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Ryan Adams-more than hype

Just a few notes about Ryan Adams an artist I think many Audiogoners would enjoy but might avoid due to the hype surrounding him and indeed the adverse publicity.
Indeed one member told me he avoided him due to this name being too similar to Bryan Adams!

Who is he?
He's thirty this year, born in Jacksonville,NC was the main man in alt-country band Whiskeytown and has been an acclaimed solo artist since 1999.

Is he good?
He's the real deal but more of that later.

Why the bum rap?
He is something of a wonder kid,songs seem to pour out of him at an amazing rate in a wide range of styles so part of the negativity to me is jealousy.
However he has a self-destructive streak, problems with drugs an alcohol have featured in his life at times.
Occassionally on stage he's been an idiot but I do believe he is 100% genuine,his gig recently in Glasgow was a joy to watch,it's easy to see he's a little misunderstood.
If occassional bad behaviour(and it's minor) was a barrier in chossing music to listen to our collections would be mostly empty.

The music?
Awesome in places,he's the closet to a modern day (younger)song writing genius we have.Part of his problem is he creates so much music that he must find it difficult to find the right presentation for it.
Who does he sound like?
He has country roots (he did a spectacular To Miss Someone in Glasgow,he has an amazing voice when he goes plaintive)with an occassional rockier edge-he can evoke memories of everybody from Dylan,Van Morrisson, The Band,Gram Parsons,Cash, and his new record The Smiths and U2.
He can sound like a magpie at times but what saves him,makes him special is the quality of the songs.

What should I buy?
Probably Gold is the place to start-arguably his most mainstream record,listen to it and don't dismiss it because of the influences,let it breathe and you will hear a very very special talent.
I would also state I'm no expert,like any artist there is an underground network of bootlegs,unreleased songs etc.-I'm sure if the rumours are true some of his best stuff is still in the can.
If you can try to hear some of his most beautiful songs like La Cienga Just Smiled from Gold or indeed Dear Chicago from the otherwise poor Demolition and tell me I'm wrong.
ben_campbell
lazarus28
339 posts
 
heartbreaker is, imho, FAR better than gold. i also think he gets bad press because he releases way too much mediocre music. just listen to demolition and rock & roll.

but, then the love is hell eps come out and renew my faith in him. . . his best work since heartbreaker.

for those who prefer a little more country-ish sound, strangers almanac and pneumonia from whiskeytown are exceptional.
beatlebum
160 posts
 
Ben and Laz, I couldn't agree with you more. I turned my 19 year old nephew onto Ryan Adams this past summer. I think his music is incredibly diverse and infinitely interesting. I truly believe Strangers Almanac (Whiskeytown) is one of the greatest recording of all time. When I first heard Turn Around from Strangers Almanac and that guitar sound I went nuts and bought every Whiskeytown cd that was out at the time. Tell me that Losering isn't one of the coolest songs ever. I now have all of those as well as all of Ryan's solo efforts. I believe the bad press or rap he gets is due to his "quality control" of songs on his releases. For me, in these times of carefully crafted and marketed "music", this is refreshing. It seems most, if not all, of my favorite artists have received bad press due to this same scenario. John Lennon, Paul Westerberg, Neil Young and Steve Forbert, among others, have been hit with this same criticism. (You gotta check out Westerberg's new cd also). Laz, give Rock and Roll more listening time, it's really pretty good in it's own way. Anyway, back to work.......

p.s. Ben, nice Tele in the background there.
ben_campbell OP
1,164 posts
 
Laz-arguably Heartbreaker is better than Gold but perhaps Gold is a better starting point for a wider audience,maybe,maybe not.
The main point of the thread is that I'm sure many Audiogoners will have missed this guy.
I love Strangers Almanac too and agree about Rock and Roll not brilliant but a decent record which has 4 maybe 5 excellent tracks.
ozfly
887 posts
 
I'll check it out. Parts of your description also reminds me of Gus Black (Uncivilized Love). As you know from other posts, I believe that to be a superb album (for a review, see http://www.performingsongwriter.com/pages/70/reviews.cfm )

Thanks again for the recommendation.
zaikesman
3,017 posts
 
Everytime I see him on TV, I think yeah, he's got some talent (also, gee, he looks totally different yet again), but doesn't really have 'it'. By which I guess I mean that I'm never as bowled over as the critics say I should be (not at all, actually), and he seems more like a dilettantish craftsman than an original/inspired genius, and a bit of a self-conscious poser at that. All of his reference points let me know that he and I probably admire a lot of the same stuff, but heck, I can enjoy that on my own without needing him. I haven't heard all that much of him, it's true, but from what I have heard, I wouldn't put him in the same catagory as prime Westerberg or Chilton or Costello, for instance - more like one of their skilled admirers (who also digs Gram Parsons) than true inheritor, maybe sort of the new Matthew Sweet, but no Gene Clark (or even Robyn Hitchcock). However, I suppose in these artistically impoverished days one could do worse...
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