Ryan Adams How Keep Love Alive/Pearls On A String Letterman

[Dmetal69]

Only the best for Dave

[Marphale]

"She runs through my veins like a long black river and rattles my cage like a thunderstorm". This song rattles my tool like a thunderstorm. Boner achieved.

[mattosburn5]

its a harmony jet set sovereign jumbo,

[jicrookham]

amazing guitar!

[GettinBoredAgain]

<3 3:44 just perfect

[CitizenJohnSmith]

@BrettHowe2 Thank you for making my day mann

[axegas76]

what guitar is the one that Ryan is playing?

[buttnhole1]

@axegas76 Old post but no one answered the brand is Harmony.

[aslison1]

How many times has he played on Letterman?

[eddieroot]

I forgot how much I loved this clip.

RIP Spacewolf.

[CitizenJohnSmith]

Ahhh I became a fan of his after he stopped touring. He must come back

[BrettHowe2]

@CitizenJohnSmith Oh hes back

[odomi121]

2nd half of this video is instant classic!

[beneb1]

Elton John/ Andy Dick on the keys... Ryan Adams is an absolute beast of a musician. This guy pretty much owns everyone in every regard

[NOPESORRYWRONG]

@beneb1 That's a pedal steel, not keys. Not even close.

[JoeFG70]

Always wonderful.

[sblood311]

Pearls On A String is one of my all time favourite songs.

[jtmav55]

To say that this guy writes songs that other people only dream of is an insult to Ryan Adams. In people's wildest dreams, they don't write songs this good. He is solid gold.

[rosswsp]

what a badass. come back ryan!!!!!!

[durkadurkas]

amazing.

[incubusmun]

such talent..unbelievable talent....in such an arrogant person lol

[zr24X4ROCKS]

ryan adams = SUPER TALENT.  PERIOD

[Zendrix3]

Just a magnificent song....touches so many ppl on so many levels.

[sikeyourmind]

There can only be One. Ryan Adams forever. Simple as that. No one comes close.

[cegtown]

just listened to dave fronseca's version. great version. but he didnt write the song. ryan did. and you have to admit fronseca sounds like chris isaac. very much like chris isaac. i'll take ryans version everytime

[klbarber69]

Is there really a 3D button on keyboards?

[wovokanarchy]

Yeah' it's called jerking off to porn

[gayfarmerboy]

@klbarber69 Of course man!!! <--- example of a joke

[Freshdeermeat]

Amazing performance. How we'd love to get him in for a session!

[travassinhos]

please listen david fonseca cover- write 'david fonseca how do you keep love alive' and listen the best cover of this great music

[cicero9123]

"she runs through my veins..."

this man writes some brilliant lyrics...

[GF19781985GG]

Hello webcasters! lol. What a goofball! Pearls on a string is genius! Great track.

[walkinghomeatnight]

I met Ryan on the street in Wellington New Zealand, talked to him for about a minute. Wish I'd said something cool tho.

[Ctownage]

Yes, I think Letterman is a big Ryan Adams fan.... he's always so excited when they play on his show...

[Nearlyprescient]

yup! and he's been on quite a few times.

but, he rarely ever mentions that Ryan's been on more than once.

[mzmzg]

Letterman always has the best musical guests.

[pauly7917]

andy dick on pedal steel

[mikeytothez]

hahaha ive always thought that too

[kirk7524875248]

As a drummer I'm really impressed how the band and drummer play so tight, especially in this ballad, which really hard to do! Many bands can't play this tight! Really great!

[munchie944]

fuckin' tight.....ryan rocks!

[54spiritedwill54]

NC is the best

[stevenbb007]

Ryan Adams music is all about the details. no matter what type of music people are into all will agree that Ryan is wicket talented . i get it!!! he is far above all else and the fact that we hear it makes us lucky.

[mlphawaii]

david letterman must love him if he allowed them to jam at his desk...

[boschvox]

they have a pretty extensive history...it'd be interesting to see them chat casually.

[thepoordead]

dude, nellie mckay is swooning over neal casal, if anyone. holy smokes.

[olebrent]

I saw a show last year in Ohio and walked outside and Neal was chatting with some fans, it was off the hook!

[calaisk9]

i met him in boston after the show and got a pic. he's super sweet

[cegtown]

i would have held your mother's hand on the day you were born....powerful!!!

[willowtreesbend]

nellie mckay is like swooning over ryan adams in this video.rightfully so.

[thaze5150]

ok... 2 questions one, what kind of guitar is ryan playing? second who is the random girl?

[wist0301]

its a Harmony Soveriegn...the girl, no idea.

[ChillyCheezItz]

Girl = Nellie McKay

[eagyl]

Thanks sean

[ElimRem]

nelly mckay is kinda cute in a weird way

[havenhunter]

With Andy Dick on PEDAL STEEL (correction) you can't go wrong.

[cspalatin]

hahahahaha

[dickasaurusrex]

Hahaha! Andy Dick can do it all!

[havenhunter]

You can't pin him down to one style. Some times he is Dylanesque(winding weel),Stonesish(Tina Toledo),Van Morrisonish (answering bell). Some of his songs even sound Paul Westerbergish. What ever you want to call him I don't think anyone can deny his greatness.

[wist0301]

its funny...alot of people would consider him country though I'd say his form of "country" is more inline with Bob Dylan-esque folk. call it what you want, its great music.

[goodbye41]

a genuine country artist

[BtDuff22]

A genuine artist... although great country. All of his music is great

[goodbye41]

I would know, I have nearly all of it..

[Kellerkynd]

hehe, the 2nd part is fascinating. man, this guy does the drums on his KNEE!

[stevicki]

I don't know how old you are but Ryans music has me as spellbound as jackson browne and gram parsons did me in the seventies. i just love him.

[ecender]

Andy Dick rocks that lap-steel!

[havenhunter]

I love how ryan got Andy Dick off of drugs and taught him how to play madolin and lap steel.

[dickasaurusrex]

God, you're an idiot! Andy Dick is playing a pedal steel.

[goingoodguy]

haha

[stevicki]

runs thru my veins like a long black river and rattles my cage like thunderstorm. How many things in life are just like that. so damned perfectly felt and described.

[lonely1251965]

yes, this is probably one of the best written lines ever.

[munchmasterflex]

yes very well said, i don't get it either...

[greengirl0078]

well said.

[stevenbb007]

AGAIN SHAYLA...SHAYLA SHAYLA.....

[toofastforlove07]

what guitar is ryan playing?

[spencercollett]

ryan is playing a vintage harmony sovereign acoustic that he picked up for this tour

[thejamabides]

Holy shit.

"I would have held your mothers hand on the day you was born."

Faaaantastic line.

[dunkafelic]

yup that line's amazing. every time I hear it I wish I could've written that, and it makes me think of how moving it must be for the person he wrote it for.

[munchmasterflex]

i hear that great line man

[lambertface]

my lord, pearls on a string is perfect

[bickerjvc38]

svaneholm5 u r a asshole why dont u marry bryan adams

[svaneholm5]

he said no. can u imagine

[heartbreaker84]

what guitar is he using??

[SilverZipperRecords]

anyone who likes this should check out Dillon Campbell's "Time Will Heal"...

[hardlwoman]

It doesn't matter how sad is that song.

It never lets me down :)

[stevicki]

you are all over these sites. If you don't like ryan...WHY?

[reimersholme9]

we like ryan o bryan

[Anotherartist]

Brian is not his father... Ryan dislikes Bryan Adams and all other Mainstream Rock artists as well : ) . In my opinion Ryan belongs to the few best songwriters on earth today and he has released some classic, unique albums

[craberlocker]

Ryan is already one of the all-time greats and deserves a lot more recognition. As for FORtheCURE2008's comments...I believe you don't know what songwriting is about. Songs are living things that change with the mood of the singer.

[lanearthur]

"she runs through my veins like a long black river and rattles my cage like a thunderstorm" dear lord

[EvangelionUnit420]

Gives me a chill every time, love it

[tookool4school]

someone help i can't find the 3d button on my keyboard, no but seriously this video freakin rocks!

[tookool4school]

their freakin amazing!!!!

[greengirl0078]

that is sooo true

[SociallyRejected]

The only reason I've favourited this video is that How Do You Keep Love Alive is my favourite Adams song and I can't find another video when hes singing it live. The album version is a trillion times better, however. I've seen this guy live 3 times now and not once has he played How Do You Keep Love Alive.

[gayfarmerboy]

well the song was just released a couple months ago, and it's known that all the songs were written and doddled with for up to a year predating the release of easy tiger... so it really can't be too old of a song, so that's probably why.

[thesevisions]

haha, "hello webcasters!" Letterman is great, Adams is all-time, what more could a person want in 6:30?

[deepsix34]

It's actually called "how do you keep love alive?" which might make it easier to find tab on the internet. Throw a capo on the second fret, and then the chords are just G,C, and D, with an occasional Em.

[vesSelah]

I love both songs, but his 'Pearl on a string' performance here is one of the best bluegrass roots ever... Amazing!

[subpoprec]

Love the Misfits shirt.

[goodbye41]

oh my, that second performace..

[justingarman]

Even better than the album in my opinion.

[MiaLouUki]

ZBritt92 that is.

[fredmep]

beautiful.

[ZBritt92]

I also want to be deaf, addicted to herion, addicted to cocaine, and have a ninth grade education.

[Gatlinburg]

He found his calling.

[MiaLouUki]

That was a pretty pointless post. So he made some choices he later regretted and made the effort to turn things around, and is still following his dream despite hearing loss. He's a fantastically talented songwriter and singer, so why does any of that matter? Sorry, but your comment just came across as really bitter somehow.

[CardboardOnly]

what is stopping you?

[subpoprec]

You know, that's probably true. He's definitely on drugs, probably didn't care much about public schooling when he was there, and has done enough blow to kill a circus elephant. But he's still successful and does what he loves. Why have I been spending all this money on college?!

[ZBritt92]

I absolutly adore Ryan Adams. . . Jesus chirst, that was back when I was into guns n' roses/ohter shitty 80's arena rock bands

[filthee1977]

It took three people to answer that question...you should feel special.

[jshetler7]

the misfits shirt...... lol

[methtastesgood]

first song is off cold roses, second is off of easy tiger

[jaykrause]

It's on Easy Tiger, actually.

[liljgoneman]

thanks ryan, you help when i feel the need to cry sometimes.

[Popwar631]

Cold Roses.

[jgrange2]

i like how he's wearing a misfits shirt haha.

[castofthousands]

I love him..love him love him love him love him....

[squarebearderry]

skitheridge, dart tootin comrade!!

derry, ireland.

[skitheridge]

This is a guy who is mending my broken heart right now. This version is the absolute sweetest.

[ihatewestseneca]

Indeed

[vivalacourt]

NC is the best

[RyanQuirin]

Ryan is a brilliant prolific songwriter so insightful without ever being obvious lyrically or musically

[Erk1982]

Love Pearls on a string. I just love the bluegrass feel to it.

[JeffreyJaguar]

Same here. That was a cool idea to sit around Dave's desk and do that one.

[andrewjon]

great versions. this guy never lets me down.

[dannychung1]

how many times has ryan been on letterman in the last five years?

[mccourti]

who's the lady?

[talentissexy]

Nellie McKay

[FORtheCURE2008]

I meant "acoustic", wow, maybe I need to take a page from Ryan's book and lay off the sauce!

[FORtheCURE2008]

This is a decent version of "How do You Keep Love Alive", but it doesn't compare to the studio version. On the album version he sounds so broken down, like someone just tore his heart right out of his chest. It's so emotive it just chill sme to the core. This occoustic version of "Pearls on a String" is fantastic though!

[mccourti]

i agree

[JeffreyJaguar]

Disagree. Don't care for the album version at all.

[JeffreyJaguar]

This version is great. Lots of songs are that way, not so good on the album but when you put the correct instrument arrangement together they take on a new life. Sounded too contrived on the album.

[sagacioussue]

I completely agree with Jeff. I like the album version but this is much better. Thank God for Youtube because I can listen too it whenever I'm on the computer.

[FORtheCURE2008]

Really? Because IMHO, THIS is the version that sounds contrived. Well, maybe not contrived, but he just sounds like he's just going through the motions. On the album, he approprietly sounds completely destroyed, just like he couldn't care less if he wakes up in the morning. I mean he was so in love with that girl that he would have "held [her]mother's hand on the day you were born." wow, powerful... In this live version he doesn't sound like someone who would cry out "oh my soul" from the pain.

[railwaygates]

i agree with you. i skipped over this song when i heard the album and only fell in love with it when i was searching on the tube for ryans live sessions

[theeskimofriend]

Not seen him play for couple years now, seen him few times when " heartbreaker" gold etc was just out....just him him self with guitar....amazing!!

The Guy writes songs for fun... :)

Superb!! :)

[mccourti]

this is amazing - one of my favourite ryan songs. thanks for the post

[hdoew101]

I saw him a few days before this performance in Nashville, if you haven't had a chance to see him your missing out. He is amazing live...

[gayfarmerboy]

letterman cracks me up, and yeah i'm pretty sure that's a harmony, almost positive. my friend has one.

[brian90omalley]

yeah, its a harmony sovereign jumbo. really rare.

[Acoustisonic]

i wish i could find one of those guitars. it's a harmony sovereign jumbo, but i cant find one anywhere

[gayfarmerboy]

order it online

[ryanadamslover72]

This is my favorite song by him. It reminds me of so many things going on in my life right now...Thanks for posting this!

[racheloagibson]

this is an amazing song, and i love pearls! rYAN ADAMS FOREVER! :)

[Duderock26]

I know what yoursaying this song is helpping me too

[hardlwoman]

it reminds me too.

but my favorite song by him still is 'the sun also sets' :)

[noellennon]

Hmm, have you heard Heartbreaker? You'll have a dozen new favorite songs. Same with Faithless Street.

[shialoves]

man letterman loves having him on the show

& so do i!!!!!!!!!

[feinschmeckeren]

I actually think that Ryan and David Letterman are good pals. There was a special thank you note to David Letterman in the tray of "29"

[shialoves]

it's so sweet!

[Bizzy49565]

yeah! great!!! still love him

[beardstrike]

One of my favorite performances of "Pearls" ever!

[scottallenQ]

what is brand of guitar is he playing? looks very cool

[mmax02]

i believe it's a harmony

[ohio1968javelin]

man thanx for posting great performance Ryans great live!

[chipdevourer]

who is that with the ukulele?

[situationistcomedy]

ryan adams is so kick ass. thats misfits shirt is pretty cool too lol!

[justingarman]

An amazing performance, as always. One of the best "Pearls On A String" ive heard.

[vAmpyr616]

No sorry he calls him it on the other video you know after this he plays everybody knows on the same night and letterman goes over to him and says it check it out and stop thumbs downing me save them for letterman i know the friends but check it out seriously!!!!!!!

[aee1307]

You are hearing things that aren't there. He walks over and says "Ryan Adams. The Cardinals." It doesn't even remotely sound like he is saying Bryan.

[neckynicky]

totally agree with aee1307...vamp get your ears cleaned out...

[Lena181]

Postively heaven. B.T.W. - Go, Nellie! (Your pal Lynn from Queens)

[vAmpyr616]

oh my god watch the other video from that night he calls him BRYAN! terrible....

[aee1307]

No he doesn't. "Please welcome back to the program - the great Ryan Adams and the Cardinals". He says 'Ryan' quite clearly IMO.

[neckynicky]

You are mistaken....Letterman loves him and supports him...there is NO WAY he would make that mistake...sorry...

[ImportanceOfWhatever]

Ryan Adams thanks Letterman in one of this CDs... so I think what you heard is completely wrong

[roddyrod4]

its nice that RA likes Letterman so much and he's like a "special" musical guest: playing two songs, on all the time etc

[gayfarmerboy]

They are good friends, even when he released the album "29" in 2003-2004 ish, it has a thanks to letterman for all his support in the sleeve.

[deepsix34]

It's not just adams. Letterman has all the best musical guests. Either Dave or one of his staff has great taste.

[jewel9777]

Is that Nellie McKay with them during Pearls on a String? I wish I had seen this whole show!!

[saintangelsin]

I just saw Ryan a few nights before this was filmed. It was a great show in DC. I just have to smile about Ryan wearing a Misfits tshirt on the letterman show.

[silverjess]

"It soothes the soul!"

[coyne03]

Adams could put out an album of songs he has performed on the Letterman show and fill it. Of all the late night guys, Letterman likes has the best musical taste; I don't see Leno "getting" Ryan Adams and the Cardinals.

[saintangelsin]

I totally agree. If not an album, a dvd would be rad. What cracks me up is how Ryan has rapped about Letterman on his DJ Reggie stuff.

[bizou311]

thanks!!

[HanSuJeong]

Brilliant!

[misslilac]

oh my god this literally made my life twenty million times better. thank you boys.