Bryan Adams: Waking up the Neighbours (1991)

I think it's safe to say that by the early 1990s, consumers were buying fewer and fewer records, and turning to compact discs. I am confident that I did not buy any vinyl records in the 1990s (at least not new ones), which means that this record was likely a gift...from someone.

Evidently, this release sold 16 million copies, and I am willing to bet that most of that 16 million were on compact disc. The advent of the CD platform led to longer albums. Rather than 35 to 40 minutes, typically found on records, CDs were lengthening out to 60 minutes and more. This means that most newer CDs need two pieces of vinyl to contain all of the tracks. In other words, most new CDs are really double albums. I guess that's the one benefit of CDs. You just get more music.

Unfortunately, this is a not always a good thing, as in the case with this record. There are simply too many songs. In fact, if you divided the record in half, that would be just about right. Of course, you would need to make a decision about what's in and what's out, but a good starting place would be (Everything I Do) I Do It for You. Let's just kick that one to the curb. It's simply abysmal.

It seems that Mutt Lange tried to make Bryan Adams sound like Def Leppard. In the end, there are really only one or two songs that pass muster. By the way, if someone ever did wake me up with this record, I just might have to use it like two Frisbees.

I am not going to embed a video here. Sorry, but no. 

Bryan Adams: Reckless (1984)

By the way, you may be wondering why I put 10cc prior to the 'A' section, rather than in the 'T' section. That's because I am a librarian, and I elected to adhere to the National Information Standards Organization's Guidelines for Alphabetical Arrangement of Letters and Sorting of Numerals and Other Symbols (NISO Technical Report 3 NISO TR03-1999). Numerals precede letters. So there.

Reckless was a gift, given to me at Christmas, 1984. At the time, I liked the album. Now, I will admit to a certain nostalgia, but not much more. One measure of my love for an album is whether I own it in CD. I don't own any or the aforementioned records (including this one) on CD.

So, for strictly nostalgic reasons, I can quite happily sing along with this album, with one exception. And, that exception is It's Only Love, that truly dreadful duet with Tina Turner. It's simply unlistenable. It's appalling. It ranks as one of the worst songs ever recorded. The ability to easily skip a track, or indeed to program a CD player, does have its advantages. Fussing with the stylus is too much work.

The video for Summer of '69 is one of those where someone thought that it was cool to ask the singer to spend some time walking swiftly directly towards a camera that was retreating. Was that borrowed from Orson Welles? Anyway, throw some apples around, fire up an impromptu mini-concert in a field near an abandoned shack, and you have yourselves a video.

Bryan Adams: Into the Fire (1987)

I was long past listening to Bryan Adams at this point, but some people are slow to take the hint. It's not the first time that I have received a record as a gift that I have not appreciated. Other examples are coming up, probably in a few months.

Bryan Adams: Diana (1985)

Perhaps repressed memories are a real phenomenon after all. I forgot I owned this record. I have no idea how I acquired it, and it really irks me to realize that I sold my copy of Pink Floyd's The Wall, and yet hung on to this. The only possible explanation is that The Wall had some resale value. This, perhaps not so much.

In searching for background information about this release, I discovered that the song was retired with the death of Lady Diana Spencer. That's fair enough, I suppose.

The most bizarre track on this EP is The Bryan Adamix. This track is what happens when you let children loose in the studio to mess around with the mixing boards. It's a medley of some of his tracks, glued together with a few beats to hide the transitions. I really don't understand why he allowed this to be released, and I wonder if he is now embarrassed by this Dr. Frankensteinish track. I would be.

Update: I have removed this record from my collection.

Bryan Adams: Cuts Like a Knife (1983)

After having said that I am not really a big Bryan Adams fan, I have to confess to owning more Bryan Adams vinyl. If I had to choose, I would say that Cuts Like a Knife is his best record. At least it's the best one I have heard. And, that is if you discount Straight From the Heart, which is in my humble opinion, a truly awful song. On the other hand, there are some really strong tracks, like the title track and This Time.

The cover, while containing a technically good photograph, is kind of ridiculous. I have never been able to figure out what that pose is supposed to represent. Is he ready to run away? It is merely so that we can examine his wardrobe from a certain angle? It's simply a goofy photo. I suppose it conveys to the potential buyer that the singer might also play guitar. I am still confused after all of these years.

Bryan Adams: Bryan Adams (1980)

I am not really a Bryan Adams fan, though at one time, I thought that I was. Apparently, two singles were released from this album. They were Hidin' From Love and Give me Your Love. I haven't listened to this album in so long (maybe 30 years) than I am unable to even remember the melody of either track. To be completely honest, I don't even want to spin this record, mostly because my vague memory of it is that the album was not very good. Or, maybe I should spin it to see if my memory is correct. No, let's not.

I think I picked this up after listening to Cuts Like a Knife, which is a much stronger album. The two albums sound completely different, if my memory is clear. It's clear that Adams hadn't yet hit upon his signature sound here, which I suppose is not uncommon for a first release.

Now, here is an odd fact about Mr. Adams. There is no information about him on the Allmusic Guide. Evidently, he requested that the site remove all content, and they complied. I fail to see why he would do this. Maybe he objected to the reviews? After all, Wikipedia has lots of info, but Wikipedia posts are generally neutral, and authors do not really review, though some articles contain a reception segment, which might summarize critical opinion.

Olympics: Opening Ceremonies

The song sung by Nellie & Bryan is lame!  It sucks.

Overrated, part 4 of 10

(see: parts 1, 2, and 3)

I have some Canadian content (the only Canadian content) for you today in my list of overrated artists. A list of my least favourite artists would be too easy. Right, on to number 7...

7) Bryan Adams - I will admit that certain tracks on Cuts Like a Knife still sound OK to my ears. Reckless, on the other hand, has aged very badly. I would be happy if I never had to hear It's Only Love, that messy disaster of a duet with Tina Turner, ever again. I think Tina was OK back in the day, and I mean waaaay back in the day with Ike. I blame Mark Knopfler for her resurgence in the 80s with that damned Private Dancer song. I can't believe he wrote that for Dire Straits! Bizarre. Her comeback led to a whole series of bad duets with the likes of Adams, Mick Jagger, Eric Clapton, Rod Stewart, and David Bowie. I bet I could get Tina to record a duet with me.

After Reckless, Bryan went from bad to worse. There is the anemic (Everything I Do) I Do It for You with its ponderous chorus. If you think that is bad, check out All For Love:



Why in Hell would Sting get involved in such a piece of shit? I think he has more integrity than that. I could go on and on, but I think, once you have watched that clip, they will be no doubt in your mind. Bryan Adams sucks.

Just to prove to you that I am human and have nothing to hide, I will confess that I have two pieces of Bryan Adams vinyl: his first self-titled album and Reckless. I will sell those to the person with the best offer.

Oh, and I suppose I ought to say something about his photography. I think Bryan is quite a talented photographer.

See: part 5