Ryan Adams has been hard at work. He hasn’t been recording a followup to his great 2014 solo album or shilling his excellent 2015 album Live at Carnegie Hall. He hasn’t reunited with his old backing band the Cardinals or with his ex-wife, Mandy Moore, who he split with in early 2015.
Instead, Adams has been hard at work doing something unexpected, but totally exciting: a track-by-track cover of Taylor Swift’s 1989. And he’s doing so in the style of the Replacements because, sure, why the hell not? Holed up in his PAX AM studio, Adams has been sharing snippets of the recording sessions via Instagram, building up substantial anticipation with each clip – “Style,” “Blank Space,” “Out of the Woods” and more. Adams recently posted that recording is finished, but he’s yet to provide any details about its release.
My question for Adams is simple: Is it too early to suggest other albums and/or songs to tackle next? Because I have some ideas.
Lorde’s Pure Heroine
Lorde’s debut album shares some similarities with 1989, making it a good option for Adams. The songs are clever, well-written, and have plenty of room to breath and grow. I don’t know how he’d choose to tackle them, whether or not he’d do a Replacements thing again, an alt-country thing or something else entirely, but I for one think that a Ryan Adams version of “Royals” or “Team” would be pretty great.
Or if Adams wanted to try another interesting recent album from a talented female, how about…
Miley Cyrus’ Bangerz
Come on man, an alt-country version of “We Can’t Stop” or a solo acoustic take on “Wrecking Ball” would be pretty sweet. No, that would be very sweet. All you have to do is listen to Adams’ version of “Wonderwall” and know that the dude can give a song a wonderfully delicate reworking. The more I think about it, the more I truly believe that Adams should tackle this album next.
But, if he doesn’t…
Kanye West’s Yeezus
Would some of the lyrics be a little dicey for Adams to sing? Yeah, definitely. But I say Ryan Adams should live a little and give it a shot. Adams could do a pretty rad rock version of “Black Skinhead” and “I Am a God.” Or he could take it down a few notches, light some candles and get intimate with “Bound 2.” Kanye will probably hate it, but really, if we based decisions on what Kanye likes and doesn’t like, we’d all be dressed like futuristic homeless people and hating on Beck.
Ryan Adams might not want to mess with Kanye, though. And that’s understandable. As far as wraths go, Kanye’s is even worse than Khan’s.
So if Adams does want to take on hip-hop, but doesn’t want to face Kanye or commit to a whole album, how about…
Drake’s “Hold On, We’re Going Home”
Drake’s jawn could sound pretty, pretty good filtered through Adams’ funnel of lo-fi rock. I’d say he could alt-country the song up, but no, I think the Replacements vibe he’s tackling 1989 with could be a winner here.
Or…
Rihanna’s “Bitch Better Have My Money”
Swamp rock, Ryan Adams. Do a straight up, swampy as all hell, Tom Petty-drenched version of this song. Real muddy, real dirty. Speed it up a little bit to give it that rambling down the highway in a beat-up truck vibe and you have yourself a winner.
DJ Snake’s “Turn Down for What”
I would suggest this song because in all honesty, I just think it’d be fun to hear Ryan Adams sing the Lil’ Jon parts.
But back to albums, part of the appeal of Adams doing 1989 is that he is venturing so far outside his wheelhouse, and whenever an artist does that it’s exciting.
Frank Ocean’s Channel Orange
Frank Ocean’s 2012 masterpiece, and also what could unfortunately be the only album he ever releases if things keep going the way they’re going, would offer the wide-open landscape and room to breathe that 1989 gives Adams, as well as some unique and interesting songs to rework. Adams tackling “Pyramids” would be worth the price of admission alone, but an alt-country stab at “Super Rich Kids” or “Thinkin’ Bout You” is super intriguing.
Mark Ronson’s Uptown Special
Mark Ronson’s most recent album is best known for “Uptown Funk,” but the album is full of some great songs that are diverse and open to interpretation. It might be a stretch, and I’m not sure the world could handle Ryan Adams troubadouring his way through “Uptown Funk” or, God help us, “Don’t Feel Right,” but a life without risks isn’t a life worth living.
Daft Punk’s Random Access Memories
The Daft Punk album would easily be the album located furthest from Adams’ comfort zone. But there are enough rock undertones throughout Random Access Memories that I think Adams could make it work, especially if he once again leaned on the Tom Petty-esque California desert rock that he did with his 2014 solo album.
Your move, Ryan. I think we’ve offered up plenty of good suggestions, although it should be noted that we are 100% cool with your next project being comprised of your own material.
