Bryan Adams released So Far So Good compilation

First posted 9/11/2020.

So Far So Good Bryan Adams

Rating: 3.840 out of 5.00 (average of 6 ratings)

Released: November 2, 1993 Recorded: 1983-1993 Peak: 6 US, 1 UK, 1 CN, 114 AU Sales (in millions): 5.0 US, 0.9 UK, 15.9 world (includes US and UK) Genre: classic rock Tracks: (1) Summer of ’69 (2) Straight from the Heart (3) It’s Only Love (with Tina Turner) (4) Can’t Stop This Thing We Started (5) Do I Have to Say the Words? (6) This Time (7) Run to You (8) Heaven (9) Cuts Like a Knife (10) Everything I Do I Do It for You (11) Somebody (12) Kids Wanna Rock (13) Heat of the Night (14) Please Forgive Me Total Running Time: 62:28

Awards:

A Brief History: Born November 5, 1959, in Kingston, Ontario, Canada, Bryan Adams started his career in the mid-‘70s. At only 15 years old, he became the lead singer of Sweeney Todd, a pub band. In 1978, he met Jim Vallance from the rock band Prism. The two formed a songwriting partnership which produced dozens of hits throughout Adams’ career. Adams released his first solo album in 1980 and another followed in 1981. His third album, 1983’s Cuts Like a Knife, proved to be his breakthrough, giving him his first top-10 hit in the U.S. His 1984 Reckless album was a multi-platinum smash, as was his 1991 Waking Up the Neighbours, which gave Adams the biggest hit of his career with “Everything I Do (I Do It for You).” So Far So Good captures tracks from Adams’ four studio albums released between 1983 and 1991. Links go to dedicated DMDB pages, but these albums are all spotlighted on this page. Cuts Like a Knife (1983) Reckless (1984) Into the Fire (1987) Waking Up the Neighbours (1991) Songs featured on So Far So Good are noted below in the album snapshots. Following the song titles the date of the song’s release or first chart appearance, and its chart peaks are noted in parentheses. Click for codes to singles charts. Cuts Like a Knife (1983): After two solo albums, Adams third effort, Cuts Like a Knife, proved to be his breathrough. The album gave him his first top-ten hit in the U.S. and brought him attention on the album rock chart with the title cut. Cuts Like a Knife (2/12/83, 15 US, 6 AR, 12 CN, 55 AU) Straight from the Heart (3/12/83, 10 US, 32 AR, 51 UK, 20 CN, 98 AU) This Time (8/13/83, 24 US, 21 AR, 32 CN) Reckless (1984): Reckless proved to be a monster success, producing six top-20 hits on the Billboard Hot 100, including Heaven, his first #1 hit. Five of those songs are featured on So Far So Good. “One Night Love Affair” is omitted in favor of the less well-known, minor album rock hit Kids Wanna Rock. Heaven (1/28/84, #1 US, 9 AR, 12 AC, 38 UK, 11 CN, 4 AU, airplay: 2 million) Run to You (11/3/84, 6 US, 1 AR, 11 UK, 4 CN, 4 AU) It’s Only Love (with Tina Turner) (11/24/84, 15 US, 7 AR, 29 UK, 14 CN, 57 AU) Summer of ‘69 (12/8/84, 5 US, 40 AR, 42 UK, 11 CN, 3 AU, airplay: 1 million) Kids Wanna Rock (12/15/84, 42 AR) Somebody (1/19/85, 11 US, 1 AR, 35 UK, 13 CN, 76 AU) Into the Fire (1987): While Into the Fire didn’t meet with near the success of Reckless, it was still a platinum-selling, top-ten album. Only one song is represented on the So Far So Good collection although the album did produce the top 40 hits “Hearts on Fire” and “Victims of Love.” All three songs were top-10 album rock hits. Heat of the Night (3/28/87, 6 US, 2 AR, 50 UK, 7 CN, 25 AU) Waking Up the Neighbours (1991): After the relative disappointment of Into the Fire compared to the success of Reckless, one wouldn’t be off base to assume Adams’ career was on the down slide. However, he roared back with the huge #1 hit Everything I Do (I Do It for You) and a follow-up album which produced seven songs which made appearances on various charts. It’s surprising only three of those make appearances here. “Thought I’d Died and Gone to Heaven” was a top-20 hit and “There Will Never Be Another Tonight” hit the top 40. Everything I Do (I Do It for You) (6/29/91, 1 US, 1 UK, 10 AR, 1 AC, sales: 3 million, airplay: 3 million) Can’t Stop This Thing We Started (9/14/91, 2 US, 12 UK, 2 AR, 40 AC, sales: ½ million) Do I Have to Say the Words? (8/1/92, 10a US, 30 UK, 5 AC) So Far So Good (1993): This collection includes one song, the top-ten ballad Please Forgive Me. Originally, the album was supposed to have another new song entitled “So Far So Good,” but it was dropped. WK Overall, this hits package does a decent job of capturing the past decade of Adams’ career, but it could easily have included three or four more songs given that the running time is just over the hour mark. Please Forgive Me (10/23/93, 7 US, 2 UK, 1 CN, 1 AU)

Resources and Related Links: Bryan Adam’s DMDB Encyclopedia entry WK Wikipedia

Bryan Adams “Summer of ‘69” released

Summer of ‘69 Bryan Adams

Writer(s): Bryan Adams, Jim Vallance (see lyrics here) Released: June 17, 1985 First Charted: December 8, 1984 Peak: 5 US, 4 RR, 40 AR, 42 UK, 11 CN, 14 AU, 7 DF (Click for codes to singles charts.) Sales (in millions): 1.61 US, 1.8 UK, 4.42 world (includes US + UK) Airplay/Streaming (in millions): 1.0 radio, 258.44 video, 848.95 streaming

Awards: Click on award for more details.

About the Song: Rock singer/songwriter and guitarist Bryan Adams was born in 1959 in Canada. He became the lead singer of Sweeney Todd at age 16, but left within a year to start a solo career. His self-titled debut came in 1980, but his big break came with 1983’s Cuts Like a Knife which gave him a top-10 hit in the United States with “Straight from the Heart” and two more top-40 hits. His next album, 1984’s Reckless, was a blockbuster, hitting #1 in the U.S. and selling more than 5 million copies. The album featured six top-20 hits, including the #1 “Heaven.” The lead single, “Run to You,” was a top-10 hit and topped the album rock charts. It set him up for three more hits on that chart before year’s end; one of those songs was “Summer of ’69.” Surprisingly, it only reached #40 on that chart, but it fared much better when released as a single six months later. It became his fourth top-10 hit on the Billboard Hot 100. The song was about the “dilemma between settling down or trying to become a rock star.” WK Adams said, “It’s a very simple song about looking back on the summertime and making love.” SF It went through multiple changes because neither Adams nor co-songwriter Jim Vallance thought it was strong enough for the album. Early versions were called “Best Days of My Life.” The song refers to people who Adams knew, including a former drummer (Jimmy) and his sound manager (Jody). WK Adams, who would have only been nine years old in the summer of 1969, claimed “69” referred to the sex position. Vallance said, “When we recorded the demo in my basement, towards the end of the song Bryan sang a little naughty bit: ‘me and my baby in a 69.’ We had a laugh about it at the time and Bryan decided to keep it when he did the final recoriding a month or two later.” WK Vallance has also said, “I think ‘Summer of ‘69’ was Bryan and I at our best.” SF Resources: SF Songfacts WK Wikipedia Related Links: First posted 11/6/2022.

Bryan Adams released Reckless

First posted 3/28/2011; updated 9/7/2020.

Reckless Bryan Adams

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Released: November 5, 1984 Peak: 12 US, 7 UK, 14 CN, 2 AU Sales (in millions): 5.0 US, 0.9 UK, 12.0 world (includes US and UK) Genre: classic rock

Tracks: (Click for codes to singles charts.) One Night Love Affair (8/31/85, #10a US, 7 AR, 19 CN, 85 AU) She’s Only Happy When She’s Dancin’ Run to You (11/3/84, #6 US, 11 UK, 1 AR, 4 CN, 4 AU) Heaven (1/28/84, #1 US, 38 UK, 9 AR, 12 AC, 11 CN, 4 AU, airplay: 2 million) Somebody (1/19/85, #10a US, 35 UK, 1 AR, 13 CN, 76 AU) Summer of ‘69 (12/8/84, #4a US, 42 UK, 40 AR, 11 CN, 3 AU, airplay: 1 million) Kids Wanna Rock (12/15/84, #42 AR) It’s Only Love (with Tina Turner) (11/24/84, #14a US, 29 UK, 7 AR, 14 CN, 57 AU) Long Gone Ain’t Gonna Cry Total Running Time: 37:58

Rating: 4.444 out of 5.00 (average of 9 ratings) Awards:

About the Album: “Sales figures may point to 1991’s Waking Up the Neighbors as the peak of Bryan Adams career, but the songs from Reckless will most certainly prove to be his lasting legacy.” ER His fourth album upped the ante on Cuts Like a Knife from the year before. That album had given Adams’ his first appearances on the Billboard top 40 with 3 songs, including top ten hit “Straight from the Heart” and the top 20 title cut. “Bryan Adams capitalized on the momentum…with 1984’s Reckless, a virtually flawless collection of melodic hard rock which would dominate radio for years to come.” ER “Although some songs haven’t aged very well (especially the overtly cheesy Kids Wanna Rock), these weak links are easily eclipsed” ER by a hits-loaded package. The album’s six singles all charted within the top 15 of the Billboard Hot 100, a feat previously accomplished only by Michael Jackson’s Thriller and Bruce Springsteen’s Born in the U.S.A.. WK Run to You was a brilliant lead-off single which remains one of Adams’ best songs ever.” ER The song was Adams’ first #1 album rock track and his second top-ten pop hit. It was also his highest charting hit to date in his native Canada, reaching #4. As the album’s second official single, Somebody, with its “irrepressible pop chorus,” ER gave Adams his second album-rock chart-topper. The third single was Heaven, “the ballad to end all ballads.” ER The song had actually emerged at the beginning of 1984 as part of the soundtrack for A Night in Heaven. It gave Adams his first chart-topper in America. Summer of ‘69 emerged as the fourth single from the album, although it had received radio airplay on album rock stations when the album was first released. It gave Adams his second top-five hit in the U.S. There is some debate about whether the title refers to the sexual position or the year. Adams has said it is about the former, but Jim Valance, the song’s co-writer, has denied this. In August 1985, during the chart run of “Summer,” Reckless finally topped the Billboard album chart. The album had initially peaked at #6 in January 1985. Two more singles – One Night Love Affair and It’s Only Love, a duet with Tina Turner, would keep the album in the spotlight for the rest of the year.

Resources and Related Links: ER Ed Rivadavia, All Music Guide WK Wikipedia