Wild Frank Posted October 2, 2009 Share Posted October 2, 2009 I don't often see them mentioned on the site, but I was just listen to the Counting Crows first record, and I forgot how good it was. Tracks like 'Round Here' and 'Rain King' are really great. I lost touch them after 'Recovering The Satelites' but I want to give some love to that debut album. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
bleedorange Posted October 2, 2009 Share Posted October 2, 2009 I don't often see them mentioned on the site, but I was just listen to the Counting Crows first record, and I forgot how good it was. Tracks like 'Round Here' and 'Rain King' are really great. I lost touch them after 'Recovering The Satelites' but I want to give some love to that debut album. I prefer Recovering the Satellites. This Desert Life was pretty good, even if it didn't touch their first two. After that, they haven't put anything out worth anyone's time. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Calexico Posted October 3, 2009 Share Posted October 3, 2009 I don't know about that. I really enjoyed all their albums and am a big fan of the recent one Saturday Nights And Sunday Mornings. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
scribex6 Posted October 3, 2009 Share Posted October 3, 2009 I'd agree that the their first two albums are the best but I'm also fond of This Desert Life which is a more eclectic, atmospheric album for them. I really like Mrs. Potters Lullaby, a nine-minute track that's kind of Dylan-esque in it's sprawling feel. They're also quite good live. I just saw them back in July. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ThisIsNowhere Posted October 4, 2009 Share Posted October 4, 2009 I should probably check out their albums, all I have is Films About Ghosts, which I love. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
cryptique Posted October 4, 2009 Share Posted October 4, 2009 I saw them live several years back (approx. 1999) at the State Theatre in Kalamazoo, and they put on an excellent show. I had gone mostly to see the opener (Gigolo Aunts) but figured I'd probably enjoy the Counting Crows set too. Was pleasantly surprised by their performance. Can't say I'm a huge fan, but I have respect for them. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
hardwood floor Posted October 4, 2009 Share Posted October 4, 2009 I had gone mostly to see the opener (Gigolo Aunts) great great great band, ain't they? had never heard of 'em & saw 'em in a tiny club in philly mid-1990s and they blew me away bloom todayyyyy Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Golden Smoghead Posted October 4, 2009 Share Posted October 4, 2009 Counting Crows are one of those bands that got me really into music, I think I was 16 or 17 when "August and Everything After" came out. That said, I'm not sure anything after "This Desert Life" is worth listening to other than a track here and there. BTW when I say they got me into music, I mean like, completely. I didn't even discover Springsteen until I heard their version of "Rain King" that includes 2/3s of "Thunder Road" and said to myself, "I am really missing whatever that other song was..." So much love for the Crows, and here's to hoping Adam can un-douchebag himself someday. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
bsr8j Posted October 4, 2009 Share Posted October 4, 2009 I've always been partial to their double live album "Live Across a Wire" which came out between "Recovering the Satellites" and "This Desert Life". I'm particularly fond of the first disc in that set which is of their MTV (or was it VH1?) Unplugged performance. (The second disc is an MTV Live at the 10 Spot performance.) As far as studio albums go, I've got them all but I think "Recovering the Satellites" is their best, followed closely by "August and Everything After." I've liked all their following studio albums in varying degrees, and I've never disliked an album. I remember really liking "Hard Candy" when it was released, and I think there are always two to three really good songs on their albums. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jimtweedy1977 Posted October 5, 2009 Share Posted October 5, 2009 The first two albums were classic albums and I know I listened to August and Everything After over and over. I think it would be interesting to see a joint Counting Crows/Ryan Adams tour. I know Adam and Ryan were buddies at one time for sure, but who knows these days. I'd see it if they did it. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
bleedorange Posted October 5, 2009 Share Posted October 5, 2009 I've always been partial to their double live album "Live Across a Wire" which came out between "Recovering the Satellites" and "This Desert Life". I'm particularly fond of the first disc in that set which is of their MTV (or was it VH1?) Unplugged performance. (The second disc is an MTV Live at the 10 Spot performance.) As far as studio albums go, I've got them all but I think "Recovering the Satellites" is their best, followed closely by "August and Everything After." I've liked all their following studio albums in varying degrees, and I've never disliked an album. I remember really liking "Hard Candy" when it was released, and I think there are always two to three really good songs on their albums. Yeah, Across a Wire is great and they are definitely a great live band. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
nodep5 Posted October 5, 2009 Share Posted October 5, 2009 I always thought (especially during their peak) that they were a really good mainstream band. The first two albums are essential in my mind. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
The High Heat Posted October 5, 2009 Share Posted October 5, 2009 "Omaha" is played during warmups, right before the national anthem, at every home game of the East Carolina University baseball team. Omaha, Nebraska and the College World Series, of course, being the goal of every top collegiate baseball program. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Kim Bodnia Posted February 9, 2012 Share Posted February 9, 2012 New album just announced, appears April 10th. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Wild Frank Posted February 9, 2012 Author Share Posted February 9, 2012 New album just announced, appears April 10th. I might take a punt on this. After the other thread I'm feeling kind of nostalgic for the nineties. Counting Crows were mainstream rock...in a good way. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
people are leaving Posted February 9, 2012 Share Posted February 9, 2012 It's a record of covers, mostly of bands they were all in as they grew up in the rock n roll scene. So, mostly unknown songs. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jcroach Posted February 9, 2012 Share Posted February 9, 2012 (edited) It's a record of covers, mostly of bands they were all in as they grew up in the rock n roll scene. So, mostly unknown songs. Here's the track list. Looking forward to hearing their take on that Dawes track. 1. "Untitled (Love Song)" by The Romany Rye2. "Start Again" by Teenage Fanclub3. "Hospital" by Coby Brown4. "Mercy" by Tender Mercies5. "Meet On The Ledge" by Fairport Convention6. "Like Teenage Gravity" by Kasey Anderson & The Honkies7. "Amie" by Pure Prairie League8. "Coming Around" by Travis9. "Ooh La La" by The Faces10. "All My Failures" by Dawes11. "Return of the Grievous Angel" by Gram Parsons12. "Four White Stallions" by Tender Mercies13. "Jumping Jesus" by Sordid Humor14. "You Ain't Going Nowhere" by Bob Dylan15. "The Ballad of El Goodo" by Big Star EDIT: I can't believe I used the wrong form of their! One of biggest spelling pet peeves. Edited February 10, 2012 by jcroach Quote Link to post Share on other sites
people are leaving Posted February 9, 2012 Share Posted February 9, 2012 Here's the track list. Looking forward to hearing there take on that Dawes track. 1. "Untitled (Love Song)" by The Romany Rye2. "Start Again" by Teenage Fanclub3. "Hospital" by Coby Brown4. "Mercy" by Tender Mercies5. "Meet On The Ledge" by Fairport Convention6. "Like Teenage Gravity" by Kasey Anderson & The Honkies7. "Amie" by Pure Prairie League8. "Coming Around" by Travis9. "Ooh La La" by The Faces10. "All My Failures" by Dawes11. "Return of the Grievous Angel" by Gram Parsons12. "Four White Stallions" by Tender Mercies13. "Jumping Jesus" by Sordid Humor14. "You Ain't Going Nowhere" by Bob Dylan15. "The Ballad of El Goodo" by Big Star Of older bands they were in, they've apparently pared it down to Tender Mercies and Sordid Humor. The rest, they went with all the "big guns" so to speak. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Kim Bodnia Posted February 9, 2012 Share Posted February 9, 2012 It's a record of covers, mostly of bands they were all in as they grew up in the rock n roll scene. So, mostly unknown songs. I first had the impression that it was an album of brand new songs, but even if it's only covers I'm going to be among the first in line to buy it. (And it's very unlikely that there are any lines in these days of sluggish CD sales The excitement of a new record is no longer provided by other bands like R.E.M., so there's the Counting Crows to fill the void, plus they're also touring, I should catch one of their shows before it's too late, before they get too old and decide to stop touring or making records altogether. I should mention that I have all of their records. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
welch79 Posted February 10, 2012 Share Posted February 10, 2012 funny that i'm reading this post after i just posted about them in the 90s nostalgia thread. they were most definitely a fav band of mine...my buddy and i traveled the southeast to see them (although i was not a fan of adam's meandering delivery in live sets). i bought "recovering" on cassette on a whim at a k-mart (go figure) and fell head over heels in love with them. devoured that album and went backwards to "august" which is as strong or stronger. nothing recalls my freshman year of college like those two bands do, i'll mention. i also have much love for mrs. potter's lullaby, but that album, as a whole, was a disappointment for me, as was much of what was released after this desert life. i think i just outgrew them, but i still put on "august" fairly regularly. knowing quite a bit of their output...several of those songs listed as being released on this upcoming covers album have been around for a long time. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
bleedorange Posted February 10, 2012 Share Posted February 10, 2012 Nothing after This Desert Life is very good. The news of this album is disappointing since it consists of covers. After their last subpar release, I was hoping for a new album that might be worth listening to. But they're probably incapable of that now, unfortunately. I still stand by Recovering the Satellites as their best and one of my favorites from the '90s. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Shug Posted February 10, 2012 Share Posted February 10, 2012 and here's to hoping Adam can un-douchebag himself someday. You nailed what ruins the Counting Crows for me. What a complainer. I love a wallowing, self-indulgent sad song as much as anybody, but Duritz takes it waaaay past just the song in his stage banter and on-line arguments with fans that he often gets into. If he'd shut the hell up on stage and just sing the songs, they'd be a lot better. That may sound harsh, but its frickin' true. Dave Immergluck is the musical hero of the band, and I love his playing, but even he's been an arrogant prick when I've met him. Sometimes its better to not know too much about the personalities and personal lives of musicians in the bands I like. I like alot of their songs and I think Hard Candy is one of their better albums (Goodnight LA, Up All Night, Miami, Holiday In Spain, Richard Manuel Is Dead are highlights, but its pretty solid all the way through with good songwriting and arrangements, IMO). I know they recorded about 30 songs when they were making Hard Candy, many of them covers. I always wished they'd release some of these covers, so I'm glad its finally happening. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
daranih Posted February 10, 2012 Share Posted February 10, 2012 I've heard some of the covers back from the Shim Shams shows in New Orleans. they are incredible. I for one am actually pretty excited for this Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Kim Bodnia Posted February 10, 2012 Share Posted February 10, 2012 During the heyday of the Crows' popularity (the early to mid-nineties) I was a happier person, which is why I strongly identify with their music (that of their contemporaries, The Wallflowers as well, but for some reason not Dave Matthews nor Matchbox Twenty nor Gin Blossoms). While Mr Jones was the hit repeatedly played on radio, the song that immediately and permanently connected me to them was a slow ballad called ¨Round Here¨. Personally, I think that their best songs are: 1) Round Here, 2) Ms. Potters Lullaby and 3) A Long December. It is true that after Desert Life the quality of their output suffered, hitting a low with Hard Candy (although this one still has one of their best songs, Miami while Goodnight L.A. is another favourite). I think it was the personal issues in Adam Duritz' life which explain their decline. The last album Saturday Nights and Sunday Mornings wasn´t that bad and showed their reaching of middle age. I used to participate in another forum where people won´t discuss the Counting Crows and dismiss them outrightly. While I don´t expect everybody to like them I do expect that at least there´s respect and understanding of other people´s music choices. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Kim Bodnia Posted February 18, 2012 Share Posted February 18, 2012 Counting Crows to headline SXSW show http://sxsw.com/node/10196 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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