8: Ratt |url=http://www.vh1classic.com/view/playlist/1627078/459708/That_Metal_Show_Season_3_Episode_8_Ratt/That_Metal_Show_Season_3_Episode_8_Ratt_Part_2/index.jhtml |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100410135948/http://www.vh1classic.com/view/playlist/1627078/459708/That_Metal_Show_Season_3_Episode_8_Ratt/That_Metal_Show_Season_3_Episode_8_Ratt_Part_2/index.jhtml |archive-date=2010-04-10 |access-date=2011-09-01 |work=[[That Metal Show]] |publisher=[[VH1]]}}</ref> Joe Perry was similarly dismissive: "''Done with Mirrors'', as far as I'm concerned, is our least inspired record. But I've heard fans really like it so I'm not gonna stand there and tell 'em, 'No, it sucks.' We had to do that record to get to the next one so it served its purpose. I just don't think it's up to the standard of some of our others."<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Yates |first=Henry |date=February 2015 |title=Heavy Load |magazine=[[Classic Rock (magazine)|Classic Rock]] |issue=206 |page=138}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Epting |first=Chris |title=Joe Perry Reveals Which Aerosmith Albums He's Not a Fan Of (Exclusive) |url=http://www.noisecreep.com/2012/12/06/joe-perry-aerosmith-albums/ |access-date=27 December 2012 |work=[[Noisecreep]] |date=6 December 2012 |publisher=[[AOL]]}}</ref> In 1987, Perry said that "''Done with Mirrors'' was the best record we could do at the time, but it wasn't the best record we can do. We should have had a month with those tracks as they sit on that record, instead of having one week which is what we had."<ref name="Eddy" />

===Accolades===
In 1991, Eddy ranked ''Done with Mirrors'' at number 409 in his list of the 500 best [[heavy metal music|heavy metal]] albums. Believing the record was the only mid-1980s musical 'comeback' that lived up to its hype, he highlighted the chaotic opening song where Perry's guitar works similarly to a [[horn section]], "My Fist Your Face" for its "hyperbolically misogynous [[rap]] about teenybop hookers and [[Betty Boop]]", the [[AC/DC]], Police and ZZ Top touchstones on the succeeding songs, the belated "show-offy" ending of "Gypsy Boots", and the "[[Chuck Berry]]-gone-heavy danceability" of "The Hop".<ref name="Eddy2">{{cite book |last1=Eddy |first1=Chuck |title=Stairway to Hell: The 500 Best Heavy Metal Albums in the Universe |date=1991 |publisher=Harmony Books |location=New York |isbn=0517575418 |page=177}}</ref> He added: "Rocking too hard for [[album-oriented rock|AOR]], it died on the charts, and the band got scared", leading to their commercial reinvention on ''[[Permanent Vacation (Aerosmith album)|Permanent Vacation]]'' (1987).<ref name="Eddy2" />

==Track listing==
{{Track listing
| title1 = [[Let the Music Do the Talking (song)|Let the Music Do the Talking]]
| note1 = [[The Joe Perry Project]] cover
| writer1 = [[Joe Perry (musician)|Joe Perry]]
| length1 = 3:48
| title2 = [[My Fist Your Face]]
| writer2 = [[Steven Tyler]], Perry
| length2 = 4:23
| title3 = Shame on You
| writer3 = Tyler
| length3 = 3:22
| title4 = The Reason a Dog
| writer4 = Tyler, [[Tom Hamilton (musician)|Tom Hamilton]]
| length4 = 4:13
| title5 = [[Shela (song)|Shela]]
| writer5 = Tyler, [[Brad Whitford]]
| length5 = 4:25
| title6 = Gypsy Boots
| writer6 = Tyler, Perry
| length6 = 4:16
| title7 = She's on Fire
| writer7 = Tyler, Perry
| length7 = 3:47
| title8 = The Hop
| writer8 = Tyler, Hamilton, [[Joey Kramer]], Perry, Whitford
| length8 = 3:45
}}
{{track listing
| headline = All CD, cassette, and certain vinyl pressings
| title9 = [[Darkness (Aerosmith song)|Darkness]]
| writer9 = Tyler
| length9 = 3:43
| total_length = 35:42
}}

==Personnel==
'''Aerosmith'''
*[[Steven Tyler]]{{snd}}lead vocals, piano, harmonica, percussion
*[[Joe Perry (musician)|Joe Perry]]{{snd}}guitar, [[slide guitar]], backing vocals
*[[Brad Whitford]]{{snd}}guitar, acoustic guitar
*[[Tom Hamilton (musician)|Tom Hamilton]]{{snd}}bass guitar
*[[Joey Kramer]]{{snd}}drums, percussion

'''Production'''
*[[Ted Templeman]] – producer
*Jeff Hendrickson – engineer, mixing
*Tom Size, Gary Rindfuss, Stan Katayama – assistant engineers
*[[Howie Weinberg]] – analog mastering engineer at [[Masterdisk]], New York
*[[Ken Caillat]] – digital mastering
*Joan Parker – production coordinator
*Kent Ayeroff – album cover concept
*Norman Moore – art direction and design
*Jim Shea – photography
*[[John Kalodner]] – A&R

== Charts ==
{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders"
|-
! Chart (1985)
! Peak <br/>position
|-
{{Album chart|Canada|72|chartid=0621|artist=Aerosmith|album=Done with Mirrors|rowheader=true|accessdate=22 April 2018}}
|-
!scope="row"|Japanese Albums ([[Oricon]])<ref name="JPN">{{cite book|title=Oricon Album Chart Book: Complete Edition 1970–2005|publisher=[[Oricon|Oricon Entertainment]]|location=Roppongi, Tokyo|year=2006|isbn=4-87131-077-9|language=ja}}</ref>
| align="center"| 41
|-
{{Album chart|Billboard200|36|artist=Aerosmith|refname=Billboard 200|rowheader=true|accessdate=22 April 2018}}
|}

==Certification==
{{certification Table Top}}
{{certification Table Entry |region=United States |type=album |artist=Aerosmith |title=Done with Mirrors |award=Gold}}
{{certification Table Bottom |nosales=true}}

== See also ==
*[[Done with Mirrors Tour]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Bibliography==
*{{cite book| last = Huxley| first = Martin| year = 2015| title = Aerosmith: The Fall and the Rise of Rock's Greatest Band| publisher = [[St. Martin's Publishing Group]]| isbn = 978-1250096531}}

==Further reading==
{{cite book|title=Ted Templeman: A Platinum Producer's Life In Music|first1=Ted|last1=Templeman|first2=Greg|last2=Renoff|pages=387–94, 404–6|publisher=ECW Press|location=Toronto|year=2020|isbn=9781770414839|oclc=1121143123}}

{{Aerosmith}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Done With Mirrors}}
[[Category:1985 albums]]
[[Category:Aerosmith albums]]
[[Category:Albums produced by Ted Templeman]]
[[Category:Geffen Records albums]]