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E24: Oneness Tour (2024) Reviews and Updates
284 Plays3 months ago
Join us as we discuss all things "Oneness Tour" and give you the inside information about the Counting Crows 2024 Concert Season.
In particular, Chris and Geoff talk about their experiences in NYC (July 11, 2024) and Iowa (August 2).
We also officially declare that from this year forward, August 1st be referred to as "Counting Crows Day"
Geoff's Youtube Channel (which includes 3 videos of the Iowa show) :
https://www.youtube.com/@GHArchives/videos
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Transcript
Introduction to Episode 24
00:00:16
Speaker
Welcome to episode 24 of Sullivan Street. I am Eric Vogelsang.
Overview of the 2024 Good Timing Tour
00:00:20
Speaker
We're going to get all into the 2024 Good Timing ah Tour by Count and Crows. But first, let's say hi to the two co-hosts of today who have seen them this tour and that's why they're here. First, we'll say hi to Chris. Chris, good afternoon.
Guests Chris and Jeff Join the Discussion
00:00:37
Speaker
Hey, well, I think you'd have me here anyway as a co-op. Maybe, maybe, maybe. I've got one up on you, but you'd have me anyway. That's true. I know you've been excited because there was part of me that said, oh, let's wait until they finish the entire tour. You're like, no, I have great observations. The fans want to know. The tour's not over yet. Let's do it. I got so much shit to say about the Central Park show. Yeah, we'll get into it. I have a couple of soliloquies.
00:01:01
Speaker
And semi-regular guest, Jeff Harkness, the writer and author of the Rain King book, Jeff, Welcome Back, who also saw them, what, last week it was?
Recap of Counting Crows Tour Experiences
00:01:12
Speaker
One week ago, yeah. Yeah, one week ago today. So we can't wait to hear about that. So basically, we're going to have the two of them recap their their experiences and, of course, just their overall observations of the tour. Chris saw them, the New York Central Park show, July 11th. Jeff saw them in Iowa. jeff Jeff has been cornering the Midwest market, which I love because I've been seeing the West Coast shows, Chris on the East Coast. And even though Jeff does not live in the middle, he's like, I'm traveling to the Midwest for the Sullivan Street podcast, which I love. And I'm a correspondent um of the Midwest correspondent. ah And yeah, so somewhere in middle America, somewhere in middle America, not to duck those expenses, though, as your tax adviser, Jeff, I just want you to know,
00:01:55
Speaker
I don't think I don't think you can. I've been so so advised, so advised. thank you Officially, at least if my math is correct, they had 39 shows as part of this tour broadly, ah which include mostly, of course, opening ah for Santana, which was interesting. in itself And it's often we've discussed that a little bit. ah That was, I think, 27 of the 39 shows and seven. They are headlining.
00:02:21
Speaker
and the other three shows as part of festivals. ah Currently they're in their week off and the rest except for two at the end, ah one that I'm going to see in a couple of weeks in Orange County and then they're at a festival. And the last thing I'm going to say before passing it off to Chris and Jeff is that the stats overall appear um maybe not as different as I thought, but when they're opening for Santana playing about 13 songs and when they're headlining about 19 songs.
00:02:48
Speaker
so Yeah, we're about two thirds of the way through the tour, so we're a pretty good chunk of the way there.
Band Lineup Changes and Challenges
00:02:57
Speaker
A couple of interesting things so far. First of all, this has been, and it's kind of hard if you're just kind of like listening to the shows necessarily, but you pick up little details. There's been a lot of like weird turmoil in the band, not in any sort of negative way, but they opened the tour without Emmy, who missed the first week of shows for undisclosed reasons.
00:03:17
Speaker
ah They had to cancel a show the first week. It seems because both Dan and Charlie got sick. um So they then played a show. um This was the show with Dan Eisenberg where they had brought him in just in case because um they were worried Charlie wasn't going to be able to play and they didn't want to cancel any more shows. They then played some shows, they then played those shows with Dan and Charlie, but then with back, Emmy was back, but no Dan.
00:03:42
Speaker
other Dan Vickrey, no Dan Vickrey, but with Dan Eisenberg. Should we also give a quick quick teaser because our next episode is going to be an interview with Dan?
Preview of Dan Eisenberg Interview
00:03:52
Speaker
We will. that So the next episode that is recorded with Dan Eisenberg, organ and keyboard player extraordinaire, um about doing that show with the Crows and also his very, very long history.
00:04:05
Speaker
with the band. um what Spoiler, we we learned some a few things about how some of the relationships in the band even like came together through Dan going back 40
Sound Variations and Tour Challenges
00:04:16
Speaker
years now. So it's a it's a really fun episode. I think I'm very excited for everyone to hear it. um But so yeah, so we had ah Dan flew off then there was another one or two shows with Immy, but no Dan Vickery, which is interesting part of the interesting things. Obviously, you hear little differences and in sort of the sound and things like that. But even just um Adam saying, um to to hey, Immy, why not in Big Yellow Taxi? You'll notice those little things. Because Adam's still like, I'm going to call someone out in Big Yellow Taxi. But Vickery is not here. I can't do it. So I got to call. um And then recently, apparently Charlie hurt his finger.
00:04:52
Speaker
So he was playing, he's calling him Charlie Nine Fingers Gillingham. So it's been a weird summer for the band it seems. They also had incredible travel difficulties just getting to the first show. So they had apparently no, according to Adam, at least in the, during the, listening to the first show bootleg, they had no Um, like rehearsal with all the setups. So they've been, it's been kind of a crazy summer, which is kind of an interesting thing. Just, just generally that they're, they're going. Did you also mention, was it one of the more recent shows that got cut short for the rain? Yeah. Lightning last show. The last show they played as we speak was at the Basilica block party in Minneapolis. And that was caught after rain King, ironically enough.
00:05:33
Speaker
Because of rain so that's I don't know why I didn't catch that but yeah. Oh, that's me So it's been kind of a, we they've been out there, it's been an interesting summer, notably, right? They're playing, most of the shows have been openers for Santana where they're playing a set that's about 70 minutes. um In terms of the number of songs, they're therere total for this summer. um They are a bit lower than they've been over the last few summers. I would imagine some of that is playing the,
00:06:05
Speaker
um Those shows, you know they just need less songs in the rotation. um But let me i mean pull it up. The number of songs played this summer, they're only at about 30. It's a little always a little hard on setlist.fm because some things get doubled up because of the alls and things like that. But right about 30. Most summers over the last 10 years, they've been in the range of about 50. There were a couple of summers, 2012, 2013, where they were up a bit higher.
00:06:36
Speaker
um You have to go back for them to be even in this range. 2006, which was a year they toured with Google Dolls and were doing only kind of like 80 minute sets. And 2004, which is a year where they were doing some headlining shows, but they played
Performance Highlights and Setlist Variety
00:06:49
Speaker
a lot of festivals. That was kind of ah also kind of a weird tour.
00:06:52
Speaker
um So they are playing fewer songs but interestingly we are seeing some more variation and some alts and things in the songs they've been playing much more so than the last couple of summers. Jeff and I will get into um when we talk about the shows that we saw but we definitely some some more variety on that front which is interesting to see.
00:07:13
Speaker
Chris, can you remind me if the shows have been on nugs? They're all on nugs. Most of them, there's ah like four shows missing, ah Red Rocks, the two Red Rock shows are missing, and PNC and Jones Beach are missing. Otherwise, you can listen to the entire tour. And also, there's might have been a festival at the beginning pre-tour that's also missing. But starting with the One Miss tour, the beginning of that tour, you can listen to pretty much everything.
00:07:37
Speaker
So like bacillo the Basilica block party, did you actually hear that? did he did Is like the last words like, why don't you come in out from the rain? And then they really had to come in out from the rain? No, literally, they were like, um hey, we we're sorry, we got to go. And they're like, yes, please leave now. There is lightning coming in the area. Please be safe. And like the boot let the tape ends with but the like the announced instead of California dreaming ah coming out, it's a man over the loudspeakers going, please be safe and drive. but That's pretty funny, but that still is Counting Crow's history about them ending with Rain King and the Lightning. so Yeah, they opened. There's one show that was badly affected by rain in Vermont when one of the headlining shows, and they opened with Rain King as one as they ought because they had a crap ton of rain.
00:08:26
Speaker
to do that, but um it's been, I don't know, it's listening to the shows, I will say this, as ah as a listener and someone who's not touring around with them, the one upside to I think like the 70 minute shows is that they're very digestible.
00:08:41
Speaker
I can throw one on. it's like By the end of my commute, most of it's over. I might listen to the other couple songs of my workday. It's very easy. Obviously, when I attend a show, I'd prefer for them to be playing longer. There have been a lot of reports from from fans saying they want to get up and dance during the Santana show and people are yelling at them, which I'm always, I'm a, I'm a big believer that like, you got to follow the crowd, but also if it's the opener and you are there to, you know, let someone dance during the opener, right? Like, uh, you know.
00:09:16
Speaker
I had no problem of people getting pumped up last year to dashboard confessional like you can, you know, that they went, they went. Yeah. So have fun. Yeah. You, you're here to see dashboard sing dance. If I'm bothered by it, I'm, I'm capable of standing up and seeing over you. Um, go have, go have some fun. Um, and I dunno, I mean, you were at a standing show, but I was also, we were at like, we were at headlining shows where we were, they were, they were standing room only. me Right. So we, we didn't have that issue this summer.
00:09:47
Speaker
Yeah, right. Now, I think to me, one of the things that's great about this summer is the pairing with Santana. I think that the Can-Crows sometimes um have paired with bands that I think are maybe not of their caliber. And I won't mention which ones I think those are, but you know yeah everybody would probably could pick pick one or two. And to me, the the pairing of them with Santana is just really um and
00:10:18
Speaker
that's That's an artist of their caliber. I think Santana's a legend. He played at Woodstock. And he's got a hardcore audience that will you know go to see him at these big venues. And many of those fans have probably never seen Counting Crows before. And I think that their their set list this summer has been designed you know to appeal to those fans, to show them what Counting Crows can do, and also to showcase Adam as a songwriter and as a performer.
00:10:45
Speaker
And I think they're being exposed to a whole new fan, you know, fan base that's never seen them before and probably is, I mean, I've seen some of the comments online, just people who are like, wow, that was incredible. I've never never seen Counting Crows before and now I'm a huge fan. So um I really think that it's been a ah nice pairing. I also appreciated how they opened with a different song every at the beginning of the tour, it was like, I don't know, they went five, six, seven shows opening with a different song each night. And I was i was always just curious to like, oh, what did they get to come up with tonight ah before they hit a repeat? So that that was fun. I felt like they, you know, even though that the songs haven't been varied, I think that they've been playing things like Friend of the Devil,
00:11:27
Speaker
um so you know songs like that that really appeal Big Yellow Taxi, those songs that would really appeal to the Santana fans too. Those songs are beloved by Santana's fanbase, so I think those choices are very intentional and doing it in the acoustic. it's Like you said, I really think that it's been a ah good ah good and inspired pairing. What I would have loved to have seen, I know that the percussionists from Santana's been out ah to play with them for hanging around, but I would just love to see, you know, a real collaboration there between these great bay Bay Area artists. Those are really good. I think it's only a couple versions so far, at least that are on NUGS.
00:12:05
Speaker
um But the the versions of sin of hanging around with Santana's percussionist are quite good. He is is excellent and it really adds an interesting element to that song. Which again, that song is one of those songs that can get kind of samey and like you hear it and you're like, okay, I have a bird hanging around. But he's really turning it up. Actually, one thing I like to your point, they they have buried the set list a little bit. Well, yeah, you see, look, are they playing around here every night? Yes. but like they took, they've taken the opportunity to cut out some of the stuff at the end at times and go like, hey, I'm not going to do, we're not going to do holiday in Spain tonight, or we're going to do and kind of structure things a little bit in play around with it from night to night. um It's not huge, huge variety, obviously, in that regard. But I've liked that because, again, i I don't like when you kind of get into, OK, I know that if we're getting to the one and they're going to play long December and I know.
00:12:56
Speaker
And that that actually has been less of the case with the Santana shows. And I think even with their headlining shows where they're they're playing that end stretch pretty much the same way. um Yeah, jeff if you make some good points, I don't i don't want to. This seems like a discussion we've already had. It might have been off the off the podcast. I forget about them opening for Santana. But I i agree with you. And I think what I think hopefully some of the hardcore fans realize is that they were flirting with the idea of of not touring at all this year.
00:13:25
Speaker
It right that he just kinda wanted to break to this and and i think they're like okay this way there's a lot of advantages one like you said exposes them to if you haven't realized that by now. Adam likes changing up.
00:13:39
Speaker
the tour and I don't mean the songs, I mean like sometimes they like to do that right where they were changing people in and out. um Sometimes they like playing smaller venues, larger venues, right, want to play with their friends and why they want to tour in Europe and I think he, they hadn't been the um opening band and I don't know the last time, especially for a tour. Probably since the Matchbox 20 tour in 2017, it was probably the last time they were kind of the co-headliner. Co-headliner.
00:14:05
Speaker
Yeah, and where they were basically the official opener. i I don't know when the last one was. So and yeah, so I think I think anyway, so I think you made some good points here. I think you know, yeah I think I do think when you when you break it down, a lot of what it comes back to is that Santana as the headliner drives a ticket price that I think is can be difficult for some people, right? They're like, I want to be front row for Counting Crows. I don't I may I may enjoy Santana, but I'm paying 50% more for a ticket for a shorter Counting Crow show. And so I think a lot of it comes back to that. And sometimes a lot of people get, I don't know, there's like an anger, I think that comes out that sort of separate from that about others. Oh, they're not that great. And it's like, no, Santana's weird.
00:14:50
Speaker
Great band. um I know they don't have to be your taste. I think, though, it's it's the idea of feeling the need to pay that price. You're like, I would have much rather paid, you know, a $90 ticket to see Just Counting Crows as opposed to paying $300 to see them play less time with Santana. I think that's where a lot of it comes from. yeah no and i um Yeah, and I think I might have said this before, but in in a couple instances, certainly the ones I know not every show, but the one that is in Los Angeles, which I'm not going to, they're playing in the um in the Kia Forum, I think. And is there some of these big arenas that they would not be playing um if it was just it just goes. And by the way, just to tell the audience, we definitely are hypocrites as we're showing about the opening of them as opening band. And there's only seven times they're headlining. And those are three of the shows that we saw or when they're those are very lucky with that, I think. that's yeah
00:15:38
Speaker
kind of, yeah, it just worked out that way. It worked out. um Because yeah, I'm with I also I definitely felt that of like, okay, if I can see them headlining, to go pay that much more to go see them with Santana for a shorter set did feel to me like, and I would have done it if they hadn't been a show near me, I think I would have I had a long thought about how much I was going to spend on tickets and where I was going to get them and what do I was going to do there. And they announced the Central Park show and it solved all my problems. So, you know, I live a blessed life. What can I say?
00:16:08
Speaker
Yeah, I think it it just kind of. I'm with you, again, we all we all love the band and we all want to see more of them, right? So I think that's where a lot of it comes from. Adam has been very effusive in the sets, talking about how he, much he respects Santana, how he like camped out on the streets of Berkeley to try to get close to see them back in the day and how just, abusive. So that's part of it too, I do think is like, he yeah they're having fun doing this and they're getting paid to have fun. So like I can't imagine they're upset about it. you
00:16:42
Speaker
yeah ah Jeff, did you I know you're both going to talk about your experiences more. I just hit me that I wanted to hear a little bit about the one thing that separates ah your story from Chris is that you paid the premium to to to to see the sound check. um how much How much did that run? That's public knowledge unless you bought it off off the off the you know in the streets or something like that. ah and but Do you remember?
00:17:11
Speaker
if it It was about i three maybe $3.40 with all the fees and everything. and with and and and And that's also ticket to the show as well. yeah A GA ticket, yeah yeah. And so Jeff, ah yeah just talk a little bit about ah watching them at the soundcheck. And of course, if people don't remember, which maybe one or two people do, when you when we originally had you on the podcast to plug your book, ah you talked about how you actually saw a soundcheck last year. And during that time, ah you got to hand copies of your book to the band.
00:17:44
Speaker
and you had even a brief interaction with Adam, which was kind of cool. um so Anyway, I don't know how it compares to that. but Right. Well, it's hard to compare to that. I actually did last year, I saw two soundtracks. I went to the soundcheck in Vegas too, which was really fun. and I talked to Adam at that soundcheck a little bit, asked him a couple of questions and some points of clarification.
00:18:10
Speaker
you know these nerdy counting crows questions was that before that was after that was the second set that was yeah that was the second time did you think he remembered you could like how much of a difference like in time was it between the two shows and did he actually remember you cuz i mean you were just once okay okay but did i remember you your face you think because you actually talk to him about your book it's not just you were some random fan I feel like, no, I feel like Adam probably meets a lot of people in, you know, coming in and out, shaking his hand and, you know, taking pictures and asking him for autographs and all that kind of stuff. And I was just another person who had a few minute, you know, little interaction with him. So no, I don't think he would remember me at all. But but he's, ah you know, it's these these have been very fun and interesting encounters.
Soundcheck Practices and Personal Touches
00:18:57
Speaker
It's always really interesting to see
00:18:59
Speaker
abandoned you know do a sound check. So at this one let's see it was it was we we got in they they always do every time I've seen them do the sound checks they always do start again. And the reason that they do that is that everybody sings on that song so they can test all the mics.
00:19:17
Speaker
So this is why for those who go to the sound checks, you probably always hear that as the first song because they're trying to check everybody's levels on everybody's mic, make sure that everybody who sings, they can check those out. So how many how many people were at your sound check? I've always found that interesting too.
00:19:34
Speaker
um the This one probably 20 maybe? Something like that. the The biggest one was Vegas and the smallest one by far was last year in Omaha. There might have been seven of us there. It's very small, which was cool. But they've ah they've always been good. so um I want to say some little anecdotes. Somebody called for Michelangelo. And one of the reasons that I guess they do that is, again, it allows them, enables them to test certain instruments. This is what they're trying to do. So somebody calls for that. ah Jim, the drummer, says, can we do something else or something along those lines? like guy I think he says, I got anything new or got anything different or something. say He asks for something new. And then somebody says, how about highlight? And I'm like, going yes, yes, yes, highlight.
00:20:22
Speaker
Um, so indeed they do, uh, they sound check high life, which of course, you know, does it get better than that? No. And actually a great version. Um, really nice version. I should mention also that Adam did come out and talk to us. Um,
00:20:38
Speaker
Asked you know, hey, how's it going? He mentioned that he was excited to be in Des Moines because his nephew goes to college at Drake University. I think it's Drake Drake Drake. He said one of the one of the one of the one of the universities there.
00:20:53
Speaker
um And so he was excited to that his nephew was going to come to the show and and be there that night. So he seemed like he was in a good mood. High Life, I posted the video online. You can you could check it out. I thought his voice sounded particularly good. He was in really good voice. ah So that was fun. and then um Then they did ah God of Ocean Tides also. Soundcheck did that, which yeah again, incredible. Love it. one of my One of my favorites. And I don't know if I've seen them do that before. So I was, I was excited. They have not played that on stage all summer.
00:21:31
Speaker
They've done it, and I think it's a couple of times in Soundcheck, people had said, but i they have not played that on in and a show the entire summer. it was Yeah. So it was on the set list. both these Both of those songs were on the set list, the Des Moines set list. Neither of them ended up getting played, which is crazy. So I was excited to have gotten to see those at the Soundcheck because they were both really, really good versions.
00:21:53
Speaker
And they didn't end up playing them that night. So that was that was very fun. And then they did like a, I want to say just we're testing ah holiday in Spain. So they did like, let's start it from the you know second verse or the third verse or something. And Jim said something like, and then they were just like, yeah, yeah, that's fine. We got it. They didn't do a full version of it. It was like a partial kind of like just to check some some different things. And then they're like, yeah, yeah, that's fine. So then Jim says,
00:22:22
Speaker
Well, just like our our shows, we're ending our sound check with Holiday in Spain.
00:22:29
Speaker
So thank you very much. And you know he says his little like, we know that you have a choice when it comes to sound checks, and we always appreciate you coming. and spending time with the county crows. you know So he's always very funny. And um and then as as Emmy's walking out, he said he says to us, hey, high life, not bad, or something like that. It's all right. you know High life, all right. you know So that that was a nice moment. That's pretty funny, because the people that would pay for the sound check, i mean unless you're just rich and bored, would actually want to hear some of those, quote unquote, deeper cuts. So yeah. Oh, yeah. Emmy made a good point there. When you said that,
00:23:06
Speaker
like somebody yelled out Michelangelo. Did you mean somebody in the band or somebody in the fans or somebody working like the the tour group or whatever? Yeah, somebody I know it was like somebody on in ah probably in the band. Okay, I would say Michelangelo and and I I'm yeah, right. And so it was Jim. He said, Yeah, can we do something different or something? Something new? Well, Jim's gonna play a book in that song. Maybe he's just doesn't you maybe just didn't feel like getting the book out.
00:23:32
Speaker
Well, and I was going to say, maybe I may might have the order wrong, too. I'd have to look to make sure um that I had the order right. But I know that, for sure, it was it was Michelangelo and Jim who was like, oh, let's try something else. And I think that's where they ended up doing High Life.
00:23:48
Speaker
Yeah, well, that's cool. you You know, it's funny in all your um sound checks. I don't know if you've done more than the three that you just mentioned, but you said there is interaction um with the audience because I don't think that's always the case. I know that when I saw them in Madison, now that was a little different, though, because we did get to have a photo with them and I got to say two sentences. So I guess you call it an interaction.
00:24:07
Speaker
but um But they did not interact with the soundcheck audience at at all during the soundcheck. In fact, I think Adam had his back, but everybody was very nice ah during the photo thing. um did you Did you actually say anything to them this time? Or did you say, hey, it's ah it's Jeff from the Ring King book again, remember me? Or did you ask another question? No, no, no. Honestly, I feel like, you know,
00:24:33
Speaker
Adam's working. He's he busy. They're up here trying to do stuff. This is not a time, you know, for me to step in and hey, you know, and yeah was just what if I mean, if if it hadn't been possible, you know, certainly, but no, I don't want to be intrusive, especially when they're they're they're trying to get their stuff done.
00:24:52
Speaker
yeah So, ah no, there there like at the first one, I had quite a lot of interaction with him. You can go back and listen to the the podcast where I tell the story. At the second one, also though, there was a lot of interaction. I believe he even said, yeah, he did. At the second one, kind of like the first one, he said, does anybody have any questions? And so people started asking questions and I asked questions at that second one too. ah But at this one, he didn't really open it up like that. and um I don't know. it just it didn't seem I want to interrupt. i'm like and Let the band work. Yeah, no, I was just wondering. and In a way, that kind of makes sense because the photo thing, even though everybody only says one or two sentences to the band, you get a quick photo and that's it. Overall, if 20 people are there, that that photo thing probably takes longer than working the crowd for five minutes or whatever. so yeah yeah
00:25:43
Speaker
yeah um Anyway, I don't want to stop the show either of you, Chris, or do you want to lead the way? or well yeah what's up what's what i guess i but I'm curious, Jeff, how was how was what's the venue? It was the the Vibrant Music Hall. That's a great name. Yes. Was it Vibrant? How was it? It's a new place and it was okay. It's just basically a giant sort of basketball-sized venue that with no seats and you know bars and you know on the on the outside.
00:26:11
Speaker
of it, and then upstairs in the balcony, there are some seats, maybe a few rows of seats, like balcony-style seats, in the back and on the sides as well. And and probably, I mean, there might have been seating for a couple hundred up in the, in the you know, balconies. But, yeah, that otherwise, just, not you know, pretty nondescript. I mean, it was fine. One thing was that I was, for this show, because it was general admission,
00:26:39
Speaker
um I got pretty close. I probably got fourth row ah and right over on um ah you know next to where Emmy plays and Dave play together. So probably close to those guys about four rows back and got to see the show really close.
00:26:59
Speaker
And I've seen them i've seen them you know like front row center, and I've seen them from you know well all the way in the back. The the shows that I saw last year, ah one of them, I was in that crows nest thing on the side of the stage, which was close. But you're also seeing them kind of from a weird angle. So it it wasn't necessarily the greatest vantage point, although an interesting one.
00:27:23
Speaker
uh in vegas i was pretty far back but in this one i was very close and i kind of forgot it's been a while since i've seen this band that close and it's really yeah i can see why some people never want to see them any other way because you it's really worth experiencing them up close to see what a performer atom is you don't you don't get the nuance from um You know fifty rows back you just really don't as as yeah good as the shows all are so that was fun to see them that proximity. Yeah i so I saw them Central Park which is one of my favorite venues um yeah the Central Park summer stage is basically like.
Central Park Performance Reflections
00:28:02
Speaker
It's like it's concert venue surrounded by trees in like the middle of the park. So it's very beautiful. It is kind of an odd venue a little bit. They built a lot of seating at and the back and around the sides. They built all these various like balcony type areas. um And then it's kind of a wide venue. So you kind of have to be a little bit careful. I got there. I i wanted to go to soundtrack, but I had some families up. It was very, very important. They need to take care of during the day.
00:28:27
Speaker
I could not guarantee that I would be there. And in fact, I got there during the middle of the opening band. um But I was able, because it's kind of a big general admission thing, I just kind of went to the soundboard. And then after the opening band, I just kind of walked forward as far as I could. I got to probably like 10, 15 rows back, which was kind of interesting. I've obviously, like you, I've seen them closer.
00:28:49
Speaker
um But this was good because I was able to get myself kind of like dead center to Adam, which I think is also a really good way to take in the band and really kind of like feel what he's doing, right? like Because he's always kind of projecting out and he's moving around a bit obviously, but you kind of want to be in his like line of vision a little bit. Because then I feel like that that it kind of takes everything and I'll talk more about that in a sec because I had a moment during round here, um but it was like a very, it was that worked out very nicely, especially given that I couldn't get there. I really wanted to get there early and I was just, I was looking, I'm like, I just have to, I'm going to have to accept that I'm going to get there when I get there tonight. It's one of those days where, but regardless, sometimes life does get in the way of being in the front row with The Counting Crow Show, but I got to The Counting Crow Show. So that's, you know, it's all that really matters.
00:29:40
Speaker
um So I think what we're gonna do um maybe is is I've got both set lists up and it's, I think we can kind of talk about them kind of side by side a little bit because we're gonna hit some sections where things are the same, but um I'll start with mine. So mine, they opened with Sullivan Street, um which no one will ever, no one can disprove is not a nod to us. You'll never disprove that.
00:30:07
Speaker
Yeah, and I probably never prove it either. But you know, because I think both of us last year Sullivan Street opened for one of the shows that also. Yeah, you know, I'm just saying, you know, here's.
00:30:21
Speaker
They did an alt in that, which is interesting that they've done a one or two other times this summer. um It's basically the runaway girl alt, but this is the first time they've done it where Adam sang, does she run around? um And it was really interesting because the rest of the band wasn't joining in. By the time, if you go back to 2004, 05, 06, 07, when they were doing that alt, it was really like a whole band sing-along, but this was just Adam. And it did feel like he was kind of feeling towards it. emy He'd kind of turned towards Emmy And Emmy was kind of playing along, trying to follow him and figure out what he, but the kind of the way to take it. um But I thought it was a good alt. I was, A, it was nice to see an alt in Sullivan Street, nice to hear a new one.
00:31:00
Speaker
um And I think it worked. It was very kind of emotional. It kind of brought in that kind of that energy ah that I like in Sullivan Street. I always say my thing with the the runaway girl, Alt, in the past was sometimes they would have so much fun singing it that they then needed to come back emotionally into the like emotional devastation of the end of Sullivan Street. And it kind of was kind of ah ah ah an awkward transition, but I really liked that. um And then they went to St. Robinson, which I always enjoy and as always, I know one of your favorites, Eric.
00:31:31
Speaker
Uh, Jeff, for you, they opened, uh, this is kind of an interesting one, two punch. Anna Begins and Mrs. Potters. Oh yeah. Yeah, that was great. Well, I feel like Anna Begins is a, uh, that, Anna Begins, I've said this before, my favorite, very favorite Counting Crow song. So I can't be happier when the, than when they open with that, I thought they did a really great version of it. And, um, you know, the, the.
00:31:53
Speaker
audience loves it too. So they've got the audience hooked. It's always interesting when a band starts with a slower song and a faster one, you know, instead of punching you in the face, you know, with the rocker from the beginning, they start with kind of the slow burn. But I think then right into Mrs. Potter's lullaby. And I think also Mr. Jones was really, it was like a trilogy. Those first opening three ah were kind of put together. I feel like Mr. Jones was paired as as the, you know, kind of third act in the opener.
00:32:19
Speaker
And that whole sequence just worked really, really well, I thought. I always loved to see those songs. And also, I think, beloved by the audience, you have two of their most popular songs from their first album, but also like the ultimate fan favorite, perhaps, which every single person there know you know knows in the scene along with. I thought something that was really cool was in the Des Moines show was how many younger people were in the audience. It was just notable to me that sometimes you go to shows and you feel like, okay, sometimes you go to shows, you feel like you're the youngest person there. Sometimes you feel like you're like the old guy there. Counting Crows fans, you sort of feel like, yeah, these are my people. You know, everybody's like the Gen Xers. But at this show, I mean, I noticed a lot of
00:33:08
Speaker
definitely 20-somethings, younger people who were right there mesmerized, seen along with every word. And I thought, you know these are the fans who grew up you know with the 2000s Counting Crows as their Counting Crows were. They were listening to Accidentally In Love and Colorblind. And these were the songs that they grew up with. And um you could just see that that it was cool to see this new generation of fans you know lining up for their stuff.
00:33:35
Speaker
Yeah, and not to jump ahead, but I was also in a like kind of a mixed age crowd. And when they jumped into the one by Taylor Swift, there were some 25 year old girls who were women who were very, very excited. And as they should be, right, it makes sense to me. But like, it was it was notable the pop that a Taylor Swift song got was, you know, because the crowd the crowd has a mix of ages, you know, and even it's, it's great.
00:34:00
Speaker
um Chris, can you talk a little bit about the venue and the crowd? I don't know what the crowds. It's weird. I lived in New York for years and I did. I went to Central Park all the time. I don't think I ever saw a concert there. Yeah, it's kind of. I would say the crowd the at at a some at a Central Park show is a little.
00:34:22
Speaker
uh, fancier than average. And I would say because obviously summer stage, you get in that big blast of emails and a lot of people, I would say you're, you're dealing with the crowd. I mean, this was the show was the venue holds probably about 4,000 ish people. And it was very close to sold out. It was not quite sold out, but it was like, it was very, very full. And, um, I would say the crowd felt a little more casual than average for a show of 4,000 for the crows in this time period. Um, just because.
00:34:53
Speaker
i I don't know. I think Central Park tends to attract, there's a a group of people who are like, yeah, I'm going to go hang out at Central Park. It's a great, I love the, cat I like the band, but I just want to go see a show there. I feel like it's also a venue. It's easy to talk your friends into joining you at. I've done it. I've been like, hey, you want to come and see a show in Central Park? Like, yeah, let's go let's go ahead to the park and go watch the show.
00:35:11
Speaker
so Yeah, I thought it was not a bad crowd. I always think there's an interesting thing that happens where, especially if you've got ah ah a slightly older crowd or maybe just slightly casual, when Adam is singing, like especially like a chorus in a different way, where it's like you can hear the echo of the original melody. Like Mr. Jones is a good example where he's singing that and you're hearing the original melody sung back at him.
00:35:40
Speaker
while he's singing in his own way. everyone's Everyone's trying to sing along, but there are like five versions back that from Adam's iterations of how he sings Mr. Jones, for example. um So which I always think is kind of an interesting thing to hear.
00:35:55
Speaker
um I will say Mrs. Potter's, Jeff, I've really been feeling Mrs. Potter's this summer and I feel like it's in part because we did that This Desert Life ah podcast where we all just gushed about that song for 15 minutes straight and it was like, oh yeah, this song is incredible. And like, it reminded me of how exactly how great that song is.
00:36:16
Speaker
It's funny, I had the exact same thing, and for the first time in, I don't know, a decade, like two nights ago, I was looking up all these Mrs. Potter's lullaby performances, which they don't vary that much. I did find one in particular, the one that's on the one, um it's funny I have it here, the one on one, which at Pier 97, it was posted two years ago, but it looks like it was from August 2015. Yeah, and I think that is one of their best performances. And Adam goes to every, you know, he always does the Dan, like, oh, Dan, the clang of the electric guitar, but he also goes to Bryson at that one, and Emmy, and he makes them kind of do little solos and stuff. it's It's a cool version. But yeah, and by the way, I gave someone a um pioneer, ah ah my my friend that loves Desert Life, I bought her a Pioneer Town Bar t-shirt.
00:37:02
Speaker
And yeah, she gushed but you're right. Mrs. Potter is because of that table our episode is ah has been on my mind and the desert life recap. Sorry. Yeah. Yeah um So then we get to the section. This is the same for both of us Jeff. Mr. Jones colorblind butterfly in reverse Omaha I'm with you mister. I'm fine with them playing. Mr. Jones. It gets the crowd going it's it's interesting to me that they that they've stuck with that so rigorously, Mr. Jones, colorblind, butterfly, and sometimes they've cut butterfly and reverse the summer, but, and then Omaha, they very rigorously stuck to that for a while. They must just think it it really works. I'm always curious about the psychology of that, but they must just be like, something about like Mr. Jones, we follow it with another hit that is slower and maybe let's Adam take a breath for a second. And then we go, we kind of pump it back up with Omaha. It just must be like that they're like, yeah, we need that right there. I don't know what why else they must've thought about this.
00:37:58
Speaker
to to have done it this many this way in this many times in a row, which is now basically breadt like three years now since 2021. Yeah. Well, something Adam said in Des Moines on stage introducing Butterfly in Reverse was that um that on this They were touring with Santana this summer and they didn't have a chance to play as many songs as they would normally play every night. And so this was a song that they didn't get to play as frequently this summer, but he said that it's one of his favorite songs and and he just he loves it so much. And so he was excited you know kind of to get to sing it there in Des Moines.
00:38:38
Speaker
um Yeah, I agree it was interesting kind of an interesting insertion ah into the set list and and you know obviously then you've got Omaha which always just gets the crowd. Charlie comes out and as you said Charlie's finger was notably ah you know in the in a little Cast or whatever it is And so one of the things he was talking about at the soundcheck was playing bass with one finger because I guess he plays I think he plays bass on holiday in Spain i know yes that's ah the yeah yeah holiday So he was like I want to see if I can play bass with you know one finger bass or whatever because he's trying to make it work with that so charlie that what they do a holiday in spain how Charlie was just like let me take the hardest part and see if I can actually play this physically
00:39:23
Speaker
Yeah, exactly. That's one of the things that I think that was what he wanted to check there. They're checking to see if that, you know, one of the things if he could pull it off and and he was able to. charlie but he that my element but yeah right so He comes out and does his Omaha thing with of course, everybody, everybody always. ah that always i feel like I feel like Omaha never fails to just get the biggest reaction. Maybe it's something about the Midwest. The Midwest loves Omaha. the midwest That is like the Midwest anthem. Every state from Nebraska, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri. This is the this is the anthem for every one of them. I think that song is particularly beloved in the heartland. Everybody loves it. It always gets a huge a huge reaction.
00:40:07
Speaker
Yeah. It doesn't get a bad reaction in New York either, to be clear, but I would imagine it does get an extra big reaction. You can actually, actually listening to that show, you can really hear the crowd. and Like sometimes it depends upon how with the mic in the crowd, you can really hear the crowd singing Omaha.
00:40:21
Speaker
It's loud. Right, right, right. Well, I've seen them do it in Omaha twice now. And nowhere does it get it nowhere does it get a bigger response than in Omaha. They opened with it last year, which, of course, was just perfect. And you know you never you never let the audience down with that one.
00:40:42
Speaker
um ah The next one in my list was Anna Begins, which we already talked about. I really just hope Eric gets it. Now, if the two of us got it, I mean, he's got to get we gotta get it for Eric here. Yeah, and I did see it a couple times when I when it was in Europe a couple years ago But yeah, no, it's I and I just appreciate Jeff's point about um About what would you call it the ultimate fan favorite because I was re-listening because I uploaded some of these um episodes on YouTube some have videos some don't but I was reepis re I uploaded the one with the fan Zubia and her daughters and who I wouldn't describe as hardcore fans. They just really like Counting Crows and are in it because their parents and both of them listed Anna Begins um as like a top three song, even though it wasn't a single and they weren't of the Crows generation. They got into them because of Accidentally in Love and stuff like that. And they still love Anna Begins. So you're right about that. jeff Yeah. Yeah. I was going to say that, you know, Anna Begins, the first I remember when I heard that song,
00:41:44
Speaker
I knew right then that I was going to be a fan for life. I was like, wherever this band goes, I will follow it. Because to me, that song, it's still to this day, one of my I think one of the greatest songs that's ever been written. And I was like, I knew right then I'm going to be a fan of this band. As long as they're putting out music, I'll be listening.
00:42:03
Speaker
Yeah, here you are. Miami next for for for both of us at that point. I actually, you know, I really was feeling Miami that this time. It's been, again, nothing I've ever disliked the song, but it was really kind of hitting me that sort of feeling of like i like the the things you lose and you keep and and let go and the the shifts you go through in life. And that that kind of theme was really working for me as I was i was hearing that song this summer. So I i was really appreciating that.
00:42:32
Speaker
Yeah, they were supposed to play High Life right there before Miami. It was on the set list. Something, I don't know, went wrong. And just immediately, without without even like, oh, let's see, you know, some technical difficulty. And just immediately, ah I think it was either Adam said, well, we were going to play one song and instead we're going to play something else. And then right into Miami.
00:42:54
Speaker
Now, Miami to me is, is um I don't know, it might be top 10. It's one of my very favorite songs. So ah I was extremely excited to to hear that. And I think he always just does a great version of that, you know.
00:43:10
Speaker
um That's one of the signs. I mean, I've talked about this before, and Adam's talked about this. He's lost some of his upper register, but everything that's still there is so good. you know it's like He may not be able to hit the highest of the highs, but ah all the you know everything that he's doing is still as good as it ever was, really, and sounds amazing. so um i was I was very excited to hear Miami, and and again,
00:43:36
Speaker
You know, they they were hitting a lot of my very favorite songs, you know, from Anna Begins, Mrs. Potter's, Miami. i was I was I couldn't have been happier. Yeah. No, that's what I think. Like these are um they're playing a lot of songs that I like. So there's a little bit of like, yeah, you could vary this like a little bit more. But at the same time, I'm not complaining about any of the tunes that you're. So what are you going to yeah but like?
00:44:01
Speaker
um And then well then you got so at that point they moved on in mind they moved into the acoustic set so we'll hold back a second. You got this was a song that was caught from the New York show it was it was supposed to open the encore and it's crushing Lee.
00:44:17
Speaker
Oh, right. Money. Oh, yeah. It's catapult, um which was I i'm man, and they sound great on that song this summer. Yeah, yep. That's all i run <unk>s always been one of my favorite. They actually played quite a lot when I've seen them. And it's all Yeah, I love that song. And yeah, it's always great to see live.
00:44:36
Speaker
Yeah, and the I don't I think especially with maybe the the other songs they've been picking this summer the dynamic of catapult against some of that stuff I think has been really, I don't know that songs really been sticking out to me when it like pops up in the setlist they played it a few times and ah So next up are our acoustic sets. um I had Washington Square, Angels of the Silences and Friend of the Devil. Washington Square played, of course, because they were in New York. And ah to steal from Adam, it's a song about leaving home. It's a song about coming home. And it's a song about my home. and It's called Washington Square. um And now they i i one year I lived, I lived for a year about five blocks from Washington Square. So like I can also claim that it was my home every ever so briefly. um But and it's always nice to hear that song in New York and people always get excited.
00:45:21
Speaker
um And Jeff had Blues Run the Game, Angels of the Silences and Friend of the Devil. I really liked Angels of the Silences. It had been a long time. They played it a lot last summer, but it was they started playing it after I saw them. So it was really nice to hear them play that. And it I thought that crushed. I was like noticing details in that. I thought that was really, really beautiful the way they've been playing that song.
00:45:45
Speaker
yeah Yeah, something Adam said at the show was that um over the years, they have reconfigured a lot of their songs and you know reinterpreted them and and reconfigured them. And he you that said something like, that's something that we really you know like to do. He said, this was the first song that we ever really did that with. And you know Angels of the Silences. So that was cool. The you fans obviously loved it.
00:46:10
Speaker
and blues run the game that's all it's always you know it's fun to hear them uh mix it up and and what you know at these shows they're getting to do like ah let's do some songs that we want to do just for us you know and and i think that's one of those songs where you know adam and maybe do blues run the game and i feel like you know it always just is a great great moment in the show so yeah i think that's added interesting energy to those those longer shows is that playing 70 minutes every night when they get to stretch out there is a sort of like oh i kind of want to it's a different vibe than when they're playing you know an hour 45 or two hours a night it's just i think it changes the dynamics
00:46:50
Speaker
Definitely. Yeah, I think the show I saw was an hour and 40 minutes. So that's, you know, you're getting 30 more minutes ah of material there. And and as you say, the they are mixing it up and inserting them in different places. Washington Square, that's definitely one of my favorite songs.
00:47:07
Speaker
So that's that's a ah nice ah nice get there, for sure. Yeah, I'd love to hear that in New York. I always think yeah that would that would be just like maybe not as good as seeing Omaha. and And I know it's not a song to get like pumped up about, but I'm um um i' hoping the crowd appreciated it. Yeah. And it was really good in New York energy that night.
00:47:26
Speaker
Oh, Miami. We'll all fly to Miami and see them next time. Next time they can play Miami. Did he actually say that maybe Miami gets a better reception in New Orleans? right Didn't we hear the one show or something? and the Oh, that's true. that does that That's That's true. I've seen him do it there for sure three times. um Yeah, that's it's the ultimate New Orleans song. This is Miami, as it turns out. That is true.
00:47:48
Speaker
Yeah, Adam was definitely feeling in the New York show, if you just go back and listen to it, there's a lot of banter about just sort of being excited to be home, playing in New York. I get the sense he likes that Central Park venue. They had a lot of, I noticed a lot of musicians on the side stage, a ton. So there was just, um I think they had a lot of their friends there. It was kind of a big party for everyone. They were having a very good time.
00:48:10
Speaker
um just in the i notice I never know really thought about this in angels. Not that it's a new thing, but just in that last verse when they everyone goes something on the background, the the The transition out of that, it's it makes that that end of it pop so much. that is I don't know, which is an interesting little detail I've never really like sort of sat and listened to when it really kind of just struck me. um Chris, you're almost like copying, like not copying, but you're almost yeah repeating like what I thought last year. like i There's a way, because I really want to hear Angels of the Silence, the hard version, live. I don't know if they'll ever do the hard version again. I'm not sure.
00:48:46
Speaker
But that was like my dream. And then I knew, you know, I always liked angels from from the, ah you know, from the across the wire. And then I knew that they were playing it on that tour. But I think if you go back to my review of the l LA shows, just like you, that was the one that stood out the most. And like you said, the harmony and the pop, I just couldn't believe how good it was. Yeah, it blew me it ble me away. I was I was crying for reasons that were unclear to me. I was like, I'm not exactly sure what this is doing to me. This is this is really hitting me.
00:49:15
Speaker
Um, the next thing in both of our shows, uh, was
Emotional Moments and Special Performances
00:49:20
Speaker
round here. Yep. And, uh, I gotta say guys, I've listened to a lot of versions around here. Do you know this? Yes. This is one of my all time favorite versions around here.
00:49:31
Speaker
um And I will admit some bias here. I've had, you know, without getting too deep into it, I've had a long year with some family stuff and really kind of kind of heavy things. And so like, he steps up around here and and when you, obviously that song is always great. It's always kind of an um emotional thing. He delivers it really, really well.
00:49:48
Speaker
the middle, which if you if you're if you're listening to this and you haven't listened to any of the versions in the summer, I highly recommend going to grab YouTube and search for summertime alts or summer alts, or just look for the Central Park version. I still think it's one of the best ones. There's a couple other really, really good versions, even Jeff's one is great too. But the emotion that they delivered in that, where Adam is going into, if you haven't heard, Adam goes into this new thing, some summers I remember, some summers I forget.
00:50:14
Speaker
um every summer fades into september maybe this will be the best one i keep waiting for the next one i keep waiting for the best one it's a very about like i think about mean he's the guy just turned sixty this summer about the And we all, we're all, I mean, none of us are, none of us are 25 guys. um So we're all like, you know, what comes left? You know, that one of the lines he drops in there later is every he every summer fades into September. every but Every lifetime fades into September and that is fucking heavy shit, right? Just dropping on. I keep waiting for the change. I keep waiting for the world, for the sun to shut the the the sun to shine on me. to It's like,
00:50:55
Speaker
in incredibly beautiful. I feel like I can't properly do justice to how fucking good it this was. In particular, though, when they came back, two things about how they came out of it, because hes the the middle part has been kind of similar in a bunch of parts. First, he goes and he was going to this thing where as he's coming back, he's like, there's a girl in a car in a parking lot.
00:51:15
Speaker
There's a girl, he's like, there's a girl. There's always a girl. to here And he doesn't go into the, and just watching, I know you guys always love watching, I love watching Jim too. Jim is watching with deep intent of trying to figure out, because Adam's faking him out, right? He's like, there's always, he's like, cause that's where he's bringing it back with the drums. And he's like, there's always a girl. And he and Jim's like, okay, I gotta wait. He like resets, but like watching. um And so that was just super fun to watch. But then the outro of that,
00:51:44
Speaker
like he's Adam is standing on the speakers um i he's screaming i keep waiting for the change i keep wait and i'm like this is what i fucking pay for this is why i've seen 60 counting crow shows this is like these moments where he's just like not quite not fully ad libbing because he'd come up with some of these words before but like Pulling this stuff and creating this crescendo from like deep quiet I mean that that moment right before they come back is so quiet into this giant crescendo at the end. I'm like This is what I this is what I pay for and I'm I trust that no one because I trust counting first hands I trust that no one was judging me for crying. So I You know, I don't think anyone, at least no one I noticed, i as I looked it came out and looked around, no one no one was no one was was jeering me, so I think it was okay. The white wig, no gavel. No gavel. No, I just, I can't highly enough recommend that. That version, there's one in Portland, Maine, that's incredible too.
00:52:46
Speaker
there's a just It is so, so good. and I love the version in in Iowa, too. I mean, it was really, I get maybe biased. I really think they, I apologize for this extended monologue, Jeff. What do you think? I second everything you said. Now, well, I mean, you know, yeah, again,
00:53:07
Speaker
this is, you know, one of their greatest songs. And then here's Adam, you know, bringing new meaning to it, finding new meaning to it, saying, you know, things in a different way and and reinterpreting it in ways that still connect. And I do think that, you know, I've i've had those, I kind of had the same thing where before I went to this show, I said, you know, I like need a Counting Crow show this year. Yeah. something good like I really felt like you know I just need to be there listening to you know Adam sing around here like he did in Des Moines. I need that you know that healing or whatever that is that that I'm yearning for. I felt like I you know needed it and got it. so
00:53:51
Speaker
I know exactly what you're talking about and you know to me it's just there you know his ability to find ah you know and sort of new meaning and new purpose in these songs I think is one of the great things about the band I mean people do complain sometimes about ah hearing some of the same songs but are you hearing the same song?
00:54:11
Speaker
They didn't hear the same song in Des Moines. yeah that You heard in New York that they heard in Portland. so we're we're It's almost like a jazz musician. you know It's a different interpretation of the same song every night. It's not not the same song.
00:54:25
Speaker
Now, you know, that that doesn't mean that they're the Grateful Dead, you know, where every night is a new thing and they're, you know, of course, the superfans would love to hear them just pull out every single thing in their catalog. But ah I think Adam's ability to find new meaning and purpose in even his most popular songs is is one of the things that makes them worth still going to see after all these years.
00:54:49
Speaker
Yeah. So that's I was thinking about that. I'm like, if I had to pick, which i you shouldn't have to, they could also play like Amy hit the atmosphere or something and round here, it's fine. But I had to pick for them, like busting out some of the deeper cuts and like doing a really big round here that really is fresh and different and not an all every, you know, that they played a few summers in a row. Yeah. I'm going to pick the round here every time. Cause that to me is where they connect and find all of these things. And I, again, I also thought, you know, look, every, every there ares some alts that really connect and there's some alts that really connect and some and some that I forget um but um you to paraphrase there but that one I really thought the way that connected to that song generally really felt like this is a real interesting and deep interpretation of of what this song means and about the kind of life's journey I mean it really is like this sort of apex of sort of a life's journey song which that song always was but
00:55:43
Speaker
to hear him sing this song like 30 years after and to find yeah still finding new stuff in it. It's amazing. They're very good at this. Someone should start a podcast about them. Yeah, right, right. And also, and again, write a movie and someone should write a book too. Somebody should write a book. Part of it is the performance too. I mean, again, I was up so close and you really got to see the full Adam Duritz experience, you know, up close or maybe not, maybe not from that central vantage point. I know what you're talking about, Chris, but ah still just getting to see the the performance all the way up close, you know, and all the little things that he's doing with his hands and his fingers. and
00:56:19
Speaker
And he's a true performer, and and that's always been one of the things that sets him apart. And like I said, I was excited to see them get in front of that Santana audience this summer, mainly because of that. It's like you all know these songs, but you've never seen them. If you've never seen a Kelly Crowe's performance, then you don't know what you're missing because it's not just, a it's not it's not like the Wallflowers. where, you're where oh, the music's great. you know It's amazing. But you know they're just standing up there playing it. This is a ah true performance. And you know to me, that's that is one of the things that absolutely sets them apart from so many of those peers that they have you know either played with or been paired with over the years, that that this is ah this is not just a a bunch of guys playing the music. This is a ah performance. And you know from start to finish, it has an arc. it you know it
00:57:11
Speaker
It has a narrative to it. i Not every ah artist or or band or musician you know, makes that a part of what they do. But I think it's very central to the counting grows experience. And maybe people don't know that about them. do I don't know. think i listen Sorry, Chris, if I'm gonna mention something that you were going to mention anyway, but just because you mentioned about Adam's 60th birthday, which is obviously a huge milestone. And by the way, I remember 10 years ago when he was on the he was one of the people featured on the cover of ARP, right? Does an ARP always turn 50?
00:57:43
Speaker
Yeah, they they I think they recruit celebrities to show on their, you know, willing, they're willing to turn 50 be willing to turn 50. Did they the set list says what, Jeff, did they sing Happy Birthday to them or something or who sang them?
00:57:57
Speaker
Yeah, so first of all, I should I should have mentioned ah more of this stuff because as soon as Adam, you know, sort of came out, and he said at the soundcheck, he says, Hey, what's up, you know, to us in the front row, and all of us say happy birthday, because it's the day after his birthday. And he kind of he kind of rolled his eyes. It was just like, ah yeah, thanks. You know, he he was it's kind of like that. Yeah, thanks a lot. So And I think he said something like, well, okay, so then on stage, I don't think anything was planned. Suddenly somebody, it was not somebody in the band, somebody from backstage comes out with a cake with candles in it lit and they come out and they're like,
00:58:37
Speaker
you know, say something like, oh, let's all sing Happy Birthday to Adam. You know, maybe somebody says that into the mic. And but Adam says, like, waves it away and and says, my my birthday was yesterday. My birthday was yesterday. And and literally, like, she used them away. But the audience isn't having it and still sings Happy Birthday to Adam. and And and again, he kind of rolls his eyes and is like, you know, Thanks. He wasn't like miserable about it, but he just sort of seemed like as as many of us are like, yeah, I don't know if this is a mile that we celebrate these milestones as much as we endure them.
00:59:16
Speaker
well he was at least something as say rate like I thought I could stop this by being in a rock band, but it turns out, turns out you you do you keep you you i thought I saw my friends getting older. Turns out I i got older too. yeah I joked about that too. I once said like I had children later because I'll live longer then, right? Which of course is not true. Probably I'll live a few years. But that's cool that the audience got into it and and did that. you know It just reminded me. and just a mild interjecting segue. I haven't official I do want the Sullivan Street podcast to because I like on Reddit, and I'm guessing on Facebook, every year on August 1, somebody says, Oh, let's send the Happy Birthday to Adam. And people do remember that August is his birthday. But
00:59:59
Speaker
I want to count and crows fans to you know and and with our impetus august first is counting crows day it's not just adams birthday let's clear it you don't like that made a fish working our worst day. but all Works right because august is august and everything after right the first day of august begins right.
01:00:17
Speaker
Exactly so it has to be kind of gross day and i want from you know now until i try to be fans to reference it as such i saw on i think it was jim's face book recently had to do with this that somebody randomly wrote and he responded to this said like.
01:00:34
Speaker
Oh since this is birthday in August maybe you guys will play August and everything after live sometimes and he's like basically no chance that's that's not gonna happen and it was like almost like we loved recording it it was it was a big deal when we did it with the orchestra.
01:00:50
Speaker
yeah that's you know for at least for now that that probably won't be resurfacing anytime soon yeah admittedly the version they did was with a symphony so unless they start they play another show with a symphony like the one from like 20 years ago with the at disney hall um yeah i don't i don't i don't think there's a great likelihood of them working up an arrangement to the That one that's not with a symphony. Was the original one just him on the piano? Now I'm forgetting. The two versions that exist or that we've heard, right, are him at piano, which he did a couple of times in 2003, three times maybe. And then the symphony version, a there was the one live symphony version then what they released.
01:01:29
Speaker
a few years ago. So that that's it. That's okay. There's no like straight band version of that. song yeah he he Yeah, there's no way and yeah, we thought his other. um Yeah. with with those others So the question to the two big biggest counting crows fans I know is which is the best version of that song since our so few you must have a favorite.
01:01:50
Speaker
and we And obviously, will I don't mind giving my opinion. of but we We're still talking about this song also in depth, and we talk about B-sides and other things. But Chris, I'll let you go first. I like that piano version a lot. and me It's maybe just because that's the first one I heard. I really like the piano, him at the piano. It's like cool with the the strings, but i'm it's a lot, right? It's so stringy, for lack of ah ah a more technical term, that I i go towards, if i'm list if I'm picking one, I go to that piano version.
01:02:18
Speaker
It's just, I don't know. yeah That's me. That's my taste. Me too. Me too. The only reason, not the only reason I like the orchestra version just because it's cool. the The only thing I get the feels about or where I get the most feels about the orchestra version is I did like, and at the time, by the way, I was actually wondering if the, like there was rumors that the band was never going to record new music at that point when they released that. And it was like, uh,
01:02:42
Speaker
I love the going back, right? that That the first album was August and everything after, and then they're finally releasing the song of it all these years later, and they got an orchestra to do it, and Amazon published it. I just thought that was a neat, I like the the story of it as as well, but yeah.
01:02:59
Speaker
Anyway, so I didn't want to. Yeah. So where were you, Chris, on your on your list rundown? In New York, we have High Life, which I'm sorry. you that you you We both got to hear it. I just got to hear it in the ah in the the show. um And it was start darn fine. um Next up, we each got um Richard Manuel and then Rain King. I believe both with Osu, did you get, was there an alt in yours, Jeff, or no? Or was that, maybe was I think it was the Minnesota version with Osuzana.
01:03:24
Speaker
Yeah, I don't think we got an alt in ours. Yeah. an iry car yeah um In New York, they did O, Susanna, which again, this like points for doing it all. I'm i'm not the biggest fan of that one. Just doesn't, it's never really hit me too much, but people sang along. People liked it. So I wore power too, but I'm glad they're doing something. Now is, I'll never not want to hear Ring. I mean, that's one song that like legitimately penciled at it in every set list forever for me. And I'm good. Even other band.
01:03:51
Speaker
yeah Other fans, I think we should just make that a national song and every band should play it. Right. Yeah. it it again and Again, it's like it's one one of their all-time classics. The the fans that just completely love it, sing along. and yeah I did. I see younger fans who like they didn't go see Counting Crows back in the 90s. They weren't around for those shows. ah and so They're seeing these songs maybe for the first time or the fourth time or something but you know to them it's still it's still fresh and and you know again the the band was. was ah Did great Adam had a particularly good show he was just in a good mood I can see his.
01:04:30
Speaker
uh nephew up in the balcony watching from the side with his friends and they were just it looked like having the time of their lives uh up there rocking out and enjoying it and you know adam was in a really good mood and was also in a really good voice and so it was a good show for him i thought for sure yeah no i mean that's i mean well and we we now hit the point of like these are a couple of the same it's the one along december hanging around and and holiday in spain both of us i think had an extra song in the encore that was supposed to be there and got cut um and they just went to hanging around and and holiday in spain i guess for time um but yeah i thought they were in
01:05:08
Speaker
Everyone afterwards, I hung around and talked to people afterwards, and pretty much because i was in part because I was curious. I'm like, man, I was really feeling that show, but maybe I was just in a headspace. I've been to shows sometimes where you're like, that was for me, and I don't know if it was the best show in the objective sense. But a lot of people really felt like who've seen a lot of shows were really like, that was a great show. They're really in fine form.
01:05:28
Speaker
um right and they were crushing things. um It was also really cool. I didn't get to see the one last summer, and I actually i really liked that. I don't know, was last summer, were Dan and Charlie kind of assisting on that song too? Charlie was. it I think it was when i saw Adam and Charlie. first I saw the first lot full version of it, and Charlie was playing on it. Okay. This time, Dan also added a little bit of backing vocals and like the tiniest bit of guitar in one spot. It was like,
01:05:58
Speaker
Blink and you'll miss it, but he did add a a very little bit there, um which is interesting that that that was new. But I do, again, I'm always a fan of like, especially when you add Charlie, it's like Adam at piano and Charlie on the accordion. That's like, again, talk about like the piano August and everything after or reigning in Baltimore. That's like one of my favorite like versions of the band is just those two kind of playing their ah their keys together.
01:06:24
Speaker
Oh, I've been saying and maybe I'm missing it. Like I want i want to see Charlie on like a ah new. I want them to release a new song with Charlie on accordion somewhere. And maybe um maybe he's done it in some of the songs I just at the time can't think of it. But from the last couple of albums. But yeah, let's get him back on accordion for. ah Yeah. Show off those skills that he can play, you know, 74 instruments, him and me here. Yeah.
01:06:48
Speaker
but Yeah, we had um we were supposed to get, I think it was Blues Run the Game was supposed to be the song that came before hanging around Holiday in Spain. Interesting. Then they scratched that out, ended up putting that into the acoustic part where they replaced, ah they they scratched out a god of ocean tides, but they did I don't know if Blues Run the Game was a replacement or not.
01:07:12
Speaker
And then Catapult was put in there, but then that was moved to earlier in the set list. So things got like moved around in real time on ours. But yeah, the same thing. there were There were so many people that were, I heard even just talking about, oh, this is Taylor Swift's song. I could hear that conversation taking place in the audience as he's played the one. This is Taylor Swift. Do you know who this is? This is Taylor Swift. So people were like having that kind of moment and and really enjoying it.
01:07:42
Speaker
I also think, you know, long long December, again, one of their all-time classic songs. If you look at these set lists that they're bringing again to those Santana fans this summer, it's like classic after classic after classic. I bet a lot of people who are at that show went, I didn't know they did this. They did this. This is their song. That's them.
01:08:02
Speaker
Oh, wow, you know, and became new fans. So, you know, once again, when they when they start bringing out the the heavy hitters, it's just one after the next, whether it's, you know, something like Long December hanging around Holiday in Spain, Rain King, Omaha, Mr. Jones. I mean, Anna begins on and on. These are and these are still to this day, huge songs that I feel like a lot of people know.
01:08:25
Speaker
And yeah, well, a lot of people have derisively called it like a greatest hit set. And I'm like, no, it's a kind of a clap. They're playing classics. It's a classic set. It's not they're not necessarily playing. Yes, they're playing Mr. Jones, obviously, but they're not necessarily playing accidentally in love. They played Big Yellow Taxi a few times. But it's more like, yeah, like Rain King wasn't a single, but Rain King's you got to bring you got to bring that song if people are going to hear in you for the first time. So right. um Even, you know,
01:08:52
Speaker
ah Yeah, that to me Omaha, right, is not a single, it's a it's part of the classic, here's what Counting Crows is kind of thing. They're doing, they're kind of distilling that. Um, yeah, fantastic. I will ask this though. I love the one. Where does it, does it rank?
Discussion on Adam's Piano Songs and Style
01:09:07
Speaker
Where does it rank for you guys among like Adam piano songs? Cause it has struck me that they, he, he does these piano songs before long December and there's, they're so stylistic that you could almost compare them very cleanly. Cause they all sound not the same, but there's a style to all of them that, that kind of flows through. Do you mean, do you, do you guys, is that, is the one your favorite or is there one that really sticks out for you guys?
01:09:32
Speaker
Jeff, we'll start with you. OK. Well, i think it's I think it's awesome. Others have said the same thing. when you you know The first time you heard Adam do something like the one, you you know again, it's just a reminder of his ability to take almost anybody's song and reinterpret it in a way that makes it wholly his own.
01:09:53
Speaker
And so you hear that song and go, wow, this sounds like it could be a Counting Crow song. The lyrics, his delivery of it, every every part of it. And yet it's somebody else's song. And he's done that over and over and over again, in my opinion, not just with this one. I think this is a ah you know just a ah brilliant example of something that he does really well. um I don't know about where I would rank it, but the first time I heard it, I was just blown away. But also,
01:10:19
Speaker
um You know, it was just another reminder of sort of his his ability to like really ah make somebody's song his own. So I'm i'm a ah huge fan, but I want to say also to to my fellow, you know, Counting Crow's hardcore fans that I do feel it when they're saying, man, i I want, you know, I always want to hear them mix it up. I want to hear him do something different. You know, to me, it's like this thing was incredible that he did. But also, I felt like it was special. And so the more you do it, the less special it becomes in some ways. Right. ah and And I think that that those superfans, you know, that that sense of like,
01:10:59
Speaker
you know, wanting them to mix it up more. I think it comes from a ah good place, you know what I mean? It's like, yeah we'd love to hear them, um you know, do some of their other material that we don't hear them do so often. So i think I think this, I think, goes in the same thing. Like, it was so special to hear it, but when he does it every single night over and over and over again, it takes away some of that. At the same time, and then I'll stop talking, it's, a I think that the fans who are coming to see it in some ways want to hear them do it, you know, because they haven't seen them do it.
01:11:29
Speaker
You know, so yeah, and it's still relevant. so you know Yeah, it's relatively new. It's been a year. Yeah,
Desire for Diverse Setlists
01:11:37
Speaker
no, I know being um like, you know, super fans are annoying. I guess I feel that way about butter know about but like butterfly in reverse. Like I was I loved hearing that a couple times like remembering that now he'll play it every show and I'm like yeah okay you know maybe you can bring some other uh you know B-side uh you know out um you know I'm kind of I I do I agree with you about the the one how it is special and animated its own and I love it as a long December intro I will if um
01:12:06
Speaker
I don't know what other songs i put there the one that i i guess for now i would tie with that because it's one of my favorites and he's played it just piano and with the band but there was a time when he would do um good night l.a into and i love good night l.a when it was just him on the piano and then he went into long december yeah i i yeah well why why white why is your headach cause It's like, yes, we want to hear you do that out of please do good night LA tonight, you know, like, yeah, when he did it, you know, into long December, that was great. don know you know we Yeah, come on. I was i'm just very fun. my My favorite of those covers is live forever.
01:12:46
Speaker
the the Oasis song. I just yeah love that song so much. And he sings it so well. And it's so like, he gets all the pathos. And this is sort of the way that like Ryan Adams rings the pathos out of Wonderwall. He rings all the pathos out of b Flip Forever. And I just love that.
01:13:01
Speaker
Yeah, she doesn't exist anymore. Also another, you know, like I'm very high on my list, but I've seen them do it forever. I love it. I have to say, though, as much as long December, you think, well, everybody knows that song. I posted that video of the one and somebody wrote a comment or messaged me or something and said, hey, what's the song that they do after?
01:13:23
Speaker
What song are they going into? And so I posted back, oh, it's Long December. It's one of their best songs, posted the link to it or whatever. So it's like, here are fans who are hearing Long December and Counting Crows. They're most classic songs. You would think everybody knows this. They don't know it. And so a whole new generation. I'm curious a little bit. Yeah, someone's still out there listening to Long December for the first time. Yeah. How cool is that? How awesome is that?
01:13:49
Speaker
But yeah, I don't know. it's it was up But again, I think we both got great shows. I'm really excited to hear, Eric, about your experience with this last stretch of the tour, how what your show was like. yeah Thank you. And um I'll either mention it by itself or as part of you know some other show that we do. And mine, ah Toad to Wet Sprocket's opening, which which which actually was weird. I i mentioned before, i I was a huge Toad to Wet Sprocket fan. It was on my bucket list to see them, but I did actually get to see them in.
01:14:15
Speaker
Wisconsin a couple years ago, and they were, um maybe it's 10 years ago now, but they were fantastic. The only thing bad is that they, which is weird for Toad the Wet Sprocket, even though they have some electric songs, is that it was so loud. Like, it's almost like, you know, how like what it's like, might've been the like the loudest concert I ever went to, Toad the Wet Sprocket. And I almost like said this snarky comment to like the sound, to like the guy behind the board at the end. And he's like,
01:14:39
Speaker
I mean I could try to say it nicely but like I know what volume to do it at you know that guy and I'm like no you didn't it like it was it was bad ah but but the band itself was was really good I mean they yeah I don't know what your feelings are. You probably won't have that problem with them opening a show like the crows will probably keep because the openers they also kind of keep them lower so and this is the perfect way to see Toad the wet sprocket. Yeah yeah and it's outdoors the other one was indoors which I think was part of the acoustics but Yeah, the the the song that I'm putting on my, um you know, but the only song on that list that I'm kind of dying to hear would be High Life. I haven't heard that in so long, and I know they've only played it once officially, but one of them was in the headlining show, so I'm hoping for High Life. And randomly, I guess I maybe want to hear them play one of the songs from Somewhere Under Wonderland, because that has largely been neglected.
01:15:31
Speaker
recently um from their tours um with, you know, except for, you know, they'll so they'll throw Palisades Park or um God's most in tides sometimes. So maybe maybe we'll hit that. So yeah, I got the, I have the only highlight for the summer in in actual in the actual show is interesting. well hope then i I hope you get it, Eric. Hopefully that'll sneak in. I did want to say for those trivia ah buffs out there that, you know, that, that he said whenever it started, I don't know, 15 years ago or something, when he said I was starting at that point, I play long December every time. Right.
01:16:01
Speaker
So this year, though, because I think because of the the the Thunder and Lightning show that Long December is not the number one song on the tour that the other four songs that they. cut Oh, that's a good point. Played more interesting. Yeah. um Yeah. So anyway, because they they did not get to. they They did not get to play Long December, which means that's right. One of the rare shows it did not get played very, very rare. Yeah, that's wild.
01:16:29
Speaker
yeah so Anyway, that's so i did any other concluding thoughts from the Summer 2024 Roundup? Seems like it's a good a good summer for them. If you haven't seen them, go see them. If you missed them, go see them next year. They're hopefully going to come around once again. and I hope they play come around when they do.
01:16:51
Speaker
Oh, they should. But I would say and if you if you've missed and you're not going to see them go by or the get nugs for a month or buy one show and let pick the headlining shows, definitely pick one of the headlining shows. My would be my recommendation there. But um yeah, they're great. You should hear them. Yeah,
Closing Remarks and Future Show Anticipation
01:17:06
Speaker
there's a few bunch of videos too.
01:17:08
Speaker
Jeff, because you're not as media savvy as you thought, um earlier in the podcast, you said that, oh, go check it, go check out the High Life sound check on my YouTube channel, but you did not give your YouTube channel, but so can I give it? I know what it is. Yeah, yeah, of course. it It's a, it's GH archives, GH archives on YouTube. So Jeff Harkness archives. And yes, there it is in the video, the sound check. I, you know, I did not realize, Jeff, or maybe I did and I forgot,
01:17:38
Speaker
that um I guess you were either one of the first or maybe the first to have posted the one. edit it has Because you were the one that put the one, that video has 53,000 views from last year in Vegas when they debuted the song.
01:17:54
Speaker
Yes, I did post the first video of it. That's that's your first first mover advantage. Although I don't care about clicks or any of that stuff anyway. monetize it jeff me yet hurt you exactly Right. Somebody told me like, Oh, put an advertisement for your book on the video. And I'm like, Come on. This is like so cheesy. So I didn't try to take advantage of it, but I did. I was very excited to get it online because I knew what it was and I knew that it didn't exist. And I was so excited to upload it. And I was like dying to just get home and upload it so that other people could see it because I'm like, oh, my God, the ground of I can't believe it. You know, it was it was a fun moment. I texted both of you guys from the venue. He just played a Taylor Swift song.
01:18:37
Speaker
Yeah, but I didn't realize that you were the one that either I just didn't pay attention or remember. Somehow I have to buy you out or we have to buy you out and so we get then the rights and we could have posted that on the Solomon Street podcast. That's true. It'll be a complicated business deal that we do. Then Jim will finally be able to deduct these things. That's right.
01:18:57
Speaker
Just remember, be careful with your friends. We were texting with Jeff and we realized, I was like, something about the set list. And you said, I was like, wait a minute. Oh, I was going to text you again and realize the show was still going on. And I'm like, Oh shit. He's like mid round here right now. I can't, I kept having responses. like i know i did I can't break this man's concentration while he is being just be a good friend. When your friends are in concerts and let them, they might take a little time to respond and give them some space. Yeah, I did the same thing. I didn't realize that.
01:19:25
Speaker
yeah or Yeah, that was more more than fine. But yeah, check it out. I did post stuff from all of those soundshacks and shows that I've been to in the last couple of years. So enjoy them. They're free, commercial free.
01:19:39
Speaker
All right. Thank you so much. No sponsors. Thank you, everybody, for listening to Sullivan Street. As I said, we says we we said we have ah the guest next week, ah Dan Eisenberg, right? We'll be joining the Sullivan Street podcast. All sorts of good stuff happening in 2024. So keep listening and thanks so much for joining us here on Sullivan Street. Goodbye.