Lucky Now

Album: Ashes & Fire (2011)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • The song's reflective lyrics of a bleak reality while never giving up hope is based on Adams' time in New York in his 20s. The track was originally written about Chris Feinstein, who played bass guitar for Ryan Adams & The Cardinals between 2007 and 2009. On December 15, 2009, he was found dead in his New York City apartment. Speaking to BBC 6 Music, Adams explained: "The first version was called 'Chris.' I was trying to write a song for my friend and former bandmate who passed away. The song I wrote was too direct, and I realised that there needed to be more self-reflection. I needed to make this feeling relatable to others, so that it could be relatable back to myself. In some strange way, it needed to be more altruistic, by being more first-person. It's a very strange concept, but when I listen to songs, I need to feel the narrator's shoes rubbing against my feet, you know? I needed to put myself in that place."

    The version that appears on Ashes & Fire is the revised second draft.

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Women Who Rock

Women Who RockSong Writing

Evelyn McDonnell, editor of the book Women Who Rock, on why the Supremes are just as important as Bob Dylan.

Song Titles That Inspired Movies

Song Titles That Inspired MoviesSong Writing

Famous songs that lent their titles - and in some cases storylines - to movies.

Tony Banks of Genesis

Tony Banks of GenesisSongwriter Interviews

Genesis' key-man re-examines his solo career and the early days of music video.

Shawn Mullins

Shawn MullinsSongwriter Interviews

"Lullaby" singer Shawn Mullins on "Beautiful Wreck," beating the Devil, and his writing credit on the Zac Brown Band song "Toes."

Songs About Movies

Songs About MoviesSong Writing

Iron Maiden, Adele, Toto, Eminem and Earth, Wind & Fire are just some of the artists with songs directly inspired by movies - and not always good ones.

Yacht Rock!

Yacht Rock!Song Writing

A scholarly analysis of yacht rock favorites ("Steal Away," "Baker Street"...) with a member of the leading YR cover band.