Having grown up in the early 90s, my first experience of Bryan Adams was a certain single propelled to a seemingly eternal #1 spot thanks to a popular film starring Kevin Costner in the title role. Imagine, then, the confusion of my ten-year-old self when, upon placing the cassette single into the deck, I was greeted with the raucous She’s Only Happy When She’s Dancing, a live cut from Adams’ fourth album, Reckless, on the b side. Something of an ironic choice, given that Adams had originally resisted included Heaven on that album (the most obvious antecedent to Everything I Do) for being “too light”, the inclusion of She’s Only Happy… ensured that anyone who bought the single was aware of Adams’ rock credentials.
At any event, She’s Only Happy When She’s Dancing was a great introduction to the arena rock of Reckless, an album that only seems to have grown in stature since its release, and it’s great to hear Adams return to it on its 40th anniversary with a complete performance at the Royal Albert Hall. Performed as part of a three-night residence at that esteemed venue in May 2024, Adams also aired his seventh album, 1996’s 18 Til I Die, and his most recent effort, So Happy It Hurts, with each night also featuring a second set comprising a generous assortment of classic cuts. For this special box set, all three album performances are included but, sadly, none of the other tracks made the cut.
The Package
The box set includes either three CDs or four LPs, boasting a total of 36 tracks. Both sets include a blu ray, featuring all three concert films, and the box is completed with a 32-page photo book. The concert films were directed by the award-winning filmmaker Dick Carruthers. For this review, we were provided with streams of both the audio and the video, so we cannot comment on the quality of the box itself.
Audio & Video
The concerts look fantastic. From the crisp black and white of the backstage footage to the vivid colours of one of the world’s most stunning venues, it really does draw you in, Dick Carruthers’ roaming camera placing you on the stage and in the audience with deft skill. Thankfully avoiding the temptation to rapidly cut from shot to shot, the director offers up a dynamic rendering of a performance that clearly had the crowd in raptures and, from slow-moving pans that take in the scale of the centrally placed stage to cut-aways showing the ecstatic audience, he manages to make it all feel strangely intimate. Put simply, as far as concert films go, this is up there with the very best.
Similarly, and as you might expect from so polished a professional as Bryan Adams, the audio for the concert is pristine. While still capturing the nuances of a live performance (particularly when guitarist Keith Scott cuts loose), it has a depth to it that suggests some serious skill behind the mixing desk. Even from a stereo stream, the sound has an immersive quality to it and, with the blu ray featuring stereo, 5.1, and Atmos options, fans will be able to truly lose themselves in the atmosphere of the night.
The Music
Reckless
How many of Reckless’ songs are burned into your consciousness? There are moments, when listening to this brilliantly performed set (neatly re-sequenced and with a pair of additional tracks slipped into the running order), that the sense of deja vu is almost overpowering and yet, to see the joy with which Bryan and his band interact on the stage, you’d think it was their first time. They have you hooked right from start, with the brilliant opening pair of One Night Love Affair and Somebody (with Adams sporting an acoustic guitar for both), setting the tone for the evening.
For such a successful artist, Adams remains remarkably grounded and, when an over-enthusiastic audience member screams out “we love you Bryan”, he simply quips “that’s my brother” without missing a beat. It’s that wry humour and earthy presence that has helped Bryan navigate the vagaries of fame over the years, and you get the sense that, for him, it really is all about the music.
Highlights come thick and fast. The title track, which was left off the original album sequence despite providing its name, boasts some blistering lead work, raising the already soaring temperatures a good few notches. Then there’s the well-worn single Run to You, which not only provides the perfect showcase for Bryan’s skills as a vocalist, but also some great harmonised lead guitar. With tracks of this strength, it’s easy to see why Kiss would turn to Adams to lend a helping hand on Creatures Of The Night (Adams co-wrote the awesome War Machine), and while the keyboards do, perhaps, date the track a touch, the chorus is no less affecting for all that.
An easy highlight, Kids Wanna Rock sees Adams poised in the spotlight, ringing feedback from his hollow body guitar with a look on his face that suggests he may have found his heaven. The song itself, a cracking 50s-style rock ‘n’ roll anthem that recalls Marty McFly’s epic performance in Back To The Future, is delivered with easy attitude by a world-class band and it paves the way for an extended Heaven, which triggers a mass singalong.
With the audience laughing, screaming, and crying, Bryan takes a moment to thank the record’s co-creator, Jim Vallance, who’s actually in the venue for the performance, before heading into the sparkling rocker She’s Only Happy When She’s Dancin’. It may not quite have the energy of that fondly remembered b-side, but it still packs a hell of a punch.
The home stretch finds the audience dancing in the stands for It’s Only Love, originally a duet with Tina Turner, and they remain there for the bluesy Long Gone, which finds Adams hamming it up as he asks the operator to “get me London, England on the line” to a cheer that damn near takes the roof off. A quick race through the toe-tapping Ain’t Gonna Cryfinds the band running on adrenaline, while Keith’s deranged climactic solo is almost worth the price of admission alone. It leaves the evergreen single, Summer of ’69, to bring the set to a suitably ecstatic close and oh does it. With the band sporting huge grins, it’s a joyous finale and the audience damn near match the band for volume.
A brilliant performance of a brilliant album, this first disc is as close to being there as you could get, and whether you’re an attendee seeking a souvenir or a fan who missed out, it provides a thrilling hour of great music.9/10
18 Til I Die
The second disc finds Bryan Adams and his band covering 1996’s 18 Til I Die almost in its entirety (only Black Pearl is missing) and, like the first night, re-sequenced for a better live flow. The set kicks off with the title track and it’s nice to see Dick Carruthers cut away to audience members who know the song so well, they’re not only singing but gesticulating along to the music. It’s neatly followed by the slinky blues rock of Do to You, all scratchy guitar, throbbing bass and, of course, that insistent chorus driving things forward. It makes for a hell of a start to the night that is only slightly let down by Let’s Make a Night to Remember, a stately AOR piece with lyrics that teeter on the edge of parody although not, it should be noted, for the devoted audience in the Hall.
Another track that proves Adams can cheerfully rival Kiss when it comes to ridiculous titles, (I Wanna Be) Your Underwear is a funky little number with hilarious soft-porn lyrics and a bassline that simply struts across the venue. Delivered with a twinkle in the eye, Adams may be aware that it’s a ludicrous song, but he gives it his all, delivering the lines with a gritty vocal that recalls Gene Simmons on the similarly outrageous Domino. A quick digression into the power ballad territory of Star notwithstanding, the pace remains brisk with the country-tinged rock of It Ain’t a Party (If You Can’t Come Round) and the taut, acoustic You’re Still Beautiful to Me.
A moment of calm follows in the form of I’ll Always Be Right There, which finds Keith brandishing a Spanish guitar for a sweet number that provides the set with its emotional core. It is, however, swept away by the gloriously foolish We’re Gonna Win. A hard rocker with lyrics that sound like they’re taken from a GI Joe cartoon, it has Adams pacing the stage, mic stand in hand, and clearly having a blast. It’s a juxtaposition that runs across the 18 Til I Die album, giving it a slightly manic feel that, while fun, is less engaging than Reckless.
It’s back to the countrified blues sound of It Ain’t A Party, for I Think About You (“I really do” laughs Adams), although it’s the hard rocking The Only Thing That Looks Good On Me Is You that really sets the stage alight. With a cheeky drum solo ramping up the energy levels, Adams roars the final lines, the band blazing away behind him. It offers a neat contrast to final track Have You Really Ever Loved a Woman? which sees Keith return to the Spanish guitar for a surprisingly light-touch closer, although hearing the audience keep the chorus going long after the last chord has rung out shows just how invested they are.
An odd album upon release, 18 Til I Die felt somewhat out of step with the musical landscape of 1996. Although possessed of a number of great tracks, it never seems quite sure what to be, with a greater emphasis on ballads offset by some truly ludicrous rock numbers. While the band give it their all, and the performance is enjoyable throughout, it lacks the sheer vibrancy of Reckless, and (for these tastes at least), there are a few too many ballads and not enough rockers to maintain momentum. 7.5/10
So Happy It Hurts
While the first two shows focused on classic albums, the final set focuses on Adams’ most recent studio album. Unique, in the sense that it was recorded by Adams alone during the pandemic, it’s surprisingly vital, delivered with panache, and it really comes to life in the live environment.
The set opens with taut country rocker Kick Ass. With Bryan referencing AC/DC’s Let There Be Rock on the intro, he launches into the song with untrammelled energy, and it immediately gets the audience on their feet. It’s followed by On the Road, an anthem to the enduring power of rock ‘n’ roll, albeit tinged with a wistfulness that comes from the album having been recorded during lockdown. It says much of Adams’ rabid fanbase that, despite this being relatively new material, they still know every single word, singing it back to the band with an enthusiasm that is infectious even at the distance of watching at home.
Keeping things moving swiftly along, Just About Gone is another great track, reminding us that, even fifteen albums in, Adams has lost none of his gift for penning memorable tunes. It’s followed by the countrified Let’s Do This, which harks back to 18 Til I Die still Adams’ mission statement, it seems. The country vibe remains on the tremolo-washed country-rock of Just Like Me, Just Like You, which is a lovely song, although my money’s on the rambunctious I’ve Been Looking for You, which is great fun and delivered with great energy by a beaming band.
Providing a most welcome surprise, Adams proudly brings the London Community Gospel Choir to the stage for Never Gonna Rain, arguably making this the definitive performance of a cracking track. It’s a genuinely special moment in the set and Bryan, clearly overjoyed to be sharing the stage with the choir, keeps them on stage for the next piece – mid-paced rocker You Lift Me Up.
With the band digging into these new tracks with relish, Always Have, Always Will allows a little space for Bryan, ever the showman, to indulge in call and response with a more-than-willing audience. However, it’s the gritty blues rock of I Ain’t Worth Shit Without You that has the edge, the chunky riff giving way to a cracking chorus, and the band relating the chance to unleash something a little harder. The album’s title track follows, and it’s a latter-day anthem as good as anything Adams has ever penned – no easy claim to make. Following it and rounding out this brilliant set, we get the understated acoustic piece These Are the Moments That Make Up My Life, which feels like the flip side to Summer of ’69’s “these are the best days of my life” chorus. Played straight, with just acoustic guitar and keyboards (providing the strings), it’s a heartfelt song that is all the more affecting for being performed in so stripped-down and intimate a fashion.
Bryan Adams’ fifteenth album, So Happy It Hurts has no business being as good as it is. The sound of an artist seeking to recapture the joy of being on the road while locked away during a pandemic, it’s as if Adams bottled the best of his past, rather than the worst of his present, putting it down on record to bring a little light to his friends and followers around the world. Performed in front of a partisan crowd at the Royal Albert Hall, it truly comes into its own, and you can feel the passion and energy he put into crafting the album flood from the stage. Honestly, I didn’t expect it to eclipse the excellent performance of Reckless, but it does, and I can imagine fans returning to this disc over and over again. 9.5/10
Conclusion
It’s been a long time since I spent any significant time listening to Bryan Adams and I’d forgotten just how good he can be. Despite his commercial success, he carries none of the trappings of fame that so many artists of his stature maintain. Watching him in action, you get the sense that, had he not made a penny, he’d still be sat with his guitar, rocking out, and that’s a large part of what makes his music so relatable to so many.
Throughout this triple-concert box set, there’s such camaraderie in his band, and such obvious joy on the stage, that you can’t help but feel uplifted by it all. As such, it provides a pertinent reminder that music, at its heart, is about bringing people together – something for which Bryan Adams has a unique skill. In terms of quality, all of the performances are top notch, but for my tastes, it’s a toss-up as to whether Reckless or So Happy It Hurts emerge as top of the class, with the latter arguably taking gold, simply because the band approach it with such vigour.
Ultimately, however, it matters not which of the three albums you love best, for this special box set commemorates a superlative three-night residency and is hugely enjoyable throughout. With gorgeous visuals, crisp audio, and three strong albums played in full, this is not only a no-brainer for the Bryan Adams fans out there but also a most welcome reminder of his prowess for those who have fallen by the wayside. 9/10
