Ryan Adams is covering Taylor Swift’s 1989. The whole thing. I love that he’s doing this. I also love that he’s a huge, loveable weirdo who likes a wide variety of music across different genres, and makes a wide variety of music across different genres. Remember when in he put out something like 11 albums —some rap, some punk, some hardcore— in the mid ‘00s? Remember when he made that sci-fi metal album in 2010? He’s an odd guy. An extremely cool, capable, and talented odd guy.
His Taylor Swift project isn’t out yet, but from the looks of Adam’s Instagram account he’s really cooking, and plans on giving his own treatment to all 13 songs off the album. “Blank Space” will apparently get a “deep end Smith’s vibe.” He’s already taken on “Welcome To New York” (hear it below) and made it his own, adding grit to the shiny song that made Taylor into the New York ambassador tourists love. Dare I say I like the Ryan Adams version more?
Covers are kind of a “thing” for Adams, and he recently played Bryan Adam’s “Summer of ‘69” at a show in Nashville. Of course there’s also his legendary version of the Oasis song “Wonderwall.” Wouldn’t it be great if he did more of them? Yes, it would.
In no particular order, here are some albums it would be a dream to hear the “Come Pick Me Up” singer do his own interpretations of:
Katy Perry - Teenage Dream
Beach House - Bloom or Teen Dream
Leslie Gore - I’ll Cry If I Want To
Madonna - True Blue
Electric Light Orchestra - Out of the Blue
Amy Winehouse - Frank
REO Speedwagon - Hi Infidelity
Bush - 16 Stone
The Eagles - Eagles, One Of These Nights
Eddie Money - Eddie Money
Heart - Dreamboat Annie
Motown Christmas
Pantera - Far Beyond Driven
Metallica - Kill ‘Em All
Slayer - Reign In Blood
Phoenix - Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix
Vampire Weekend - Contra
The B52’s - Cosmic Thing
Blondie - Once More Into The Bleach
The Go-Go’s - Beauty And The Beat
George Strait - Best Of
Brooks & Dunn - Number Ones
LCD Soundsystem - This Is Happening
Crosby, Stills, Nash, & Young - Deja Vu
Yeasayer - Odd Blood
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