Easy Tiger

Ryan Adams is nothing if not prolific. Nine studio albums in seven years is no mean feat.

Unfortunately, an almost natural by-product of this has tended to be a fair bit of filler being injected into at least four of the nine, turning what would otherwise be great into something that is 'just' very good. Thankfully, only one such track here - "Pearls On A String" - slips into this category.

The album title reflects Adams' slow-down and perhaps signifies a cleaner, sober artist whose creativity and talent can be fully realised. Similarly, "I Taught Myself How To Grow Old" reflects the more mature, stable feel to this collection. Both are positive steps towards the 'perfect' Ryan Adams album fans have been hankering after.
Previous releases have flitted between genres ranging from straight country to alt-country right through to straight rock 'n' roll. Here, styles seem to converge and we have a collection that is eclectic yet at the same time solid and mature.

A number of standout tracks ("Tears Of Gold", "Two", "The Sun Also Sets" and "I Taught Myself How To Grow Old") are achingly beautiful and feel well-balanced alongside bouncy indie anthems such as "Halloween Head". His voice is versatile enough to allow him to sound at home with both tear-jerking ballads and livelier tracks and sounds the best it has on any Adams release to date.

He is edging ever-closer to releasing something truly exceptional and this is as close as he has come to delivering on that promise made following his 2000 debut, Heartbreaker.

Apparently clean and sober, Ryan delivers his most coherent album since Gold. Not to say his other albums haven't had their moments. On the contrary, there have been stunning moments on all of his post-Gold albums, but this one just hangs together better as a whole.

Backed by The Cardinals again, there is a strong Neil Young vibe throughout the album. Which is, of course a splendid thing. Having apparently taken the last year off to take stock, and get sober, he has returned fitter, stronger, not trying so hard, therefore sounding more natural and comfortable with himself.

It's good to have this old trooper back (seems he's been around forever). The musical landscape has changed somewhat, with The Hold Steady, Cold War Kids and Wilco (still) flying the flag for 'Americana'. Let's hope the world hasn't grown weary of Ryan's stellar talents and moved on, impatiently waiting for the classic follow-up to Gold and Heartbreaker. God knows, on this form, and newly rejuvinated, we need him.

Welcome back sunshine!

Nine albums. Seven years. Not bad going at all is it? Some people would have you think that Ryan Adams' post Whiskeytown career is full of inconsistencies and that he's never quite hit the heights of his 2000 debut Heartbreaker. They'd be wrong. Oh so wrong. Rock N Roll aside (we'll pretend that one doesn't exist, Ryan's tongue was firmly in cheek there) the problem hasn't been down to inconsistency, its been down to having too much material, too many ideas and at times being a little self-indulgent. The question is, had he been focused enough this time around?

The initial signs were good. Having been a drug addict for the majority of his life, Easy Tiger is his first `clean' album. Kicking drugs and alcohol over a year ago Adams has thrown himself into the comfortable confines of backing band The Cardinals, and even though its Ryan Adams' name on the front cover its obviously a full band effort. The production is slick, the arrangements are short and concise and Adams' voice is at a career high. Most importantly though, Easy Tiger has everything that a Ryan Adams album should have. The lilting pedal steel infused country of Goodnight Rose, the rich harmonies of Tears Of Gold and the love lorn acoustic balladry of Oh My God, Whatever, Etc its all here, its all totally focused and delivered with a passion that makes Adams one of the most important and vital songwriters of his generation. One puzzling thing about the album is that it features a couple of songs that are at least six years old. As good as Off Broadway and These Girls are, I can't help but feel a little short changed. Both these songs are available elsewhere in Adams' vast collection of bootlegs which makes me wonder if there's actually any point in re-recording them? Especially when his live song cannon boasts such fantastic and, as yet, unrecorded songs that could have easily slid onto this record. It's a minor complaint though, old songs or not, they fit in with the flow of the record perfectly.

The constant shifts in style on the album keep you enthralled from start to finish. The rock `n roll stomp of Halloween Head really shouldn't work. On first listen the goof ball lyrics and cheesy chord changes make you question whether the song is actually taking the piss or not. It places Adams in 80's rock mode, but the soaring lyrics on display put pay to any doubts about the track and it turns out to be one of the finest rock songs he has ever written, regardless of the lyrical content. On a totally different tangent is Pearls On A String which sounds like a traditional country lament that could have been recorded in another era.

So with all the shifts in genre and mood, why does the album work so well? The answer is simply in its delivery. Live, these songs sprawl with improvised jams akin to The Grateful Dead but on record everything is slimmed down, no junk, no meandering, just clear and focused songwriting. As brilliant as Love Is Hell, Cold Roses or Jacksonville City Nights were they were also a little bloated, a little too long. What we have with Easy Tiger is an amalgamation of all his past work, repackaged and condensed into a perfectly formed and easy to swallow 38 minute mouthful. A career high? Easy Tiger.

Richard Thane

www.thelineofbestfit.com