Moving Like a Fog on the Cumberland River...

Ok, this needs to be said, and I will warn you it may the boldest musical statement I've ever made, but Ryan Adams is the fucking greatest singer-songwriter of all time. I'll give you a minute to sit down and catch your breath. I think that Dylan has an edge on him lyrically, but when you factor in the music, Adams reigns supreme. Also, I think that other artists make Dylan's songs better. (See Hendrix's version of "All Along the Watchtower") Whereas, Adams makes other artists songs better. (See his cover of Oasis' "Wonderwall")

Every time he comes on my iPod, I take a moment to genuflect in his unbridled perfection. Adams is your text book genius type. Completely scattered-brained and too crazy for his own good sometimes. He doesn't have setlists for his live shows, he just decides what he feels like playing in the moment, and his band and the audience are just along for the ride. When he focuses for the few minutes it takes to get a song out of his system, it's just beauty in it's purest form.

I saw him in Chicago a few years ago and he was 45 minutes late starting the show because he was getting a tattoo. So he can push his audience to the point of hating him, but once he sits at the piano or strums his guitar, all is forgiven. A big thank you to my brother for getting me into that show and for getting me into RA.

Album Rankings
1. Heartbreaker - Melancholic, brooding, put your headphones on and cry music.
2. Cold Roses - It almost has a southern classic rock feel to it.
3. Easy Tiger - After Gold, probably his 2nd most accessible album. Simply amazing.
4. Gold* - Pop induced, easily accessible ditties.
5. Love is Hell - Mopey Alt. rock 1/2 slower, 1/2 more up-tempo.
6. Demolition - Hodge-podge of tunes. He is all over the map on this one.
7. Rock N Roll - As the title indicates, it's RA's straight up rock album.
8. Jacksonville City Nights - This one could have been titled "Country"
9. 29 - Along the lines of Heartbreaker, but fails to re-capture the magic of HB.
* Gold is not my favorite, but probably the best place to start for new listeners.

Ryan Adams 101 - If these songs don't grab you, please go back to enjoying the new Britney CD.
1. New York, New York
2. Two
3. Come Pick Me Up
4. Let It Ride
5. Dear Chicago
6. Firecracker
7. La Cienega Just Smiled
8. To Be Young
9. Hallelujah
10. English Girls Approximately

Ryan Adams 201
1. Rescue Blues
2. Wish You Were Here
3. Rip Off
4. Everybody Knows
5. Answering Bell
6. Hotel Chelsea Nights
7. So Alive
8. When the Stars Go Blue
9. Burning Photographs
10. This House is Not for Sale

Ryan Adams 301
1. Angelina
2. Oh My Sweet Carolina
3. Two Hearts
4. Somehow, Someday
5. My Winding Wheel 6. Easy Plateau
7. Halloween Head
8. Gonna Make You Love me
9. Love is Hell
10. Magnolia Mountain

Ryan Adams 401
1. Mockingbird
2. Halloween
3. These Girls
4. In My Time of Need
5. Life is Beautiful
6. Cherry Lane
7. Karina
8. Oh My God, Whatever, Etc...
9. Please Do Not Let Me Go
10. Carolina Rain

That's a solid 40 tunes, and I haven't even begun to scratch the surface. Archive.org has a ton of live shows, if that is more your thing. His backing band, The Cardinals, are each fantastic in their own right. As a guy I used to work with back in my record store days used to say: "He will take you to worlds".

Ok, I'm done slurping Ryan for now.

(Hit me up if you want to test drive some RA.)