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Stars indicate the most critically-acclaimed albums.

Cold Roses
by Ryan Adams


8.8

based on 23 reviews
Read critic reviews
How did we calculate this?

based on 80 votes
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Rate this album

Official Artist Site

Credited to Ryan Adams & The Cardinals, double album 'Cold Roses' is the first of three planned 2005 releases for the prolific singer-songwriter. Tom Schick produced.

LABEL:	Lost Highway
RELEASE DATE:	03 May 2005
DISCS:	2 discs
GENRE(S):	Indie, Rock, Alt-Country

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...

Spin

There's an air of formal exercise here.... But if you can ride with the cliches, you won't fault the execution. [Jul 2005, p.102]

Uncut

A return to form, if not a career-redefining masterpiece. [Jul 2005, p.107]

All Music Guide

It's safe to say that Cold Roses is the record many fans have been waiting to hear -- a full-fledged, unapologetic return to the country-rock that made his reputation when he led Whiskeytown.

The Guardian

The boy wonder is back in the saddle.

Drowned In Sound

Despite the fact that a few of these nineteen tracks could easily have been cut, or that its mid-tempo pacing may drive it dangerously close to sounding monotonous, the evidence still points to that of a songwriter clawing back to his best.

The Onion (A.V. Club)

For a good long stretch, Cold Roses feels fantastic--as pretty and affecting as a slow sunset.

cokemachineglow

Somehow, it all works remarkably well together. There are a number of songs that feel like guilty pleasures, and the Gram Parsons/Bob Dylan/Neil Young influences are worn on Adam’s sleeve, but lets face it: we’d all rather hear Ryan doing this than trying to bite ‘70s FM rock or Brit-pop shoegazer nonsense.

Entertainment Weekly

Mostly it's a big messy bunch of starry-eyed, shambling good ideas in search of memorable hooks. [20 May 2005, p.76]

Pitchfork

Overstuffed and vaguely monotonous, the album could be easily whittled down to a single sequence of impressive songs; Instead, it's a meandering, occasionally moving series of mid-tempo laments, some more memorable than others.

Prefix Magazine

Although Cold Roses can get messy in the way of a quickly made album, it marks a notable improvement on Adams's most recent LP.

Rolling Stone

The songs seem tossed off and carefully constructed at the exact same moment.

Neumu.net

It's a relaxed and ambitious collection that confirms Ryan Adams' reputation as a top-notch singer and songwriter who easily jumps styles and evokes comfortable sadness with every turn.

New Musical Express

The production is too breezy in places and at 19 songs, it is at least half a dozen too long. Not the classic Adams fans demand, but he’s moving his ducks into a row.

Austin Chronicle

For every two full blooms ("Cherry Lane," "Rosebud") there's a stem ("Mockingbird"), and a couple decent toss-offs ("Beautiful Sorta," "Dance All Night"), but such is Adams' double-album hubris.

E! Online

Even if it is twice as long as it needs to be (thus, a couple of dead spots), we're not arguing. We're just enjoying the music.

Tiny Mix Tapes

This 18-track monster drives home one point more than any other: Ryan Adams needs a fucking editor.

Paste Magazine

Cold Roses comes as a bit of relief, bereft of the posturing that so often attends Adams’ work.... That said, there’s also a sense of retreat that permeates the record, a willingness to offer the comforts of familiar tones instead of ambitiously taking chances.

Mojo

An enjoyable, if surprisingly safe, collection of roots rock. [Jul 2005, p.102]

ShakingThrough.net

Cold Roses’ first set is by-the-numbers, brokenhearted MOR fare, sometimes maudlin (“When Will You Come Back Home?”), infrequently dramatic (the piano-driven “How Do You Keep Love Alive”) and mostly forgettable. The second disc redeems Cold Roses from an even-less-enthusiastic recommendation.

Playlouder

A frustratingly self indulgent and inconsistent double album that pitches itself somewhere between the classic country rock of 2001's 'Gold' and the lovelorn despair of 2004's 'Love Is Hell'.

Flak Magazine

Without the first disc, the double disc Cold Roses wouldn't be half bad.

PopMatters

It's as if Adams is doing an imitation himself, of what he thinks "Ryan Adams" should be, or what fans at large expect: the roots rocker, the alt-country troubadour, all that clichéd Gram Parsons successor rubbish.

Q Magazine

Another marathon slog through the alt-country undergrowth. [Jun 2005, p.118]

The average user rating for this album is 8.8 (out of 10) based on 80 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

Will gave it a10:
It is long, yes, but the more you listen the more you enjoy. Nearly two years after its release and I am listening to it more than ever!!

[Anonymous] gave it a9:
A month after purchase, I had passed this off as slightly-better-than-average record. A full year later it had become of the most played records in my collection. It still is.

Kamren J gave it a10:
What a masterpiece. By the time the first track 'Magnolia Mountain' ends you will be transported to another world where everything appears to be out of focus yet entrancingly beautiful. The album's length does appear tedious at times, but such as life. By the time the bridge of 'Life is Beautiful' explodes all over your body you will know that you've witnessed something absolutely remarkable just as the final track-'Friends'-of the album cradles you in it's arms and slowly rocks you into a hypnotic peace of mind as though to help you recover from the most intense sexual experience of your life. I believe that "Cold Roses" will pass the test of time to sit upon the shelf next to Neil Young's "Tonight's the Night" and "On the Beach", The Grateful Dead's "American Beauty" and "Workingman's Dead", and (most importantly) Gram Parsons' "Grievous Angel." This album is untouchable. What a masterpiece.

bily c gave it a10:
really good

[Anonymous] gave it a10:
Quite possibly my favorite Ryan Adams record to date. The album is just so soothing, and the record is complete, as it is not just about him, but also the band. I can't get enough of it.

Pop Matters Sucks gave it a9:
The guy that wrote the Pop Matters review is an idiot. This cd renewed my interest in Adams after I lost interest. His best since Heartbreaker.

Richard W gave it a10:
I must say that I cannot get enough of Ryan Adams. I'm sick of reviewers saying that he should self edit and not put out his vision in whole. I'd rather hear another song from Ryan than an over produced pop album; therefore, I have to say that Cold Roses is a welcome addition to my playlist.

Cold Roses by Ryan Adams

Cold Roses
by Ryan Adams