Q&A with Bryan Adams

Shelley Boettcher, Calgary Herald

Princess Diana had a crush on him, and Sporty Spice is his friend.

He's a high school drop-out who started his musical career writing songs for bands such as Kiss, Bachman Turner Overdrive, and Joe Cocker.

Now Bryan Adams, who will perform Jan. 20 in Calgary, is firmly established as one of Canada's top musicians.

Since his breakthrough 1983 album, You Want It, You Got It, he's carved out a career as a rock superstar with a steady stream of international hits -- Run to You, I'm Ready, Diana, Heaven, Cloud Number Nine, Summer of '69, and Straight from the Heart.

If the music wasn't enough to keep him busy, Adams has recently made a mark as a photographer, too. He published his first book, Made in Canada (Key Porter Books, $29.95) this fall.

A fund-raising effort for the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation, the book features black and white photographs of prominent Canadian women, including such fellow musicians as Sarah McLachlan, Celine Dion and Joni Mitchell.

Adams turned the camera lens on himself earlier this year when he took the self portraits (including a butt-baring nude shot) for The Best of Me, his 12th album -- and second greatest hits recording -- which was also released this fall.

Those hits have earned Adams countless awards, including 15 Junos, a Grammy Award and an American Music Award.

He's been nominated for three Academy Awards for his work on film soundtracks, and he's an Officer of the Order of Canada.

Not bad for a guy who just turned 40 last month.

Adams agreed to be interviewed by the Calgary Herald, with the stipulations that we conduct the interview via e-mail, and that we print the answers exactly as he responded, without changing grammar or punctuation.

Q. Why are you choosing to be interviewed by e-mail?

A. because the phone in my kitchen is broken and i normally like to boil potatoes while i'm being questioned. in this case, i can't do that, so here we are . . .

Q. Have you been misinterpreted by journalists in the past?

A. interpretation and journalism are sort of the same thing, one speaks and the other hears what they want to hear, or waits until the subject mumbles something unintelligible and that becomes the headline.

Q. Made in Canada, your book of photographs of Canadian women, was released this past September. How are sales?

A. by the time this tour is over, we will have sold more than 40,000 books, i think that's a result, figure it out at $29.95. the book is a perfect Christmas gift -- go buy one if you can afford to.

Q. Will there be a follow-up?

A. i am following this up with exhibitions of the photos across canada. hopefully in calgary later this year, if i can find a gallery that would be interested.

Q. What kind of photography projects are you working on now?

A. i just finished my new album, a photo story for GQ in germany and now i'm working on a series of photos of british women to help launch the book in england. we will auction the photos off at a big fundraiser in London sometime this year.

Q. By playing the Jack Singer Concert Hall, you're playing a much smaller venue than you normally perform in when you come to Calgary. Why?

A. the only reason was to help promote the book. i want to raise as much money with this book as i can. so we figured that creating a story like this is more effective, plus it's going to be great fun playing unbelievably loud in those venues.

Q. You played a few surprise club gigs in Los Angeles and Europe earlier this year. Do you have plans to do any in Canada, like your gig at the King Eddy here several years ago?

A. the only reason i do things like that is mostly cuz i get bored sitting in hotels. i'd rather be singing. . . .ya never know where i might turn up. . .

Q. You were, in some ways, a teen heartthrob who quickly established himself as a serious musician who was around for the long haul. What do you think about today's current crop of young male musicians like, for instance, Ricky Martin and Enrique Iglasias?

A. well i can't say i'm a big fan of that music at all. i pine for the days of FM radio playing whole sides of "dark side of the moon" and the needle of the record player coming to the end of the vinyl and rotating a few times before waking up the DJ. . . ya know? but good on 'em, good on anyone that can make it in the music biz. . .

Q. Do you ever check out fan Web sites? If so, what's been one of the best or strangest sites you've seen?

A. i quite enjoyed the site that said ERROR: ADDRESSEE HAS MOVED TO ANOTHER SERVER.

Q. Or reply to fan mail via e-mail? Do you get a lot of fan e-mails?

A. i admit i have corresponded with some fans on the net, generally thru my office, but sometimes it's easier to say things yourself. for example, one fan in america wanted to buy 'made in Canada', but when she realized that the money went to a canadian foundation, she changed her mind. so i wrote to her telling her that a cure for cancer is universal, and if you support a cause, you support a cause, but don't 'NOT be involved' just because it's not american.

Q. What musicians are you listening to these days?

A. i've been listening to tracy chapman a lot, loads of trippy electronic euro music, old creedence and incessantly playing with the radio in the car while on tour in europe. we did 120 shows this year, so there was lots of time to monkey with the dial. you can't believe the music you hear sometimes driving home from the gig sometimes. keith (my guitarist) and i were driving thru france and we came across a station playing jimi hendrix at woodstock. the entire performance! it was amazing to hear in the car. i think his version of 'the star spangled banner' is one of the most inspired performances of this century.

Q. Your songs have been covered by everyone from Roger Whittaker [(everything i do) i do it for you] to Motley Crue (Glitter). What's one of your favourite covers of one of your songs? Why?

A. i don't know. i'm flattered if anyone even listens -- never mind records them. lately i've been getting lots of country covers, billy ray, lonestar that kind of stuff, but when one of my idols like tina, joe cocker, roger daltrey does one, i go all funny. . . . i don't know. . . . i'm still a fan. always will be.

Q. You've sold 55 million albums, and had No. 1 songs in more than 30 countries. What do you hope to achieve next?

A. i'm gonna go to bed and sleep it all off. it's like having a hangover without the headache. . . . i never think about it. gauging oneself by sales or charts is nuts. i'm more interested in the creation of music than anything. the idea of making something from nothing. . . . that's what it's all about for me.

From Bryan ADams On The WWW.