Genres: Alternative/Indie,Country,Soundtracks,RockSince his solo debut in 2000, Ryan Adams has been able to defy the fickleness of following the latest trends by being true to his music. Adams has always been a rebel, but a revel with a cause and a conscious. His music is true to his beliefs, his country roots notwithstanding, Adams has achieved mainstream success playing country styled music but with an attitude and raggedness of the post grunge era garage sound.
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Ryan Adams - At The Crossroads Of Country And Rock
"Can You till have any famous last words even though you are not famous" - Ryan Adams
The Prodigy
Since his solo debut in 2000, Ryan Adams has been able to defy the fickleness of following the latest trends by being true to his music. Adams has always been a rebel, but a revel with a cause and a conscious. His music is true to his beliefs, his country roots notwithstanding, Adams has achieved mainstream success playing country styled music but with an attitude and raggedness of the post grunge era garage sound.
Many touted him as the next big commercial star but he couldn't care less. He is not the pretty pretender selling his music through videos rather spewing angst filled lyrics about this world. Playing very subdued country rock, he is not a showman but a "Halloweenhead"! Ryan Adams perhaps will be most remembered for his loving tribute to New York City from his Gold album called "New York New York". The video was filmed 4 days before Sept 11 attacks and shows twin towers at the background.
In the Beginning
Ryan Adams hails from Jacksonville and right from a very early age had decided to have a music career. Ryan dropped out of high school and joined a band. He had already learnt how to play the guitar. His early influence was the literary works of Edgar Allan Poe, Henry Miller and the beat writer and highly influential Jack Kerouac. In 1994, Ryan Adams founded the alternative country band Whiskeytown. From 1995-2001 they released several albums and a sizeable fan base. They toured the US extensively. However they disbanded in 2001 for all members to pursue a solo career
Ryan Adams embarked on a solo career while still in Whiskeytown; his first album released in 2000 was "Heartbreaker". Though the album was not a mainstream success but the beautifully crafted "Oh My Sweet Carolina" with its touching lyrics and soulful singing has been appreciated by the likes of Elton John. The subtle guitar playing and the harmonica takes you back to an old country road.
New York New York
His second album titled "Gold" was his biggest seller and mainstream breakthrough. His song "New York New York" and the accompanying video of the twin towers in the back ground became a huge hit. The video was recorded just 4 days before the tragic events of Sept 11. The word play in the song and the country style delivery was a standout. The track got Ryan Adams two Grammy nominations. To quickly capture the new popularity his label released "Demolition" which was songs from his un-released previous albums. The album reached 28 on the US charts.
Adams showed his ability to release albums - 1 every year. In 2003 he released his first straight rock album, deliberately titled "Rock n Roll". A homage to 70s rock as much as a careful attempt to sound cool and artsy at the same time; Adams is taking on the other bands in the genre and teaching them a thing to. But while the album is a good collection of songs, the record is not very accessible. The songwriting a bit rushed.
Adams does not wait for the sunshine and dives straight into his next album releasing the very next year "Love is Hell" in '04 which should ideally have been released with "Rock N Roll". Recorded during the same time and with the same atmospheric energy - "Love is Hell" is considered the better of the two. Adams covers "Wonderwall" from Oasis; he references the acoustic version of Noel Gallagher - but changes the sound completely. Instead of the guitar strumming anthem he plays it with finger tapping and delivers the vocals as a jazz story teller.
Mr. Prolific
His two albums in 2005, "Cold Roses" and full country "Jacksonville City Nights" while not at its best prove that there is nothing stopping Mr. Adams. "Cold Roses" is a return to his Whiskeytown country rock roots, referencing Neil Young's "Harvest". But it is the very country "Jacksonville City Nights" along with the backing band Cardinals which received some of the best reviews of his career.
In 2006 he released "29" but by now our genius sounds completely worn out. Even the album cover gave it a concept album feel
His last album was the 2007 "Easy Tiger", considered one of his best since "Gold". The album title is more about telling himself to "take things easy". Ryan Adams is confident on who he is and what he has accomplished. "Easy Tiger" was well appreciated by his fans and it debut at No.7 on the US charts. The single "Halloweenhead" had our genius observing the life around him captured well on the taxi driver video.
Ryan Adams is the self proclaimed rock n roll savior. We hope he succeeds in his mission!
- On his album, "Gold" he thanks Alanis Morrisette five separate times
- Ryan Adam while performing in Liverpool fell of the stage and broke his wrist
- Ryan shares a birthday with both Gram Parsons, one of his major musical influences, and his near-namesake BRyan Adams
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