Mixtape VI: Sweet Black Magic (Ryan Adams B-Sides)

Before I delve into 2005 and the onset of The Cardinals in my spotlight, there's still plenty of music that needs to be (over)examined. Now, I don't follow much less obsess over collecting each piece of music that any artist records like I do Ryan Adams, but from what I can tell, he's part of a select group of musicians that constantly offer up bonus tracks with each release. Forget all his 'unreleased sessions' or rejected albums for the moment; Ryan Adams' extra songs recorded alongside those that made final album cuts still stack up higher than most folks' entire catalogs.

Starting with 2001's Gold, Ryan has rewarded pre-orders, limited editions, and often folks from other continents with extra tracks that didn't make the proper album with nearly every release. As you'll see, these are often as good if not better than many of the album cuts, and the mystery remains why these songs were never properly released. My Ryan Adams Spotlight posts have been adorned with many of these tracks that were 'bonus album cuts,' but a lot of them were never even attached to albums of his. I've whittled these 50 or so songs down to the best 22 to bring you Mixtape VI: Sweet Black Magic.

Download (zip)

Gold's side 4 is fully represented here, and the mix takes its title from one the tracks. This set of 5 songs remains his strongest bonus effort to date and not necessarily hard to come by, have helped his sophomore album reach the critical level it has. Each side of Sweet Black Magic is finished with a signature down-tempo ballad from Gold's bonus side.

Two of the strongest moments on the mix come at each 2nd track and are both pulled from a label compilation. 'Choked Up' is technically a Whiskeytown outtake from the Pneumonia recording sessions that was part of a Lost Highway 'Lost Songs' collection. 'Monday Night' was released on a Bloodshot records 5-year retrospective entitled Down To The Promised Land. Another easy standout, 'Goodbye Honey' also comes from a Bloodshot Records compilation - the label's 100th release. The Japanese bonus disc included with Love Is Hell included two tracks featured here. Both are positive, mainly acoustic cuts that would never have fit right with the cosmic, dreary album.

Leading off the second side is one of Ryan Adams' best songs of his entire catalog. 'Fool's Gold' was never part of an official release but circulated on a collection of the same name in 2001 along with the rest of Gold's bonus tracks. The Latin-tinged rocker fits right in with the feeling of that album, even starring a familiar character, Mara Lisa, who was the inspiration for another one of those bonus tracks. 'Lovely and Blue' is another unreleased song that was available for a short time on Ryan's web site and features the more polished sound similar to Easy Tiger material. The remainder of the tracks here were b-sides released either on EP's or with singles. The best of these comes from the second 'Wonderwall' CD single with the infectious melody of 'I Want To Go Home.'

Check out more from the Ryan Adams Spotlight:

• Whiskeytown
• Heartbreaker
• Gold
• Exile on Franklin Street
• The Destroyer Sessions
• The Pinkheart Sessions (1)
• The Suicide Handbook
• 48 Hours
• The Pinkheart Sessions (2)
• Halloween Promo
• Demolition
• Music In High Places
• The Swedish Sessions
• Rock N Roll
• Love Is Hell
• Mixtape V: This One's For The Rose
  

show all

Mixtape V: This One's For The Rose

We've reached a large benchmark in the Ryan Adams Spotlight here at ThisMornin.com. It's 2004 and Ryan has just talked Lost Highway into releasing Love Is Hell, his solo career-ending opus. The remaining part of 2004 will see Lost Highway release various singles from Rock N Roll and Ryan himself (through PAX-AM) put out a handful of 7" vinyls.

Those paying attention will argue that 29 was Ryan's last 'solo' record - and they have a point. 29 was recorded before JCN and Cold Roses, and without The Cardinals. But because it was released last out of the three 2005 masterpieces - and because the extra/bonus material from those sessions has yet to surface - I will review it later. For now, Ryan's solo career is over and it's time to slow down and take a look back at the multitudes of tracks released in the last 4 years.

To quote one of the greatest music-driven movies of all time, "the making of a great compilation tape, like breaking up, is hard to do and takes ages longer than it might seem." I've been working on this mixtape basically since I started this blog. This One's For The Rose is the quintessential 'Greatest Hits' formed from all of the 'unreleased' tracks Ryan recorded from 2000-2003. This excludes any track that was (or has since been) released in any sort of official form - as a bonus track, on a compilation, re-recorded for a later album, etc. The sessions that produced this material vary in quality, style, and genre, but then again, you could say about all of Ryan's stuff. These collections haven't been mastered and/or cut well, so I took this liberty of 'cleaning' them up a bit - cropping the tracks to eliminate leads-ins, restarts, and empty tape. These 19 tracks are split into two sides, each of which can be considered an album on its own - beginning with a strong, upbeat track, dancing around throughout the middle without a single weak song, and with one of Ryan's signature piano ballads to cap it off.

Download (zip)

You'll notice that two 'sessions' are very strongly represented on this mixtape: The 48 Hours and Swedish Sessions. These are by far the best unreleased albums Ryan has recorded. They are both concise, complete, and nearly flawless, whereas his other recording sessions contained strange throw-away tracks. But in-between those overzealous recordings, Ryan managed to mix in great songs. The Suicide Handbook was 32 tracks of mostly plaintive acoustic numbers that would help populate Gold and Demolition. His earliest - from 2000 - The Destroyer Sessions produced a couple tracks that would show up on Heartbreaker and lends a couple more tracks to this mixtape. The mix is rounded out with one track from each from Ryan's Love Is Hell NY, NY Session, Cowboy Technical Services Session, and the First Pinkheart Session.

This is a Greatest Hits, so there's not a clunker in the bunch, but special attention should be payed to a few tracks. Quoting John Cusack once more, "you gotta kick off with a killer, to grab attention. Then you got to take it up a notch, but you don't wanna blow your wad, so then you got to cool it off a notch. There are a lot of rules." I began with 'When The Music Don't Come' - a 'killer' track from the Love Is Hell sessions that almost became the title of this little compilation. It would've worked well as appeasement during Ryan's sabbatical before he recently decided to begin releasing music again. I took it up a notch with 'Walls' - the country-est tune in the bunch. To cool it off, I offered 'Dear Anne,' which is probably the most touching song here. Written as a letter to Anne Frank, it asks how Anne's fate came to be, and thanks the biographer for her words, whether or not they were his to read. Leading you back into heavier music is 'Born Yesterday' with its plodding tempo and passion-laden vocals. 'Madeline' lathers some sultry piano and blues guitar on the mix with a Huck Finn-esque river song. To end side one, I used the last track from the First Pinkheart Sessions. Just Ryan and his piano, the song doubles as a sort of midway interlude, fittingly mentioning that "its been so long for just half-over."

Side B reads much the same, highlighted by 48 Hours and Swedish Session songs. 'Friendly Fire' delicately tells of how relationships often come with the casualties of war. With the harmonica-driven attitude reminiscent of Heartbreaker's opener, 'Poor Jimmy' picks thing up in the middle. One of my all-time favorite songs, 'Poison & The Pain' gives off an eerie feel with Ryan providing his own sparse backing vocals and hand claps. The second side again ends simply, this time with a softly-picked guitar accented with the low end of a piano. 'String & The Wire' is a desolate song that Ryan once said of in a live show: "it’s really long and really totally boring, so if you need to get a drink or something, this is the best song to go." Not boring at all, it's simply soothing. And that's my idea of the perfect album-ender.


Stay tuned for more Ryan Adams mixtapes. I have plans for a B-Sides & Bonus Tracks compilation, a Live compilation, and maybe even an Unreleased Cardinals mix. In good time, my friends.

Check out all of my Ryan Adams Spotlight up to this point.

Ryan Adams: Love Is Hell

My last official post in the Ryan Adams Spotlight (since filled in with Viva la Vinyls and an Evolution of Song) was way back in March. In my Rock N Roll review, I mentioned that Love Is Hell was supposed to be the follow up to Demolition but was rejected (or rather put on the back-burner) by Lost Highway. Ryan subsequently recorded Rock N Roll to assuage his label, who released the blistering disc in November of 2003. And as reciprocation, Lost Highway also quietly released Love is Hell, Pt 1 the same day. The remainder of the selection of songs that would eventually become the complete collection were released as Love Is Hell, Pt 2 a month later in December of 2003. It wasn't until May of '04 that the label felt it necessary to re-issue the collection as one complete set.

Ryan says LIH is "a lot like Heartbreaker, but better and more severe." I can get on board with the latter. "It's complex and it's damaged, a genuine, freaked-out, psychedelic wall of soundscape, and I think for subject matter it can't be beat." As far as subject matter goes - and while we're making Heartbreaker comparisons - it's much more personal in content than his debut. He also says its "me totally being me. It was the record I needed to make." But if Ryan has ever been accused of being the sad-bastard type of singer/songwriter, then LIH is him at his sad-bastardest.

The album isn't his strongest, either looking forward or back, but it may just contain some of his strongest and most underrated songs. The sad part is, none of these come until the latter part of the album (or Pt. 2, if you prefer the EPs). This may be the reason that the album never became a fan favorite or was ever referred to as one of his better albums. If I were a casual listener, I would have a hard time making it to Side 2 before giving up on the album. It begins with the weakest album-opener in his repertoire, 'Politcal Scientist'. 'Afraid Not Scared' follows only to bore me further, going so far as to slightly annoy me with its repetitious, droll lines. Each of the 5 or so opening tracks can be considered a microcosm for the entire album itself: sure, there are some good (even great) parts, but on the whole, the depressing, metallic feel of it all overwhelms.

Attention must be payed to track 5, his impassioned version of the Gallagher Brothers' 'Wonderwall,' and the only cover song Ryan has put on a full release. For that reason, it may have seemed like a strange choice, but the sentiment he extracts from the song in his version is completely in line with the rest of the disc - and that's the magic of a carefully chosen cover. Ryan brings the tune down to a creeping tempo, keeps the reverb to a haunting level, and completely sells it as something born from himself.

I feel like Love Is Hell doesn't quite get started until the 2:38 mark of 'Shadowlands' when the voice effect is removed, the string section picks up, and the first glimpse of optimism is injected into the album. It is at this part, with an inspiring electric lead riff, I find myself for the first time interested in what Ryan has to say. The acoustic lead into the hopeful melody of 'World War 24' continues this trend and begins the transition into the Love Is Hell that I've grown to love. Although 'Avalanche' slows things down for a bit, I think it's the strongest song up to this point in the record. It shows Ryan singing in a more natural voice and also opening up lyrically. Each of the songs leading up to it have been somewhat veiled in metaphor, but - aside from the blatant metaphor of the title - 'Avalanche' is pure and honest.

If necessary, I could scrap Love Is Hell, Pt 1 forever and be just as satisfied with the second disc as I am with it in its entirety. Aside from another slightly weak opener with 'My Blue Manhattan,' the remaining seven songs that make up EP2 and sides 3&4 of the vinyl are what make Love Is Hell a great album. In 'Please Do Not Let Me Go,' he speaks of a girl that was "sweet enough to sing, oblivious to melody." That's a quality Ryan and his subject don't share - at least not with this album. While the music and lyrics aren't his best, Love Is Hell holds some of his most inventive melodies. The strongest of which comes in the plaintive yet powerful 'I See Monsters.' The song has seen a live maturation into a more electric ballad the likes of 'What Sin' but retains its acoustic intimacy each time he repeats the title line. This song may be the sole stand-out track from the album.

The jaunty 'English Girls' lightens up an otherwise darkened album with a shout out to his British love at the time, Leona Naess, in which he somehow manages to make the words "you meant everything" more powerful than another famous string of three words. To finish the album, Ryan turns the blues knob up to 11 and summons the Purple Rain gods for a slow-building tune with a smoldering electric solo. 'Hotel Chelsea Nights' is a perfect, albeit ill-fitting end to album that is similarly disjunct, strangely-timed, yet somehow just right.

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I mentioned the various incarnations and formats that Love Is Hell was released upon. With each version, save the already cramped double disc 10" vinyl, Ryan supplied bonus tracks. As always with these review posts, I suggest you get a hold of the album on your own but will supply you with these harder-to-find extra songs.

Love Is Hell, Pt 1 UK Bonus Tracks:
Caterwaul (w/ Leona Naess on Vocals)
Halloween
Love Is Hell, Pt 2 UK Bonus Tracks:
Fuck The Universe (aka Faker)
Twice As Bad As Love

The info was hard to track down, but apparently Love Is Hell was released in 2007 in Japan and came with a complete bonus disc. It included the above tracks as well as the following (previously unreleased) songs. Some of these had appeared on a bootleg collection known as Black Clouds. These extra tracks are much more modest recordings and far more listenable than the first two from each disc above.

My Father's Son
Gimme Sunshine
Black Clouds

Purchase Love Is Hell:
[Full CD/MP3] [Pt 1 CD/MP3] [Pt 2 CD/MP3]
[Japanese Bonus Version]

Evolution of Song: What Sin Replaces Love

What Sin Replaces Love?
Love is gone. There's a hole where it used to be. What is the quickest way to fill it?

That's what Ryan Adams asks in one of his most epic songs. And he wants to know RIGHT fucking NOW. The answer he inevitably settles on seems to be murder. He wants to "kick love right in its gut; beat it and leave it for dead." It shouldn't come as a surprise that 'What Sin...' was never officially included on an album. But since its inception around 2000, the song has been a live staple. While it hasn't changed lyrically in 9 years, it has evolved from a dark, acoustic tune into a full-on electric blues jam. Let's explore.

Tell me what sin replaces love
I wanna know, right now
Tell me what sin replaces love
I wanna know, right now

Imagine yourself on a mountain
A mountain discolored with flowers
Flowers discolored with horses
Horses distracted by stones
Stone distrusting and mean
Then you might know what I mean
I want to kick love right in its gut
Beat it and leave it for dead
Go and wash my hands in the river
Lie down and die in your bed

The voice on the receiver
Baby cry howlin' in the wind
I don't wanna beg for your mercy
I wanna know right know, what sin

Tell me what sin replaces love
I wanna know, right now

2000: Live @ The Boardwalk
Sheffield, UK - 11.19.00
Solo-Acoustic

This isn't the first time Ryan played this song - that was in February of 2000, the same night he claims to have written and first performed 'Come Pick Me Up' - but it's still in its original form here. Get the whole show for a great mix of his early solo stuff.

2001: Live @ The Great American Music Hall
San Francisco, CA - 2.17.01
Solo-Acoustic

Not much different than the introductory version but still amazing in its quiet tenebrosity. Full show.

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Ryan nearly shelved the song after 2001, playing it just a handful of times in 2002, and once each in '03 and '04. But in 2005, 'What Sin Replaces Love' was given its proper credit, showing up as a bonus track in the Japanese release of The Cardinals' Jacksonville City Nights in all its electric glory. Included in a hard-to-find JCN 3-track promo was a studio recording of the acoustic version of 'What Sin.' I'll post these on my Jacksonville City Nights review.
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2005: Live - The Loft Sessions
XM Radio Studios - 4.19.05
Full-Band Electric

Here, the original Cardinals lineup doles out the jam version of 'What Sin.' This one is pretty true to the electric bonus track, with an extra helping of extended solos.

2006: Live @ the Borderline
London, UK - 9.19.06
3-Piece Acousitc

Around this time, The Cardinals were changing form - in fact, every element except Brad on the drums. Ryan, Neal Casal, and Jon Graboff play an amazing set in London - with Jon on mandolin - giving the setlist made up of a good mix of JCN, Cold Roses, and Easy Tiger a fresh sound. I suggest downloading the whole thing.

2007: Live on The Henry Rollins Show
IFC - 4.20.07
Full-Band Electric

The latest version may prove to be the best. Here, 'What Sin' is fully formed and extended with powerful solos. An 8+ minute jam version delivered with the same spitting anger it was written with.
One word: SICK. See video.



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Check out more Evolution of Song at ThisMornin.com:

Ryan Adams: These Girls 8.9.2008
OCMS/Dylan: Wagon Wheel 6.5.2008

Viva la Vinyl: Ryan Adams' California 7"....

Here's another set of freshly-ripped vinyl tracks from none other than Ryan Adams. These songs make up the California 7" EP, the second of the three PaxAM releases set free in 2004. All four sides of this collection are taken directly from 2000's Exile on Franklin Street.

A: California
B: Waves Crashing
C: Secret Powers
D: Do You Wanna Get High?


I posted the vinyl tracks from Ryan's first PaxAM release - The Rescue Blues EP - here and mentioned that there were rumors that Ryan was looking to resurrect the vinyl label. Well, unless there's an imposter on a Ryan Adams forum, then the man himself has shared further details on the matter.

Wolfhunter says that certain, newer, unreleased material should be available "eventually." Among the material to be released are Cardinology outtakes, and Cardinals IV/V, the latter of which are complete records made with the original Cardinals lineup. He also says that they will be available on vinyl and as mp3 downloads.


**Update 9-9-09**
Suspicions confirmed! Check out Ryanada.ms for an informative video of his PaxAM vinyl mastering machine. Oh, there's also a couple mp3's from the first pressing available for purchase - and download on Friday. Well, maybe the second release if you count the 7" that came with the Hello Sunshine pre-order - which I should post here in a few.

You get:
•Lost and Found
•Go Ahead and Rain
for only $1.49

Hiatus officially over. Rejoice.
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Check out more Viva la Vinyl at ThisMornin.com

Viva la Vinyl: Ryan Adams' Rescue Blues 7"....

In 2004, Ryan Adams started up his own small record label, Pax Americana, in order to release demo recordings of some of his tunes that Lost Highway didn't deem worthy. He only released 3 sets - The Rescue Blues [EP], California [EP], and If I Am A Stranger [Single] - all on 7-inch vinyl. Just yesterday, I won an auction for the Stranger Single, completing my PAX-AM collection.

However, word on the street is that this label may soon be resurrected. Apparently, Ryan's art-guy (as seen alongside Ryan in his more recent YouTube vids) twittered about (re)designing "@ryanad_ms vinyl label art" and also posted the above pic.

If you check out Ryan's website, there's a suspicious message that may just corroborate this intel. Decide for yourself, but in the meantime, enjoy these vinyl rips of The Rescue Blues [EP].

A: The Rescue Blues (vinyl rip)
B: Come Pick Me Up (vinyl rip)
C: Enemy Blanks (vinyl rip)
D: Tell Me How You Want Me To Feel (vinyl rip)








These original 4-track versions are definitely demo-quality, but well worth the listen. Come Pick Me Up is especially interesting, recorded at a slower pace, much like his live version. Enemy Blanks (aka Enemy Fire) gets re-structured in this set, beginning with the chorus. Rescue Blues and the unreleased Tell Me are both gritty, heavy-electric takes that showcase Ryan's original intent for his songs.

If you've been keeping up with my Ryan Adams Spotlight, you may have noticed I've been at a standstill in the chronological album reviews. Waiting on deck is Love Is Hell - quite the review-task, if you ask me. That album definitely requires the right mood/mindset to listen to, much less review. But stay patient, I'll get to it. After LIH, Ryan joined up with The Cardinals, and in one year, put out 3 of his most amazing albums. To help bridge this gap, I've created a Ryan Adams (solo) Mixtape of his best unreleased tunes. I've spent a lot of time adding/removing tunes, deciding on a track-order, and cropping them to fit as many as possible. It may just be the next best thing to the elusive unreleased box-set, so keep an eye out for it.

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Check out more Viva la Vinyl at ThisMornin.com

Ryan Sets Free New Book and New (old) Track...

That's the freshly positive Ryan Adams uploading a demo (somewhat acoustic) recording of 'Magick' to his website as a thanks for all the pre-orders of his latest written work, Hello Sunshine. Ryan's second book of verse is purported to be a much brighter collection of poems and short fiction than his debut literary work.

The song is available for download if you know your way around the nets, but I'll make it easy on you.
Magick (Original Home Demo)


The book - at least the pre-order - costs nearly as much as I've spent on my entire collection of Ryan Adams' music, but that didn't stop this unapologetic fan (even after Cardinology) from droppin' the bucks. For $50 +shipping you get a hardcover version of Hello Sunshine plus a limited edition, numbered chapbook signed by Ryan. This addition, entitled Pink Magic (I guess he found the spellcheck this time) is only available through this pre-order. It's not officially released until December 1st, but the pre-orders will ship by August 10th.

Ryan says of Hello Sunshine, "This collection was a beautiful way for me to wrap up my narrative verse style of writing before I move into writing short stories and novels. Maybe this book really is more about my connection to my senses and to the romantic. Where I was scared to read Infinity Blues after I wrote it, Hello Sunshine makes me want to eat ice cream. This book is about, quite simply, how it might feel to surrender to a love. It will reinforce everyone's fear that I am smarter than them."

Click here to order yours.


Now, I've said before that I'm not the biggest fan of poetry, but Ryan's Infinity Blues is slowly growing on me. As I've made my way through the strangely spaced and punctuated verse, a handful of the selections have emerged as (somewhat) coherent and enjoyable. Here's one that stood out to me:

In the Middle of the Night Goes the Bang
Ryan Adams

in these slow moments, when there is too much time, i feel the entire inside
world of me collapse into its pile
the words drift from me
and i am but a calm swarm
an endless end
my skin touches the edge of the desk and i know i am alive
sort of hanging
and i feel a soft heart
my own
go into the gears, go shredding
for lack of tears
and more words
for the things i could not express
and time
which will not wind itself back
where the folds of what was me and what were wishes
came undone
like a slow dress in a brutal wind
like when a flock separates
and takes no shape again
was that my soul
my heart wrapped in tin
with a wire
on ice
and a bulb too thin
or a dream too long
or a breath too kissed
words they do fine
but cannot touch
this thing i miss
a heart
inside me
when
in the middle of the night goes the bang

Buy Infinity Blues, if you dare.

Viva La Vinyl: Ryan Adams Set

Thanks to the power of eBay, I recently completed my Ryan Adams full-album collection on Vinyl.

Love Is Hell was the final missing piece; I won an auction for it a week or two ago. I coughed up a pretty penny, but it was worth it for completion's sake. Love Is Hell was the only Lost Highway Adams album that didn't see a vinyl reissue a couple years ago. I don't know the exact reason for this, but Ryan may have made the decision himself to keep things interesting. When his label offered this reissue, MusicDirect.com, a great source for records, put together a Ryan Adams vinyl package - Gold, Demolition, R N R, Cold Roses, 29, JCN - for a mere $75. Sweet deal.

I ordered the newest releases as they came out, save for Follow The Lights. I was about to pick one up at Cactus Music last month until I found this:

The Cardinals' Everybody Knows [EP] was a UK-only release. The 12" is essentially Follow The Lights, but with 'Everybody Knows' from ET leading off, thus pushing each track back one spot. I figured why not pay a little more for that extra track and get the bonus of having a far more rare disc.

Sometime last year, Bloodshot Records got with the picture and reissued Heartbreaker on a 12" gatefold double vinyl. I only learned of this while browsing the site with the intention of purchasing Midnight At The Movies earlier this year. So I snagged Ryan's debut LP about a month before the elusive LIH 10" gatefold showed up on eBay.

As you probably know, Love Is Hell was originally issued as two EPs - parts 1 & 2 - in late 2003. The collections were later combined and released as a double 10" containing 15 tracks. Five months later, the album was released in CD form and an alternate version of 'Anybody Wanna Take Me Home' was added. The extra track, clocking in at nearly a full minute longer than the original form, was a strange addition, but being one of the softer tracks on Rock N Roll, it does feel in place here.

In my ongoing Ryan Adams spotlight, I try to approach each album/session with open mind and ears. We all know the best way to get the feel of an album is to hear it in its intented form - high fidelity analog. So the aquisition of this last disc comes at a perfect time as Love Is Hell is next in line. Until then, I'll wet your ears with that mysterious extended track added to the LIH CD.

Anybody Wanna Take Me Home (extended version)

My quest will continue for as many 7" Vinyl Singles as I can get my hands on. I already own this Whiskeytown EP and the bonus 7" from Cardinology. En route via eBay is the 'Hey Parker It's Christmas' 7" and the 'Wonderwall' 7" single.

If anyone wants to begin a collection of their own, check out this eBay auction for a great start. You get:

• Demolition
• Cold Roses
• Jacksonville City Nights
• Easy Tiger (orange vinyl)
• Cardinology (with 7" single)
• Hey Parker It's Christmas 7" Single
  

With under 4 days left, the bidding is only up to $10.49!!!

Ryan Adams: Rock N Roll

Rock N Roll.... loud, unfiltered, adored, maligned, epic.

But before I get into all that, you must know that Rock N Roll was not intended to be the follow-up record to Demolition (neither was Demolition Ryan's proposed record, but I digress). In 2002, Ryan began a transition, some might say a regression, toward a heavier sound. Full electric lineups turned up to 11. He formed yet another punk band, The Finger, with Jesse Malin and a few others under a pseudonymous shield. Ryan (Warren Peace) provided dirty guitar. They released 2 EP's - which I have - but will spare your ears the posting of them (check out the answeringbell.com page for full artwork/credits).

Sensing the inevitable sound transformation, Ryan wanted to record one more (last?) down-tempo, sentimental album. Love Is Hell was recorded in New York in 2002 - more on this in the future - but was not accepted by Lost Highway. They reportedly complained that the collection was "too alternative," "incredibly depressing," and "not your best stuff." Again, the label wanted Ryan to recreate the success of Gold, most-likely telling him to create more of a rock and roll sound. Ryan took that and ran.

Straight back to the studio with a group of friends, Ryan recorded what would be a metaphorical slap-in-the-face to Lost Highway: A record spitefully entitled Rock N Roll. The set is blatant, forceful rock that is the furthest overlap of Ryan's therapeutic but never-serious side projects into his 'real' work.

"Rock N Roll is unadulterated--it's the way I play guitar live. It's the exact sound I always use when I make the demonstration recordings for my records. The other albums are concept records a little bit, but I wasn't trying to reference anything here." - Ryan Adams

Present in the studio during the two-week recordings were Smashing Pumpkins/Hole bassist Melissa Auf de Maur, Green Day's Billie Joe Armstrong - whom Ryan shockingly resembled during this time - and his then love interest Parker Posey.

R&R isn't shy in expressing it's contempt, both lyrically and musically. Powerful guitar riffs become instant classics in songs like 'Shallow,' 'Wish You Were Here,' 'So Alive,' and 'Do Miss America.' Most songs on the collection end in huge crescendos of drums, vocals and reverb. That is, except one. Keeping with the sarcasm theme, the title track is the only cut to not feature amped-up guitars. This depressingly slow ballad features only Ryan on piano and vocals:

"Everybody's cool playin' rock and roll.
Everybody's cool playin' rock and roll.
I don't feel cool, feel cool at all.
I don't feel cool, feel cool at all."

'Rock N Roll' concludes with a grainy voice mail from a terrified Courtney Love. The barely discernible audio may have helped to spurn the recent lash-out from the troubled songstress in which she accused Ryan of draining all of her daughter Frances Bean Cobain's trust fund. The money was allegedly used to fund studio costs, guitars, expensive dinners at Nobu, and plenty of speedballs. She claims that the costs added up to a cool $858,000 and goes on to completely bash the album itself, calling it "one of the worst recordings [she's] ever heard." Read the entire, ridiculous thing here.

Ryan's left-handed sarcasm shows through only in somewhat lackluster writing. Nearly every song concludes with repetitions of cliché rock phrasing - "just like magic" "wish you were here" "the drugs ain't working" "taking me higher!" This element is frighteningly similar to the problems I had with Cardinology, but on Rock N Roll, it all works to add up to an effective statement of defiance toward authority. And that's the ultimate goal of rock and roll, right?

"Well, I wasn't arrogant in the beginning; I was naive. I didn't know to not speak about my music like I totally believed in it."

Read the whole interview, conducted by Parker Posey.

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Now for the good stuff: Bonus Tracks

Rock N Roll [UK/Japan Bonus Tracks] Nov, 2003

Hypnotixed
Funeral Marching - posted here

So Alive [International Single CD1] Jan, 2004

Ah Life
Don't Even Know Her Name


So Alive [International Single CD2] Jan, 2004

I'm Coming Over


So Alive [International 7" Single] Jan, 2004

Luxury



This Is It [Single] May 2004

Red Lights
Closer When She Goes
Twice As Bad As Love

Hello Sunshine, My Old Friend...

Seems as though I can't think for myself lately, or at least can't come up with anything original. So here's another news-worthy snippet courtesy of some other website.

Word from Pitchfork (once again) is that Akashic Books has yet another work from Ryan Adams in its final production stages. Hello Sunshine will be Ryan's second literary work - following Infinity Blues - a collection of short, dark poems.

So just as Ryan can release albums with his hands tied behind his back, it seems he can also type with his feet. The announcement of his second book comes more than a month prior to the official release of his first. The first batch of Infinity Blues was shipped out before Christmas, but the collection will hit bookshelves in April. I'm about halfway through my copy, and I can tell you one thing: poetry is not my bag, baby. The pieces are always interesting, but I just can't seem to follow them. The book initially received great reviews from some power names (Steven King, Cameron Crowe, Eileen Myles), so that just proves I should not review literary works.

The new one is listed as a mix of "poems and short fiction from Ryan Adams."

The publisher goes on to say "with the release of Hello Sunshine, Ryan Adams breaks literary ground far beyond what he accomplished with his critically acclaimed first book. Where his debut was characterized by the bitterness of heartbreak, Hello Sunshine is a graceful, sensual assertion of the other side of the emotional coin. This is a 2009 fever dream--inside Ryan's heart and mind--replete with unforgettable verse that will shock and delight those expecting a mere continuation of where Infinity Blues left off."

Ryan, as ever, claims his newest effort to be his "best work yet."

Read more, including some comments from Ryan himself here.
Check the page again on May 15th for ordering information.

This news has got me wanting to get back into the first one so I can make a better judgment regarding it. I stopped reading it when I ordered a copy of the (so far) only biography written on Ryan - Michael Heatley's aptly titled Ryan Adams (2003). The bio was short and sweet, offering lots of quotes and inside-the-studio intel. But the premature effort stops just short of the good stuff. It abruptly ends after the release of Demolition with the hanger being the question of what is next for Ryan, to which the only answer Heatley has is I don't know. The life of this prolific songsmith will no doubt spawn many better efforts further down the line.

Extra Pepperoni....

Ryan Adams (Lost Highway) released a Valentine's Day EP, Extra Cheese, today available on iTunes for $3.99.

Really?!?

With stacks and stacks of Ryan's unreleased gems, they decide to rehash 5 previously released studio cuts. Oh, but they included one bonus track of a semi-unreleased tune. If you've been coming here for a while, you would've gotten the whole evolutionary story behind Hey There, Mrs. Lovely/These Girls a long time ago. Try to keep up, Lost Highway.

So, today I offer up an alternate version of this love song EP. And this one's completely FREE!

Extra Pepperoni:
1. Two - early version The Elizabethtown Sessions (2005)
2. Blossom - live acoustic version Arlington Theatre (1.21.08)
3. Answering Bell - alternate version The Suicide Handbook (2001)
4. Evergreen - extended live version Ambassador Theatre (11.8.08)
5. My Love For You Is Real - Cowboy Technical Services (2001)
6. Desire - live version The Paramount Theatre (10.13.08)
7. Hey There, Mrs. Lovely* - The Destroyer Sessions (2000)

*It sounds like this is the same version as on the iTunes release, but don't tell Lost Highway...

Ryan Adams: The Swedish Sessions....

Oh, how I love the internet. If you spend enough time just trolling around, little nuggets of gold can be found. I was under the impression that I had collected, reviewed, and posted all of the studio sessions that helped form Ryan Adams' Demolition, but if you look back at that post, you'll see that one song, 'You Will Always Be The Same' was not credited with a session of birth. That tune was originally recorded in October of 2001 during what would the final studio session needed to complete Demolition.

Ryan took some time during an overseas tour to stop in at Nord Studio AB in Stockholm, Sweden and lay down yet another album's worth of tracks. The Swedish Sessions rival 48 Hours as the best unreleased album in his repertoire. Hell, this one may even go twelve rounds with Heartbreaker. The Swedish Sessions are in fact very reminiscent of that solo debut. When Ryan is plaintive and full acoustic, it's downright heartbreaking. But somehow, he can mix in a screaming harmonica fueled jam in the middle and it just works.

The two lead-off tracks were unfortunately the only survivors from the session. 'For Beth' was later renamed 'Friends' and became the final track on Cold Roses. 'Dear Anne', a song dedicated to Anne Frank, is an obvious standout with Ryan's classic vulnerable yet so emotive soft vocals.

Track 4 busts in the room with a slick groove and even a great joke thrown in the lyrics: "Why'd the boat get drunk? Pier Pressure." Ryan also offers up one of his best attempts at a true blues number with both takes of 'Madeline.' The rising pressure in the song never seems to fully escape, but you gotta give him credit for staying true to the style and not overcooking it.

'Oh, Charles', a prison letter ballad drags you right into the dark cell with the narrator. Offering a glint of hope and beginning the ascent back up in the album is 'Come Monday' that leads into a slightly humorous 'Not In Love' showcasing expert fingerpicking. 'Friendly Fire' shows Ryan building to the melodic perfection that was Cold Roses. The Swedish Sessions ends with an acoustic groove as good as 'Choked Up' or 'Monday Night.'

1. You Will Always Be The Same buy Demolition
2. For Beth (aka Friends)
3. Dear Anne
4. Poor Jimmy
5. Madeline I
6. Madeline II
7. Oh, Charles
8. Come Monday
9. Not In Love
10. Friendly Fire
11. Fool For You

Swedish Session ZIP

Check out more Ryan Adams:

• Took Me Long Enough: Whiskeytown
• Heartbreaker
• Gold
• Exile on Franklin Street
• The Destroyer Sessions
• Whiskeytown: The Missing Bridge
• The Pinkheart Sessions (1)
• Panning For Gold
• Evolution: These Girls
• The Suicide Handbook
• 48 Hours
• The Pinkheart Sessions (2)
• Halloween Promo
• Demolition
• Music In High Places
  

show all

Ryan Adams quits smoking and, oh yeah, THE MUSIC BUSINESS!

Thanks to an anonymous commenter, I received word that Ryan put up a serious post at The Cardinal Cave this morning.

"i am excited to finish this wonderful time i have had with the cardinals and whatever new adventures may come after march. atlanta will be my last venture with the band and i am grateful for the time we have had and maybe someday we will have more stories to tell together. i am however ready for quieter times as i think it is very evident i am struggling with some balance and hearing issues."

Holy Shit.

Does that mean quit forever??

Take the time to go read the whole thing, as it truly does sound like a farewell letter.

Ryan also vowed to cease work at The Cardinal Cave:

"also it is kind of ridiculous to blog as i am a musician and anything i say here just gets reprinted at some point out of context. i say NOT FAIR but it doesn’t matter what i say anymore or what is fair anymore really does it- the 21st century media has it’s own rules about what is true and what is not. it is not a life- not one i want to live anyway and i don’t really care to participate in narcissistic over-indulgent behavior anymore- that was never my intention- i just wanted to fight for my right to make music and to be given the benefit of the doubt."

Now that part is totally understandable. But just to quell any disbelief, here is how he signed off:

"maybe we will play again sometime and maybe i will work my way back into some kind of music situation but this is the time for me to step back now, to reel it in and i wish everyone peace and happiness and if music is your dream, or if just dreaming is your dream, may you find your way through the rough patch with ease and i hope you let go and it takes you all the way there-

loving kindness to all.

R"

Weezer - Say It Ain't So

Bob Dylan - Baby Please Don't Go

Robert Plant & Allison Krauss - Gone, Gone, Gone

I'm honestly speechless. Please comment.

Ryan Adams: Music In High Places....

In the summer of 2002 riding the wave created from Gold, Ryan was asked to go to Jamaica and film some live acoustic recordings. Music In High Places is a recurring DVD/Television program that features bands playing live in exotic places - others included are bands like Goo Goo Dolls, Deftones, and Unwritten Law.

Firecracker:


The Rescue Blues:


Touch Feel & Lose:


The DVD was released in 2003, and yes, I have a copy. There are some limited behind the scenes shots that I especially enjoyed - Ryan shopping in Jamaican markets, meeting Toots Hibbert, and teaching some locals to sing harmony. Ryan performed Firecracker, You Will Always Be The Same, The Rescue Blues, Touch Feel & Lose, New York New York, Hard Time Situation (with Toots), and Answering Bell. The special also aired on MTV on in August of 2002.

Firecracker (live in Jamaica)
The Rescue Blues (live in Jamaica)
Touch Feel & Lose (live in Jamaica)