51. Cuts Like a Knife by Bryan Adams
Hey, do you want to remember the glory days of riding around Arimo in Old Blue with Sheldon? Then all you need is one of these!
Nuff said!
Unfortunately, due to record deals and copyright laws and all that stuff, Bryan doesn't have the full playlist from Cuts Like a Knife. But he does have a mix of some music videos and live performances, and I'll piece together most of the album playlist from them below. There are a couple of songs that only have bootleg videos out there, so if the links don't work or there isn't a link, it's because they either don't exist or they got taken off by the YouTube police.
1. The Only One
2. Take Me Back
3. This Time
6. I'm Ready
8. Don't Leave Me Lonely
9. Let Him Know (It's a live performance, but it ain't Bryan Adams)
First of all, please clarify something for me. Did you go to the Bryan Adams/Journey concert with us, or did you go with some of your family? I distinctly remember going with Sheldon and (I think) Mike, but I don't recall you being with us. (I'm pretty sure Chris wasn't allowed, but I could be wrong.)
ReplyDeleteAs I recall, we got to the concert on time, but it took so long to get through the ticket-entrance line that Bryan had already rocked a song or two by the time we made our way into the Mini-dome. It was dark, we couldn't see, and we were a bit dazed by the unfamiliar smell wafting through the air. We walked up the stairs to the top row until we could get a bit acclimated, then we went down a few rows and found our assigned seats.
Of course, my strongest memories of the Bryan Adams portion of the concert was when he started shouting out the "f" word during "Take Me Back." I was shocked that an "adult" was so freely using that word in such a public setting. But, I also thought the song really rocked.
I had this album on cassette, but when I upgraded my music collection to cd, this one didn't make the cut. Eventually I got around to transferring my cassette music to my iTunes collection, but when I did I somehow didn't get the last three songs, so I don't have the complete album.
I've always been familiar with the three hits from the album ("Straight From the Heart," "Cuts Like a Knife," and "This Time,") as well as "Take Me Back." So, when I listened to the album again for the first time in years, I was quite impressed by the hard-driving song "I'm Ready." It's a really good rock song, with some nice electric guitar.
That's why I was a bit confused when I clicked on your links and found the "I'm Ready" there to be a seemingly completely different song. It turns out it IS the same song, sort of. And it points to the problem that is: The Wussification of Bryan Adams.
The "Cuts Like a Knife" album rocks, and so does his next album, "Reckless." (I took "Reckless" under consideration for my Top 60 list, but it didn't make the cut. Probably because I despise the whole message of the hit "Run To You.") But, along the way, Bryan had some big hits with some soft ballads, like "Straight From the Heart," and "Heaven." He then hit it even bigger with sappy stuff like "Everything I Do (I Do-Do For You)," "Please Forgive Me," and "Have You Ever Really Loved a Woman."
This video for "I'm Ready" is an abomination. He took a good, wonderful, rocking song full of guitars and turned it into a schlappy wedding dirge full of strings. (Hey, this ELO fan's got nothing against strings, but how he changed this song is ridiculous.) And it's a perfect example of why no one takes Bryan Adams serious as a rock and roll star. He wussified his entire image because it sold a few more records. (He's not the only one to do this, of course. Survivor, Toto, and even Chicago took their own trips down the wussification trail.)
Still, this album still stands as a really good rock and roll album. From back when Bryan Adams knew how to rock.