Bryan Adams unplugs for '11'

Canadian pop-rock star Bryan Adams [ tickets ] can't help but be inspired to write music, even after 30 years in the business. "It's just so much fun to find another idea and to find another song," Adams said during a recent press teleconference. "I 'can't explain to you how addictive that is."He said he misses it when he isn't writing music. But when he pens a new tune, it is extremely satisfying. "It's like, 'Wow.' It's great. It's so nice to have a piece of new music. It's the same buzz today as it was when I first started."Right now, he is buzzed about "11," his first release of original music in four years. In the last month, "11" debuted in the Top 10 of 11 international charts, including No. 1 in Canada, India and Switzerland; No. 2 in Austria, Denmark and Germany; No. 4 in Portugal; No. 6 in the United Kingdom and No. 8 in Holland. The album, set to hit US shelves on May 13, will be exclusively sold in Wal-Mart and Sam's Club stores nationwide. "It was an absolute no-brainer," Adams said about the decision to work with Wal-Mart and Sam's Club. "[They said] 'We'd like to order some records,' and we thought, 'Great.' I know the Eagles have done it and it seemed like a good idea. The last time I drove down Sunset Strip, there wasn't even a record shop."So I thought, it's good plan and they seemed enthusiastic and 'we're all on a page here. I think iTunes is going to have it at some point, but I don't know."Adams is touring in support of "11" with a series of acoustic dates in May, during which he will play classic hits and debut new material. He'll return to the United States for plugged-in headlining shows and opening dates with Rod Stewart this summer. (See details below.) "I think for a lot of people that haven't heard me do [an acoustic tour] before, it will be intriguing, because to play a song like 'Cuts Like a Knife' on acoustic guitar is quite a different thing than hearing it with a full band," Adams said. "I believe that that will give some insight into the songwriting and it shows that some of the new songs blend in. It's like one solid body of work."He said all of his songs work well as acoustic numbers because, after all, they were all written on acoustic guitars. "11" is an acoustic-based project."Halfway through, I sort of switched gears and decided to make sort of an acoustic rock record," Adams said. "And, when I play the songs live, it has actually sort of led me into a path of this next tour, which is my first American acoustic tour. And I feel confident enough with these songs and with the songs in the past that the show is going to be quite interesting, sort of hearing these songs stripped down completely, just myself and a guitar."With 21 Top 10 hits under his belt, Adams is convinced that the songs from "11" will be as popular as hits like "Summer of '69," "Straight from the Heart" or "Cuts Like a Knife.""Time will put these songs on the map," Adams said. "What is interesting is, when I look back at 'Summer of '69' did quite well in America, but outside in the rest of the world it wasn't a popular song. But, nowadays, it's one of the biggest songs in my set, everywhere. It just shows you that, with time, eventually good songs will actually come to the top, whether the radio plays them or not."