There's not much I need say that hasn't been least. The top review is well put. I will say this is one of the top tier singer-Songwriter albums in my collection. It's a heartbreaking record with some very very well written words and musical arrangements that are very subtle in their details. This album also has a couple great rockers. And "To Be Young" is an anthem for the ages that starts the album off on a misleading foot. Definitely one of my all time favorites.

Nice album, Come Pick Me Up is amazing.

A breathtakingly heart-wrenching album, which starts off on the lighter side of heartbreak with the upbeat downer "to be young (is to be sad)". This is an "alt-country" album of unrequited love and love lost. It's both full in the firm grip of love and being choked by it. The highlights of love's anguish come on "oh my sweet carolina", "come pick me up" and . On "oh my sweet carolina", with backing vocals from emmylou harris, ryan is a lost stray in the big city without his love singing "I was trying to find me something / But I wasn't sure just what / Man I ended up with pockets full of dust ". In "come pick me up", ryan is love sick and love vexed, unfurling his venom in the chorus: "Come pick me up / Take me out / F*ck me up / Steal my records / Screw all my friends / They're all full of shit / With a smile on your face / And then do it again / I wish you would ". Or on "don't ask for the water", where a woman caused him to "hate this old place / And what it represents / And I hate who I was / And who I ended up since / But if you learned how to swim in case you'd drowned / Don't ask her for the water / Cause she'll swallow you down ". "shakedown on 9th street" is like a well-placed joke in the dearth of a heart-wrenching drama, a welcome respite about a dust-up over a woman. But that and "to be young (to be sad)" are really the only foot-stompers. This offering is truly for the heartbroken and the weight will fill you up the most when you're feeling your worst. heartbreaker's less about the words to describe love's impact than the feeling, like the quiet-yet-heavy piano in closer "sweet lil gal (23rd/1st)" as he sings a sentiment at the heart of the album -- "when you're lonely, she makes you feel nice".

First few songs a great. But goes downhill.

To Be Young (Is To Be Sad, Is To Be High) and Call Me On Your Way Back Home were the best songs.

Album opens good with a couple of strong tracks but then interest fades fast as it drops into mellowness.

Ryan Adams gets more press about his primadonna behavior, but he's also a very talented (if overly prolific) songwriter (currently, one of America's best) and here's the proof. This is such an underappreciated gem.