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| Includes the best of the tracks (IMHO) from the album;plus some b-sides and alternate versions thrown in. |
Ryan Adams & The Cardinals
CLASS MYTHOLOGY (2011)
Born into a Light
Go Easy
Fix It
Memory Lane* [import bonus track]
Future Sparrow
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This is my 'fix' for the Ryan Adams & The Cardinals 2008 album, Cardinology. Aside from a handful of tracks, the album drifts into country rock MOR territory--IMO. Ryan's singing on the album is also mostly unpolished and strained. Despite this, he insists on singing in a high whiny range on too many songs. The backing harmony vocals creates a nice blend that I feel gets muddled in the album's production. The album has some cringe moments in its songwriting, too (see "Magick" and "Sink Ships"). I also am not a fan of the rehab ballad "Stop" (just my own taste).
The album is not irredeemable, however. The 2011 double vinyl E.P. release Class Mythology offered four great tracks leftover from the Cardinology sessions that would've saved that album--for my ears, anyway. The vocal harmony blend is on display here, especially on "Future Sparrow" with its acapella breaks. The album's bonus tracks also trump the material that ended up on the album. "Memory Lane" and the exclusive 45 single "Heavy Orange" / "Asteroid" (included with more expensive copies along with a comic book?), and some demo recordings Ryan Adams had released through his blog at the time--Foggy. "Jessica" was one of these--written for his ex-girlfriend Jessica Joffe--but never released in any official form. The band's live performances of "Cobwebs" and "Crossed Out Name" on AOL Sessions are also different from their album counterparts. Too many songs on the original album were a bit sleepy i.e. "Evergreen" or "Let Us Down Easy" (with its rather crusty vocal by Ryan)--and the rather slick, clean production didn't help. I felt the album cover and title of the 2011 vinyl double-E.P. release fit better than 'Cardinology'...the title itself was misleading. There's still a double album (possibly) of material RA hinted at that was recorded between Easy Tiger and Cardinology more in the vein of the songs they left on the cutting room floor. The aforementioned 2xLP was to be supposedly split evenly between RA and Neal Casal sharing lead vocals with shared songwriting by the band--all credited to The Cardinals. Needless to say, some folks were disappointed with what we got instead. After recording an album worth of demos for a planned follow-up titled 'Dear Impossible'--Ryan Adams subsequently announced he was taking a break from music in 2009 and the end of The Cardinals following the tour.
Your Name is on Fire
Like Yesterday
Invisible Red
Crossed Out Name* [2008 AOL Sessions]
Go Ahead and Rain (45 version)+
In the Meadow+ [Romeo & Juliet]
Titles in bold are the album versions except*. Titles in plain are E.P. tracks. ** = unreleased
The album is not irredeemable, however. The 2011 double vinyl E.P. release Class Mythology offered four great tracks leftover from the Cardinology sessions that would've saved that album--for my ears, anyway. The vocal harmony blend is on display here, especially on "Future Sparrow" with its acapella breaks. The album's bonus tracks also trump the material that ended up on the album. "Memory Lane" and the exclusive 45 single "Heavy Orange" / "Asteroid" (included with more expensive copies along with a comic book?), and some demo recordings Ryan Adams had released through his blog at the time--Foggy. "Jessica" was one of these--written for his ex-girlfriend Jessica Joffe--but never released in any official form. The band's live performances of "Cobwebs" and "Crossed Out Name" on AOL Sessions are also different from their album counterparts. Too many songs on the original album were a bit sleepy i.e. "Evergreen" or "Let Us Down Easy" (with its rather crusty vocal by Ryan)--and the rather slick, clean production didn't help. I felt the album cover and title of the 2011 vinyl double-E.P. release fit better than 'Cardinology'...the title itself was misleading. There's still a double album (possibly) of material RA hinted at that was recorded between Easy Tiger and Cardinology more in the vein of the songs they left on the cutting room floor. The aforementioned 2xLP was to be supposedly split evenly between RA and Neal Casal sharing lead vocals with shared songwriting by the band--all credited to The Cardinals. Needless to say, some folks were disappointed with what we got instead. After recording an album worth of demos for a planned follow-up titled 'Dear Impossible'--Ryan Adams subsequently announced he was taking a break from music in 2009 and the end of The Cardinals following the tour.
As of March 2023, Ryan Adams and The Cardinals have released a new single, "Dreams of the Working Class", and announced a tour with a new line-up including guitarist-singer-songwriter Chris Stills (son of Stephen Stills and collaborator of Ryan's from the Gold-era); keyboardist Daniel Clarke (Ryan's former backing group, The Shining); producer / bassist Don Was (Was/Not Was). Ryan and drummer Brad Pembertion return from the original line-up.
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