Ryan Adams & The Cardinals - 'Jacksonville City Nights'

You have to really love Ryan Adams to excuse the current amount of filler in his catalog (which apparently doesn’t include nearly all of what he would like to have released). If Adams has a particular Achilles’ heel, it must be his prowess in the studio, which renders most of his recordings highly listenable even when the material is complete and utter shit. Indeed, an entire album of single-take demos (Demolition) sounds as good as anything else he’s recorded solo. However, the bottom really fell out of Adams’ solo career with 2002’s release of Rock ‘N’ Roll and Love Is Hell. RnR was Adams’ stab at garage rock and LIH was his take on foppy, British pop. Neither album sounded like the work of the brash Whiskeytown frontman or the self-styled troubadour from Heartbreaker (Adams’ solo debut). Instead, what emerged was a clear picture of an artist desperately in need of an identity.

Adams received a blessing in disguise in the form of a severe hand injury during the tour to support Rock ‘N’ Roll. The subsequent break from touring and recording forced Adams to rethink his own guitar playing and inspired him to seek out a group of collaborators, not just a touring band. Guitarist J. P. Bowerstock coached Adams on his playing and became the lynchpin in The Cardinals, which also features bassist Catherine Popper and drummer Brad Pemberton (a former tourmate of Adams). The fruits of their labors have been realized in two releases this year – Cold Roses was released in May and Jacksonville City Nights is out this week. Whereas Cold Roses is a sprawling double album that references the Grateful Dead and the Rolling Stones, JCN is a hardcore country album that draws from Adams’ earlier days with Whiskeytown.

Cold Roses received strong reviews and was widely hailed as a return to form, but JCN is likely to divide critics again (though Adams’ fans are rarely anything less than rabid about any new release). In addition to a perceived glut of product, JCN feels more like Ryan Adams wearing a particular outfit (this one featuring fringed jackets and belt buckles). Though JCN is ostensibly “country”, it obviously sounds nothing like the current crop of Nashville acts. Instead, it is solidly stuck in the ‘70’s, even going as far as to feature countrypolitan string arrangements on several tracks. Elsewhere, JCN sounds like a Keith Richards solo record circa 1970. And therein perhaps lies the problem – while Richards has recorded some respectable solo records, they all lack the undeniable tension of a Jagger/Richards collaboration. Similarly, Adams has been without a credible foil since Phil Wandscher left Whiskeytown many moons ago. So Adams continues to cruise along on a laid-back vibe, which works okay here but better on Cold Roses. Cold Roses is also better able to stretch its 18-track welcome further on sheer variety and canny pacing, while JCN relaxes into a consistent 14-track groove rather quickly and predictably.

Which is not to say that good stuff does not abound throughout JCN. Indeed, Adams knack for melody and hooks remains intact, and some of the lyrics are arguably better than much of Cold Roses. Norah Jones shows up for a duet that suggests a full collaboration with Adams might be worth exploring. The Cardinals are the closest thing to a real band Adams has had in quite some time, and their playing provides a compelling backdrop for Adams' songs. Though JCN can seem slavishly loyal to its influences, it still comes across more authentic than Gold, which was slavishly tethered to more dubious sources (California country-rock, Elton John, etc.). And Adams remains, for better or worse, one of the few artists around who can make anything sound good in the studio.

So your reaction to JCN might be most closely related to what incarnation of Adams you prefer. I couldn't care less about faux-garage-rock Ryan or Brit-pop Ryan (both circa 2002), but I like Deadhead Ryan and George Jones Ryan pretty damn well. Spirit-of-Gram-Parsons Ryan appears throughout both Cold Roses and JCN (perhaps more often on the latter), and Magnolia Mountain Ryan (the fictional guy that actually knows something about bluebirds and the Cumberland River) is a new persona that virtually takes over JCN. It's not clear whether these Ryans have half a chance of becoming the same dude, but in the meantime Adams has served up two fine releases (with a third yet to come).

And hell, even Pitchfork digs it:
http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/record-reviews/a/adams_ryan/jacksonville-city-nights.shtml