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E22: This Desert Life (Review and Song Ranking), Part 2
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We continue our review of This Desert Life, talk about what we believe are the Top 5 songs on the album, and get into a few personal stories.....
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Transcript
Introduction to Episode 22
00:00:00
Speaker
Welcome to episode 22 of Sullivan Street, part two of our review and ranking of Cannon Crow's This Desert Life. We're going to get into what we think are the top five songs, all sorts of trivia, personal stories, and more right here on Sullivan Street.
Top Five Songs Discussion
00:00:33
Speaker
So let's now go to the top five songs as determined by us, the panel of kind of grows experts. And here we go. Sometimes I'd love to force the band like to listen. I mean, Matt kind of did a little bit, right? Matt said, oh, from that out, he just randomly said from this album, he loved three particular songs I think he mentioned
In-Depth: 'St. Robinson's and His Cadillac Dream'
00:00:52
Speaker
on his. but ah So let's go. So this one, I would say this is definitely also a, so the next one is a song that maybe casual fans do not know, but almost any regular Counting Crow's listener would,
00:01:07
Speaker
put this quite high and loves when they play it in concert, which is St. Robinson's and his Cadillac dream, which we've mentioned before was spelled incorrectly on the first million pressing of the album or whatever. And then it got fixed later. ah One person put this particularly high, which is my friend Jeff Harkness. So Jeff, you had it as number two. So let's start with you. um I didn't love it as much as you, but yeah, please. Yeah, i just I think this is one of the great standout tracks from the album. Not a whole lot to say other than million dollar chorus, ah but they're not in a hurry to get around to it, which I think is is again the strength. There's a real discipline and and almost restraint to what they do with this album that it makes it better to me.
00:01:57
Speaker
um Very artful lyrics throughout this album, but this is a great example of them. um Artful without coming across as like artsy or pretentious. um Matt Mally doing the 12-string guitars on this is interesting, but here's Clay Jones, that and musician, the bluegrass musician for North Carolina, playing the mandolin on this track. And really, I think that's one of his key contributions to this album because that's such a signature sound to this song, that mandolin part that he contributes. So um a real contribution there. So I don't know, this to me has just always been a standout track. I guess I don't have a lot to say other than um from the moment I heard it, this was instantly one of my favorites from This Desert Life.
00:02:44
Speaker
Thank you, Jeff. ah The rest of us had it ah in in the middle. I think I, I guess I'll go next. I had it at number seven. Okay. So a little lower than the middle. um I was catching some things with, yeah, I guess compared to like High Life or even like Kevin, you were mentioning a couple of lyrics that really hit in in High Life. The lyrics here are a little more whatever, nebulous and vague. And maybe even though I, like them a lot. I guess it didn't hit um as hard. Let's be blunt, Eric. I I've been listening to the song for a long, long time. Yeah, I could not tell you what the fuck it's about.
00:03:20
Speaker
but I tried, so I was thinking about this because the arrangement is so beautiful. i Honestly, what is this song about? That's an open question. if anyone I would love to hear anyone's interpretation of these lyrics in a coherent way. and Was that you that was asking? Did he answer an interview about who St. Robinson was? I think someone, right, or Jeff, was that mentioned in your book? and Somehow I've heard people blue but ask it either who author Robinson or what the idea of that is about that. but um But you're right. I guess in some ways, you know, you're making a good point, Chris. In some ways, maybe this was the first precursor of some of these kind of third-person lyrics that come up later in Somewhere in the Wonderland, and even now, actually, a little bit in Buttermiracle, things like Angels in the si of the 14th Street. ah So...
Song Rankings and Personal Preferences
00:04:08
Speaker
Yeah, I love the mandolin in here. I think the best use of mandolin outside maybe actually probably of all their songs even more than um like, for example, in Omaha and whatever. I mean, you know, if you were judging by the last 60 seconds of the song, this is number one. I have I know for a fact that
00:04:30
Speaker
I have lost hearing power and my ears are not as good as they should be from blasting the last minute of this song in either my car or headphones way louder than is medically safe. I just never get sick of it. It almost makes me cry how good it is. my By the way, I'll give a shout out to my sister. she This is the song she always wants to hear live. My sister, Leslie, she loves this song. and um By the way, you were talking about Ohio mentioned in four days.
00:05:01
Speaker
This song gets a shout out when he plays it in Maryland, Virginia, or Chesapeake, because I actually saw a so you know them play in the Chesapeake area. But when they play in DC Metro, this always gets a um ah little you know minor thundering applause from the crowd. so say oh And by the way, this is and and if you ever watch it, this is the one part two, especially in that last minute that um ah Jeff, we'll have to get you on. But one thing that I thought is really kind of nerdy trivia that Adam would probably even get mad that people think about is like, who sings the background at certain parts, like certain things that Dan is doing the background vocals in this, but Charlie's the one who does that like kind of extra yelling.
00:05:43
Speaker
um in that last in the last like 30 seconds. And if you watch them live, you can see them like going, ah, or whatever. So that that's all Charlie. um Anyway, I have other things to say, but let's go to, who chris Chris, we didn't, you didn't talk about this yet and you had it on number six, right in the middle. Well, I feel like I kind of made my main comment as we were talking there. I also, again, the the arrangement is beautiful, is that ill i'll I'll hit that again. One thing I would note, if anyone hasn't listened to one of any of the live versions, like 2003, 2004, where they did it acoustic, um it's that is a really, really beautiful arrangement, particularly talk about that mandolin, and and that really brings that out. There's actually, I think, a recording of like the soundcheck
00:06:31
Speaker
where they were like figuring that out. um Someone, it was like something where it was like a radio station thing and it was like a soundcheck party. This is before everyone could just
Lyrical Analysis and Song Evolution
00:06:39
Speaker
sort of like buy a ticket to the soundcheck. But of course, you know, people, I remember the, not controversy, but some conversation at the time around people going like, showing up and being like, oh, we'll get like kind of like a mini performance. And then what they got was the band, like, figuring out an acoustic arrangement of St. Robinson's. It's like December 2003. It's like the the Warfield run. um But it's a super, again, that's that's beautiful. I think it's a beautiful song. um I just wish someone would explain to me.
00:07:09
Speaker
what it what what it what it means. some some Sometime we'll get we'll get him to do that. And by the way, when I talked about the end when he sings that part, I think it's only in the last, so what what do we say Adams um about the hit 60 this year, we think that this is the, it's only in the last couple of years that I think he can't do that really high and long stuff at the end. If you go back even five years ago, there's concerts of him doing it. I saw him and maybe he could, but it just might take too much or whatever. I saw him play this live. a year and a half ago, and and and that was restrained and whatever, maybe the next octave lower or whatever. ah But still great to see that, that there' that this is still in regular rotation, right? the How great is that about the Crows? We we said that that they play a song like this, kind of a fan favorite, never a single, and they still play it live. Sarah, let's go to you who had this right in the middle, number six. Yeah. so now
00:08:04
Speaker
And now we're in the part of the album, like all the next six songs, I love all of them. Three through six, we're all really close. And I just pulled out my copy of This Desert Life, and ah proving that I got it early, it has Cadillac misspelled, you can't see that. But it is spelled correctly on the inside, and then on the page with the lyrics, so they just didn't catch it on the album itself. um Yeah, this is a good song. Like I said, all my top six on this album are all songs that I love and listen to regularly. Thank you so much. Kevin, you had it also right in the middle. Number six. Not going to take up too much airtime. i I completely agree with what everyone said, which is perfect. But yeah, I had it right in the middle. Again, among the other songs in the album, I think that the harmonies are perfect.
00:08:55
Speaker
The lyrics are definitely a precursor like are in that horse dreamers blues Palisades Park area, but a little less decipherable, I guess, but I think one of my favorite parts of the song is the fact that Adam the phrase. down through which I fell when he talks about good call in the ceiling. I think that's just such a funny little English major phrase, which is who he was. Yeah, you're you're exactly right. that there are certain That's right. there' are a certain lot yeah I love when you vocalized something that I didn't capture, but there are some lines of his that
00:09:31
Speaker
I was like, jeez, I could never think of that. Not that that's the most profound lyric, right? I even think some of the stuff with relationships I could maybe come up with, maybe not in his way, but something like that, where it's so, yeah, you get this great visual visualization and yeah, his maybe his Berkeley education helped him out there. so Okay, so now you have the final four of this Desert Life and so this will be the other controversial song and not surprisingly it's the other kind of single-ish thing which is hanging around. So there are song the two songs that people that maybe the average fan want to hear live hanging around and
00:10:09
Speaker
colorblind and the singles or in movies or pseudo singles were also the two that had maybe the most variation in um in the scoring here. So let's go with the person who had this number one, which would be Sarah. Sarah, talk about why you love hanging around. This breaks my heart. So I love this song and I think I have known for many years that this is my favorite Counting Crow song. You can see I have it on my t-shirt here. But i it was like, I didn't want to admit that it was my favorite song because A, it felt disloyal to pick a favorite. And also, it's so unlike all of my other favorite Counting Crow songs. It's much more
00:10:57
Speaker
peppy and upbeat, the the lyrics aren't really peppy and upbeat, but the the melody is. And um when I took drum lessons in my younger years, one of the first things I wanted to learn how to play was this song and specifically that double clap. And to this day, if I, whatever I'm doing, I have to stop and do that double clap when I listen to the song um unless I'm like at work, but then I still tap the desk twice just so that I feel like I'm doing it. um But i I just love this song. It is a highlight for me when they play it. And ah I'm sad that it didn't rank higher.
00:11:40
Speaker
Well, number four is pretty good though. Top four, right? It's not like, it's not like, what it's it's not like some of Jeff's in the past that he was the only one that had it. Number one and everybody else had it. Number 10 or something like that. So, um, great. Who else had this high? Well, actually I'm, you know, you might like me. Oh no, Kevin and I both. Yeah, right. The Chris and Jeff, right. Seen it too many times live. So let's go to Kevin. Kevin, you've had it. Number three. Yeah, Sarah, i'm I'm with you on this one. I'm like, I feel so lame because it's the single, but like, just putting yourself in the context of the time where long December was the last song you heard, the crows put out, you know, and as a single, you've got around here. And then they come out with this boisterous, like, rollicking great time, which I think is just, it's it's who they are as a band. When you see them live, this is just such a ah great representation of of what they bring to the table.
00:12:35
Speaker
um i'm gonna I'm gonna go on my little bass island here, but the bass part on this song is like nothing else I think in any other Counting Crow song. You could listen to this song and just pay attention to the bass and it's an entirely different song. I know that Matt didn't play it, but whomever it was, I can't remember his name, did an incredible job, but like I urge anyone to just turn the bass up, listen to the song, and you'll just hear a counter melody which is unbelievable and also if you watch this live you'll see Matt and Millard kind of especially Matt back in the day he comes out to the front of the stage because he's he's soloing in a way um and he's playing it finger style as opposed to picking Eric we were talking about that a little bit earlier but you can see kind of the different stylings it's like a very like you know Motown kind of 60s vibe which I love um but I was reading a an interview and Adam was saying that hanging around was like
00:13:30
Speaker
The Beatles meets R&B, which I think is great. It's something that does come to mind when I listen to this song. If you ever listen to something by The Beatles, Paul McCartney is said to have basically done a bass solo over the whole song to see if it was like in contention with Harrison at the time. And I think that's what I think of when I hear the song because the bass is just, it's not the vocal. Oftentimes bass is just a root note or it's following the vocal and this is something totally different. So that's why I had it at number three.
00:14:00
Speaker
Yeah, thank you. I'm the i'm the other one who um had it in their top four. And I was actually surprised as well because I was like, is this really my fourth favorite? And I think I've grown some more appreciation to it. I don't love them playing it in concert because I've heard it so many times and it always comes out at the same time and bring the but the album version
Deep Dive: 'Hanging Around'
00:14:22
Speaker
I love and it'd be hard-pressed for me to skip that. And I also, maybe it's what you said, not only is it fun and rollicky at a single, but this is an example, and I think some other ones, um
00:14:36
Speaker
maybe even accidentally in love and beget where me, you know, I forget what David said, like was the point here to, was it just a song that came out or was the point to kind of make a poppy single? Sometimes I'm not, I don't really remember or recall, but even though it's not typical crows, I was like, oh, crows are so awesome that even when they try to make an upbeat poppy song, they do it in their own way and it's perfection. And from that, like, fascinating beginning. What's that, Chris? With that sound effect and how it kicks off. Yeah. and wong And then with the clapping and then and then even the lyrics are even though it's upbeat, there's still a little melancholy in there, right? And kind of self-loathing in there a little bit. And so I yeah, I anyway, maybe I'll say us some more later, but ah but I love it. So let's go to you, Chris, since we' we're just talking to you. yeah Yeah, no, but I had. Yeah, I had it down at at number 10. And i I do realize again, I i think it's a
00:15:36
Speaker
a well-constructed song, um I do think the the fact that it's played in an encore has been basically for 20 years straight. I have this theory that um the the songs, a lot of times the songs I like least are the ones that are are played as a closer that I don't love. because ultimately what those songs become are an indication the show is about to end. And a song that you would, oh man, it'd be really cool to hear something else, would you you're not gonna get to hear it. And so I like hearing, again, if they played at a show, it's always a good time. Everyone's having, it's it's delightful when they bring the ret the other band up and it's cool to hear some other singer to kind of take the second verse. um But yeah, it's it's almost sometimes been,
00:16:24
Speaker
you know And it's interesting, again, picking up the bass and there are so many interesting things, but at the same time, my ears are almost like fatigued of the song. like I don't like take it in that same way. And that's kind of, I think why it ended up down there um is the other songs just kind of catch me still in a different way after all these years. Yeah, and and i and I'll go to Jeff in a second. But even you know Kevin, talk about your like even the um the line but ah and and the way he sneaks it in there is really great, about the but I'm stuck so tight, weighted by the chains that keep me. And I just think that that lyric transition to the chorus, I think, is kind of genius, actually, and and and and and anyway the timing of it.
00:17:04
Speaker
The um the other yeah, you know in some ways I think and I and we'll talk about hard candy and I'll make no mistake that I love that album but this is kind of You know American girls is kind of what they tried to do with hard candy similar to the hanging around right and even their videos I think are somewhat similar with like I them hang you know Adam hanging around with a bunch of good-looking 20-somethings that are all having a great time being with Adam. And it just it just works with with with this song, I think, a lot more than American Girls.
00:17:37
Speaker
ah Jeff, you didn't talk yet, right? You're the last person to talk been hanging around. Yeah. Sarah's dying over here watching these comments um as we deride her for her favorite time. So, couple days first of all, Kevin is absolutely right. That baseline, which we discovered is by Davey Farringer. farringger which we learned as ah as a shocking revelation on the Sullivan Street podcast. ah That bass line is like, go listen to it because I hadn't really paid attention to the bass line until you talked about it on the show. and I was like, I need to go listen to this famous bass line. I was like, oh my God, that bass line is insane. It is. It's like a whole different musical adventure. It's like a Steely Dan song inside this Counting Crow song.
00:18:24
Speaker
It's very cool. So I absolutely agree that it's worth anyone's time to just go and listen to that bass line. It is worth the trip for sure. um Here's what I don't like about hanging around and I've never liked about this song. um It always felt calculated to me. It felt like he was, first of all, wrote this song looking for a hit. Dave Lowry said, I heard a single immediately. and And so they built it ah to be that. They put it first on the album because of that. It was the pivot song. And they did manage to pivot the group's sound and image with the song. So it was very successful pivot. It's their biggest you know hit. And so it was ah it was a strategic piece of songwriting. And he hit a 10 out of 10. He's done this a number of times. But this is an example of one where he said, I need to do something with this song strategically. And I need this song to take our career in a different direction. I'm going to write a song that achieves that. And he's done this a bunch of times. He did it here. And so it's a very impressive piece of work. But here's what I don't like about it personally. It's dishonest. This song is written about a time that had come long before 1998 when he you know wrote the lyrics for it.
00:19:34
Speaker
And he sings it from a first-person perspective. He says, I'm hanging around. yeah this This album, what's so great about this album, we're going to talk about some of these songs. We haven't talked about them, is the maturity. And his his looking at fame from a, Kevin mentioned this, from a new perspective, not not the up and rising star from the first album, not the you know guy who had achieved fame and didn't know what to do with with it on the second album, but somebody who had come to terms with it. and somebody who had become mature and somebody who is saying new things about that experience and saying new things about what it was like to be 33. Now I'm 33 and it isn't me.
00:20:12
Speaker
And the the album is so deep because of that that this song is almost like, I mean, I hate to say it, but it like offended me that, that you know, like, because then he wrote it from a first person perspective. It's like, this isn't you. This is just this is a strategy. It's not a song. It's certainly not. Timmy never felt heartfelt. it felt like this is a song that maybe if you and maybe he did maybe he wrote the lyrics you know years before when he was living in Berkeley but it was written about a different time and this album to me what's so great about it is when he's writing about this time and what that experience is like. So that's thats interesting. got hanging around
00:20:49
Speaker
that's a safe thing i recall Yeah, I always thought, you know, it's funny you said that about the, um, that is, although I never thought about it until now when you said that, and one retort is that didn't, he moved to New York shortly after this, right? Like two years, maybe. I know he moved right before, I think, I think right before hard candy. So it's possible that maybe he was getting sick of LA. Uh, but I agree with you in a way. I, uh, I do think he wrote it more, even though it's written from a first person's perspective, I think it's more of the,
00:21:22
Speaker
Yeah, for anyone, because actually, he was someone that moved around quite a bit when he grew up, right? But anybody who, yeah, I think I think he was putting himself in other people's place who don't kind of grow up or move on when they should. And you're right, it was, you know, the goal to create a single, but for someone who kind of went back to my hometown a little bit too much in my 20s, even just to visit or hang out with the I related, plus, of course, the hangover part, hangover part, but Chris, you had a I actually think, though, the the one thing I would say is that I don't think it's that exceptional, and we're gonna get to another song on this record where he does this, where he is going back historically and talking about a time that is clearly in the past um from a lyrical perspective. Obviously on another record, Richard Manuel was about something happening in the mid 80s, essentially. um So I think there's, I don't think that's necessarily a problem. I do get, again, I get your point, Jeff, that it, again, it's it's a little bit more of ah a,
00:22:21
Speaker
think commercial ah and maybe intentionally commercial song, which I think, you know, there's there's something that can feel, again, especially, and thing I think especially sort of set against the rest of this record. I think this is, hanging around feels a little bit like Kid Things in that it suffers to me in the context of the rest of this record. It feels very out of place in certain ways. It's a great song, but when you're in the context of like up against, again, all like all my friends in high life and all these things are like, that kind of feels, they don't connect. It feels like it's a beginning and an end. It almost feels like this beginning and Kid Things at the end almost feel like there's a like bookends of different records sort of, you know, as I'm thinking about it. Really, I had Lo, the first and the last song, because that middle section is so of a piece that they sort of feel off to the side and in a weird way.
00:23:18
Speaker
Although Kevin, Kevin, I guess you would agree with me that like everything that Chris and Jeff said is right. But there is something about, I think the production and arrangements that still does kind of feel this desert life. I definitely agree with you, Eric. And I think that's, that's where there's two sides of the conversation. It's like the poppy version of what they did everywhere else. Yeah. Yeah, it is it is because it it doesn't sound like satellite. its It doesn't sound like August. And when I it's strike funny, because, i you know, this album, it's almost like living room pop as opposed to like bedroom, op you know, that the phrase that you hear. But you think about like T-Bone Burnett putting them in a circle to play August. And I'm like, yeah, they were just becoming a band then. But this is them as a band they've toured. They're sitting around in a living room and figuring this out. So I do think Eric that like musically,
00:24:05
Speaker
it does fit in with the context, but we're- Yeah, and and even though he wanted to create a pop, I mean, Jeff is exactly right. I think he was like, I'm going to make a you know pop song here or whatever, but but he also tried to do that in hard candy, and I don't think this fits in hard candy. I just it wouldn't i think it it doesn't sound like the rest of it. Anyway, let's go to the top three. Now, this is ah we're still at number three, which is actually still in that middle section. so By the way, even though I put St. Robinson as number five, it actually tied with hanging around. so um I don't know. I guess I was the tiebreaker there. Who knows? But number three was ah clearly, and and and and this is very interesting. I mean, there is a clear demarcation between number two and number three. So maybe some of you might be interested. I'm i'm guessing some of you might be able to figure out what number
Ranking and Appreciation
00:24:50
Speaker
one is. But number three, ah definitely with that next group, which is, I wish I was a girl. ah Most of us had this fairly high. Kevin ah did not, but we'll talk about that.
00:25:02
Speaker
there There is for me and i'm not mad that this is number three clearly for me there's been no other song that has. Move up the rankings in fact i i mean i guess i like the better the speedway but for years i may be ten years. um this was one of my least favorite songs on the album and I couldn't understand why kind of hardcore crows fans liked it so much. I was like, jeez, they don't have great taste for the rest of the album. um But it has really sold one of me, which is funny because I was trying to say that to David. And if you remember, David said like,
00:25:38
Speaker
It's my least favorite of the group. They were trying to be too much like Sparkle Horace. I was like, no, no, no, I actually think it's great. And he misunderstood because I thought the production could have even been a little better. Our arrangement could have been a little better. I think the arrangement undersold and I appreciated more after seeing it in concert a couple of times. ah so um But I won't say anything more right now. let's go you Let's go to Sarah, who also had this very high. In fact, she's the only one that had it in the top three. ah Number two for Sarah, I wish I was a girl. Yeah, this is obviously another favorite of mine. I think it it sounds a lot different than their other songs, like the musical.ly. And I also like that it's kind of a sequel to Goodnight Elizabeth.
00:26:24
Speaker
But then also, if you think too deeply about the lyrics, it's also kind of ridiculous. yes Like, I wish I was a girl so that you would believe that I as your boyfriend wasn't cheating on you. So don't think too deeply about it. Yeah, thank you. And actually, that was one of the things that used to bother me when I when i didn't i i felt the same thing. By the way, thank you for mentioning about the callback. um Now, sometimes I might see callbacks that that maybe I look too much into them. But even like for hanging around, and by the way, Chris, I looked. In 2014, when I saw them, they actually did not play hanging around. um Although I think they might not have had an opening band then either. I can't remember that, it my our opening act. I'd have to look at that again. But surprisingly, they didn't play hanging around. But in hanging around, they also, like after the light has faded. So to me, that goes back to daylight fading.
00:27:19
Speaker
You know, from the previous album, at least I got that call back now, whether he meant that to be or not. ah But yeah, I do ah agree with you, Sarah. I always loved that when he throws some callbacks to older songs without overdoing it. And yeah, that this was the one that famously, my best friend from high school, he heard this song and he goes, Oh, boy, like, i i mean me I guess he didn't realize that Adam Oh, I guess it's because yeah, anyway, he was like, boy, that Elizabeth really did a number on him, like almost like, boy, he still can't get over Elizabeth after all this time. And he's a rock and roll star. He's like, boy, that must have really hurt him. ah ah Jeff, let's let's go to you. ah You had it. ah Number four or five. Sorry. Yeah. And
00:28:07
Speaker
ah you know when When I first ranked these songs, I just thought, I already know my rankings, and I put this as number three. So it slipped a little bit in my rankings as I really listened deeply to the album over these last couple of weeks. But um I've always been a huge fan of this song. I also, like Sarah, I love the callback to um Elizabeth. The song was written you know about Betsy, um Elizabeth, the AKA Betsy, thinking that he was cheating when he's on the road. um And, ah you know, I also appreciate the the sort of songwriting tradition. This is tied into Martha Hoopels' I Wish I Was Your Mother, um which Adam had seen a performance of that. And I think it did influence his writing of this. And also, ah Prince's If I Was Your Girlfriend sort of takes this reversal idea as if I was your girlfriend, then we'd have a much better understanding. yeah I think there's a songwriting tradition of doing this.
00:29:01
Speaker
And i I think Adam knows those songs and intentionally wrote a song in that vein. And I i think that's cool. um Another, I'll bring in a little fun fact here. Emmy, first of all, on the mandolin. But Chris Seifried is doing that high backup vocal. I wish I was a girl. That sort of distinct high vocal is a guy named Chris Seifried. So who's Chris Seifried? Well, Chris Seifried is the singer guitarist in front of the band called Joe 90. Joe 90 was a band that Adam Durritt signed to his B.P. Play Bowl.
00:29:33
Speaker
E Pluribus Unum, Joe 90's album Dream This had a single called Drive. And if you pull it up on YouTube, you'll hear that Adam is doing the backup vocals on it. Now, if you listen to the song, it's like this very cool like pop song and you're going, I don't hear Adam Duritz on this. Adam's not singing on this. And I was like, you know, maybe he's trying to sound like something, but that's not Adam Duritz. Well, you got to wait till the very end. He comes in at the very end and throws on and you're like, oh, OK, OK, there's Adam coming in at the very end. But they sort of tacked it on, but it's a cool song. You should listen to it. Joe 90 was one of the bands that played, when they all played hanging around on on the Conan O'Brien show, they were, Joe 90 was on stage with him. So he was one of the, and and they toured with the pros a lot too. um Anyway, so a little little bit of a history about the song and also where does that distinct vocal come from? It comes from, as it turns out, the singer of Joe 90.
00:30:29
Speaker
Yeah, thank you. Thank you. And I guess i see well it's funny because I talked about how this jumped up so much because I guess in the last couple of years, this is almost like my second favorite song. But in my ranking, I put it number six. I guess if I I just could not put it above, for example, High Life or even even for me, four days, maybe just because of the lasting and impact. But the thing I love about this song is I guess I didn't appreciate and this. This was my point to David Lowry that I didn't appreciate how complicated and interesting the arrangements were. I thought it was kind of hidden on the recording, the kind of sonically and the little sound effects they're doing. I also love that drumming at the end when they get into the end part that Jim, I know that he wasn't on the original recording, but he absolutely nails live. But um yeah, I've mentioned it before. I'll just mention it one more time. i They actually put this on on a recording of this on their official Cannon Crows.
00:31:28
Speaker
um Video collection so that that's the one that kind of got me to love and then I've seen it a couple times live So anyway, I just think yeah, so let's Chris. Let's go to you.
Song Arrangements and Performance Impact
00:31:39
Speaker
Sure Yeah, I mean I had this high too. I had this at number four um a Wonderful song um the arrangement is someone said is is kind of interesting um I'll just note, by the way, to to Jeff's point, ah Chris Seifried, there's a really interesting, I mentioned it last week um when we were talking about reigning in Baltimore, there's a really interesting performance that was done. It's a trio. It's Adam Duritz, Dave Gibbs, and Chris Seifried.
00:32:04
Speaker
And that's the first time they had played Raining in Baltimore and Forever. But that whole performance, it's February of 2008, is a really interesting, like, because it's it's so unlike what you normally get to see Adam do. And so to hear a lot of these songs in very different, interesting arrangements, but with Chris Seifried, one of that, part of that group. um i Just talking, Gompingom, another theme we had talking about this song relative to some of the other ones. so The lyrics here, I'm saying this is another song that's its about a historical time. But what's kind of in what's really interesting, and I think, about this song is that it's both about a historical time and something more current. right There's a really interesting, if you really try to start breaking down the lyrics, some of it's clearly happening in the past right because he's talking about
00:32:56
Speaker
um You know, the devil's the the first line, the devil's in dreaming that tells you I'm not sleeping in my hotel room alone. Right. That's a present tense statement. Right. Adams, in ah Adams may be on the phone with her. It's sort of the same time period of as Goodnight Elizabeth. um But there's other parts of the song that are clearly you like the the current at the time, or maybe more recent. you know He wants, you know, hey, Elizabeth, I'm doing all right these days, which is probably a lie given that he's writing this song. But it's there's this kind of a play with the time, and and and maybe, again, talking about the dissociative disorder um and and that loss of the the temporality of of what's going on. But I think in a lot of ways,
00:33:43
Speaker
it adds an interesting layer to the song when you realize it's that feeling of how how current some of those feelings, sometimes you you it's something in the past, but you realize, oh, actually, part of me still feels exactly like I did. you know, five years ago. But also i'm different I definitely feel differently about it now. I've moved on. my My thoughts about it have changed. But I can also still kind of access that same space. And that kind of, I think part of what makes the the song really interesting and and brings that kind of oomph to it. Thanks. I think that's that's a great take, Chris. And and when I get to you, Kevin, the last to talk about it, I guess, um
00:34:26
Speaker
I was thinking, I mentioned a couple times, like at the end of the St. Robinson, I said it's my favorite part, the middle of high life. There's different songs here where, surprisingly, it's not like a regular pop song, like, oh, I just love the chorus so much. I mean, only Counting Crows can you like, oh, the 40% in, there's this one part that hits me, and it almost doesn't make sense in some ways, but I thought of your thing with the English major, but the part of the you see yourself descending from ah the building to the ground and you watch the sky receding and then you spin to see the traffic right and that part i can't envision it and i don't know i that that part of the and then you're surprised me with that part of the song for whatever reason hits me more than anything else and i think the music matches the lyrics in a way that only crows can do kevin will go to you.
00:35:18
Speaker
Yeah, I had this one a little bit lower. And again, I love the song, but in the the context of the album, I had it down, I think at nine. But for me, you know, I felt when compared to a song like High Life, which really puts the experimentation of instrumentation the instrumentation and the arrangement up front, I just felt that I wish I was a girl kind of. fell in comparison to that, um at least in my point of view. i What I do love about the song, I do love, I think there's like a slight vocal distortion on Adam. There's some sort of effect there, I think, which again, I could be wrong. I wasn't in the studio. That's what I hear and I love it. And I think the drums are also a little distorted as well at the end, which I do think is some really great, um you know, kind of effect instrumentation there.
00:36:05
Speaker
But yeah, that's what I had. I do love that if you go back to, you know, some concerts from the 2000s, playing the song live, there's so much energy, especially in the end when Adam is singing, you know, I wish I was doing all right. And there's so much energy in it. That's when I listen to song, I often go back to some of those live recordings. yeah All right, thanks, Kevin. So now we are in the top two. And as I've talked about before, there was a clear demarcation between number two and I wish I was a girl. So it was...
00:36:38
Speaker
Pretty, I don't want to say consensus, because actually only two of us had both of these in our top two. But these were the high consensus. Nobody had any of these songs lower than five. So that's where they really separate themselves. And of course, when I give you number two, you'll know what number one is. And to be honest, though, there was a clear difference between number one and number two in the ranking. So we'll go with number two, which I was happy to see. And I was the only one that had this as number one, although I really could have gone either way, which is all my friends. ah
00:37:08
Speaker
i ah I'm glad to hear that other people, because I thought this was going to end up like number four or five, and I was glad to see it number two. I agree with you, Chris, that it's it's absolutely companion piece to High Life. And then later in my listening career, I kind of put four days in there. I don't know why, but I love that middle part of four days, all my friends and High Life. I put them together, even though clearly all my friends matches with High Life more. ah I don't have much to say. I also think, I said this about High Life, one of the reasons I had this high um and why, yeah, number one is I also thought, maybe not as much as High Life, but I also thought this song was the arrangement of it and the song itself, not the lyrics maybe, but although I love the lyrics.
00:37:57
Speaker
but so I never really heard anything like it. I found it to be very original. and what is it that I think Matt said that this was his favorite song, and I'm not just doing this as a tribute to Matt Malley, although he he he said it was like a throwback to Baccarat, right? There's something like that, he said. in is But I found it to be read very really original. I think, it ah to your point, Jeff, and you kind of hinted this, for a band that kind of, um and even when I talk to Dan quickly, he's almost like, Oh, I'm surprised that, ah you know, sometimes I'm surprised that these hardcore crows fans, and ah as ah Chris and I have said so many times on the podcast, it's because
00:38:37
Speaker
but coming of age man for us for a lot of people it was our coming of age band and this song stands out by being coming of age in your 30s compared to 20s and that in your 30s it's almost like what was that show in the in the 80s 30 something right that the ABC did but it was a kind of a thought that in your 30s things change because Well, for a lot of reasons, you start to think about, oh, I'm becoming an adult. What what am I going to do the rest of my life? This isn't maybe my play period anymore. But also, if you stay single, some people are going to get married. Some people are going to start having kids and things will always will never be the same.
00:39:20
Speaker
And maybe that even came out, like, Chris, we've talked about how they don't really record it in a house anymore. And part of that is because of that transition that you can't go back to your 20s. Jeff, let's hear your take on all my friends, which you put number four. Yeah and that was a tough number four because I really wanted to put it at number three and I'm the same way. This song with High Life are almost interchangeable in ah in some way to me and it was very hard to decide which one should be three and which one should be four.
00:39:51
Speaker
um This is definitely one of my favorite songs on the album for sure. ah I love the hard earned maturity. you know This is somebody who's writing um from the opposite position of of the character, you know the person he was in Mr. Jones or the person that he portrays in hanging around. This is somebody who's writing from his perspective today of being 33 years old and and seeing things differently and and seeing things in a new way. And just, I think, You know, always in in music, it's where is where is this music situated in the artist's career? And then where are you in your life when you're receiving it as ah as an audience and as a listener? And so this was a song that was personally meaningful to me at the time.
00:40:37
Speaker
um The ebbs and flows, the way that they change time signatures almost effortlessly. I'm not a time signature expert, but um it's an amazing piece of music, very musical. And I noticed again at the end of this song that the band is just hitting it. Now, they're not rocking. They're just nailing it at the end. And there's these incredible little sweet piano notes right at the end. And then they fade out, which is probably why this song and the one thing I dislike about this song, I hate fade outs. Like I want to hear the end of the song. They kept it tight. They faded it out. um But I wanted to I wanted to hear more. I could have I would i would have was I would have been like Dave Lowry. Let's jam this out for two more minutes um because I just really do love it.
00:41:23
Speaker
Jeff, I'll just say that I agree with you, but disagree in that the it almost I think back of like Jerry Seinfeld has been in the news recently and he talks about ending the show and he always he he also ah does a tight set. He always wants everyone wanting more all the time, like always, you know, making sure. And I agree with you in that I want more like so I say that Saint Robinson is my favorite last minute of any song. There is no doubt that all my friends is my favorite last 30 seconds. That's another way. He just doesn't scream because it's I'm jamming. So it doesn't hurt my ears as much.
00:41:54
Speaker
but I absolutely love that. I want more. In a way, I think the fade out is brilliant because I want more. and you're You're absolutely right. that That jamming at the end is almost my favorite. and if If you've gone to the live version, they do play it they do jam out more in the live version, so they have fun with it.
Exploring 'All My Friends'
00:42:12
Speaker
I have some more thoughts, but let's go to Kevin. I don't know why I'm going to him, but Kevin put it number two, so let's go to him. Yeah, yeah number two. I completely agree. It's like a lost piece of Santa Cruz music history. I'm like, what does the rest of that song sound like in the studio? I would love to hear those last, hopefully they're 10 minutes, I don't know. But yeah, I just wanted to comment on that. But when I, I think I mentioned earlier that I had this album, you know, 2002 on a family vacation, and this was the song that that struck me. So this, in so many ways, is extremely meaningful to me. But
00:42:50
Speaker
I think to what we're talking about, this is this is dirt. He's writing as an adult. I mean, it's about his friends moving on in life in ways that he is not. I think I'm literally quoting one of him describing the song in a live show. But what I love about it is that as an adult, I'm coming to this song and I'm like, yeah. I'm looking at some of my friends and my family in life, and there are places where I'm not and places I want to be, and I think it's just so relatable as you get older. And then even when you hear him sing it live, you know, what, 10 years after they started singing it, he puts himself at 43 and then maybe at 53, I'm not sure, but there's always something so relatable and mature about it.
00:43:28
Speaker
which I think is is is just beautiful, but a couple of just notes that I wanted to bring in. One was the the rocket ride theme, because he also mentioned in the atmosphere that he says rocket ride, which I think is is really interesting. um i'm I'm sure there's a lot to unpack there. But yeah, it's one of my favorites. It's up for it not to be number one. Yeah. that Thanks, Kevin. you know one um yeah yeah Yeah, and thanks for reminding me. I just wanted to look at one thing about the lyrics, about the Rocket Ride, and then um this almost goes back to Mr. Jones because, right, that that
00:44:03
Speaker
because the first part I don't think is about that the other people have moved on. as It's more about him, about being in his 30s, and where he's like, at 17 I had a better dream. And it's funny, because he got his dream of being a rock and roll star, but he's also saying me at 33, where I think it's more about his personality, maybe how he interacts with people, or just his views on life, and that has changed. Like now I'm 33, and that's, I got the rock and roll part, maybe personality wise or how I interact with other humans is not what I envisioned. Maybe I'm more pessimistic or maybe, I mean, he was still drinking a lot then I think. And so maybe that's part of it too. At least how that's how sometimes when i what I felt in my, even my thirties when you know and I'm getting a little deep, but if I was drinking a lot and be like, well, I always i wanted to have fun, but is that really me that I wanted to to do that?
00:44:53
Speaker
You know, I might be reading too deep into this, but one really deep part about his friends moving on and is that at least that image of it is that there's part of me and um that thinks and I think this comes up when people are in their 20s. You know how like you'll get people together and maybe some are in a serious relationship, some aren't, maybe some are getting married, and then you kind of have this discussion. Well, who wants to get married? And I think men and women both have this. this go Oh, I don't need to get married. I don't care. I never really want kids. if If I do get married, I'm not going to have them. And of course, two years later, they have kids. Well, I change, you know, whatever.
00:45:32
Speaker
And I even in my twenties I knew that a lot of those people that say it's almost like you know the stereotype of like woman has about I'm never gonna date again. I hate man and then maybe the next week they're dating somebody or whatever. But I always thought that I always knew a lot of those people were hypo hypocrites that either weren't honest with themselves or didn't know themselves. Now, I don't think Adam's saying that about his friends or his bandmates, but I think there's a little bit in here that is not just, um oh, they've married and had kids. Oh, um I'm a little behind. I better start doing that. I think it's a lot of he knows he's different.
00:46:07
Speaker
and that he might never have kids even though he could and that is actually what ended up happening so maybe this even thought about his mental health or whatever so i could be reading into that a little bit but i think there's a kind of a deeper thing that he always knew he was a little different and and to this day right didn't get married now he has a serious girlfriend for the first time ever which i guess he found in his early 50s not to talk about his personal life that much But anyway, I think that's kind of an undertone there. Let's go to Sarah who had this. Was it number four? Yes. Yeah. Um, yeah, I really liked the song and. Yeah, this is, and you know, as you're talking about it and you know, being in your thirties and I mean, I'm not in my thirties anymore, but you know, I was, I was in my teens when this came out. So I probably couldn't relate to it in that same way. Um, but yeah, it is taking a more.
00:47:01
Speaker
adult perspective and watching your kids get grown up jobs and get maybe watching your friends, sorry, um, do these things and have kids, et cetera. And you know, maybe you are just different and you're not going to do that. And, you know, I like to say that I didn't, I didn't know myself until I was 30. And so Maybe he's taking this perspective, like you said, that he knows he's different. But at eight at age 30, when you say, yeah, I'm someone who's not going to have kids, like when you say that in your 20s, you probably are going to change your mind. But once you get to your 30s, you know yourself well enough that you can say that and mean it.
00:47:44
Speaker
All right, thank you. Let's go to the last person who didn't comment. to Chris, I want to hear your take. And Chris, you had this as. um Oh, number five, number five. Yeah, I know. I mean, a wonderful song is I think it's one of that that top group. um First of all, we should talk about the string arrangement here is spectacular. I mean, there's a ah really good use of the strings on this record. I think going to what Jeff talks about earlier and how things move in and out. the string arrangements are used, I was gonna say tastefully, but I almost think that's like too, not strong enough. Like the the string arrangements are used in very unique and thoughtful ways that really accentuate the songs. It's very easy, I think, with strings to do
00:48:34
Speaker
just a lazy arrangement and a swell and, oh, this is how we're going to make we're going to add strings now and it's going to become big and it's going to become this emotional thing. That's not what they're doing. And really any of the songs where they use strings here, right, they're using strings, these very strategic and thoughtful ways to enhance these arrangements that are very off kilter and not, you know, this isn't um And and i i like these I like these songs, but this is not a snow patrol song, you know what I mean? To to pull and a side thing, where it's just like, oh, there's a big swell. you know um Although those songs are good too. and'm not nothing Nothing against them. um I think this is a classic Crow song of like disconnection. I think that's part of why this song kind of keeps resonating, is that from a lyrical perspective, it's it is you know it drives a lot of what
00:49:24
Speaker
Adam talks about in these other songs and it's a really kind of a classic thing. that And end I always do like a song with an age and things that you can update, right? I'm 43 and it isn't me. He did in like 2006. I don't think he did 53. Maybe he'll bring it back with 63. Maybe he'll be 63 and it isn't him. um But I always kind of like, because it it does allow certain things. Interestingly, I'm a big Augustana fan and I think that's something that Dan Laius may have picked up because there's a couple songs 20 years and I Still Ain't Over You where he'll update, you know, the the the years in the song to try to connect and he'll do it very frequently. He's very studious about that. um But I wonder if he got it from, you know, was a song like this from Adam.
00:50:08
Speaker
Thanks, Chris. Yeah, um why and I agree with everything you said, but just because I kind of wanted to check out the video real quick, which I shouldn't, have it's not not even on the official channel,
In-Depth: 'Mrs. Potter's Lullaby'
00:50:17
Speaker
I don't think. It looks like somebody else uploaded it 15 years ago and it only has like 6,000 views, which we talked about what, Daylight Fading had a million views. So the interesting video and Jeff, i was I listened to five seconds of the last 30 seconds and I was already like, I want to hear more. i guess And by the way, is he, come on, is Adam, i you know, he's, I guess what, Van Morrison's always like that, but is he the best, like, sha na na, la la la, at least to me, I love it. Anytime he's doing that, I don't get sick of his la la's and na na's and shush and he does it there um at the end. Okay, so the number one song, which, you know, going into the,
00:50:56
Speaker
I kind of thought that this would win before anybody wrote, but I didn't know. um Both, yeah, a fan favorite, Mrs. Potter's Lullaby. ah Then three of you had it number one. I had it down at number two, um but in my top two. And Sarah had it number five, because she explained why she liked the other four songs a little more. So I don't know, a classic, um yeah the only thing I'll say ah is that, is is Boy, how could this crows, so as I said, I think compared to some of the other songs on this album that musically, I guess it comes across as kind of simple, although I think it is more complicated than it first comes across. But how can the crows make this ah kind of simple song that kind of rambles on for a long time and has four um you know verses and somehow make it genius and
00:51:50
Speaker
I know that I'm sure a lot of you are going to say, I'm guessing Chris and Jeff for sure, that lyrically this might be his best work. I'm guessing that's what you're going to say, but let's go, Ms. Potter. Jeff, let's let's go to you. Yeah, well, I do think that um it shows off his talent as a lyricist rather than as a vocalist. And I love Adam singing. He's he's a singer's singer. singer um But this is really about the lyrics rather than like him dazzling you with his vocal performance, and which shows you that it's the lyrics that mattered the most to him. He just spins off one great line after another in the song. I mean, it's just ridiculous.
00:52:29
Speaker
um and And I think, again, you have um ah so you know it's ah it's a more honest account of sort of where his life is. He's describing playing shows and dating movie stars. and um But you know again, this hard-won maturity and the real key to it is that line about the last king of Hollywood. um You know demonstrating this wisdom this growth this different perspective he gives that little laugh right after it gave up my seat at the bar and heads for the door you know that that perfectly timed and and then again another you know just spinning off more great lines you don't lying down beneath the ball of stars so
00:53:10
Speaker
um he's he's playing the piano on this or like driving the piano on this and I think it really demonstrates his skill on the piano too because I think the piano does in some ways drive it. um The reference to Maria obviously a nod to the insiders and You know, again, Clay Jones, here ah here he comes again with his Scotty Pippen Keyman performance. um He does this great, he does the acoustic itz guitar on here. And specifically, um ah he comes in right after there's a piece of Maria in every song that I sing.
00:53:44
Speaker
And here comes Clay Jones on the acoustic guitar ah for the first time. You'll hear it instantly. So listen closely and you'll instantly hear Clay Jones doing a very signature style of guitar for him. And I really think it it adds a lot. ah Dan Vickery may be the unsung hero of the track because he's got to play this counter lead to Adam's vocal through the whole song. And like, how can you do that over and over again and not just make it boring? so ah What a performance what a masterpiece Obviously we all love this song. It's it's such a favor. It's such a great. It's just one of their absolute best Thanks, thanks Jeff. I'm gonna go to Kevin next. I don't know why Kevin I think you're gonna like the line about the ghosts of the Tilta world I'm i'm not sure I could be wrong about that um but I just want one thing I just want to say about you Jeff it actually in Sarah mentioned this to what other people went when one thing I
00:54:37
Speaker
Again, maybe it's just that I'm an Adam lover or whatever. But I think that when he does these callbacks, like, I mean, here he flat out says, which we already know there's a piece of Marie in every song that I sing. Yeah, of course there is. ah You've mentioned it in a couple songs now. But I think he does it in a way that does not come across as gratuitous or too much. It's just a little bit and it's so funny because it's yeah something that that that's the genius of it. Kevin, let's go to you.
00:55:05
Speaker
Yeah, I mean, this is it's just such a fan favorite. It's so perfect. I think it is a ah song where every single line is so memorable and also as a fan, just so fun to sing, whether you're in your car or at the show. um I think it's fantastic. But this is, again, like back to just them in terms of and a maturing band. there's There's humor in the song. you know There's honesty. There's hearts. all It's just a great combination. um kind of everything that they're great at. But um yeah, Jeff, I agree with you. Vickery's guitar, Lick's, just going back and forth with Adam to make that not boring and just to make it exciting and different every time is wild. I just think, again, it's a seven minutes, seven minute and 45 second song. Like when we think of those other songs, we've got like American Pie. We have like Steens from an Italian restaurant. And I don't know, I listen to American Pie. I get so bored, you know, I take it. It's a great song, but I'm like, I don't need to hear it again.
00:56:02
Speaker
potters. I'll put it on. It's it's like it's the last three minutes and it's fresh every time. I just love it so long and I think it's another great brush song. I think Ben's tickling the brushes as they say. Yeah, thanks, Kevin. It definitely is one of the quickest eight minute songs I've ever heard. And it's weird because it's not that fast of a song. It just keeps going. And it's it's weird. do you and And Chris, we'll get to you in a bit and and Sarah as well. But we talked about how what what did you because I'm not a music guy. Jeff, you're talking about like the change of pace of a lot of these songs, like
00:56:36
Speaker
Highlife, and then you hit the atmosphere, and and and all my friends, they keep changing. This one doesn't really, right? I mean, a little bit, but the most part just keeps going and going. And you'd think I wouldn't like that, but yeah, it just works so well. And and how, and I guess, well, let's just highlight some, you said that, you know, because every line is is is so memorable, but
00:56:58
Speaker
only the lovesick rejections that accompany the company I keep and the razor perceptions that cut just a little too deep. like they just yeah Those lyrics are so great. Sarah, let's go to you and get your thoughts on Mrs. Potter's.
00:57:14
Speaker
I honestly don't know why I had it ranked so low because lyrically, this is this is one of my favorite songs. i ah Tried to convince my high school English teacher that this was a piece of poetry and we should study it. She was not, she was not impressed. Boo. um and Boo, exactly. But I, you know, I think if I was analyzing just the lyrics, it would be higher, but I don't know, maybe it's, it's kind of long and winding for a song, but also I don't know what part you could cut out and still
00:57:53
Speaker
leave the song as good as it is. um But I mean it is it is lyrically an amazing song and I love it even though I only had it ranked, what did I have at five? Number five, number five, yeah but i yeah. But to your point, I think that is kind of what Adam said. He's like, what am I gonna cut out? This is the song. It had to be for four verses, whatever. So let's go to Chris Miggs. Who had this? Oh, also number one. Number one. so this is this Yeah. It's number one. if this is one of And this is, if you're particularly, I feel like if you're trying to a little bit more objectively rank the Crow's best songs,
00:58:33
Speaker
Um, if you're trying a little disconnect from just the emotional feelings that, uh, cause obviously everyone's going to feel differently. Like this has got to kind of be up there because as, as people have said already, it's eight minutes that feels like for the music, the way the music and the lyrics work together, like lyrically Adam might blush by saying this, this is on the level of like sixties Dylan. right? This is like he's spitting off verses like this is Desolation Row or something. But oh, by the way, at least as compared to like the recordings, I would argue musically, this is better. This is the superior to not every 60s Dylan's on it. ah but But this is like this is right. I mean, this is a ah spectacular piece of music paired with just him just spitting verses of like,
00:59:22
Speaker
one-liners that you I mean we've we've gotten you know into this no one no one's referenced uh if you've never stared off into the distance then your life is a shame which is fucking true um if dreams are like movies then memories are films about ghost which is such a good line it's the name of their greatest hits record all right um and even just the first line of the song right like yes that's what i was gonna say mid afternoon because that's when it all hurts the most and you're like if they if they've ever like a a truth bomb there, right? And they drop into that. Like, we talked a little about this with Lowry, right? There's this really interesting thing where the party of of hanging around seamlessly on the record segues into Adam. Like you can almost hear him retreating from the party. Maybe slowly, maybe he's been drinking and he passes out, right? He wakes up.
01:00:16
Speaker
You woke up in mid-afternoon because that's what it all hurts the most. is This is ask what happens after the party, is this feeling. um And it's this whole sort of beautiful train of thought. like it's one It feels like one train of thought. It's kind of just really insane as a song. um I've always also, the one other thing i I really love about this song is how ballsy It is how they've used it in concert, right? Because this is, again, an eight minute song where regularly they would play an eight minute rain king and segue straight into this. And that is such a fucking like belief in your audience.
01:00:58
Speaker
or not giving a shit ah eat one way or the other. But I think it's belief. I think it's them trusting and going like, we are going to open here with 15 minutes of music before you can take a break. And we're not going to play two of the biggest hits. And it's going to work. And it's going to launch the rest of the show. um you know i've i've always I've always really loved that. from a live version perspective, mostly this has kind of stayed the same, but there's some really interesting versions in 2006, after there'd been a fire up in Joshua Tree, where Adam like talks about the palace and you know, the the the palace still stands. And I think that's actually also a time period where they started really kind of using visuals pretty strongly in the background of this song live, where they would go
01:01:45
Speaker
Like, you know, I had straight for the door and you'd see kind of something that looks like the open road and the the night sky and really kind of taking you there and accentuating using the visuals to accentuate that there was a a conversation um in one of the crows Facebook group this week about, you know, what would it be like if the crows played the sphere. um And while that would be really cool from a ah sound perspective, I'm not totally sure they're the visual band for that. But this if they if they could get up there and play one song, I actually think this would kind of be the song. you could this It's such a universe and a world that watching something at the sphere move through with this song, I actually think would be the ah but call, if they got to if they got to pick one tune.
01:02:31
Speaker
yeah Thank you, Chris. chris i'd love I love your take. I love having you and a co-host, Chris. and And I like when you bring up stuff like I never thought of this, even though sequentially it is a great, you know, from hanging around in Mrs. Potter, I never thought of it as like after the hanging around party. Which, and that's great. and that I will never think of it differently again.
Personal Connections with Counting Crows
01:02:53
Speaker
um How about this? Maybe you've all caught this. It's just because I'm kind of looking at the lyrics while I'm trying to emcee this and both um hanging around in Mrs. Potter reference blue light. I had no idea. Didn't catch that before.
01:03:07
Speaker
So there you go. is that we always We always catch a new thing. um How about the line of the swirling dust sparkle jet stream? That to me is genius. And thanks for mentioning about the thing of Joshua Tree, because even though he obviously is very literal talking about things like Sullivan Street and the bar in Mr. Jones, I actually, given that he was hanging around Hollywood, I thought that was actually something, you know, because he doesn't mention dreams a lot. I actually thought about being standing up in the palace of the Last of the Great Pine. I actually thought that was something just in his imagination, or maybe he saw something in the Midwest once or something like that. No idea that that was actually
01:03:50
Speaker
not only a real bar, but the same sleepy town near El, you know, not too far, LA that actually David Lowry opened the house. and So that's why they were there. Okay, great. Any other, we will give some partying thoughts to Sarah and Kevin before we go, but ah Jeff and Chris, did you want to say anything else about the album as a whole, or do you think we did a pretty good job covering that?
01:04:18
Speaker
I think we covered it. I think it's going to be interesting to think about ranking. Someday, maybe we'll need to rank the records. Yeah. um And I think it's going to be interesting to see where this one lands. I feel like the the first two are such stone cold classics that they sort of. um they They do tend to stand, but it's interesting, I think, where this one would land for people as you know, with the the. The part of the career after after those first two big records. Yeah, I think a surprising number would put this as their number one, I think, of of fans that really like the first three albums. So let's go to, ah so before we wrap up, um we'll just give Sarah and Kevin, this their first time on the podcast, a chance to tell a personal story about Them and the Crows. So Sarah, let's start with you.
01:05:09
Speaker
Okay, so ah as you all have probably figured out, I was quite a fan in high school when this album came out. I was ah in my final year of high school, and somehow a review of this album ended up on the front page of my high school newspaper, of which I was the editor-in-chief and one of the only readers, so clearly there were not enough checks and balance in place. um And also because I went to an extremely small school that only had five people in the graduating class, we each got our own page in the yearbook. And so I designed my page and I think I've emailed it to some of you guys. All of the captions of the photos were Counting Crow's quotes and I had a border
01:05:56
Speaker
going around the edge of the page that was also counting Crow's quotes. And um this was quite a feat of design on a computer it at the turn of the year 2000. And the editor-in-chief told me it could not be done. And I said, I was able to do it on my personal computer, so surely you can figure out how to do it on your fancy yearbook software. And that that page is such a perfect encapsulation of who I was at that time. To this day, I look at it and I am so glad I did it. What was the centerpiece quote? There wasn't a centerpiece quote. there um So i had I had a few pictures on the page.
01:06:43
Speaker
And here I have a, I'll send you a picture, but here's a copy here. So I didn't have a center page. I had five photos. And then under each photo, there's a quote. And then going around the edge is a Counting Crows quotes. So yeah, there you go. So some people think, oh, after high school, you'll change or you'll think, nope, nope, here you are. is still You're still proud of that work you're decades later. so Yeah, I'm sure i'm sure that you know most people would look back at a yearbook page that they designed when they were 16, 17 years old and maybe have some regrets about it, but I have no regrets.
01:07:20
Speaker
Yeah, I mean, my my science lab partner senior year got the red hot chili pepper statue. And I've always been wondering if he still loves it or regrets it. I'm not sure. you know Maybe he's still proud of it. I don't know. ah
Conclusion and Future Insights
01:07:32
Speaker
Great. Thank you so much, Sarah, for sharing. Kevin, let's go to you. Just thoughts or things you wanted to say on Sullivan Street podcast. Sure. Yeah, I think one like kind of crows memory or experience that I'll share. I went to the ah The Barn Stormer show in Iowa back in 2012. which is an incredible live video, obviously on YouTube, but drove from Scranton, PA across the country to Iowa to see that show. I met Adam beforehand. It was on the 4th of July, so I have this ridiculous American flag t-shirt on and he's like, who is this guy who drove?
01:08:08
Speaker
from across the country. um But I have to say that was, I mean, as you can tell from the video, just such a special night. and I think, you know, talking to folks that are diehards, there was a point in the show, maybe like an hour and a half yards in where Adam's like, We've got a lot of show left. And I was like, I've been waiting to hear those words because usually as you were saying, Chris, it goes to hanging around and you're like, well, shit, I'm not going to hear your Speedway tonight. Great. um But they played for so long and they played some deep cuts and it was so memorable and fun. So just wanted to bring up that memory.
01:08:41
Speaker
Kevin, did you say, and then we'll end with this, that on the last episode, where we did an excellent deep dive into daylight fading and raining in Baltimore, one of my comments was that watching the video, now I know the band is different and the number of band members are different. For example, Emi is now a full-time member. But I said, geez, it really seemed like Matt and Millard played the bass differently, um even to sometimes the same songs. And I said, Matt more strums and Millard more, would I don't know what the word you use, points or picks or whatever with one finger. ah did you You said you actually had a comment to that because you have played bass before.
01:09:20
Speaker
Yeah, playing a little bass. My comment was, and Eric specifically, because you were talking about the Daylight Fading video, where it looks like Matt is strumming. And you know, bass players will play, they'll do the finger pick, which is one style, or they'll actually use a guitar pick. And oftentimes when using a guitar pick, music or bass musicians will do that so they could hit the string faster. So if you notice, like Angels of the Silences and Daylight Fading and and the faster version, of have you seen me lately? I mean, it's a fast song. So I think Matt is really just, it looks like he's strumming. but he's probably hammering on like the fat E string okay to keep up in some ways. And again, I think it's more of a stylistic choice. But again, I think even watching Miller, he uses a lot of the finger style, um which is pretty popular. You know, if you look at, you know, back in like Motown and James Jamerson is a legendary bassist will use that to have a little bit more control over the strings. So in some ways, it's just preference.
01:10:12
Speaker
um But I think that answers the question as to okay, now you know strumming or you know, how is he doing it? Yeah I didn't know that and as I said, I think you know in some of those earlier songs Matt was more pronounced and he would even sometimes comes to the front because there were fewer guitars, you know back then and stuff but but absolute so thanks for thanks for yeah, I had no idea I wonder if that speaks to a little bit why you know, I think Millard with Millard I think they've played less of those faster songs, particularly from um like RTS. Maybe it doesn't, it doesn't work quite as well. I mean, they've played some of that, but really not.
01:10:50
Speaker
Not a lot relative terms, you know? No. and And when they played, for example, Angels last year, it was the acoustic version. Right. So, yeah. Interesting. Thanks. Thanks so much, Kevin. Hopefully we'll be able to get Millard on some time. I'd love to talk to him and and talk about his bass playing. So, all right. Well, thank you so much. We've reached what I thought at one point I was like, wow, we're going to be done in an hour and a half. And now it's two and a half. So we'll be splitting this into two ah episodes. But, hey, two and a half hours. Not, you know, Of course, it deserves that and much more for such a classic album, This Desert Life. And the bonus material will be all of us collectively doing a dramatic reading of the Mrs. Potter's lyrics, just all the way through. Right, exactly. Well, yeah, next episode, we'll do each of us do our top seven Mrs. Potter's lyrics, because there's a lot there. Thanks so much, everybody. And we'll see you down next time here on Sullivan Street. Goodbye.
01:12:00
Speaker
I'm sure