Bryan Adams goes retro on 'Get Up'

It has been a long time coming.

Canadian singer-songwriter Bryan Adams calls his new album, Get Up, the ideal follow-up record to his iconic Reckless album of 30 years ago.

Set for release next Friday, the album features several fast, catchy tunes such as Brand New Day and You Belong to Me that harken back to the feel-good style that made Adams a household name in the 1980s with hits such as Summer of ’ 69.

“In many ways, it is the album I wish I’d been able to make 25 years ago,” said Adams, describing Get Up as carefree, rocking and retro-sounding.

His songwriting for Hollywood earlier in his career spawned some of his biggest hits, including (Everything I Do) I Do It for You, the theme song from the 1991 film Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves.

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But Adams, who has sold more than 65 million albums worldwide and won multiple awards, has never paid attention to shifting audience trends. He is all about his art and music.

“I don’t actually know what my target audience is, and I don’t know anything about the music business,” he said. “I just do what I do — which is make music, which is what I’ve always done. I just like making songs that I like, and that’s it.”

Get Up, produced by Electric Light Orchestra frontman Jeff Lynne and co-written with long-time collaborator Jim Vallance, also boasts a few gentler songs, such as Don’t Even Try and We Did It All.

Adams, a father of two who will turn 56 in November, also has a passion for photography, with a new book on abstract photography due out soon.

It follows Exposed, a collection of portraits of entertainment and fashion celebrities, and Wounded: The Legacy of War, depicting photographs of soldiers maimed in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Adams acknowledges that it’s challenging to focus on his passions simultaneously.

“Music is always the top of the heap. I’m not going to quit my day job.”