EDMONTON -- Overheard from two teenage girls at last night's Bryan Adams concert:

"Is Bryan Adams from Canada or the United States?"

"Canada."

"He is?"

This is not surprising. An artist of Adams's stature will transcend borders. Basically, it doesn't matter where he's from. His music belongs to all of us.

No, what was surprising was this: There were teenage girls at a Bryan Adams concert?

Yes, there were. Among the 11,000 people who turned up at Skyreach Centre last night, there was a curiously high proportion of young women - screaming out every word to hit after hit after hit. After hit. Man, the band pounded them out like Big Macs during the lunch rush - fresh and greasy and piping hot. Female screams filled the arena. Once nice touch: Video screens showed a montage of several adoring women in the front row overlaid upon Bryan's grinning mug as he rasped the words to (Everything I Do) I Do It for You, which when you look closely at it, contains some ominous lyrics: "I'd fight for you, I'd lie for you, I'd walk the wire for you, I'd die for you." That's a pretty big jump from walking the wire, whatever that means, to actual death, but I digress.

Teenage girls. When considering what is hip in music, it behooves the rest of us to pay attention to where the teenage girls go. They liked the Beatles. They liked the Backstreet Boys. They like Bryan Adams. There may be reasons beyond his weathering boy-next-door charm and sincere yet silly love songs. A theory was debated as to whether the story of an alleged affair between Mr. Summer of '69 and Princess Diana had any effect on concert ticket sales. It had to add a certain allure. Adams reacted indignantly and huffed about ill-informed "conjecture," of course, but he didn't deny it, either. How cool is that. Mick Jagger never made it with a royal. Bryan, you dog, you. True or not, ironically, this story adds an interesting new dimension to a man whose personality doesn't really come across in his giddy arena rock 'n' roll music. Women dig a mysterious man.

Some of you might be saying by now: Enough about the teenage girls and salacious rumours, how was the concert?

Fine. The show was fine. A good time was had by all. It was a Bryan Adams concert. I somehow keep expecting him to turn into a Canadian version of Bruce Springsteen as he ages, get deep and stop singing couplets like "Let's make honey, baby, soft and tender/Let's make sugar, darling, sweet surrender" - but nope, same old Bryan. God love him. With Adams and band decked out in grey T-shirt and jeans uniforms, the evening started with the apt and upbeat One Night Love Affair, segued into several life-affirming anthems, was brought down to one or more love ballads where flicked Bics were observed, kicked into high gear with a slam dunk smash like Cuts Like a Knife, down again, up again, oh, here comes the acoustic guitars, a little talk, cue audience participation schick ... in short, this show was as predictable as your favourite roller coaster. However, women dig dependability. I think I've explored this topic enough.

Some may question the wisdom of opening act Colin James when he plowed right into the straight-ahead arena rock thing that the headliner specializes in. An entire evening of Canadian straight-from-the-heartland-rock was a bit much. Maybe he could've done his little big band thing. Yeah, I know, horn players are expensive. But not even one saxophonist? The opening Five Long Years kind of sucked without it.

Fortunately, the rest of the set was just swell. James just happens to be back in his regular rock phase - so here again it was hit after hit after hit. There were interesting new diversions like the Motown-influenced Make a Mistake, along with Canadian classics I dare say are superior to some of Adams's songs. James and band - including the secret weapon guitarist and songwriter Craig Northey - earned a standing ovation and encore from a terrific ZZ-Toppish, John Lee Hookerian version of Keep On Loving Me Baby, one bold command of a love song if there ever was one.

It's always a pleasure to see this artist on the big stage.

It should happen more often.

Note Perfect: Summer of '69 - really

Sour Note: Only if you paid too much attention to the lyrics (More on Bryan Adams)

JAM! Rating: 3.5 out of 5