Bryan Adams- Cuts Like A Knife

Confession time. I once owned a black t-shirt with hot pink lettering that read "Reckless" from the Bryan Adams tour and album of the same name. It was my first concert. I might feel a little embarrassed admitting this if it wasn't for the fact that the show was pretty damn good. At a time when mainstream rock and roll was incredibly overproduced with big hair and even bigger stage productions ruling the day, here was a guy who got up on stage in jeans and a t-shirt and did his best to rock out with a simple band behind him.

Punk rock it was not, but it had its virtues. Reckless was everywhere at the time, and it was a treat to hear "Run To You," "Heaven," and "Summer Of 69" back when they were new. Along with the string of hits from Reckless, which also included "Somebody" and "It's Only Love," were all the songs from its predecessor, 1983's Cuts Like A Knife.

Sequencing is not Cuts Like A Knife's strong suite. The record kicks off with "The Only One," but doesn't really start to get going until "This Time," which I'm pretty sure was a minor hit for him. It's infectious and immediately gets stuck in my head. It's the type of song Adams could write in his sleep around the time of Reckless.

"Straight From The Heart," still sounds good. I was always a sucker for this song, and listening to it 20 years later is no different. It's a direct love song, and sounds like something you'd hear on AM radio in the 70's and covered by a female singer instead of being released in the 80's. There's nothing hidden in it. It's pure and simple, and it works.

"Cuts Like A Knife" earned the right to be the title song for this album. And I'll be damned if the thing doesn't sound amazing to these ears. The song rocks. It was songs like this that turned my on to Bryan Adams and had me defending him for years. It "feels so right" even today.

Instead of having an "A" side and a "B" side or Side 1 and Side 2 or adventurous names for sides like R.E.M. used to do, the sides of this tape are unimaginatively referred to as "program 1" and "program 2." It's like we're stuck in the 8-track years.

Other than the first song, "I'm Ready," I don't remember much of anything about the songs that make up program 2. "I'm Ready" is clearly the most dated sounding song on the record. Keyboards dominate things, and it sounds like it could come straight out of an action sequence from a second rate John Hughes film.

It's not surprising that I can't remember much about the second side of this tape. "Don't Leave Me Lonely" rocks in a b-side kind of way. Nothing special or memorable. "What's It Gonna Be" sounds about as dated as "I'm Ready."

"The Best Was Yet To Come" isn't half bad, but it's not that great either, especially compared to a ballad like "Straight From The Heart" on the first side.

The best was yet to come indeed, as Reckless would break things wide open. But Cuts Like A Knife is a nice prelude, even if it fits with the stereotype of being mostly a collection of a few singles and a bunch of throwaways.

I only wore the t-shirt once by the way, and I'm pretty sure it wasn't out of the house. I may have liked Bryan Adams, but even then I knew when fandom crossed the line.