Aerosmith - Dream On - Classic Rock

Aerosmith - Dream On - Meaning of the song

This was the first single Aerosmith released. Their manager had them share a house and concentrate on writing songs for their first album. Steven Tyler had been working on the song on and off for about six years, writing it in bits and pieces. He was able to complete it with the help of the rest of the band. A breakthrough came when Tyler bought an RMI keyboard with money he found in a suitcase outside of where the band was staying. The "suitcase incident" became part of Aerosmith lore, as Tyler didn't tell his bandmates that he took the money, and when gangsters came looking for it, he continued to play dumb.

Tyler's father was a classically trained musician, and when Steven was 3 years old, he would lie underneath the piano and listen to his dad play. In his book, Does The Noise In My Head Bother You?, Tyler writes, "That's where I got that 'Dream On' chordage."

Regarding the meaning of this song, Tyler explained: "It's about the hunger to be somebody: Dream until your dreams come true." He added, "This song sums up the s--t you put up with when you're in a new band. Most of the critics panned our first album, and said we were ripping off the Stones. That's a good barometer of my anger at the press, which I still have. 'Dream On' came of me playing the piano when I was about 17 or 18, and I didn't know anything about writing a song. It was just this little sonnet that I started playing one day. I never thought that it would end up being a real song."

Dream On - Lyrics

Every time that I look in the mirror All these lines on my face getting clearer The past is gone It went by like dusk to dawn Isn't that the way? Everybody's got their dues in life to pay Yeah, I know nobody knows Where it comes and where it goes I know it's everybody's sin You got to lose to know How to win Half my life's in books' written pages Live and learn from fools and from sages You know it's true All the things come back to you Sing with me, sing for the year Sing for the laughter, sing for the tear Sing with me if it's just for today Maybe tomorrow the good Lord will take you away Yeah, sing with me, sing for the year Sing for the laughter, sing for the tear Sing with me if it's just for today Maybe tomorrow the good Lord will take you away Dream on, dream on, dream on Dream until your dream come true Dream on, dream on, dream on Dream until your dream come true Dream on, dream on, dream on Dream on, dream on Dream on, dream on, ah Sing with me, sing for the year Sing for the laughter, sing for the tear Sing with me if it's just for today Maybe tomorrow, the good Lord will take you away Sing with me, sing for the year Sing for the laughter, sing for the tear Sing with me if it's just for today Maybe tomorrow, the good Lord will take you away

Aerosmith - Dream On - Live