All the years combine melt into a dream....

There are two things Ryan Adams and I have in common we both love the Grateful Dead and both of us are sober, for now at least. Being a die-hard Ryan Adams fan, I made my way over to Town Hall to catch the his show on Tuesday night. This show marked my 6th Ryan concert since my first in Paris in 2002 (An excellent show, after meeting opener Jesse Malin that night I was invited to a private performance after the show in a French studio where Ryan and Jesse jammed into the wee hours of the morning. It was an incredible experience for an American in Paris.).

Over the years in his live performances and on his records, Ryan's love of the Grateful Dead has become increasingly prevalent. This only makes me love him more. I was one of the lucky 500 people that had the pleasure of seeing Ryan's 2AM Bowery Ballroom show this past Spring and in that show he teased "Dark Star" rather than performing the full song. On Tuesday night at Town Hall however, he played a beautiful, heart-on-his-sleeve rendition of "Stella Blue" and I was ecstatic. I'm embarrassed to say, the opening line of that song, "all the years combine melt into a dream" was my senior quote. Moreover Ryan's "no song repeat" policy only brings him closer to the realm of the Dead. He created a different a setlist for his three-night run at Town Hall and he certainly has enough material to pull this off.

To close his second set he invited opener Norah Jones on stage to perform “Dear John,” check out the youtube clip below -



The bus came by and Ry got on that's where it all began - I look forward to many more China Cats and Dark Stars in Mr. Adams ever expanding repertoire of songs.