Ryan Adams Artistfacts

Ryan Adams song list

Ryan Adams Artistfacts

November 5, 1974
He has been labeled a "new Dylan" and "the Kurt Cobain of alt-country." Like both, he claims he doesn't want stardom.
He first gained notoriety as the singer-guitarist for the North Carolina band Whiskeytown.
He recorded his first solo album with the help of some friends like Gillian Welch, Steve Earlem and Emmylou Harris. That album earned him more friends, like Elton John.
Adams makes a policy of stopping his recording at midnight. This allows him plenty of time to go out to bars before last call.
His first influence as a writer was Edgar Allen Poe. By the time he became a teenager, he was very into Jack Kerouac.
He used to buy CDs based on what band T-shirts his favorite skateboarders wore.
Before Whiskeytown, his first band was called the Patty Duke Syndrome. Patty Duke was an actress who won an Oscar in 1962 for her appearance as Helen Keller in The Miracle Worker. She briefly had her own TV show, called the Patty Duke Show.
In March, 2009, he married Mandy Moore in a secret ceremony. Mandy Moore filed for divorce in January 2015, citing irreconcilable differences.
Ryan Adams published Infinity Blues, a book of free verse about "how one person found himself, by losing himself" in 2009.
Ryan Adams was raised by his grandparents in the small town of Jacksonville, North Carolina. His life changed the day his grandparents took him to the Rose Brothers Furniture store, which also sold records. The youngster randomly discovered there Sonic Youth's 1987 album Sister. "I actually went into a weird depression from it," Adams told American Songwriter magazine. "It felt like I was on drugs."
Adams frequently makes reference to Jacksonville on his records, including the track "Jacksonville Skyline" with his former band Whiskeytown and the title of his 2005 album Jacksonville City Nights.
Ryan Adams shares a birthday with his namesake Bryan Adams. Both artists were born on November 5th (Bryan is 15 years Ryan's senior).
Working with artists like Liz Phair and Jenny Lewis, he developed a reputation as a creative sparkplug and ally to female musicians, but that image was shattered in 2019 when New York Times ran a story claiming Adams was abusive and predatory toward some of the women he worked with. Karen Elson, Phoebe Bridgers, and Adams' ex, Mandy Moore, all leveled accusations against him. The fallout was swift: He lost his endorsements and his album release was called off.

Comments: 1

Randy from San Diego, CaRyan Adams is a songwriting god!

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More Songfacts:

Achy Breaky HeartBilly Ray Cyrus

"Achy Breaky Heart" was originally recorded in 1991 by The Marcy Brothers as "Don't Tell My Heart." That original version had the lyrics: "Don't tell my heart, my achy, breakin' heart..."

Then He Kissed MeThe Crystals

The '60s hit "Then He Kissed Me" was covered by The Beach Boys as "Then I Kissed Her."

RelaxFrankie Goes to Hollywood

The Frankie Goes To Hollywood hit "Relax" is, as the band says, about "shagging." It was banned by the BBC, which sent it to #1 in the UK as listeners flocked to record stores to buy it.

In-A-Gadda-Da-VidaIron Butterfly

"In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida" was supposed to be titled "In The Garden Of Eden," but someone in the studio wrote down the title phonetically, and it stuck.

Put Your Records OnCorinne Bailey Rae

Corinne Bailey Rae's 2006 hit "Put Your Records On" borrows the opening line ("Three little birds sat on my window") from the Bob Marley song "Three Little Birds." Both songs have the same message: Don't worry, because every little thing's going to be alright.