Ryan Adams covered Bryan Adams to close his show in Santa Barbara last night. Here’s why everyone’s so excited about it.

In 2002, at the Nashville stop on his Demolition tour, Ryan Adams threw a fan out of his show for requesting Bryan Adams’ hit “Summer Of ’69.” He had the house lights turned on and wouldn’t play his six-string until the joker left (with a $30 cash refund from Adams’ pocket). That request was not an isolated incident. In 2006, Adams talked to Spin about it:

There’s still a lot of press about your fights with your audience. Do you hate the kind of people who love your music? ADAMS: Yeah, they’re a bunch of fucking cocks. They come to my shows just to provoke me. I had to go into therapy because of whole Bryan Adams “Summer Of ’69? thing. What did going through therapy teach you? ADAMS: I used to go out onstage, and I couldn’t hear any of the clapping. I could only hear, “Fuck you!” or “Jeff Tweedy’s better!” … So now it’s not like someone’s not going to shout “Summer Of ’69,” but I can choose to not let than ruin my evening.

For that reason it’s widely assumed that DRA hates Bryan Adams. But that’s not true — he has actually covered “Summer Of ’69” a few times. He’s a fan, he told The Globe And Mail in a recent interview.

You’ve said that the writing of this album was inspired by the Smiths, but I hear a different sound, specifically the leanness and cleanness of Tom Cochrane, Billy Squier and Bryan Adams. Oh God, yes, Bryan Adams was a totally huge part of everything that I am musically. The beginnings of MTV had everything to do with me as a kid. I was transformed by that. I challenge anyone to put on “Run To You” and let that wash over you in a pair of headphones, in your normal listening zone. That stuff is fire-hot.

I admit this praise does conflict with what Ryan wrote about the Canadian rocker in 2008 on his trolly blog:

I seriously could give six shits about Bryan Adams or that song. In my opinion he is not a serious artist. His songs have “implied target market audience” written all over them and in fact he is quite embarrassing in general. Also a piss poor photographer.

But I take 2014 Ryan Adams at his word.

As much as Adams and co-producer Mike Viola were channeling slick ’80s soft rock by Don Henley and Bruce Hornsby on the great new self-titled album, the echo-y guitar crunch and power choruses (especially on lead single “Gimme Something Good”) remind me mostly of “Run To You.”

When I wrote that on Twitter a few weeks ago, Ryan Adams immediately fav’d it even though I didn’t tag him and he doesn’t follow me.

Now that we agree the new Ryan Adams LP is great… is it safe to talk about how it sounds like Bryan Adams? https://t.co/oSekyufMrm — ScottLapatineVEVO (@scottgum) September 11, 2014

Astute fans have also noted that the Ryan Adams album cover uses the same typeface as Bryan Adams’ Reckless, the 1984 album that spawned both “Summer Of ’69” and “Run To You.”

And now we have finally come full circle as Adams’ cover of “Run To You” hits YouTube.

Fire-hot. Reckless turns 30 on 11/5. It’s Bryan Adams’ birthday. And Ryan Adams’, too.