So Happy It Hurts (Super Deluxe)

Beautiful

For xmas

Firstly, if you're a Bryan Adams fan then you're probably going to love this album. I personally think Bryan is on a bit of winning creative streak that began with his inspired covers album Tracks Of My Years (2014), continued with the brilliant Jeff Lynne-produced Get Up (2015) - his first album of original material for seven years at that point – and then there was the very solid 2019 release, Shine A Light. Touring that album was rudely interrupted by COVID and this led Bryan to write and record So Happy It Hurts, treating the album almost as a completely solo effort, laying down all most of the instrumental (and vocal) tracks on his own, but co-writing some of the songs with notable industry players, such as Gretchen Peters and his usual writing partner Jim Vallance. It's not a completely home-made solo album like, for example, Paul McCartney's self-titled three are; there are guest musicians, studio overdubs and also co-producer Mutt Lange (who co-wrote a few songs with Bryan) was most likely drafted in to make this record rock like the full-sounded Bryan Adams release his fans probably expect.If you don't really know much about Bryan's music, then disc two - a condensed "best of" that gathers together lots of his most popular songs - is probably the best place to start as the new studio is album is probably going to only be fully appreciated by his more committed admirers and supporters. This is an extremely easy album to listen to; a (mostly) gentle rocker with quite a few catchy tunes, but it could also provide the ammunition that anybody who isn't that keen on Bryan needs to shrug him off as being a little predictable and unexciting. However, I think this album is more than decent and will appeal to anybody who has liked Bryan's recent direction. The big title song, co-written with country music legend Gretchen Peters, is very catchy, I've Been Looking For You, an infectious Adams/Vallance rockabilly number is reminiscent of the Jeff Lynne material from Get Up and Always Have, Always Will is a soft rock ballad that only just about reigns in the sentimentality enough to be bearable. Considerably better than that is a classic Adams rocker I Ain't Worth S**t Without You which is very much the kind of crowd pleaser Bryan would perform during his eighties peak.There are plenty of perfectly good songs on So Happy It Hurts, like the McCartney-esque Just Like Me, Just Like You (which is another personal favourite), the uptempo, immensely likeable Just About Gone and the album closer, These Are The Moments That Make Up My Life, a much classier love song than the aforementioned Always Have, Always Will. To surmise, as somebody who has been listening to Bryan for most of my adult life and think Reckless is one of the very finest rock albums ever released, this is more than an acceptable collection of songs from Adams who, let's not forget, was 62 years old when it was released. It's a really pleasant mixture of songs and styles; it does, in fact, represent most of the stages of his career well and gives the impression of an artist who is still enjoying writing, recording and performing music. It's got life, heart and artistry. Is it one of his very best albums? Perhaps not. It is enjoyable to listen to? The vast majority of it, damn right it is. Also, if the new album doesn't really float your boat then you have a nice twelve-track "best of" to enjoy instead.

Second CD has a sticky residue on the disk and will not play.