Ryan Adams. Love him or hate him.
If you know anything about him, you have an opinion of him. He has become the golden boy of the alt country movement that has, in recent years, slowly slipped above cult status into (almost) the mainstream. And that, unfortunately, is one of the reasons Ryan Adams has so many detractors.
When he emerged as the lead singer-songwriter of alt country favorites, Whiskeytown, he was recognized as one of the flag bearers of this new genre. When his first solo album Heartbreaker arrived, he was hailed as "the next big thing" by this same cult community. It was predicted, hell, expected, that it was only a matter of time before he would break through into the mainstream.
So when Gold was released, and he did just that, why did these same people suddenly label him a sellout, a poser, a hollywood wannabee?
Maybe it was because he talks too much, brags too much about how many songs he writes. Maybe it's because he suddenly was going to all the parties, dating Wynnona Ryder, and being written about in publications like People magazine.
Or maybe it was because Gold seemed to echo the sounds of past rock n roll. Was he writing with his influences on his sleeve, or was he merely rewriting classic rock songs, in an attempt to "hit the bigtime"?
Spot the influence, people would say. Listen to Gold, and try to pick out which song was trying to be Elton John, Neil Young, Van Morrison etc.
Maybe they're right, maybe not. The fact is Gold is a great listen. Fact is all artists are influenced by artists of the past. Fact is, don't hate the guy for wanting to make it big. And if he's got a big mouth, so what?
Bottom line is Gold is a classic. From the opening track New York, New York the album sounds like classic rock. Tracks like Answering Bell, La Cienega Just Smiled, Rescue Blues, and Somehow, Someday are all as good as anything I've heard in the last 10 years. And this disc (two actually, the second one called "side four" has five tracks) is full of them.
Is it alt country? Yes and no. It has moments that reflect his Whiskeytown days, but it's much, much more than simply an alt country disc.
Once upon a time Bob Dylan "abandoned" his folk roots, and was vilified for it. Looking back, we see that he had so much more to offer the world.
Ryan Adams does too.



Recommended: Yes

Great Music to Play While: Romancing