Adams goes acoustic on new album

By John Benson

The artist is really enjoying doing some intimate shows.

After more than a quarter-century in pop music, Bryan Adams has finally discovered the acoustic guitar.

Granted, there have been unplugged moments in his long career, but when it came time to write his latest album, “11,” which was released this spring, it was a different approach that proved creatively inspiring for the Canadian rocker.

“It’s sort of more acoustic-driven, and that’s dominant on the album,” said Adams during a phone call from his Houston hotel room. “It’s kind of like that’s what I did when I was cutting [demos] and whereas I used to use the electric guitar, this time I did it with an acoustic guitar. I like the percussiveness of it.

“It sort of worked and added something to the record. There was no way I was going to change it.”

What the acoustic guitar has changed is Adams’ live show, which now includes an unplugged set. While Adams opens for Rod Stewart on Saturday at Blossom Music Center, the two who scored a hit along with Sting in 1993 for “All for Love” from the feature film “The Three Musketeers,” he’s also busy playing solo acoustic dates in theaters on his days off between shows.

A full-scale solo acoustic jaunt is planned for late 2008 and early 2009.

“I started debuting ‘11’ around Europe by doing acoustic shows and playing the songs by myself just because it was easier and cheaper than flying everybody to all of these different places,” Adams said. “Plus, it’s really fun to do, and it’s the first time I’ve done my own show by myself. In the beginning I always did a short debut of songs, but the more I did it, the longer the shows got.

“What was an 11-song set ended up being 22 songs, and I realized I really enjoyed doing it, so I’m doing more and more of it.”

Considering the list of Adams’ recent tour mates — from Def Leppard and George Thorogood to Foreigner and now Stewart — it appears Adams is vying for the title of Hardest Working Man in Show Business.

If there’s an opening gig, invariably he’ll take it. That holds true no matter how stylistically incongruent it may appear for Adams, whose career is filled with soft rock anthems such as “[Everything I Do] I Do It for You” and “Have You Ever Really Loved a Woman?” to anthemic pop rockers such as “Summer of ’69,” “Run to You,” “Somebody” and “Cuts Like a Knife.”

“I think what changes are the haircuts,” joked Adams, who over the past few years has become a critically acclaimed photographer. “The only difference is when you tour with different bands, you just see different haircuts out in the audience.

“There have been some big mullet moments. In fact, so much so that when we toured with Def Leppard, I wish I could have been out in the audience with my camera because there were some extraordinary people out there.”

That being said, what is Adams expecting from Stewart’s fans?

“I’m just hoping it won’t be the older songbook crowd,” Adams laughingly said, regarding Stewart’s recent foray into the Great American Songbook. “Still, I’m thinking it’ll be a rocking night. And what better combination are you going to have on a Friday night?”