Goodnight Rose

I saw Ryan Adams and the Cardinals on Tuesday evening at the Riverside - my first time seeing Ryan since 2003. It was a really good show. The Cardinals (and Ryan) are all skilled musicians, of course, but what blew me away was how incredibly well their voices blend together. Ryan Adams may not be the most consistent or reliable of performers, but hot damn, that man has a set of pipes.

The show began forty-five minutes late, which annoyed me because I had a drive waiting afterward. I forgot my annoyance as soon as the band came on. They played material from a variety of Ryan's releases, heavy on the Cardinals albums (for obvious reasons), and Ryan threw in a solo cover of "Brown Sugar" for good measure. It looked like he may have been planning to do another solo piano number afterward, but as the audience members hooted and hollered from the balcony, he stood up abruptly and signaled for the band to rejoin him. Ryan did seem a bit temperamental on Tuesday, but there were no hissy fits thrown, so it was a good night.

I'm really looking forward to the Barrymore on Friday. The atmosphere will be quite different, I think.



Setlist:

Wild Flowers
Games
Cold Roses
Beautiful Sorta
Peaceful Valley
The Rescue Blues
Dear John
I Taught Myself How To Grow Old
When the Stars Go Blue
Night Birds
The Sun Also Sets
Off Broadway
Goodnight Rose
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Brown Sugar [Ryan solo, on piano]
Please Do Not Let Me Go
A Kiss Before I Go
Freeway to the Canyon
I See Monsters

More photos here.