Sweet Emotion

When "Sweet Emotion" hit No. 36 on the US Billboard Hot 100 on July 19, 1975, Aerosmith happened to be booked that same day at the Schaefer Music Festival in New York City's Central Park. The single, released on May 19, 1975, became the band's breakthrough and their first Top 40 hit. Its success carried the album Toys in the Attic into the Top 10 and began a run of pop hits for the band that lasted through the rest of the decade.

The song grew from a bassline written by bassist Tom Hamilton, who co-wrote it with lead singer Steven Tyler. When drummer Joey Kramer came in, he played on the twos and fours instead of the ones and threes, landing on the backside of the riff. Producer Jack Douglas recalled that hearing this, the reaction was, "Oh, boy! Magic." Recorded at Record Plant studio, the track pairs Hamilton's repeated electric bass riff with a bass marimba played by Jay Messina. Lacking maracas, Tyler shook a packet of sugar instead, and he also played the vibraslap, which broke the third time he hit it, a sound still audible in the final recording.

The introduction features Joe Perry's talk box, played through a discontinued device called The Bag, made by Kustom Electronics. Perry's guitar sings the title line over the bass riff before Tyler joins in unison. The band later rode the song's momentum to re-release "Dream On", which reached No. 6.