By Sue Zeidler
LOS ANGELES, Oct 16 (Reuters) - It has been a long time
coming.
Canadian singer-songwriter Bryan Adams says his new album,
"Get Up," is the ideal follow-up record to his iconic "Reckless"
album of 30 years ago.
The album, released on Friday, features several fast, catchy
tunes like "Brand New Day," and "You Belong to Me" which harken
back to the signature feel-good style that made Adams a
household name in the 1980s with hits like "Heaven" and "Summer
of '69."
"In many ways it is the album I wish I'd been able to make
25 years ago," Adams said, describing "Get Up," as carefree,
rocking and retro sounding.
His songwriting for Hollywood earlier in his career spawned
some of his biggest hits, including "Heaven," one of the best
things to come out of the much-panned movie "A Night From
Heaven," and "(Everything I Do) I Do it for You," the theme song
from the 1991 film "Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves."
But Adams, who has sold more than 65 million albums
worldwide and won multiple awards, has never paid attention to
shifting audience trends. He is all about his art and music.
"I don't actually know what my target audience is and I
don't know anything about the music business. I just do what I
do, which is make music, which is what I've always done. I just
like making songs that I like and that's it," he said.
Produced by Electric Light Orchestra frontman Jeff Lynne and
co-written with his long-time collaborator Jim Vallance, "Get
Up," also boasts a few gentler songs, like "Don't Even Try," and
"We Did it All."
Adams, a trim father of two who turns 56 in November, also
has a passion for photography, with a new book on abstract
photography due out soon. It follows "Exposed," a collection of
portraits of entertainment and fashion celebrities, and "Wounded
- The Legacy of War," depicting photographs of soldiers maimed
in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Adams has lined up an extensive tour to promote the new
album and admits it is challenging to focus on his passions
simultaneously.
"I think what's nice about having another venue to be
creative in is you tend to get a break from what you do ... And
when you come back to it, you have a new perspective for music,"
he said, adding: "Music is always the top of the heap. I'm not
going to quit my day job."
(Editing by Jill Serjeant and G Crosse)