Ryan Adams (born David Ryan Adams on November 5, 1974) is an alt-country an… Read Full Bio ↴Ryan Adams (born David Ryan Adams on November 5, 1974) is an alt-country and rock and roll songwriter and singer from Jacksonville, North Carolina. Initially part of the group Whiskeytown, which was at the time considered one of the leaders of the alt-country genre, Adams left the band and released his first solo album, Heartbreaker, in 2000 (which was subsequently nominated for the Shortlist Music Prize). As well as his solo albums, Adams has released five albums as Ryan Adams & the Cardinals.

Adams dropped out of high school at age 16 to work in a shoe shop and make music. He formed a band named Whiskeytown in 1994; they disbanded in 1999 having released two full albums, Faithless Street and Strangers Almanac. Adams went on to put out his first solo record, Heartbreaker, in 2000. After a long delay, in 2001 Whiskeytown's third album Pneumonia was finally issued.

In 2002, Ryan contributed backing vocals on Butterfly in Reverse, from the Counting Crows album, Hard Candy; after Adam Duritz (Counting Crows lead singer) appeared on the album Gold.

Ryan is highly prolific, and in 2005 released one double album and two regular albums: Cold Roses, Jacksonville City Nights and 29, respectively. His album, 29, was produced by friend Ethan Johns (who also produced his first two albums, Heartbreaker and Gold). In between those two releases and his 2005 triple-header, Ryan released Demolition (a collection of out-takes), Love Is Hell and Rock N Roll. Unreleased studio albums include 48 Hours, Exile On Franklin Street and Suicide Handbook.

In addition, Adams worked with Jesse Malin to form the punk-rock group The Finger (under the pseudonyms, "Warren Peace" and "Irving Plaza" respectively), who released two E.P.s which were collected together to form We Are Fuck You, released on One Little Indian Records in 2003.

In 2006 Ryan went on a minor UK-tour and a minor US-tour along the west-coast and has streamed 11+ mini albums on his website, under numerous jokey pseudonyms (DJ Reggie, Werewolph, The Shit, Rhoda Ro, Ghetto Birds).

The following solo record, entitled Easy Tiger, was released on June 26, 2007. The newest and last record with his backing band The Cardinals, Cardinology, was released in October 2008 and followed by extensive touring through the UK, US and Australia.

In January 2009 he announced that he would be going on an indefinite hiatus from music. The Kindness Songfacts reports that the major reason for Adams’ temporary retirement was his struggles with Ménière’s disease, a disorder of the inner ear that wrecks havoc on hearing and balance. Adams resumed performing in October 2010, and released his thirteenth studio album, Ashes & Fire, on October 11, 2011. His now ex-wife, pop singer and actress Mandy Moore, contributed some backing vocals.

Cold Roses
Ryan Adams Lyrics

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Mirrors in the room go black and blue
On a Sunday morning in Saturday shoes
We don't choose who we love
We don't choose

In a Sunday suit, with the Saturday beat
She don't love who she chose
She don't need what she do

Daylight comes in exposin'
Saturday bruises and cold roses
Cold roses

Nothin' but the sunlight'll help you grow from underneath your bed
You can't see the window
We don't choose what we see
We don't choose

Fortunate and angry just like a child
All that money buys you medicine but can't buy you time
We don't choose what we love
And she don't need what she got

Daylight comes in exposin'
Saturday bruises and cold roses
Cold roses

Cold roses

Cold roses
Cold roses

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to Ryan Adams & The Cardinals' song Cold Roses paint a picture of a broken relationship that is consumed with pain and bruises. The opening line refers to the physical damage of the broken relationship, as the mirrors in the room are black and blue. The use of day and night, Sunday and Saturday gives the song a sense of deterioration, where the love and life of the relationship have turned into a torturous routine. The repetition of the phrase "We don't choose" also emphasizes the feeling of powerlessness and lack of control that comes with the situation.

Furthermore, the lyrics also hint at a possible affair, where the partner does not love the person they chose, and the singer acknowledges the feeling. The cold roses in the song signify the visual representation of the damaged relationship, where the love once shared perished and left only thorns behind.

In the chorus, the singer acknowledges the exposure that comes with daylight, where the illuminated scene reveals the bruises, both physical and emotional. Overall, the song expresses the difficulty of letting go and the pain that remains long after the relationship has ended.

Line by Line Meaning

Mirrors in the room go black and blue
The reflection shows the bruises that are sustained from a fight

On a Sunday morning in Saturday shoes
Despite not having enough time to change into Sunday shoes, life still goes on

We don't choose who we love
Love is not a conscious decision, it takes over without permission

We don't choose
Some aspects of life are beyond our control

In a Sunday suit, with the Saturday beat
Dressed in formal attire but still living life to the fullest

She don't love who she chose
Sometimes love doesn't follow logic or reason

She don't need what she do
The things she thinks she needs are not necessarily what will make her happy

Daylight comes in exposin'
With the morning light, the reality of the situation is revealed

Saturday bruises and cold roses
The flowers of love can also come with pain and suffering

Nothin' but the sunlight'll help you grow from underneath your bed
It takes something as simple as sunlight to start healing and moving forward after a setback

You can't see the window
Sometimes we are unaware of how to move on and see the possibilities in life

We don't choose what we see
Just as we can't choose who we love, we also can't choose what we see in life

Fortunate and angry just like a child
Being blessed with abundance doesn't necessarily mean one is content or happy

All that money buys you medicine but can't buy you time
Money can solve some problems but not the most important one, which is limited time

And she don't need what she got
Just as before, what seems like what she needs isn't always what makes her happy

Cold roses
The beautiful yet painful experience of love

Cold roses
The beauty of love with its thorns

Cold roses
The complexity of love and its mixed emotions

Lyrics © BMG RIGHTS MANAGEMENT US, LLC
Written by: BRADLEY SMITH PEMBERTON, CATHERINE ANNE POPPER, JOHN P BOWERSOCK, RYAN ADAMS

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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