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Track Listing 1. Goodnight Rose 2. Two 3. Everybody Knows 4. Halloweenhead 5. Oh My God, Whatever, etc. 6. Tears of Gold 7. Sun Also Sets, The 8. Off Broadway 9. Pearls on a String 10. Rip Off 11. Two Hearts 12. These Girls 13. I Taught Myself How to Grow Old
| Details | | Contributing artists: | Sheryl Crow | | Producer: | Jamie Candiloro | | Distributor: | Universal Distribution | | Recording Type: | Studio | | Recording Mode: | Stereo | | SPAR Code: | n/a |
Album Notes Ever since his 2001 breakout, Ryan Adams has been a critical lightning rod and a PR disaster. From infamous onstage fits and a barrage of albums simultaneously prolific and scatterbrained, Adams's relationship with fame was bristly at best. Even the I-was-this-close-to-dying drug confessions that immediately pre-dated the release of this record seemed like a clumsy bid for Keith Richards-style rockitude. Critics and even frustrated fans all seemed to agree: the kid has talent, but he's very annoying. In this milieu, Adams drops EASY TIGER--his ninth record of the decade--with a title that suggests that he and everyone else should take a step back and reassess. Fans will rejoice: EASY TIGER--recorded with his backing band, the Cardinals--is the closest Adams has sounded to the style on his excellent debut, HEARTBREAKER. His ADD genre approach is on display here--from the lazy, AMERICAN BEAUTY-style bluegrass of "Pearls on a String" to the full-roar power pop of "Halloweenhead" to the blue-eyed-soul duet with Sheryl Crow, "Two." The songs are tight and to the point; almost all are uniformly great; and all serve to bolster his case for "importance" as a songwriter that years of overt trying have failed to yield. Seems like "easy, tiger" is that successful approach Adams has been looking so hard for.
Industry Reviews Ranked #27 in Q's The 50 Best Albums Of 2007 -- [T]hese 14 compact, tuneful songs slip by with a deceptive, but pleasing ease.
'Two Hearts' is as catchy a piece of country-rock as a Flying Burrito Brother could have imagined, and the execution is flawless.
Backed by his trusty band, the Cardinals, Adams continues to touch hearts with woeful tales of love-gone-wrong.
3.5 stars out of 5 -- Adams often finds himself revisiting past glories on EASY TIGER....A rather pleasing listen...
4 stars out of 5 -- Adams appears more at ease in his own skin, soothing himself into these 13 songs rather than straining hard....EASY TIGER feels like a more assured follow-up to the countrified COLD ROSES.
EASY TIGER keeps it simple: beguiling melodies, an ace band, and Adams' elastic tenor. -- Grade: A-
4 stars out of 5 -- You get deep-twang country rock, fuzzy new-wave pop, a little old-school mountain music, and a handful of acoustic emo-folk ballads.
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