Waiting to Derail

Long before the Grammy nominations, sold-out performances at Carnegie Hall, and Hollywood friends and lovers, Ryan Adams fronted a Raleigh, North Carolina, outfit called Whiskeytown. Lumped into the burgeoning alt-country movement, the band soon landed a major label deal and recorded an instant classic: Strangers Almanac . That's when tour manager Thomas O'Keefe met the young musician. For the next three years, Thomas was at Ryan's side: on the tour bus, in the hotels, backstage at the venues. W