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Posted: 3:39 PM- The best concerts are a symbiotic relationship between artist and audience, with each side pushing each other to ever greater heights during the course of the show.

Tuesday at Red Butte Garden, the audience was ready to hold up its end of the bargain, but the same can't be said for headliner Ryan Adams. The alt-country icon and former Whiskeytown leader seemed more interested in exiting the stage as quickly as possible after the show hit the 90-minute mark than in rewarding Utah fans who have waited nearly a decade for a solo Adams show (not counting that inexplicable 30-minute gig opening for Alanis Morissette at the E Center a few years back).

Keeping his sunglasses on even after darkness fell, Adams rarely spoke to the crowd. One exception was when a fan in front yelled "Let's go!" and Adams responded, clearly annoyed, "Where do you want to take me? Am I not playing the songs fast enough for you?" Another exception was Adams' seemingly snide exit line: "It was real exciting playing for you here tonight." Then the house lights lit up the venue and The Clash came on the p.a. system before Adams' band could even get off the stage, marking a remarkably abrupt end to an unsatisfying show.

In between, there were certainly moments of brilliance that you would expect from one of America's best young songwriters. And the audience greeted Adams and his band The Cardinals with open arms as the band took the stage and settled into a semi-circle alignment for the night.

The 17-song set list focused on songs from "Cold Roses," "Jacksonville City Nights" and the new "Easy Tiger," and Adams' band proved themselves stellar players and singers throughout. Jon Graboff's pedal-steel and Jamie Candioro's piano were prominent parts of each song, and guitarist Neal Casal's sweet falsetto was invaluable when he harmonized with Adams on songs like "Wild Flowers" and "Oh My God, Whatever, Etc."

"Let It Ride," "Magnolia Mountain," "Cold Roses" and "Easy Plateau," all from the "Cold Roses" album, were all highlights, even if the band veered dangerously close to jam-band wankery at times. "Dear John" and "A Kiss Before I Go," both from "Jacksonville City Nights," offered some of the most straightforward country of the night, and the new "Goodnight Rose" sounded great. In fact, the show seemed to pick up steady momentum from the half-way point on, and the crowd reacted in kind, standing up and shouting encouragement to the band. That just made Adams' quick exit at the end of "Easy Plateau" all the more frustrating.

Dan Nailen can be contacted at nailen@sltrib.com" Target="_BLANK">nailen@sltrib.com or 801-257-8613. Send comments about this story to livingeditor@sltrib.com" Target="_BLANK">livingeditor@sltrib.com. You can read Dan Nailen's "Urban Spelunker" blog by visiting http://blogs.sltrib.com" Target="_BLANK">http://blogs.sltrib.com, or hear him on the "ReMix" and "PopCast" podcasts available at http://www.sltrib.com/entertainment" Target="_BLANK">http://www.sltrib.com/entertainment.