Ryan Adams

Early life

Ryan Adams was born on November 5, 1974, in Jacksonville, North Carolina, the middle child of three. His childhood was described as "dysfunctional"; his father left when he was five, and the family became homeless as a result of the divorce, moving in with his grandparents. He has said, "I became who I am now because of my grandparents" and of his grandmother "...she was like a mother to me." At eight, he began writing short stories and limericks on his grandmother's typewriter, later citing Edgar Allan Poe and cult fiction authors Hubert Selby, Jr., Henry Miller, and Jack Kerouac as influences.

At 14, he learned to play an electric guitar his mother and stepfather had bought him and joined a local band named Blank Label, which recorded a three-track 7-inch record in 1991. He dropped out of Jacksonville High School in 10th grade at 16, subsequently moving into bandmate Jere McIlwean's rental house. After obtaining his GED, he left Jacksonville for Raleigh. His band The Patty Duke Syndrome broke up in 1994 after releasing a split 7-inch single with GlamourPuss.

Career

Following the breakup of The Patty Duke Syndrome, Adams helped found Whiskeytown. The band gained critical acclaim with their second full-length album, Strangers Almanac, their first major label release. A third album, Pneumonia, was completed in 1999, but record label problems delayed its release until 2001, at which time the band was effectively done. Adams made his solo debut in 2000 with Heartbreaker, produced by Ethan Johns and featuring Emmylou Harris on "Oh My Sweet Carolina" as well as Gillian Welch, David Rawlings, Pat Sansone, and Kim Richey.

It met with considerable critical success but slow sales. His follow-up, Gold, was well received in 2001; the video for its single "New York, New York" was filmed four days before the September 11 attacks and became his mainstream breakthrough. After the success of Gold, Adams was blocked by his label from releasing his choice for a follow-up. The label cherry-picked from four of Adams' recorded albums to create Demolition, released in September 2002.

In 2003, after his planned album Love Is Hell was rejected by Lost Highway, Adams returned with Rock N Roll, featuring guest musicians including Melissa Auf der Maur, Billie Joe Armstrong, and Parker Posey. Love Is Hell was eventually released as two EPs and then in its full-length state in 2004.

Personal life

The source states that Adams broke his wrist during a live performance, took a hiatus, and formed a backing band called the Cardinals. In 2009, due to complications from Ménière's disease, Adams disbanded the Cardinals and took a break from music.

He returned in 2010, releasing his 13th studio album, Ashes & Fire. In 2019, several women accused Adams of sexual harassment, leading to a delay in the release of three planned albums. Adams later issued an apology and eventually released six more albums between 2020 and 2022.

Recognition

However, it notes that Heartbreaker was nominated for the Shortlist Music Prize, Gold was certified gold in the UK, and Adams earned a Grammy nomination for "Best S" (cut off) for his cover of Oasis' "Wonderwall" from Love Is Hell. Elton John referred to Adams as "fabulous one" on CMT Crossroads and said Heartbreaker inspired him to record Songs from the West Coast. Noel Gallagher said of Adams' cover of "Wonderwall": "I never got my head round this song until I went to [see] Ryan Adams play and he did an amazing cover of it."

Did You Know?

• Adams recorded a cover of The Strokes' debut album Is This It in 2002, though it has never been publicly released.
• Adams formed a punk band called The Finger with Jesse Malin, releasing the album We Are Fuck You in 2003.