TORONTO - Canadian rock icon Bryan Adams says he rang in the new year with troubled soul singer Amy Winehouse and believes that a strong support system is key to handling the pressures of fame.
Adams says the Brit sensation "has her own agenda to deal with'' but refused to detail his attempt to reach out to the pop star.
Winehouse crashed at his Caribbean villa over the holiday while battling substance abuse problems that eventually landed her in rehab.
"She came and stayed with me and that's really all I want to talk about,'' Adams said Wednesday, noting he had hoped the incongruous get-together would remain a private affair.
The raspy-voiced singer blamed a member of Winehouse's camp for allegedly selling details to a British publication.
Adams said such troubles are not exclusive to musicians, noting people in all walks of life have had difficulties coping with success.
"There's always been a musician coming off the rails, that's just how it works,'' said Adams, who has managed to avoid such drama despite catapulting to international stardom with '80s hits including, "Cuts Like a Knife,'' "Run to You,'' and "Heaven.''
"I think a lot of it has to do with who you surround yourself with. If you have good people around you it will help, obviously.''
Adams was in Toronto on Wednesday to promote his new album, "11,'' being released in Canada on March 18.
The frequent philanthropist, whose pet causes include animal welfare and children's issues, was also in town to perform at a hospital fundraiser Thursday with singing stars Josh Groban and Sarah McLachlan.
Mingling with such superstars is just a day in the life for the jet-setting performer, who said he spent Tuesday in New York photographing pal Mick Jagger for a Rolling Stones concert film being shot by director Martin Scorsese.
Adams said he and Jagger became friends when he opened for the Stones on their "No Security'' tour in 1999, and marvelled at the road his life has travelled since his childhood in Kingston, Ont.
The 48-year-old's creative pursuits have led to Oscar nominations for best song and a successful photography career, as well as musical collaborations with industry legends Aretha Franklin, Barbra Streisand and Tina Turner and a closely guarded friendship with the late Princess Diana.
"It totally amazes me,'' Adams said of his whirlwind lifestyle, which he said is largely lived out of hotels around the world these days.
"You can never have imagined doing the things that you do as your life goes on... but I kind of believe that you make your own luck.''
Adams' latest album of 11 guitar-driven tracks sticks largely to the romantic themes he's become known for, and was written during travels to the Caribbean, Germany, Italy, France and Portugal.
Although it lands in stores in mid-March in Canada, Adams said it's been a chore to find the right distributor in the United States.
"We haven't really got a record company in America, so my management has to be clever about how they get the record to everybody,'' he said of the delayed release, adding that talks are ongoing with an independent company rather than a big-name firm.
"It's not that it didn't find a home, it's that we didn't want it to find a home right away. We wanted to make sure we did it our way.''
Adams said a Canadian tour may come at the end of the year, but immediate plans involve visits to South America, the United States and European festivals.
