For better or for worse, Ryan Adams has been one of the most prolific artists in the business over the last decade. In 2005 alone, he released three cd’s (four, if you count the ’05 double-set Cold Roses as two cd’s) causing many to contend that the quality of his overall body of work has suffered, for the sake of sheer output.

His detractors (which are many, partially due to his volatile public persona) might indeed have a point, at least to a certain extent. Cold Roses has been criticized for being too long, as well as relying heavily on a sound and style that many of his fans feel owes too much to the Grateful Dead, but there’s no denying that there are several Adams gems buried amongst the jammier material; “Let It Ride” would be a stunner in anybody’s catalogue and this cd has far more hits than misses.

Jacsonville City Nights is a solid and dependable (if unspectacular..) country influenced affair (Adams still pursues Gram Parson’s ghost with a vengeance, whether he’ll admit it or not). 29 is a dark, personal record that initially I thought was going to be the crown jewel of that ’05 trifecta, but it just didn’t hold up under repeated listenings, save the stunning sonic torpedo that was “Nightbirds”…

And then in 2006, Adams put out…nothing.

So after another year of sporadic gigs (Dylan’s got nothing on this guy when it comes to the perpertual tour), working with his heroes (Willie Nelson and Phil Lesh, to name only two), and general career reassessment, Ryan gives us “Easy Tiger” and the cd that he said he didn’t want to make.

I am glad he made it, because for my money, it stands tall next to anything in the Ryan solo catalogue, save maybe “Heartbreaker” which is in a class by itself and as anyone who knows me will attest, I consider that to be one of the finest recordings of the 21st century. Then you’ve got the Whiskeytown years, a whole nother period near and dear to my heart and a topic of discussion for another day.

What you have here is a focused and newly sober Ryan Adams who is at, or near. the top of his game.The songwriting is tight and focused, the whole album is beatifully produced and it’s as professsional sounding as anything he’s ever released, I’m sure these are just a few of the reasons this is the album he didn’t want to make,

The soft, banjo-driven, “Pearls On A String” and impossibly clever and catchy rocker, “Halloween Head” are the immediate new classics for me, the ones I’ll be putting on mix-cd’s and Ryan compilations for future generations. “Goodbye Rose” is a great song, but a little overcooked and busy, as my Aussie mate and fellow Ryan junkie pointed out. “These Girls” is a re-write of an earlier tune from the unreleased “Destroyer”sessions, “Hey Mrs. Lovely”, but I think is a better song for the new lyrics.(Sorry, Carl.)

There’s really not a throwaway on the disc. The first single, “Two” featuring Sheryl Crow, is perfect; pensive and longing with just the right amount of pedal steel to accent the heartbache expressed within. Other highlights include “Oh My God, Whatever, Etc”, “Rip Off”, and the gut-wrenching closer, “I Taught Myself To Grow Old”.

So Ryan says he didn’t get to make the record he wanted to make, and I’m sure he didn’t. he probably wanted to do his homage to Sonic Youth or Can or whatever else is rocking his world these days, something decibel-driven that would kill rodents at 50 paces at the proper volume, given his penchant for going against the grain and irritating the music-industry “suits”…but, c’mon, dude, you got to make the last three that you wanted to make. And you might even sell a few of this one and make a buck.

Think about it. We get a cd of Ryan doing what Ryan does best, your beleagured employers in the music industry might actually move “some units”. And you get a paycheck.

It’s a win-win!

And you can probably have that Sonic Youth/Can homage in stores in time for Christmas…

Lost Highway Records

Score A-

Jeffrey Sweeney is the General Manager of FYE; a local musicologist and pop culture guru.