Veteran musician Ricky Byrd is one of the most respected figures in the rock community. Having built his reputation and talents largely through his work with Joan Jett and the Black Hearts, he has also had an exceptionally successful solo career, recording and touring with the likes of Paul McCartney, Bruce Springsteen, Elvis Costello, and Stevie Wonder among so many others. The list of acts and artists with whom Byrd has worked is a virtual who’s who of rock. He has also enjoyed a successful solo career, releasing four solo albums since 2001. The fourth, NYC Made, was released Friday through Wicked Cool Records and is such a welcome addition to this year’s field of new rock albums. That is due both to its musical arrangements and lyrical themes. This is exemplified right from the album’s opener, ‘(Ya Get) 1 Life.’ The album’s latest single, ‘Transistor Childhood,’ does just as much to support the noted argument, as does ‘RnR’s Demise (has Been Greatly Exaggerated).’ All three songs do their own share to make NYC Made an enjoyable new offering from Ricky Byrd. When they are considered alongside the album’s remaining songs, the whole of the 12-song, 41-minute record one of the best of this year’s new rock albums.
NYC Made, the brand-new full-length studio recording from Ricky Byrd, is an example of all that continues to make rock great. The veteran rocker’s new album succeeds through its musical and lyrical content alike, as is proven right from its outset in the opener, ‘(Ya Get) 1 Life.’ The song opens fittingly with the sound of a vintage alarm clock; a metaphor, of course, for people to wake up. From there, Byrd and his fellow musicians pump out a fun, pure guitar rock composition whose blend of 90s pop and garage rock makes for so much engagement and entertainment.
The positive vibe established through that musical arrangement pairs wonderfully with the song’s lyrical theme of making the most of each day. The familiar theme is delivered in fully accessible fashion as Byrd sings, “One Life/So wear it well/One go round/Give ‘em hell/The years/They fly by quickly/And that ain’t no lie/Ya get one life/Go on/Take it for a ride.” Byrd is hardly the first artist to deliver such an important carpe diem message and likely won’t be the last. Either way, the message is clear and remains as needed today as it has ever been. Keeping that in mind, it and its counterpart musical content makes the whole of the song such a joy and joyous opener for NYC Made.
‘(Ya Get) 1 Life’ is just one of the songs that stands out among NYC Made’s most notable entries. As a matter of fact, every song on this record is notable in its own way. ‘Transistor Radio Childhood,’ the album’s latest single, is another example of what makes this record so enjoyable. The song’s musical arrangement is a catchy, infectious composition whose keyboards, melodies and overall groove hints at influences of Bruce Springsteen and others of that ilk. That should come as no surprise considering Stevie Van Zant, who is himself part of Springsteen’s famed E Street Band, co-produced the song (and owns Wicked Cool Records).
Lyrically, this song is so much in line with Everclear’s equally beloved song, ‘AM Radio.’ That song is a celebration of Art Alexakis’ childhood, listening to the great content that once filled the AM airwaves. According to information provided about ‘Transistor Radio Childhood,’ the song “pays homage to the melting pot AM radio of the 60s and 70s.” That melting pot included growing up listening to the beloved Yankees, Paul Revere and the Raiders, The Rolling Stones’ ‘Painted Black’ and Mack Rice’s classic song, ‘Mustang Sally.’ Byrd sings happily of sitting on a rooftop listening to the radio “When I probably shoulda been in school.” Additionally he notes that simply sitting there listening to that AM radio “got me through when nothing else would.” This simple statement is something to which so many listeners can relate. When nothing else gets us through, music is always there. Again, here is that accessibility and familiarity. It is one more way in which the song’s lyrical content makes the song another clear example of what makes it and the album so great. Add that on a secondary level, the noted lyrical content is a tribute to the songs that laid the foundation to today’s rock and the song’s lyrical theme gains even more traction. When the lyrical content in whole is considered alongside the composition’s musical arrangement, that whole makes fully clear in its own right why every rock purist should hear this record.
One more example of what makes NYC Made such a memorable record comes even later in the album’s run in the form of its penultimate entry, ‘RnR’s Demise (Has Been Greatly Exaggerated).’ For ages, people across the musical universe have tried to claim that rock and roll is dead. Some decades ago, AC/DC responded with its own anthem, ‘Rock and Roll Ain’t Noise Pollution.’ The closer from the band’s 1980 album, Back in Black, it finds front man Brian Johnson proudly stating, “Rock and roll will never die!” Byrd follows that vein in his song, singing alongside the mid-tempo vintage style rocker, “I’m gonna put my money on the rock and roll nation/Turn the dial to the rock and roll station/C’mon DJ/Take my breath away/Raise up the volume till the speakers rumble/Don’t want perfection/Let the guitars stumble/Still get my kicks/When the down and dirty licks are played/So c’mon DJ/Take my breath away.” He even notes in the song that rock is still alive and well because “Somewhere out there/There’s a new batch of kids making noise/Bangin’ out those glorious bar chords/The neighbors are sure to enjoy/Comes a time to pass the torch/If we’re to survive/With the promise/To never let the well run dry.” He isn’t wrong. As a matter of fact, just like there was the “New Wave of British Heavy Metal” in the 1980s and the “New Wave of American Heavy Metal” in the 1990s, and early to mid 2000s, there is also a movement known as the New Wave of Classic Rock that launched around the mid-2000s. Bands the likes of Zodiac, Horisont, South of Eden, and so many others have been part of that movement, proving exactly what Byrd states here. The torch has been passed and there is always another group of kids making noise, proving rock and roll will truly never die and that any reports of its death are mistaken. When this joyous anthem is considered alongside the other songs examined here and that trio with the rest of the album’s entries, the whole therein leaves NYC Made a record in whole that every single rock purist should hear. In hearing it those listeners will agree that this album is among the best of this year’s new rock albums.
NYC Made, the latest solo album from Ricky Byrd, is a strong, welcome addition to this year’s field of new rock records. That is proven through both its musical and lyrical content. The songs examined here make that clear. When that trio is considered alongside the rest of the album’s entries, the whole leaves NYC Made one of the year’s best new rock records if not the best rock album released so far this year.
NYC Made is available now. More information on the album is available along with all of Ricky Byrd’s latest news at:
Website: https://rickybyrd.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ricky.byrd1
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Byrdman20
