Bryan Adams Interview: Bare Bones

By: Arlene R. Weiss

“Straight From The Heart,” “Heaven,” “Cuts Like A Knife,” “Summer Of 69.” All of these hit songs, plus a treasure trove of hits and enduring, memorable tracks crafted by Canadian rocker, Grammy® Award winning, singer, songwriter and musician Bryan Adams, are included on his sparkling new live album, Bare Bones.

Bare Bones is a love letter to Adams’ immensely loyal fans and is a stellar collection of many of Bryan’s biggest hits, minimally arranged in a live, stripped down, acoustic setting, capturing Bryan at his most exuberant, dynamic, and authentic. The album is just Bryan and his acoustic guitar, accompanied on piano by Gary Breit, cheered on by Bryan’s adoring fans who enthusiastically, sing and clap along.

Bare Bones’s twenty song track listing, was personally chosen by Bryan’s fans. The inspiration for Bare Bones came to Bryan upon wanting to put together a recording of his live shows on the road, that his fans could have as a keepsake and buy at his shows. So he posted on his Twitter, asking his fans to suggest which of their favorite songs they wanted on the album. Bryan received such an overwhelming and glowing response from his fans that his record company knew that he had the making of something huge and wonderful, and so a major record and global tour were put together.

Adams, the best-selling Canadian male recording artist of all time, has sold more than 65 million albums worldwide, garnered twenty one top ten hits and three nominations for Academy® Awards, he’s received eighteen Juno® Awards, (Canadian Academy Of Recording Arts And Sciences), five ASCAP® Film and Television Music Awards, and he has been honored with both a Grammy® Award and an American Music Award®.

Throughout his life and career, Bryan also has selflessly devoted himself to and championed multiple humanitarian, socially responsible, and environmental causes, including Live Aid, (where his incendiary live performance of “Kids Wanna Rock” kicked off the USA leg from Philadelphia of the global charity, benefit concert), Live 8, The Concert For Freedom For Nelson Mandela, Amnesty International, providing food and comfort relief for the needy, the rainforests, whale sanctuaries, and many more.

Bryan’s own Bryan Adams Foundation which supports children’s and young people’s education worldwide as well as people in need due to natural disasters, famine, victims of war and more, is completely funded from his acclaimed work as a world class, premier photographer.

And this year, Bryan was bestowed with the esteemed honor in being asked to write and perform two songs for the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver.

With his Bare Bones international tour selling out and going strong, and new 2011 dates still being added in the USA in January, India in February, Ireland in June, and the Austrian Klam and Dorbmirn Festivals, Bryan Adams graciously talked with me about Bare Bones, songwriting, including with his longtime songwriting partner Jim Vallance, and writing his many amazing and stunning theme songs for some of Hollywood’s biggest motion pictures.

Bryan Adams Photo Credit: www.bryanadams.com

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Arlene R. Weiss: Bare Bones is a wonderfully exuberant collection of some of your best loved songs, beautifully reinterpreted with acoustic, minimal arrangements, and all recorded this past May and June 2010, at your Bare Bones Tour, with the songs being personally chosen by your fans. To me, it seems that this album really is a love letter to your fans.

How did the original inspirational spark and idea for Bare Bones come about, and how did it progress and evolve into this major record and tour?

Bryan Adams: I just wanted to have a recording that people could get if they came to the shows. I went onto Twitter and asked the fans to make the selection of songs. I had such an overwhelming response from the fans, so then I went ahead and made the album.

Arlene: What were your emotions, and how fulfilling was it for you, when you saw the incredible response you received from your fans in their song suggestions for Bare Bones?

Bryan Adams: It’s great that people love the music, and the songs seem to be standing the test of time. If I had used all the suggestions that I received, the album would be a lot longer, maybe by about three CD’s.

Arlene: You have such an amazing and extensive song catalogue. How did you narrow things down in putting together the album’s track listing, to the twenty songs that made the final cut?

Bryan Adams: I used my performances, how well they went and the fans’ requests. Sometimes just the interaction with the fans was enough in choosing which songs made the album.

Arlene: Your audiences radiate such incredible back and forth energy and joy to you. You can really hear them in the sound mix, they love singing along with you and they enthusiastically clap along and cheer you on. How did their energy drive, inspire, and elevate your performances?

Bryan Adams: Well, that in itself is the joy of being an artist on stage, the communication and great vibrations that you get from the people. There is nothing better!

Arlene: Your singing on Bare Bones is just stunning, and stronger and more beautifully phrased than ever. With three decades on the road and doing this extensive global tour, what steps do you take to keep your vocals in such sterling form? Do you practice daily and what types of vocal exercises do you do?

Bryan Adams: I actually don’t do anything, I don’t even warm up my voice. Thank goodness it’s always been there for me.

Arlene: How has your songwriting evolved throughout your career as an artist, when you’re writing music and when you’re writing lyrics, and what inspires your songwriting process, whether writing a song on your own or with a co-writer?

Bryan Adams: It’s one of those things where I usually go somewhere and hide for a bit, or if I’m sitting with a colleague bouncing ideas back and forth, usually something will come out of it.

Arlene: “The Right Place” has a great bluesy feel and vibe to it. I know that song holds a very special place in your heart. Tell people how that song came about and who you wrote that song especially for.

Bryan Adams: It was written for my favorite singer, Ray Charles, but I didn’t know Ray at the time that I wrote it so I had no way of sending it to him. Later on, when I actually got to work with him, I forgot to tell him about it.

Arlene: I’m happy you included my favorite song of yours, “Straight From The Heart,” which was your first big hit and now has become your signature song. What was your inspiration for writing that song, and hasn’t “Straight From The Heart” also become something of a tribute song to your fans?

Bryan Adams: That song was one of the only ones that I ever wrote on piano. I was learning to play arpeggios on the piano, which for me are self-taught, and this song just came to me. I didn’t consciously set out for that to be a tribute song to the fans, but they really love it, and since they’ve come to think of it that way I think it’s a great idea.

Arlene: You also included some of your best movie themes on Bare Bones, your biggest movie theme “(Everything I Do) I Do It For You” from the 1991 motion picture, Robin Hood: Prince Of Thieves, and “All For Love” from the 1993 film The Three Musketeers.

You’ve written and sung so many incredible movie themes through your career. How did you first become involved with writing and performing movie theme songs and how did your ongoing collaborative relationship doing film themes evolve so wonderfully, where Directors so admire your work and come to you?

Bryan Adams: Those songs and “Have You Ever Really Loved A Woman,” from the 1994 film, Don Juan DeMarco, were all written by myself, Mutt Lange and the great Michael Kamen. Michael was a dear friend, and being a film composer, he used to call me up and say, “Come over and let me play you something that I’ve written for this film.” Inevitably it would become a song. We were all nominated twice for Academy Awards for “(Everything I Do) I Do It For You” and “Have You Ever Really Loved A Woman,” and we should have won, because the songs that did win are now virtually forgotten comparatively.

Bryan Adams Photo Credit: www.Bryanadams.com

Arlene: What are some of your especially fond experiences and memories working with so many esteemed film Directors, in giving an emotionally resonant voice to their films?

Bryan Adams: Certainly working with DreamWorks Pictures® was a highlight, but also lately working with Walt Disney Pictures® has been great fun. I wrote the theme song for the film, Old Dogs, which came out last year, (2009), with John Travolta and Robin Williams.

Arlene: Is there any particular film or Director that you created the theme for that you are especially proud of?

Bryan Adams: For me, working with Hans Zimmer was the best. We did an animated, family film called, Spirit: Stallion Of The Cimarron back in 2002. I co-wrote ten of the soundtrack songs, including the theme “Here I Am,” which is also on Bare Bones.

Arlene: You also wrote and performed two songs for this year’s 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver. “One World, One Flame,” the theme for the 2010 Vancouver Olympics, and “Bang The Drum,” for the opening ceremonies. How did you become involved with such a prestigious event that honored and regarded your talents with such esteem that they chose two of your songs, which you wrote to reflect the indomitable spirit of the Olympics, to be included in this global, monumental event?

Bryan Adams: I was asked to write songs for the 2010 Vancouver Olympics and I like being asked to write for these things. I think I’m good with a deadline. I submitted “Bang The Drum” to them and they designed the entire opening ceremonies around the idea. The song is quite inspirational and it worked well. They used it predominantly for the Canadian athletes and their entrance.

Arlene: I just recently interviewed your good friend, Trevor Rabin, who gave you a wonderful tip of the hat, for introducing him to Moon Acoustic Guitars. How did you and Moon go about designing your Moon Bryan Adams Signature Model Acoustic Guitar?

Bryan Adams: I had very little to do with the design of the Moon Bryan Adams Signature Guitar. Jimmy Moon showed me some guitars and I liked them so much, that he made me one.

Click to Download Bare Bones from Amazon.com

Arlene: Your setup on the Bare Bones Tour is very basic and stripped down. What guitars and gear did you use on the Bare Bones album and on your current tour?

Bryan Adams: I started using vintage Martin Guitars. At the moment I use three different Martins, two from 1957 and one from 1947. They’ve been fitted with Fishman Pickups and Natural 1 Preamp Pedals. Sometimes I use Inline Effects like Lovetone Brown Source and a custom tremolo. Other than that, it’s all about the KM 184 Neumann Microphone in front of my guitar. I use G7th Capos and LaBella Strings, gauges 12 through 52. Oh, one more thing, I use Levy’s Guitar Straps.

Arlene: You’re currently on your worldwide Bare Bones Tour which is getting great acclaim. Where are you planning on touring the album the rest of 2010 and in 2011?

Bryan Adams: I’m touring practically everywhere I can. Half of the upcoming year is already planned. I’m playing the USA, in India, the UK, and Germany.

Arlene: You’re also currently doing a lot of songwriting with your longtime writing partner Jim Vallance, who you co-wrote some of your biggest hits with, including “Summer of 69,” “Cuts Like A Knife,” and “Heaven,” which are all on Bare Bones. What are some of the new and exciting works in progress that you and Jim have written together that people can look forward to?

Bryan Adams: We’ve written a song for Engelbert Humperdinck! Love him. We have also written some songs for the upcoming Dorothy Of Oz animated film coming out sometime next year or in 2012. Plus we did the Olympic songs and a few other things for myself. We wrote a Christmas song, plus one of the originals for Bare Bones called “I Still Miss You…A Little Bit.”

Arlene: What artistic direction will your next, new, studio record be, and what are your creative hopes and plans for the future?

Bryan Adams: I’m not sure that I want to release a new studio record. I think that I want to put out EP’s with different songs on them, but I could change my mind. I may in fact, make another Bare Bones CD.

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© Copyright December 1, 2010 By Arlene R. Weiss-All Rights Reserved
© Copyright December 2, 2010 By Arlene R. Weiss-All Rights Reserved