I love this band. I;ve got all their albums and still they blow me away whenever i listen to them. Beautifally crafted music, (no incessent shouting/rapping), quiet introspective lyrics, achingly delicate arrangments of guitar, strings and drums. Adam Duritz sounds like every lyric means something to him and you feel like your actual getting to know him as he sings.
People talk about Coldplay but these guys have been doing it for longer and IMHO at a far better, and more consistent level. Here in Britain there hardly known of at all. I know there are many people who do listen to them, but the majority would never have heard of them.
Just felt I would share this thought with the net. Feel free to add your own thoughts or bands.
This is 100% IMHO so take no offense. I’ve never minded the Counting Crows, but for me Adam Duritz is to whiney. (This may have something to do with the fact that at my work they listen to the local top 40 staion. Currently I’m listing to Big Yellow Taxi redone by CC about 5 times a day). Anyways, I wouldn’t care to listen to more then a song or two in a row, I think it would get to me. OTOH give me the BLACK Crowes…(especially with Jimmy Page).
I feel that way about REM; to me, they’re just so musically creative and varied. I’m not saying I love every single one of their songs, but up until about the album New Adventures in Hi-Fi each one of their albums had a different sound to it.
Jeff Buckley.
He has unfortunately passed on (drowned in the Mississippi) but he was a modern day bard. The CD of his to get first would be Grace. Talk about soulful lyrics and divine musical composition, this CD can be felt in every fiber of my being. No whine, no rapping, no note too much or not enough. He will always be my absolute favorite singer/musician. There are a few CD’s of his out there but Grace is my most beloved. If you enjoy true musical passion and creativity, I’d suggest giving Jeff a listen.
Grace is a great CD, took some warming up to. Especially songs like Haleluja (sp, I’m sure). Jimmy Page/Black Crowes (ZoCrowes) is a GREAT CD if you like Led Zeppelin. The concert was absolutly fantastic. Wheather he was doing it on purpose or not, he acted and sang just like Robert Plant when Robert Plant was his age, and Jimmy hasn’t lost his touch at all. I would go see that concert again in a second. (Same with Bowie)
While at Indiana University I had some friends that worked in the ticket office, so I could get choice seats for pretty much whatever I wanted. I am not a super big fan of Counting Crows, but I haven’t seen them before and I really liked their first couple albums so I went. It was a really good show. They were aboug 20 minutes late coming on, and during that time I saw the attendants running around looking horrified and nearly all of the people in the pit (directly under the stage) had to shuffle their seats. I found out afterwords that he threw a hissy because the pit wasn’t full of attractive young females. He made them get all of the tickets for the pit so he could hand them out and he threatened not to go on if he didn’t get them. So they bump all the people in the pit and give him the tickets. It didn’t turn out to be a big deal because most were members of the group that books the ‘talent’. Then he threw another hissy because they weren’t in order. There were some other things like he had to have a specific kind of furniture in a specific layout in his dressing room and there was something else involving fresh fruit, too. I know celebrities can make requests and all, but he seems to be really out there. Needless to say, he will not be playing at IU again.
But it was still a good show.
Strange, I feel as if I’m in caught in some strange mid-90s time warp. (Hey everyone, check out this great new band, Dog’s Eye View! They’ll be around forever! )
Not to hijack this into a Jeff Buckley thread, but I just found a copy of Songs for No One: 1991-1992 at a local going-out-of-business sale for nine bucks. There are some very raw, passionate songs on that album, including a couple of early versions of “Grace.” Cool stuff.
From my cold dead hands, you will. You wouldn’t believe the amounts of $6.99 Meredith Brooks albums I had to go through before I found something worthwhile. I felt so dirty.
(walks away, humming a rare version of “Hymne à l’Amour” just to watch Spider gritting her teeth)
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