Ryan Adams

"Mike, look at that! There are a bunch of people right there, look! They are right there!!!”

Ryan Adams was speaking to Mike Viola, the guitarist for his latest band, The Shining. The thing which had just happened (and was still happening) was the last performance of their short summer tour. The ‘bunch of people’ were made up of fans from across the country. The place was the Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Morrison, Colorado. And while the exclamatory nature of his remark would have seemed a little unnecessary coming from anyone else who had already performed the fabled venue a few times prior, it was almost expected from Ryan Adams. The prolific singer-songwriter from North Carolina is notorious for finding the spectacular in the most mundane aspects of life. That’s not to say playing at Red Rocks is anything less than phenomenal, but I have personally witnessed the man show the same enthusiasm when speaking about his cat, or how he came to the decision to name his debut album after a Mariah Carey poster that hung in his room.

The last time I saw Ryan Adams headline a show was in 2008. My wife and I had just started dating and I took her to see him perform the Zellerbach Hall at UC Berkeley. Adams had recently been diagnosed with Ménière’s disease and had quit using hard drugs and alcohol. I remember the banter more than the music that night. Sobriety didn’t exactly equate to a newfound focus on stage. His stories were bizarre, hilarious, and sometimes completely incomprehensible. It was a sit-down show, and although the Cardinals were with him, it felt very much like a solo, mostly-acoustic set. Easy Tiger had been my favorite release in quite some time, but the disjointed performance (as entertaining as it was) left me questioning the overall health and well-being of the man behind the music. My concern was only heightened when I learned III/IV and the metal-experiment, Orion, were also the result of that period in his life.

Ryan Adams is many things to many people. There are those who will always pine for the Whiskeytown days. There are old-school fans who will continue to see every album through the impossible lens of Heartbreaker. Some people will always like the alt-country troubadour, while others prefer the unhinged punk and metal enthusiast. And in this time and age when the 80’s are remembered more fondly than they might deserve to be, some will applaud his unapologetic adoption of the soft rock popularized during that era. Critics lift him up, only to throw him down. Women pretend his lyrics were written just for them…that is, until he writes something they don’t like. Guys who can’t be pigeonholed into a defining label will relate to his no-fucks-to-give style. You can say what you want about Ryan Adams, but you can never accuse him of pandering to the masses. He is many things to many people, but he knows himself. He is confident in himself. Only a man with confidence and self-awareness could walk onto a stage, in front of thousands of people, and sing a song like “Trouble” while wearing a red flannel over a black Samhain t-shirt.

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Thursday 19th February. Brighton Dome. Ryan Adams. Its night one of a Brighton double bill at the Dome. The four Musketeers of Antony, Graham, John and I are down on the south coast for two days of music and beer.
Ryan Adams is one of my favourite artists, always consistently good (although sometimes needs a little editing) on both record and live. What has made Ryan stand out in the past are his maverick tendencies and edginess to his performances. Whether with a full band or acoustic you are never entirely sure what you are going to get but in the main he has delivered. So Ryan Adams of 2015 is clean sober and recently separated from his wife and we wait with anticipation for what we are about to receive.
The stage is festooned with all sorts of crap from stars and stripes flags to stuffed tigers. It’s a five piece tonight with an added organ to the usual mix of guitars, drum and bass. What follows is an immaculately performed set by a tight band of some great songs. But, it’s all a little one paced set to a medium tempo with little light and shade and no real standout moments. The songs kinda blend into one with the occasional guitar solo thrown in although even these feel restrained.
The set covers most of his career with a good chunk from his two classic albums Heartbreaker and Gold with ‘Come Pick Me Up’ and ‘When the Stars Go Blue’ raising the bar above what has been set for the rest of evening. There’s minimal banter with the crowd although a heckler is given short shrift and there’s an amusing improvised song about Indiana Jones but there’s no real energy either on or off the stage.
It’s a difficult gig to summarise with the songs all skilfully delivered by a great set of musicians but it felt a little soulless. It’s ultimately disappointing and this one won’t live long in the memory so let’s start a campaign to get Ryan back on the booze and getting laid to get his mojo back.

I wish I had a work ethic that was even half as ferocious as Ryan Adams. Since leaving Whiskeytown in 2000 and making his solo debut with the classic Heartbreaker, he’s produced no fewer than fourteen solo records, both on his own and with The Cardinals, and another, self-titled effort is lined up for later this year. Accordingly, his live shows have varied dramatically over the years; some completely solo and acoustic, others with The Cardinals backing him, all of them delivered with the conviction of an artist who isn’t just happy to experiment stylistically; it genuinely appears as if he needs to do so, to continue as a musician. His most recent UK show, at the Royal Albert Hall last year in support of Ashes & Fire, saw him opt for a set that spanned much of his most personal work; as well as a slew of cuts from his latest album, he dropped a number of Heartbreaker tracks, too, including ‘My Winding Wheel’ and a solo version of the gorgeous ‘Oh My Sweet Carolina’. We can probably expect future UK shows to follow a similar tack, flitting between full band and acoustic efforts; with any luck, he might include the devastating solo piano version of ‘New York, New York’ that he played on Letterman last year, too.

I should start by saying I've been a fan since way before the first time I saw him 10 years ago. He's influenced my music tastes and some big life choices for a log time. I've seen him at the Ryman 2x before this and each show was special in itself.

However, it was so good to see him back at The Mother Church playing so many of my favorite songs. It surprises me to this day how great his voice still sounds live. Coupled with his great songwriting, he performed a range that included true rock songs and broken-hearted ballads. It reminded there hasn't been an incarnation of Ryan Adams that hasn't been worth the price of a ticket. His catalogue is deep and his onstage banter has improved by leaps and bounds, if that's important to you. He even went as far as to acknowledge difficulties he's had with Nashville audiences. But, I believe every ticket purchased was an unspoken agreement to not be an asshole. Either of us.

He poked fun at himself by crushing a cover or Bryan Adams Summer of '69 and brought out fellow Americana Royalty, Jason Isbell and Amanda Shires.

What can I say; He's The King of Cool and one of the most rock 'n roll performers I know. He can come back anytime.

I've seen Ryan Adams play Brisbane either with the cardinals or solo. The Tivoli in my opinion has always been my favourite place to see him.

The music varied from the cardinal days (sweet illusions) to the more recent songs of Do you still love me...

He was more talkative this time round which was a real treat. Loved the improv Brisbane Gothic Girl and his story during my winding wheel.

I think my favourite songs that night were When the Stars go Blue and of course Wonderwall.

He played til midnight and whilst it was a work night, it was worth the tired eyes and sore head....

It was great to come from a gig just welling with conversation, smiles and a few vinos....

Ap

Never seen him live before. What a witty guy! As well as loving the music, his comical asides had me in stitches. One of the security guys was shining his torch into the crowd, flashing it on and off at people who were filming with their phones. Ryan said that the flashlight was more distracting than the filming, then he felt bad that he yelled at the guy and made up a 4 minute song about "Stage Security Right" on the spot apologising. Stage Security Right was not won round... "I think I pissed him off further," Ryan said. I think he's right. But his motives came from a good place.

Firstly I will say I love Ryan Adams, but I was very disappointed in this show. The opening statement given before he came on made him look like a prima dona that would excuse him from failing.No flashing lights from cameras/phones....then the first song was accompanied by ....flashing stage lights!!!

As to the performance, I expected some subtlety, as he demonstrates in many of his beautiful lyrical songs... but was greeted with and onslaught of driving rock, a wall of sound with Adams sreaming like a Bruce Springsteen sound alike.....walked out before the end.

Ryan is good as usual
He did a very powerful concert, with strong electrical sound.
To be honest I prefer more acoustic tune but it's only a personal opinion and the concert was good anyway.
Corn Exchange has a high acoustics level sound but seats disposition is terrible and I really struggled to see the stage and not the back head of the person in front of me. Worse of that, temperature in the back and top places became very high (hot air go up) and many attendees went away before concert finished.
So, Ryan 4 stars out 5, Corn Exchange 2 stars out 5.

Ryan Adams was great. He sounds fantastic live. It was unfortunate that there was a guy in the front row that was pretty much heckling the artist all night and no one thought to maybe remove him from the show. Also, the air conditioning was not working at The Lincoln Theater which made for a pretty miserable temperature inside the theater on a hot summer night. I thought about leaving but wanted to hear all the songs. I would suggest working AC for future concerts on 90 plus degree days.

Ryan Adams new band the shining are a tight sounding outfit and add to his latest style of sound on his newer and older songs. Still prefer the cardinals but adams don't. Plenty of added riffs and electricity to all the songs. His last couple of albums show a sign of decline and will probably never match up to the past but what bands do. Saying that the concert was pretty good and worth the entrance fee. Would I go again? Not to sure maybe I've seen him too many times already.