Bryan Guy Adams (born November 5, 1959) is a Canadian singer-songwriter, musician, record producer, and photographer. He has sold an estimated 75 to more than 100 million records worldwide and is regarded as one of the best-selling music artists. Adams was the most-played artist on Canadian radio during the 2010s and has achieved numerous chart successes in Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, and other countries.
Adams released his self-titled debut album, "Bryan Adams", in 1980. He gained wider recognition with the album "Cuts Like a Knife" (1983), which included the singles "Straight from the Heart" and "Cuts Like a Knife". His fourth studio album, "Reckless" (1984), became a major commercial success and featured the hit singles "Run to You", "Summer of '69", "Heaven", "Somebody", "One Night Love Affair", and "It's Only Love", a duet with Tina Turner. "Reckless" became the first album by a Canadian artist to be certified Diamond in Canada.
In 1991, Adams released the single "(Everything I Do) I Do It for You", which reached number one in at least 19 countries and spent 16 consecutive weeks at the top of the UK Singles Chart. The song was featured on the album "Waking Up the Neighbours" (1991), which topped charts internationally and sold approximately 16 million copies worldwide. Other successful singles from the album included "Can't Stop This Thing We Started", "Do I Have to Say the Words?", and "Thought I'd Died and Gone to Heaven".
During the 1990s, Adams released several internationally successful ballads, including "Please Forgive Me" (1993), "All for Love" (1993), recorded with Rod Stewart and Sting, and "Have You Ever Really Loved a Woman?" (1995). He also released the albums "18 til I Die" (1996), "MTV Unplugged" (1997), and "On a Day Like Today" (1998). The latter included the hit single "When You're Gone", a duet with Melanie C.
In the 2000s, Adams continued recording and touring internationally. He contributed songs to the soundtrack of the animated film "Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron" (2002), released the album "Room Service" (2004), and later issued "11" (2008). During this period he also collaborated with numerous artists and participated in several charity and benefit concerts.
In the 2010s, Adams released the live acoustic album "Bare Bones" (2010), the covers album "Tracks of My Years" (2014), "Get Up" (2015), and "Shine a Light" (2019). He also co-wrote the music and lyrics for "Pretty Woman: The Musical", which premiered on Broadway in 2018 and later opened in London's West End.
In the 2020s, Adams released the studio album "So Happy It Hurts" (2022), followed by the re-recorded collections "Classic" (2022) and "Classic Pt II" (2022). In 2024, he launched his own record label, Bad Records. Following the release of the album "Roll with the Punches" in 2025, he began the "Roll with the Punches" tour, which continued into 2026.
Adams was born in Kingston, Ontario, to Elizabeth Jane Watson and Conrad J. Adams, English immigrants who had moved to Canada from Plymouth in the 1950s. Through his father's diplomatic and military career, Adams spent parts of his childhood in Portugal, Israel, Japan, South Korea, and the United Kingdom. He was raised in Ottawa and later moved with his mother and younger brother to North Vancouver in 1974.
As a teenager, Adams developed an interest in rock music and learned to play guitar. He left school at the age of 15 and became the lead vocalist of the glam rock band Sweeney Todd. With the band, he recorded the album "If Wishes Were Horses" (1977). In 1978, he began a songwriting partnership with Jim Vallance. The collaboration produced songs for Adams as well as recordings by artists including Kiss, Tina Turner, Joe Cocker, Bonnie Raitt, Rod Stewart, Bonnie Tyler, Loverboy, Carly Simon, and Neil Diamond.
Adams signed with A&M Records in 1978 and released the single "Let Me Take You Dancing" in 1979. Throughout the following decades, he established a career as both a recording artist and songwriter, while maintaining a long-term touring schedule.
In addition to his music career, Adams has worked as a photographer, publishing photographic works and exhibiting his images internationally. He has also supported numerous charitable and humanitarian causes, including projects related to famine relief, environmental issues, and disaster assistance.
Adams has received numerous honours and awards during his career. He has won 20 Juno Awards and a Grammy Award and has received multiple Grammy, Academy Award, and Golden Globe Award nominations. He has been inducted into the Hollywood Walk of Fame, Canada's Walk of Fame, the Canadian Broadcast Hall of Fame, the Canadian Music Hall of Fame, and the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame. In 2010, he received the Governor General's Performing Arts Award for Lifetime Artistic Achievement in recognition of his contributions to the arts.
Full Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bryan_Adams
Studio albums
Bryan Adams (1980)
You Want It You Got It (1981)
Cuts Like a Knife (1983)
Reckless (1984)
Into the Fire (1987)
Waking Up the Neighbours (1991)
18 til I Die (1996)
On a Day Like Today (1998)
Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron (2002)
Room Service (2004)
11 (2008)
Tracks of My Years (2014)
Get Up (2015)
Shine a Light (2019)
So Happy It Hurts (2022)
Roll with the Punches (2025)
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…shrink me down again