Bryan Adams

1959
Adams was born in Kingston, Ontario, Canada, to English parents. As Adams' father was a diplomat, he grew up travelling around the world with his parents. Subsequently, most of his youth was spent growing up in Europe and the Middle East, part of the time in Birre, Portugal, situated close to Lisbon; where he learned the Portuguese language.

1973
Adams' family returned to Canada and settled down in North Vancouver, British Columbia. He washed dishes, sold pet food, and worked in record stores, and at the age of 15, Adams quit school to play in nightclubs with bands like Shock and Sweeney Todd, who released an album called If Wishes Were Horses with the fifteen year old Adams as lead singer. A serendipitous meeting with drummer Jim Vallance in a Vancouver music store led to a song-writing partnership that continues to this day.

1978
At the age of 18, Adams sent a few demo recordings to A&M Records in Toronto. Not long afterwards he signed with them for the sum of one dollar. Some of the first demos written in 1978 have surfaced over the years, most notably "I'm Ready" (recorded for both the album Cuts Like a Knife and later his release for MTV Unplugged) and "Remember", which was recorded on his first album. Both songs were covered by other artists even before his first album was released.

Also recorded during this time was a demo of the song, "Let Me Take You Dancing".

1979
"Let Me Take You Dancing" is released. CAN #57

OCT [29] - NOV [29] Most of the debut album is recorded at Manta Studios in Toronto and co-produced by Adams and Vallance

1980
FEB [12] His self-titled debut album is released, and marked the beginning of what was to become a long songwriting partnership between Adams and co-writer Jim Vallance. The album was certified gold in Canada in 1986.

"Give Me Your Love" is released. CAN #51

"Remember" is released

"Hidin' From Love" is released. CAN #43

1981
JULY [21] Adams' second album, You Want It You Got It, is recorded in New York City in two weeks and is released on this day

"Coming Home" is released. CAN #28

"Fits Ya Good" is released. CAN #29

Adams also co-wrote many songs for other bands during this time including "War Machine" and "Rock and Roll Hell" for Kiss, and "No Way To Treat A Lady" for Bonnie Raitt.

1982
"Lonely Nights" is released. CAN #26. It became was of his first big radio hits making #2 on the US Mainstream Rock Tracks

1983
JAN [18] The album Cuts Like a Knife is released. It was Adams' breakout album

FEB [16] "Straight from the Heart" is released. It was his first US Top 10 hit making #9. CAN #4

MAY [27] Single "Cuts Like a Knife" is released and charts at US #15. CAN #9

AUG "This Time" is released and placed at CAN #14, UK #40 and US #23

Music videos were released for four of the singles from the album. "Cuts Like a Knife" arguably became Adams' most recognizable and popular song from the album. Its music video received heavy airplay on music television channels.

The album peaked at number eight on the Billboard 200 album chart and achieved three times platinum status in Canada, platinum in the United States and gold in Australia

"I'm Ready" is released

"The Only One" is released

"Take Me Back" is released

1984
OCT [18] "Run to You" is released been his first truly big hit making CAN #2, IRE #8, UK #11 and US #6

[29] Adams' best-selling album, Reckless is released. It is co-produced by Adams and Bob Clearmountain, and peaked at number one on the Billboard 200.

The hit single "It's Only Love" was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Rock Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group. In 1986, the song won an MTV award for Best Stage Performance. After the release of the album, Adams was nominated for Best Male Rock Performance. The album is Adams best-selling album in the United States and was certified five times platinum.

All the singles had accompanying music videos and all charted on the Billboard Hot 100 but only "Run to You", "Summer of '69", and "Heaven" peaked in the top ten. "Heaven" would become the most successful single from Reckless at the time of its release on the pop charts, reaching number one on the Billboard Hot 100 and number nine on the mainstream rock chart.

The VHS Reckless is released

DEC Adams and his touring band which consists of Keith Scott, Dave Taylor, Pat Steward and Johnny Blitz played concerts in Chicago, Detroit, New York and Philadelphia.

1985
In early 1985, Adams' started a tour throughout the United States, then later Japan, Australia, Europe and at last Canada.

"Somebody" is released

APR [9] "Heaven" is released

After winning four Juno Awards Adams started a Canadian tour through major cities across that country.

Later he headed south towards the American West Coast, culminating with two dates at the studded Paladium in Los Angeles.

After the tour in the United States, Adams traveled to Ethiopia to aid famine relief in the country.

Adams was also part of a grand ensemble of Canadian artists named Northern Lights, who recorded the song "Tears Are Not Enough" for the African famine relief effort.

Adams later headed back to Europe for a fifty-city concert tour with rock singer Tina Turner, culminating in April with his return to London to headline three sold-out shows at the Hammersmith Odeon in London.

JUNE "Summer of '69" is released

He opened the US transmission of Live Aid from Philadelphia

"One Night Love Affair" is released

"It's Only Love" (a rock duet with Tina Turner) is released

Adams began the first leg of his tour entitled "World Wide in 85" which started in Oklahoma and ended in October 1985.

Adams would later visit Vancouver, Canada, and afterward returned to the American East Coast to play two sold-out concerts in New York.

"Christmas Time" is released

1986
JUNE Adams participated in the two-week Amnesty International "A Conspiracy of Hope" tour alongside Sting, U2 and Peter Gabriel

1987
FEB Appearance on Rock For Amnesty with Paul McCartney, Sting and Dire Straits, among others

MAR [30] The album to Into the Fire is released. The album was recorded at Cliffhanger Studios in Vancouver, British Columbia and mixed at AIR Studios in London and Warehouse Studio in Vancouver.

JUNE Adams played at Wembley Stadium at the 5th Annual Prince's Trust Rock Gala along with Elton John, George Harrison, Ringo Starr and others.

This album contained the hit songs "Heat Of The Night" and

"Hearts On Fire" and hit the Top 10 on both sides of the Atlantic.

1988
Compilation album Hits On Fire is released exclusively for Japan

Adams played at Wembley Stadium when he performed at the Nelson Mandela birthday party concert

The live album ''Live! Live! Live!'' is released

1990
Adams helped commemorate the fall of the Berlin Wall when he joined many other guests (including his songwriting partner Michael Kamen) for Roger Waters' massive performance of The Wall in Berlin, Germany. He performed on the song, "The Tide Is Turning" with Waters, Joni Mitchell, Cyndi Lauper, Van Morrison, Paul Carrack and others. He also performed Pink Floyd's Young Lust and reached #7 at Mainstream Rock Tracks.

1991
SEP [24] Adams' next album, Waking Up the Neighbours is released. It was co-produced by Adams and Mutt Lange, sold over ten million copies worldwide and peaked at number six on the Billboard 200. It was even more successful on the other side of the Atlantic, reaching number 1 on both big European markets, the UK and Germany.

The album featured the powerballad "(Everything I Do) I Do It for You". This song was featured in the movie Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, starring Kevin Costner and Alan Rickman. The single topped the charts in numerous countries around the world including big markets such as the US, the UK, France, Australia and Germany. "(Everything I Do) I Do It For You" spent a record-breaking sixteen weeks at number one on the UK Singles Chart.

The VHS Waking Up the Neighbours is released

He also made the Miles Prower Pictures logo. It also achieved record-breaking sales of four million copies in the US. Canadian content regulations were revised in 1991 to allow radio stations to credit airplay of this album towards their legal requirements to play Canadian music.

Adams won a Grammy Award for Best Song Written Specifically for a Motion Picture or for Television.

OCT [4] Adams further supported the album with his tour, Waking Up the World which started in Belfast, Northern Ireland.

DEC [18] Adams played two first-ever shows in Reykjavik, Iceland and then

1992
JAN [10] Performed in the U.S. with a concert at the Ritz Theatre. It was a sell-out in less than twenty minutes. In attendance were music legends Ben E. King and Nona Hendrix.

[13] The Canadian leg of the ‘Waking Up The World’ Tour kicked off in Sydney, Nova Scotia, and wrapped up with a standing room only concert in Vancouver, Canada, on the 31st.

FEB He started touring in New Zealand and Australia for seven dates—kicking off with a press conference in Sydney.

[21] The tour headed to Japan for approximately a dozen shows in six cities.

Bryan taped an interview with Much Music’s Terry Dave Mulligan in Calgary, Alberta and the air date was scheduled for mid-March.

JUNE The tour continued through several European countries, including Italy, Germany, Holland and Scandinavia,

JULY Bryan performed for the first time in Hungary and Turkey (where he filmed his video for "Do I Have To Say The Words?").

During the long tour, further singles from the Waking Up the Neighbors album were released: In the US, the rocky "Can't Stop This Thing We Started" peaked at number 2, while the power-ballad "Do I Have to Say the Words?" reached number 11. In the UK, the mid tempo "Thought I Died and Gone to Heaven" was the most successful single behind "(Everything I Do) I Do it for You" by reaching the Top 10.

SEP - DEC The tour took place in the US

1993
FEB The Asian tour headed to Thailand, Singapore, Japan, and Hong Kong,

MAR - MAY Touring in the US

NOV [2] Adams released a compilation album entitled So Far So Good, that again topped the charts in numerous countries such as the UK, Germany and Australia. It included a brand new song called "Please Forgive Me", that became another number 1 single in Australia as well as reaching the Top 3 in the US, the UK and Germany.

1994
The VHS So Far So Good is released

He collaborated with Rod Stewart and Sting for the single "All for Love", another power ballad written for a movie. The single topped the charts worldwide.

1995
Adams released his 3rd movie song, "Have You Ever Really Loved A Woman?" (song released with the Motion Picture Soundtrack of the movie Don Juan DeMarco). It became another number 1 in the US and Australia as well as a Top 5 hit in the UK and Germany.

1996
JUNE [4] The album 18 til I Die is released. The album peaked only at number thirty-one on the Billboard 200 in the United States and held that position for three weeks. It was much more successful in Europe and Australia and reached the top spot on the UK charts which would be Adams' third #1 in a row. The album has been certified platinum in the United States and is Adams last studio effort which has been certified by the RIAA. 18 til I Die was certified three times platinum in Canada and Australia and two times platinum in the UK.

contained the UK Top 10 singles "The only thing that Looks Good on Me" and

"Lets Make a Night to Remember".

1997
DEC [9] Adams released MTV Unplugged on CD/DVD with three new tracks: "Back to You", "A Little Love" and "When You Love Someone". The album was a top 10 success in Germany while both singles reached the top 20 in the UK.

"Back to You" was the first single,

followed by "I'm Ready", an acoustic version of the Cut's Like A Knife track.

1998
OCT [27] Album On a Day Like Today is released and is the first studio album since Cuts Like a Knife which wasn't certified by the RIAA. However it entered the Top 5 in Germany and was certified platinum in the UK.

It generated two British Top 10 singles: "Cloud Number Nine" and

"When You're Gone", a duet with Melanie C, from Spice Girls.

1999
NOV [15] Adams released The Best of Me, a greatest hits collection that includes two new songs, the title track "The Best of Me" and the dance track "Don't Give Up". The album reached the Top 10 in Germany and was certified three times platinum in Canada and Platinum in the UK.

The single from the album, "The Best of Me" became a very successful hit with the exception of the US, where it was not released as a single.

2000
NOV [27] Bryan played onstage with The Who at the Royal Albert Hall. A DVD of the concert was issued. Bryan photographed the band and his photos appear in the DVD booklet

2001
DEC [11] The DVD Live at Slane Castle, Ireland is released

2002
Adams wrote and performed the songs for the DreamWorks animated film, Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron. The songs were included on the film's soundtrack.

MAY [14] soundtrack is releasedThe most successful single from the soundtrack was Here I am, a British Top 5 and German Top 20 hit.

Adams had a cameo role in the Russian-language film House of Fools.

Adams was invited, along with other photographers from the Commonwealth, to photograph Queen Elizabeth II during her Golden Jubilee; one of the photographs from this session was used as a Canadian postage stamp in 2004 and again in 2005, another portrait of both Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip is now in the National Portrait Gallery in London.

2003
JUNE [17] The CD/DVD Live at Budokan is released

2004
SEP [20] The album Room Service is released. It topped the charts in Germany and peaked at number four in the UK, selling 440,000 copies in its first week in Europe. In May 2008, the album was also released in the US but charted only at #134 on the Billboard 200.

The single, "Open Road", was the most successful single from the album and peaked at number one in Canada and number twenty-one in the UK.

2005
JAN [29] Adams joined the CBC benefit concert in Toronto for victims of the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake.

Twenty years after performing at Live Aid in the USA, Adams played at Canada's Live 8 show in Barrie, Ontario.

Later that year, he performed in Qatar and raised £1.5M ($2,617,000) from the concert and the auction of a guitar that had been signed by many of the world's most prominent guitarists for this occasion. The money went to Qatar's "Reach Out to Asia" campaign to help the underprivileged across the continent. Money raised also went to some of his own projects like rebuilding a school in Thailand and building a new sports center in Sri Lanka, both of which had been devastated by the Indian Ocean tsunami

Adams re-recorded the theme song for the second season of Pamela's FOX sitcom Stacked.

MAY [25] Adams raised £1.3M with cousin Johnny Armitage, from a concert and auction entitled Rock by the River for the Royal Marsden Hospital in London. .

JUNE [1] He published his first book of photos in the United States with Calvin Klein called American Women; proceeds from this book go to breast cancer research for programs at the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York City. He released a similar book of photos called Made In Canada in December 1999 followed by Haven in 2000. All of his books were dedicated to his friend Donna, who died of the disease

OCT [18] Anthology, the first 2-disc compilation is released, containing two new tracks. The US release features a new version of "When You're Gone", a duet with Pamela Anderson.

DEC [2] The DVD Live in Lisbon is released

2006
JAN [29] Adams became the first Western artist to perform in Karachi, Pakistan, in conjunction with a benefit concert by Shehzad Roy to raise money for underprivileged children to go to school. Some of the proceeds of that concert also went to victims of the 2005 Pakistan earthquake

MAY [15] Adams returned to London to attend the Hope Foundation's event (hosted by designer Bella Freud), helping to raise a portion of the £250,000 to support the Palestinian refugee children.

JUNE He offered individuals from the public the chance to bid to sing with him live in concert at three different charity auctions in London. Over £50,000 was raised with money going to the NSPCC, Children in Need, and the University College Hospital

Adams wrote and performed the theme song "Never Let Go" which was featured in the closing credits of the film The Guardian starring Kevin Costner and Ashton Kutcher.

Adams also co-wrote the song "Never Gonna Break My Faith" for the film Bobby. The song was performed by the R&B singers Aretha Franklin and Mary J. Blige and earned him a Golden Globe Nomination in 2007.

2007
OCT [18] Adams was billed to perform in Tel Aviv and Jericho as part of the OneVoice Movement concerts, hoping to aid in solving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The peace concert for supporters of a two-state solution to the conflict with Israel was called off because of security concerns

NOV He wrote to KFC Canadian CEO asking them to become leaders in using more modern and more humane methods of killing

2008
FEB [28] He appeared in One Night Live at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto, Canada with Josh Groban, Sarah McLachlan, Jann Arden and RyanDan in aid of the Sunnybrook Hospital Women and Babies Program.

MAR [17] Adams released his eleventh album internationally. It was appropriately called 11.

MAY [13] The album was released in the US exclusively at Wal-Mart and Sam's Club retail stores.

The first single released from the album was "I Thought I'd Seen Everything".

Adams did an 11-day, 11-country European acoustic promotional tour to kick off the release of the album.

The album debuted at number one in Canada (making it his first album to reach that position since Waking Up the Neighbours in 1991) as well as reaching number 2 in Germany. In the United States the album charted at number eighty.

SEP [19] To support the peace in Georgia, Adams played a special outdoor concert in Tbilisi

2009
MAY Bryan Adams announced on his Twitter account that he has started writing and recording a new album in Paris.

Adams will be one of the four musicians who will be pictured on the second series of the Canadian Recording Artist Series to be issued by ‎Canada Post stamps on July 2, 2009. The total estimated number of Bryan Adams stamps to be printed is one and one-half million.

NOV [14] Played at The Royal Albert Hall in aid of the Born Free Foundation at "Wild and Live"