Dear Ryan Adams-
You, thankfully, have no idea who I
am. I am compelled to come out of hiding
and anonymity to let you know how much devotion I have to your work. It all started when I was in high school and
I was babysitting. The lady who hired me
had all these mix CDs lying around and I was curious. I knew some of the artists jotted across
those CD-Rs; Smog, Cracker, Tom Petty.
So I threw in a CD to listen to it.
Track 1 was Come Pick Me Up. I remember sitting on the couch listening to
your voice pour out of that boom box into that dim living room and I was hooked. It stopped me in my tracks. When the harmonica kicked in, it took my
breath away and I had to sit down. My
homework and picking up alphabet blocks were both forgotten and I just soaked
up that tune from start to finish and then hit back so I could do it again.
That moment was more than 10 years
ago and as much as it marks when I fell in love with your work, it also marks
when I feel head over heels with music. Real music, which is to say ‘good’ music. It was the song that untangled my musical
tentacles and let them explore everything and gave me something to hold on to. I managed to get my hands on Heartbreaker, Gold, and Demolition. I fell down the hole, so happily. In college, I got to see you in Indianapolis
with the Cardinals and you played a three hour show; best $40 I could have
spent my work study money on. I kept snatching up your work whenever I
could and I have continued to stockpile your records.
I want you to know that I love your
new record as much as I loved Come Pick
Me Up when I heard it in high school.
I saw you when you played in Portland, Maine last year and I
was just as struck by your playing and playfulness as I was when I saw you in
college (though this time I got to be right up front). That show was actually before the record came
out and driving through the back roads of New Hampshire was when I first heard
the recording of My Wrecking Ball and
again, was as swept up in the story and melody as I have ever been. I did a task for 2014 where I listened to all of my CDs. I
listened to them from start to finish and I wasaq1 not allowed to skip any
tracks. Being reexposed to your albums
in that fashion has been a great indulgence.
The way you tell a story is
gorgeous. You have an understanding of
music and melody that is virtuosic. You
write words that glimmer on my heartstrings before dripping into the puddles of
my heart. I have spent hours of my life
with you and you’ve been the soundtrack to events in my life. Not only have I found comfort in your work, I
have found new feelings, new words, and new experiences. I’ve been challenged, comforted, and excited
by songs, I’ve found my own voice by listening to yours. I’ve had my breath taken away and I’ve had
new energy breathed into me. Thank you.
Thank you! I’m so grateful for all of this, these last
13 years. My life is a different version
because I found that mix CD in high school.
And I’m so glad. I’ve bonded with
old friends, shared your music with new ones, and I’ve found new mindsets in
life. You’ve dug up old feelings,
too. It’s nicer to have them couched in
a song instead of a laceration. For all
of this, Ryan, I’m so grateful.
