You can always rely on Bryan Adams to make the kind of soft-rock that's good fun to listen to when you're bored and even more enjoyable when you're drunk. He hasn't evolved much since his 1983 breakthrough single, Straight From The Heart: he's like a stray dog that doesn't fit in anywhere, but you don't kick him to move him out of the way because you're so used to his presence.
Open Road is taken from the Canadian singer's forthcoming album, Room Service - his first since 2002's sickly sweet Spirit: Stallion Of The Cimarron. It's a likable track that carries his most distinctive ingredients with a spoonful of aplomb: the husky voice, catchy chorus and smooth well-polished riffs, and there is even a nifty harmonica spot in the middle.
Open Road runs like a calm flow of water and is friendly without causing too much nausea. In fact, if you sat down and closed your eyes it would feel like the mid-'80s again.
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