Easy Tiger
{{Use mdy dates|date=May 2025}}
{{Infobox album
| name = Easy Tiger
| type = Album
| artist = Ryan Adams
| cover = Ryan_Cover.jpg
| alt =
| released = June 26, 2007
| recorded = Electric Lady (New York City)
| venue =
| studio =
| genre = Alternative country, rock
| length = 42:33
| label = Lost Highway Records
| producer = Jamie Candiloro
| prev_title = 29
| prev_year = 2005
| next_title = Follow the Lights
| next_year = 2007
}}
Easy Tiger is the ninth studio album by Ryan Adams, released on June 26, 2007, on the Lost Highway label. Although the album is attributed solely to Adams, Easy Tiger features The Cardinals as his backing band, with Adams stating: "The only real concept of this record was complete and utter collaboration."{{cite web|last=Murray |first=Noel |url=https://www.avclub.com/articles/ryan-adams,14121/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090209210516/http://www.avclub.com/articles/ryan-adams,14121/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=February 9, 2009 |title=Ryan Adams |publisher=The A.V. Club |date=2007-06-28 |access-date=2012-02-14}} In an interview, Adams states that the album contains "very, very simple, very easy songs that, in my opinion, were written on the periphery of some more complex work."{{cite web|url=http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,21985,22209922-5006024,00.html|title=Ryan Adams – eye of a tiger| last=McCabe| first=Kathy|date=2007-08-09|publisher=Herald Sun|access-date=2008-08-19}} Easy Tiger marks the first appearance of both guitarist Neal Casal and bassist Chris Feinstein, following the departures of J.P. Bowersock and Catherine Popper, respectively. Following the album's release, producer James Candiloro would go on to join The Cardinals as the band's pianist and keyboard player.
The album debuted at #7 on the Billboard 200 with Adams highest first-week sales (61,000){{cite web | url=https://www.billboard.com/articles/news/1051137/cyrus-sidesteps-clarkson-to-debut-at-no-1|title=Cyrus Sidesteps Clarkson To Debut At No. 1|date=2007-07-04|access-date=2007-07-04|last=Choen|first=Jonathan|publisher=Billboard/Nielsen Business Media}} and has sold 217,000 copies in the U.S. {{as of|2008|9|lc=on}} and 500,000 worldwide.Cohen, Jonathan. [https://www.billboard.com/articles/news/1044041/ryan-adams-applies-cardinology-to-new-cd "Ryan Adams Applies 'Cardinology' To New CD"]. Billboard. September 19, 2008. Furthermore, the album debuted in Canada, Estonia and Switzerland where Ryan Adams has never had an album chart before. "Halloweenhead" was #45 in Rolling Stone{{'}}s list of the 100 Best Songs of 2007.No byline (December 11, 2007). [https://web.archive.org/web/20071215233631/http://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/17601363/the_100_best_songs_of_2007/12 "The 100 Best Songs of 2007"] Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2007-12-21
In 2010, Adams would go on to release two further studio albums that stemmed from Easy Tiger's recording sessions: III/IV, a double album recorded prior to Catherine Popper's departure, and Orion, a heavy metal collaboration between Adams and producer Jamie Candiloro.
Production and release
The vinyl release of Easy Tiger is credited to "Ryan Adams & The Cardinals".
"Off Broadway" first appeared on the bootleg The Suicide Handbook, a compilation of unreleased demo recordings, and was performed as early as 2001. "These Girls" previously appeared as "Hey There, Mrs. Lovely" on Adams' unreleased 2000 album Destroyer.
Sheryl Crow provides backing vocals on the track "Two",{{cite web | url = http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/news/42748-ryan-adams-ieasy-tigeri-tracklist-revealed- | title = Ryan Adams' Easy Tiger Tracklist Revealed | date = 2007-05-04 | first = Paul | last = Thompson | publisher = Pitchfork Media | access-date = 2007-05-13 | url-status = dead | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070512122805/http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/news/42748-ryan-adams-ieasy-tigeri-tracklist-revealed- | archive-date = 2007-05-12 }} which was featured in the film Hancock.
Reception
{{Music ratings
| MC = (76/100) {{Cite web|url=https://www.metacritic.com/music/easy-tiger/ryan-adams|title=Easy Tiger by Ryan Adams|website=Metacritic.com}}
| rev1 = Allmusic
| rev1Score = {{rating|3.5|5}} [{{AllMusic|class=album|id=r1065672|pure_url=yes}} Allmusic review]
| rev2 = Drowned in Sound
| rev3 = Entertainment Weekly
| rev3Score = A− [https://ew.com/article/2007/06/22/easy-tiger/]
| rev4 = The Guardian
| rev4Score = {{Rating|3|5}}{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2007/jun/22/popandrock.shopping4|title=CD: Ryan Adams, Easy Tiger|first=Sylvie|last=Simmons|date=21 June 2007|website=the Guardian}}
| rev5 = NME
| rev5Score = (6/10) {{cite web|url=https://www.nme.com/reviews/ryan-adams/8713|title=Ryan Adams - NME|website=Nme.com}}
| rev6 = Pitchfork Media
| rev6Score = (6.2/10) {{cite web|url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/10363-easy-tiger/|title=Ryan Adams: Easy Tiger Album Review |website=Pitchfork.com}}
| rev7 = PopMatters
| rev7Score = {{rating|7|10}} [https://web.archive.org/web/20090107120546/http://www.popmatters.com/pm/review/ryan-adams-easy-tiger]
| rev8 = Rolling Stone
| rev8Score = {{rating|3.5|5}} {{Cite web|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-album-reviews/easy-tiger-248486/|title=Easy Tiger|first=Rob|last=Sheffield|website=Rollingstone.com|date=June 13, 2007}}
| rev9 = Spin
| rev9Score = (8/10) {{Cite web|url=https://www.spin.com/2007/07/ryan-adams-easy-tiger-lost-highway/|title=Ryan Adams, 'Easy Tiger' (Lost Highway)|website=Spin.com}}
| rev10 = Yahoo! Music UK
| rev10Score = {{rating|8|10}} {{cite web|url=http://uk.launch.yahoo.com/070703/33/21d6j.html |title=Yahoo! Music UK review |access-date=2007-07-03 |url-status=bot: unknown |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070707134339/http://uk.launch.yahoo.com/070703/33/21d6j.html |archive-date=July 7, 2007 }}
| noprose = yes
}}
The album has a score of 76 out of 100 based on 29 "generally favorable reviews". Real Detroit Weekly gave it a favorable review and called it "a mosaic masterpiece of [Adams'] past works."{{Cite web|url=https://realdetroitweekly.com/how-to-make-cotton-candy-at-home-with-a-blender/|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140201212758/http://www.realdetroitweekly.com/detroit/ear-candy-june-27-2007/Content?oid=1202363|url-status=dead|title=How To Make Cotton Candy At Home With A Blender|date=May 23, 2022|archive-date=February 1, 2014|website=Realdetroitweekly.com}} The A.V. Club gave it a B+ and said, " On the whole, Easy Tiger isn't quite as strong as 2005's Cold Roses—and even that release was naggingly inconsistent. But Adams has a history of making scattershot records: 50 percent brilliant, 25 percent okay, and 25 percent hackery. By the standards he's set for himself, Easy Tiger is one of his best, if only because it beats the percentages."{{cite web|url=https://www.avclub.com/ryan-adams-easy-tiger-1798202723|title=Ryan Adams: Easy Tiger|first=Noel|last=Murray|website=Theavclub.com}} The New York Times gave it a favorable review and said, "It is focused—read: not insanely self-indulgent—in a way that recalls albums of his like Heartbreaker and Gold."{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/17/arts/music/17decu.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0|title=Ryan Adams - Easy Tiger - Music|first=Anthony|last=DeCurtis|website=Nytimes.com}} The Observer gave it a score of four stars out of five and called it Adams' "most rounded creation".{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2007/jun/17/popandrock.features5|title=CD: Ryan Adams, Easy Tiger|first=Neil|last=Spencer|date=16 June 2007|website=the Guardian}} Uncut gave it a score of four stars out of five and said, "The real triumph of Easy Tiger is less rooted in the sound, more in the attitude."{{cite journal|url=http://www.uncut.co.uk/ryan-adams/ryan-adams-easy-tiger-review|title=Ryan Adams – Easy Tiger| last=Hughes| first=Rob| journal=Uncut|date=July 2007|page=114|access-date=2013-05-02}} Slant Magazine also gave it four stars out of five and said that what the album "lacks in craft or measure, it makes up for in raw inspiration, which makes it all the more addictive."{{Cite web|url=https://www.slantmagazine.com/music/ryan-adams-easy-tiger/|title=Review: Ryan Adams, Easy Tiger|first=Jimmy|last=Newlin|date=June 26, 2007|website=Slant Magazine}} Now also gave it four stars out of five and said of Adams and his songs: "The Sheryl Crow duet works where his Norah Jones collabo didn't; "I Taught Myself How To Grow Old" is classic tortured Adams, and "Pearls On A String" is a rewarding reflection of the time he spent hanging out with Willie Nelson."{{cite web|url=http://www.nowtoronto.com/music/story.cfm?content=158901|title=RYAN ADAMS|first=Jason|last=Keller|date=28 June 2007}} Sputnikmusic also gave it a score of four out of five and said it was "at least Adams' best release since Love is Hell and it may even be the long awaited successor to Heartbreaker."{{cite web|url=https://www.sputnikmusic.com/review/12548/Ryan-Adams-Easy-Tiger/|title=Ryan Adams - Easy Tiger (album review )|website=Sputnikmusic.com}} The Village Voice also gave it a favorable review and said, "The lived-in songs and careful presentation of Easy Tiger make for one of the strongest records of his second career as a solo artist."{{Cite web|url=https://www.villagevoice.com/culture/music/|title=Music|website=Villagevoice.com|date=April 27, 1982}}
Alternative Press gave it three-and-a-half stars out of five and said that "Adams often finds himself reliving his past glories." Tiny Mix Tapes also gave it three-and-a-half stars out of five and said that the album was not Adams' best, "but it's got focus and a lot of heart."{{Cite web|url=https://www.tinymixtapes.com/music-review/ryan-adams-easy-tiger|title=Music Review: Ryan Adams - Easy Tiger|website=Tiny Mix Tapes}} Billboard gave it a positive review and said, "This 'Tiger' is fairly tame, but that's OK." The Boston Globe also gave it a positive review and said, "Gone is the petulant enfant terrible, and with it a certain sparkle and swagger that made a record like Gold careen from the speakers."[https://web.archive.org/web/20140202160842/http://www.boston.com/ae/music/cd_reviews/articles/2007/06/26/easy_does_it___finally/] Stylus Magazine gave it a B− and said it "sounds like the kind of album Adams could churn out every 18 months for the rest of his life."[http://stylusmagazine.com/reviews/ryan-adams/easy-tiger.htm Stylus Magazine review] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121015001651/http://www.stylusmagazine.com/reviews/ryan-adams/easy-tiger.htm |date=2012-10-15 }} Other reviews are very mixed: an example of this is Prefix Magazine, which gave the album an average review and called it "a tightrope walker, constantly straddling the line between sincerity and unapologetic rocking."{{cite web|url=http://www.prefixmag.com/reviews/ryan-adams/easy-tiger/16061/|title=Ryan Adams - Easy Tiger Album Review|website=Prefixmag.com}}
Track listing
{{track listing
| all_writing = Ryan Adams, Brad Pemberton, Neal Casal and Jon Graboff, unless otherwise stated
| title1 = Goodnight Rose
| length1 = 3:20
| title2 = Two
| writer2 = Adams, Pemberton
| length2 = 2:39
| title3 = Everybody Knows
| length3 = 2:26
| title4 = Halloweenhead
| writer4 = Adams
| length4 = 3:23
| title5 = Oh My God, Whatever, Etc.
| writer5 = Adams, Pemberton
| length5 = 2:33
| title6 = Tears of Gold
| length6 = 2:55
| title7 = The Sun Also Sets
| writer7 = Adams, Pemberton
| length7 = 4:11
| title8 = Off Broadway
| writer8 = Adams, Pemberton
| length8 = 2:32
| title9 = Pearls on a String
| length9 = 2:25
| title10 = Rip Off
| writer10 = Adams, Pemberton
| length10 = 3:12
| title11 = Two Hearts
| length11 = 3:03
| title12 = These Girls
| writer 12 = Adams, Pemberton
| length12 = 2:52
| title13 = I Taught Myself How to Grow Old
| writer13 = Adams
| length13 = 3:21
| title14 = Nobody Listens to Silence
| note14 = UK/Japan bonus track
| writer14 = Adams
| length14 = 3:41
| title15 = Alice
| note15 = Japan only bonus track
| writer15 = Adams
| length15 = 2:16
}}
Charts
=Album=
=Singles=
| class="wikitable sortable" |
| Year
! style="width:100px;"|Single ! style="width:120px;"|Chart ! Peak |
|---|
| 2007
|"Two/Halloweenhead" |UK Singles Chart{{cite web |url=http://www.zobbel.de/cluk/CLUK2007.HTM |title=UK Chart Log |publisher=zobbel.de |access-date=2008-12-27 }} | style="text-align:center;"|192 |
Personnel
=The Cardinals=
- Ryan Adams – vocals, guitar, piano, banjo, harmonica
- Brad Pemberton – drums, percussion, vocals
- Jon Graboff – pedal steel, vocals, guitar, mandolin
- Neal Casal – guitar, vocals, keyboards
- Chris Feinstein – bass, vocals
=Other musicians=
- Jamie Candiloro – piano, keyboards, synths, bass, percussion
- Eric Gorfain – violin
- Daphne Chen – violin
- Leah Katz – viola
- Richard Dodd – cello
- Richard Worn – vocals
- Sheryl Crow – vocals
- Catherine Popper – bass, vocals
- Cindy Cashdollar – pedal steel, lap steel, dobro
References
{{reflist|2}}