written by Ryan Cabrera, Curt Frasca and Sabelle Breer

produced by John Rzeznik and Ryan Cabrera

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I’m making this page July 19th, 2021, the day after the 39th birthday

of Ryan Frank Cabrera, 21st century pop artist who scored a #4 hit

on the US Pop chart with this song. Happy Birthday, RC!!

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Ryan’s a Texan, born summer 1982 in Dallas. Prior to going solo, he was a member of a group called Rubix Groove. He wrote some songs that led to the opportunity to record a minor-label album, which he did in 2001. It was composed of 8 moderate-length songs. That same year, he attained his major-label deal with Atlantic. Pre-dating his first Atlantic album was this single, “On The Way Down.” Besides the US Pop #4, it reached Billboard Hot 100 #15. The album’s name is Take It All Away. What I find interesting about it is that its sessions were co-produced with Goo Goo Dolls lead singer and frontman Johnny Rzeznik. The Dolls co-produced their own albums, and a bit of Goo Goo inspiration can be detected here and there throughout Take It All Away. John also plays on two of the tracks.

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Around this time Ryan was dating Ashlee Simpson, who is featured (as a blonde!) in “On The Way Down”’s video, and who inspired a song on his next album, 2005’s You Stand Watching. It, and 2008 following album The Moon Under Water, too charted, though not as high as Take It All Away. Ryan’s material’s been sporadic since, including a 2015 extended play, and a few standalone singles as well, sprinkled through the 2010s. In the fall of 2020 he got engaged to wrestling Diva Alexis Kaufman, whom the WWE fan community knows as Alexa Bliss.

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“On The Way Down” won the 2006 ASCAP most performed song of the year award. It also holds the distinctive spot of being #2,100 in my List.

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Have notes to add? Let me know!

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YT:

full original version/music video

full acoustic version

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Ryan’s official website