Ryan Adams is one of the most prolific musicians of our time. His well-received eponymous 2014 album, featuring the single "Gimme Something Good," was his 17th in 19 years. The North Carolina native has overcome Meniere's Disease, an inner ear affliction, to be one of American rock's most reliable performers.
This weekend, he sat down with the fine folks at CBS This Morning (via SPIN) to discuss music and medical hardship.
"For many years for me, it was a battleground of fear," he said, referring to Meniere's, which is often triggered by flashing lights. "And it would turn out that it was simply that I was being lit from the front. Those lights would flash and move, and I didn't know it was anything other than, 'I'm just now feeling weird.'
"I was doing that in front of thousands of people, and I was really losing my mind."
During a show at Philadelphia's Tower Theater earlier this year, one fan in the front row insisted on taking several flash photos of Adams, who promptly lost it in the middle of "Oh My Sweet Carolina."
He's been outspoken about the disease since 2011, but it hasn't stopped him from producing a groundswell of songs an albums. While he always comes through with new material, he said there's sometimes a difference in levels of creativity.
"They're songs, but they wash up on shore," he said. "You pull 'em in and you clean 'em off. But then sometimes, it's like thunderstorming on the sea and they're everywhere. That's how it is now.
"It feels like my soul is full, and it's overflowing."
That's good news for fans who want more from Adams in 2015. The 40-year-old is currently scheduled to play several UK shows next year, but he should find time to get back into the studio. Check out the full CBS interview below:
