Tracks
1. This Is It
2. Shallow
3. 1974
1974.
4. Wish You Were Here
5. So Alive
6. Luminol
7. Burning Photographs
8. She's Lost Total Control
9. Note To Self: Don't Die
10. Rock 'n' Roll
11. Anybody Wanna Take Me Home?
12. Do Miss America
13. Boys
14. Drugs Don't Work
Performer Notes
- As the album's title indicates, this is Ryan Adams' full-on rock outing. Here the former Whiskeytown leader/enfant terrible eschews all twang in favor of indulging his alt-rock id, and the result is a whirlwind tour through rock & roll history as filtered through his trademark swagger. Adams wears his influences brazenly, like patches sewn on his jean jacket, from the T-Rex stomp of "Shallow" to the snotty Nirvana/Smashing Pumpkins hybrid of "Note to Self: Don't Die" to a number of Replacements-influenced tracks, including "This Is It" and "Do Miss America." Ever the contrarian, Adams leaves the only truly subdued song on ROCK N ROLL for the title track, a move which nods towards the melancholy pop of his simultaneous release, LOVE IS HELL PART 1.
Professional Reviews
Rolling Stone (12/25/03, p.104) - Included in Rolling Stone's "50 Best Albums of 2003"
Rolling Stone (11/13/03, p.90) - 4 stars out of 5 - "...The best bullets here are like excerpts from a fantasy mix tape of classic glam and garage rock..."
Spin (12/03, pp.124-6) - "...He swaps pedal-steel filigree for synthesizers, and everywhere the guitars are cranked, the sneakers set on stun..."
Entertainment Weekly (11/7/03, pp.69-70) - "...In keeping with the alt-rock aesthetic, there is a primitive urgency to many of these tracks..." - Rating: B
Q (01/01/04, p.75) - Ranked #46 in Q's "The 50 Best Albums of 2003"
Q (12/03, p.121) - 3 stars out of 5 - "...Adams is on fine, growly form on the uptempo 'This Is It'..."
Magnet (2/04, p.90) - "[U]tterly fascinating..."
CMJ (11/10/03, p.6) - "...This time, the alt-country ballads are nowhere to be seen, with Adams fully indulging his inner rock-star desires....with meaty hooks and distorted guitars that lurch from chord to chord, Adams growls out break-up and make-up anthems one right after the other..."
Mojo (Publisher) (11/03, p.120) - 4 stars out of 5 - "...Ostensibly straightahead, uncontentious music....Like his debut, it feels like Adams has unleashed himself, without fear..."
