ثلاثة أسود الحبال الغربان ،

هذه الأغنية هي تعليق على الشهرة. مع الخط، عندما الجميع يحبني، وأنا لن يكون وحيدا، والرئيس توقيع آدم دوريتز يقول - مع أكثر من لمسة من السخرية - أن الشهرة سوف تجعل كل شيء أفضل (أبدا يتكرر وحيدا لدفع المنزل الرسالة: هذا الرجل هو وهمية). عندما أصبح أول ضربة للفريق، تم الاعتراف دويتز فجأة في جميع أنحاء أمريكا، والتي وجد غير مضطرب. أرسلت السمعة الجديدة التي أرسلتها حديثا إلى فانك مطول فجأة وجد نفسه يغني أغنية عن حلم الشهرة عندما كان مريرا جدا حيال ذلك. مع أغنية صدى مشاكله، وقال انه جاء إلى غضب الغناء عليه. توقفت دويتز عن الكتابة لأكثر من عام، و الكون الغربان الألبوم الثاني، استعادة الأقمار الصناعية. واسنت صدر حتى ثلاث سنوات بعد لاول مرة. ننظر إلى الوراء على الأغنية في عام 2013 مقابلة مع آدم دوريتز. وأوضح أنه على الرغم من أنه من الحماقة أن نعتقد أن تكريم الشهرة سيحل المشاكل الخاصة بك، من الصعب مقاومة. قال دويتز سعيد: من المفترض أن ترى من خلال هذا الرجل: عندما يحب الجميع لي، لا يكون أبدا وحيدا. أنت من المفترض أن نعرف أن هذا ليس صحيحا. لشيء واحد، ثيريس لا شيء مثل الجميع يحبني. لا أحد يعرفك في هذه الحالة. لذلك كنت أعرف أنه لن يحدث بهذه الطريقة. ولكن كنت لا تزال تريد ذلك: تريد الحياة لتكون أسهل، وتريد أن تكون نجم الروك حتى أسهل التحدث مع فتاة. في نفس الشخص مجنون الجلوس هناك مع الفتاة في وقت لاحق، على الرغم من. لذلك لا إصلاح الأمور. السيد جونز هو مارتي جونز، صديق المغني الرئيسي آدم دوريتز. قبل انضمام دورتز إلى الكونت كروز، كانوا في فرقة تسمى معا الهيمالايا. وقد كتب هذا من قبل المغني الرئيسي آدم دوريتز وعازف الجيتار ديفيد برايسون (أعضاء الفرقة الثلاثة الأخرى أيضا حصلت على الاعتمادات الملحن). على حلقة من VH1s القصص القصيرة. وأوضح آدم: إنها حقا أغنية عن صديقي مارتي و I. خرجنا ليلة واحدة لمشاهدة لعب والده، كان والده لاعب الغيتار الفلامنكو الذي عاش في إسبانيا (ديفيد سيرفا)، وكان في سان فرانسيسكو في البعثة لعب، ب، له، خبير، الفلامنكو، تروب. وبعد أزعج ذهبنا جميعا إلى هذا الشريط دعا نيو أمستردام في سان فرانسيسكو في كولومبوس وحصلنا على حالة سكر تماما. مارت وأنا جلست في البار يحدق في هاتين الفتاتين، متمنيا أن يكون هناك طريقة ما يمكننا أن نتحدث معهم، لكننا كنا خجولين جدا. واصلنا المزاح مع بعضنا البعض أنه إذا كنا نجوم الصخرة كبيرة بدلا من هذا الخاسر، والموسيقيين منخفضة الميزانية، وهذا سيكون من السهل. ذهبت إلى البيت في تلك الليلة وكتبت أغنية عن ذلك. أنا نكتة حول ما حولها، تلك القصة. ولكن لها حقا أغنية عن جميع الأحلام وكل الأشياء التي تجعلك تريد أن تذهب إلى القيام بكل ما هو أن يستولي على قلبك، سواء كان ذلك نجم الصخرة أو كونه طبيبا أو أيا كان. تلك الأشياء تشغيل من كل هذه الأشياء لقد عازمة داخل لي أريد أن يجتمع الفتيات لأن إم تعبت من عدم القدرة على. هو الكثير من تلك الأشياء، عن كل تلك الأحلام، ولكن أيضا نوع من التحذير لأنه حول كيفية مضللة قد تكون حول بعض تلك الأشياء، وكيف أجوف أنها قد تكون أيضا. مثل شخصية في الأغنية تحافظ على القول، عندما الجميع يحبني لن أكون وحيدا، وكنت من المفترض أن نعرف أن هذا ليس الطريقة التي ستعمل. كنت أعرف أنه حتى ذلك الحين. وهذه أغنية عن أحلامي. وكشف دوريتس في وقت لاحق أن الرجل في الحانة الذي كان يحصل على الفتيات كان كيني ديل جونسون، الذي كان كريس إساكس الطبال. وهناك الكثير من الناس يعتقدون السيد جونز كان إشارة إلى شخصية في بوب ديلان أغنية أغنية من رجل رقيقة. وذكر ديلان الخط أريد أن أكون بوب ديلان، السيد جونز تمنى أنه كان مجرد شخص أكثر قليلا غير تقليدي. لم يذكر البيتلز شخصية بوب ديلانس في أغنيتهم ​​يير بلوز. الخط هو يشعر الانتحارية، تماما مثل ديلانز السيد جونز. آدم دوريتز: هذه أغنية تم تفسيرها بشكل خاطئ، على أقل تقدير. أعتقد أن الناس غالبا ما يبحثون عن رمزية في الأغاني عندما تكون أبسط مما يبدو. هذا، على وجه الخصوص، هو أبسط بكثير مما يجب أن يبدو لكثير من الناس. لقد سمعت كل شيء من أنه عن بعض البلوز القديم الرجل الذي علمني لتشغيل الموسيقى، وهو أمر مثير للسخرية تماما، ولكن مثل سوميبوديس فيلم الخيال. إيف سمعت أيضا عن ديك بلدي، الذي هو أكثر سخيفة. عندما فعلنا المقابلة ل رولينج ستون. مشيت مع ديفيد وايلد في متحف دورساي في باريس يوم واحد وأول ما حدث كان هؤلاء الأطفال ركضوا لنا وقال: يا يورى الرجل من عد الغربان، الحق وقلت، نعم. وقال، هل السيد جونز عن ديك الخاص بك أردت أن قتل الرجل لأنني أعرف أين كان ذاهب الى نهاية المطاف، وهي الفقرة الأولى من هذه المادة في رولينج ستون. وكان هذا أول واحد صدر عن كونتينغ كروز وأيضا أكبر ضربة. يشير اسم العصابات إلى عبارة عد الغربان وهو ما يعني بلا جدوى، كما هو الحال في، وهذا هو عن غير مجدية كما العد الغراب. اقتراح الائتمان: روب - بيتسبرغ، با جميع أعضاء الفرقة هي جماهير ضخمة من مجموعة بيج ستار. عند تنفيذ هذه الأغنية على السبت ليلة لايف. تغير دوريتز الخط أريد أن أكون بوب ديلان لأريد أن أكون أليكس تشيلتون. أليكس تشيلتون هو الرائد ل بيج ستار، وكان أليكس تشيلتون اسم الأغنية من قبل ذي ريبلاسيمنتس. في أغنية استبدال أشاروا إليه بأنه رجل غير مرئي بصوت واضح جدا. اقتراح الائتمان: ستيف - تشينو هيلز، كاليفورنيا هذه الأغنية تشير إلى امرأة الرقص اسمه ماريا: قطع ماريا، تبين لي واحدة منهم الرقصات الاسبانية. تظهر هذه الشخصية في العديد من أغانيهم. هي الموضوع الرئيسي لثانيتها الثانية، جولة هنا: ماريا يقول شيس يموتون، من خلال الباب الأمامي أرى بكاء، وجاءت ماريا من ناشفيل مع حقيبة في يدها. في السيدة بوترز لولابي، دريتز يغني، ثيريس قطعة من ماريا في كل أغنية أن أغني. وذكرت أيضا على خلفية الكتابة على غلاف آب / أغسطس وكل شيء بعد. لم يتم الكشف عن هوية ماريا أبدا، الأمر الذي يقود الكثيرين إلى الاعتقاد بأنها ليست شخصا حقيقيا، بل رمزا للوحدة أو الرغبة أو شيء مشابه. اقتراح الائتمان: ألدين - كوليدج بارك، مد مثل العديد من الضربات الكبيرة في منتصف 90s، لم يتم الافراج عن هذه الأغنية باعتبارها واحدة في أمريكا، والتي أبقت عليه من بيلبوارد هوت 100 الرسم البياني، ولكن يعني أن المشجعين سوف تضطر لشراء كامل ألبوم لسماع ذلك. عملت حيلة، مع مبيعات أغسطس وكل شيء بعد يتصدر 7 ملايين. وصلت الأغنية 5 على بيلبوارد s مخطط البث، والتي تم دمجها في الساخن 100 في عام 1998. أغاني أخرى من العصر الذي فيرنت صدر الفردي وتشمل لا تتكلم من دون شك وتمزقه ناتالي إمبروجليا. واتهم دويتز برفع قضية لا لا-لا-لا من فان موريسونس الكلاسيكية براون إيد جيرل. الذي هو أبعد ما يكون عن الحقيقة، وقال انترتينمنت ويكلي. لقد حصلت على الكثير من هذا الفلك. ألقيت واحدة لا لا في مزحة على السجل. والشيء التالي وأنا أعرف إم المجيء الثاني من بلفاست كاوبوي لقب موريسون. انا لم احصل عليها. أستطيع أن أرى أين تعلمت من الغناء. ولكن كل هؤلاء الكتاب الآخرين القفز عليه كنقطة مرجعية سهلة. التعليقات: 59 إيف دائما يعتقد السيد جونز كنوع شريرة. يا تعرف واحد ووس أفضل صديق ولديه ما كنت استدعاء أفضل النوايا حتى الآن يساعد أو يسمح لك أن تضلل الحق أوبيميوسلي لديه معنى الروحي أو الميتافيزيقي مع كلمات السيد جونز لي التحديق في المستقبل ونقول بعضنا البعض حكايات. معظمها مثل رحلة جيدة المتأنق على الله ومعاني ريكي نيلسون وأعتقد إلى حد ما. عندما الجميع يحب لي لن يكون وحيدا جيدا ماذا عن يال أحب أنفسكم بما فيه الكفاية لتحقيق أي واحد سوف يكون وحيدا. الخوف السري من الجميع هو وحده. مثل الغليسيرين أغنية من نفس الفترة الزمنية من قبل بوش. نحن نعيش في عجلة حيث يسرق الجميع عندما كنت تدرك مثل الفراولة الحقول. الحق لا شيء للحصول على معلقة حول الحق المعيشة سهلة مع عيون نصف مغلقة، سوء الفهم كل ما تراه. من الصعب أن يكون شخص ولكن كل يعمل بها. جون دو - تولسا، أوك هل أحد يعرف أي شيء عن المطربين احتياطية الذين يمكن أن يسمع في النصف الأخير من الأغنية ترتيب كبير من غناءهم. أغنية الخالدة. بوكنوبي - تورونتو، أون اسمحوا لي أن أقدم هذا التعليق مع البيان التالي: أنا أفهم أن هذا لم يكن المعنى المقصود من قبل المؤلف، هو فقط كيف يتحدث الأغنية بالنسبة لي. ومع ذلك، هنا لا يذهب شيء. لقد بحثت مؤخرا عن الإيمان، واعترف بأن معتقداتي ضعيفة في أحسن الأحوال. أنا محاولة يائسة للعثور على الحقيقة ولكن أنا مشتتة باستمرار رغباتي الدنيوية وعلى الرغم من أنني غالبا ما أشعر أن الرب يتحدث لي، في بلدي الغطرسة أنا في نهاية المطاف في محاولة للحصول على الائتمان لمجده. هذه الأغنية تبدو مثل تلك القصة بالنسبة لي. كنت جالسا في حانة مشروب وشهوة بعد امرأة، عندما تبدأ روح يسوع (السيد جونز) في التحدث إلى قلب امرأة تدعى ماريا (ماري). تبدأ في الرقص كما السيد جونز الأب (الله) يلعب الموسيقى (الغيتار) بالنسبة لها، وأنا أدرك فجأة كيف روحيا جميلة هي - وأتمنى أن أكون يمكن أن تكون جميلة. لذلك أنا الكفاح مع الصمت في ذهني (غياب الروح المقدسة في حياتي) من خلال ليلة مجاز حتى الفجر (إدراك أنني بحاجة المسيح في حياتي). لذلك أسأل ماريا أن تستمر في الرقص بالنسبة لي، حتى أستطيع أن أتعلم كيف تقليد لها الفرح التخلي في الرب، ونسأل يسوع لتمرير لي زجاجة (ملء لي مع الروح القدس). أتوسل إلى الله أن يصدق لي، لأنني أدرك أنني لا أؤمن حقا في أي شيء (أنا وشملت)، وأريد أن أكون شخص يعتقد. يسوع وأنا أمشي معا ويتحدث عن الأشياء التي أعتقد أنني أعتقد (حكايات)، ونحن التحديق في النساء الجميلات، وقال انه في أرواحهم، وأنا في أجسادهم. غرائزي تقول لي إنهم ينظرون إليه، ولكن الغطرسة تقول لا، لا ينظرون إلي. أنا التحديق في الأضواء القادمة من اتجاهين مختلفين (الأضواء المادية للأشياء الدنيوية، والضوء الروحي لحقيقة الله)، وأنا أعلم أنه عندما يحبك الجميع (المسيح) لا أحد سيكون من أي وقت مضى وحيدا مرة أخرى. أنا أرسم صورة حياتي، أرسم نفسي في الأزرق (الحزن) والأحمر (الغضب) والأسود (الظلام، إمكانات الشر) والرمادي (المحتملة للخير، معيبة من قبل بلدي الطبيعة الخاطئة). وأنا أعلم أن كل هذه الأمور ضرورية لنمو في الحياة، وبالتالي مفيدة وجميلة، ولكن الرمادي (إمكاناتي للخير) هو الجانب المفضل من نفسي. أعرف أنه إذا كنت أقف أمام الناس و الكلام، أنا سوف يكون رمزا لهم، ولكن إم لا تستطيع بعد أن تفعل ما هو صحيح. إذا كنت أستطيع أن أجد شخصا قادرا على رؤية جمال الخلق من خلال فوضى الواقع والتعلم منها (مثل بيكاسو)، إذا كنت أستطيع أن أفعل ذلك أود الوقوف أمام الله والجميع واللعب الغيتار، في حين لا يزال يتذكر بلدي النقص. يسوع وأنا أنظر إلى مستقبل حياتي، ونحن التحديق في النساء الجميلات (نفس ما سبق) وأنا مرة أخرى في محاولة للحصول على الائتمان لمجده. أنا أقف أمام الحشد (في دائرة الضوء)، وأخيرا أعرف كيفية التحدث بشكل صحيح (بلدي الغيتار الرمادي)، ولكنني فشلت مرة أخرى لأنني أحاول أن تأخذ الائتمان مرة أخرى بالقول أنه عندما يحب الجميع مي، لن أكون أبدا وحيدا لن يكون وحيدا لا إم ستعمل، وحيدا أكثر وأنا أحاول أن أقنع نفسي أنني سوف تكون واحدة لنفسي سعيدا، وأنا أعلم أنه لن يأتي إلا من خلال الله. أريد أن أتكلم بصدق عن الحقيقة مع السلطة الحقيقية (مثل الأسد)، يبدو أن الجميع من حولي راض عن تمرير القطط (فقط مظهر السلطة)، ونحن جميعا نريد أن نكون عظيمين - في طبيعتنا أن تسعى العظمة - ولكن لدينا جميعا أسباب مختلفة (بعض لمساعدة أنفسهم، وبعض لمساعدة الآخرين، وبعض لخدمة الله). أتوسل مرة أخرى إلى الله أن يؤمن بي، لأنني ما زلت لا أؤمن حقا في حرية المسيح (كما يتضح من فشلي المستمر لإعطائه الفضل لبركاتي)، وأريد أن يكون شخص يمكن أن يؤمن الناس. يسوع وأنا المشي من خلال الشوارع القذرة من باريو معا، ونحن ما زلنا يحدق في النساء الجميلات، ولكن الآن أرى أخيرا أنها مثالية للمسيح، وأنا أعلم أنه يجب أن يكون هناك شخص الحق بالنسبة لي. أريد أن أكون حكيا يمس حياة الناس (مثل بوب ديلان)، يود المسيح أن يكون شخص أكثر قليلا غير تقليدي (الكثير من الناس يتصورون المسيح كما بئر، لكنه يمشي معنا حتى من خلال باريوس من حياتنا)، يقول الله له (آه، ابن) أنه غير تقليدي كما يحصل، لأن الجميع يحب له. المسيح وأنا مشاهدة الفيديو من حياتي معا، عندما أشاهده معه، أريد أن أكون قادرا على النظر إلى الحق في عيني يحدق مرة أخرى دون خجل. نحن جميعا نريد أن نكون عظيمين - نحن فقط لا نعرف كيفية الحصول عليه، أو حتى لماذا نريد ذلك، ولكن عندما أصبح مثل المسيح، والجميع يحبني، إل أخيرا أن تكون سعيدة كما يمكن أن أكون. يسوع وأنا، ستكون نجوم كبيرة. آمل أن هذا التفسير لا يسيء إلى أي شخص - أنا لا أنوي ذلك. آمل أن إذا كنت تسعى مثل أنا أن هذه الأغنية يتحدث لك بعمق كما فعلت بالنسبة لي ويساعدك في رحلتك. كيث - غوز كريك، سك رأيت دائما هذه الأغنية بأنها ذات معنى أعمق وأن الكاتب يكره هذا هو يثبط قليلا. بغض النظر، أنا لا أعتقد أن الفنانين اتخاذ هو بالضرورة أي أكثر صلاحية من المستمعين حتى إلعطاء بلدي اتخاذ: الأغنية هي في الغالب بسيطة، فقط عن الطموح، وإدراك أن الحياة أكثر من النجاح المهني. ولكن أنا أيضا الحصول على فيبي أن هيس التعليق على الله عن طريق السيد جونز. لا أستطيع اختيار لماذا، هذا فقط كيف أفسره. كايل - سانت لويس، إيل أم. ماريا هو اسم الأسبانية. الرقص الفلامنكو هو الأسبانية. حتى إذا ماريا دائما في أغانيهم لماذا لا تجعل لها اسم راقصة. ووالده يلعب الغيتار هو آدامز أصدقاء الأب اللعب في حين شربوا. دوهه ليف - لونغ آيلاند، ني أغنية كبيرة. هذا الألبوم كله هو great. i حصلت لأول مرة في الغربان حول عام 1996. قبل سنوات عديدة كنت قد اتخذت بضع دروس الغيتار ولكن لم يعلق حقا مع it. i التقطت بلدي الغيتار مرة أخرى في صيف 96 وأغنية واحدة كنت أسمع الكثير كان السيد جونز. أنا أدرك أنه قد تم الافراج عنه قبل 3 سنوات ولكن لأنني كنت الآن مرة أخرى في العزف على الغيتار لاحظت أنه أكثر في كل مرة جاء على radio. i أحب إيقاع هذه الأغنية. قبل ذلك الخريف كنت قد تعلمت الحبال. هذا كان واحدا من عدد قليل من الأغاني التي كنت قد تعلمت من أي وقت مضى فقط من خلال الاستماع إليها. مرة واحدة تعلمت الحبال إيقاع هو ما كنت قد مارست معظم. أنا قد رأيت الآن الدروس لهذه الأغنية على شبكة الإنترنت، وغالبا ما يلعبون ذلك على الغيتار الصوتية. هذه الأغنية يبدو موافق على الصوتية ولكن يبدو أفضل عندما لعبت كما هو على الألبوم مع الغيتار الكهربائي باستخدام نغمة نظيفة. هذا هو واحد من أفضل الأغاني من 90s. What ألبوم كبير جدا. بريان - بوسطن، ما لا أعرف ما إذا كان قد تم نشر هذا بالفعل، ولكن كوتودوموت هو الآن يسمى كوتينترناتيونال سبورتس كلوبكوت ويقع في 1000 شارع كولومبوس (تقاطع مع شارع تايلور) في سان Francisco. CA. على ما يبدو أنها تفعل ساعة سعيدة كبيرة مع البيرة الرخيصة. الجلوس في مقعد آدم دريتس هو اختياري. غزا - بوينس آيرس، الأرجنتين الناس، سؤال واحد عن الجملة: كوتش الرقصات في حين أن والده يلعب الغيتار. كوت - من هو الأب الذي يتحدثون عن واسنت من المفترض أن يكون أبروكوت أكثر تعقيدا في البداية اعتقدت أن راقصة الفلامنكو يمكن أن يكون ابن هذا كوثيس أبركوت، ولكن بعد ذلك جونز لن يتحدث مع الرجل، والحق سو راقصة الفلامنكو هي فتاة (أيضا بسبب ثيكوتش الرقصات بينما..كوت). يمكن للشخص مساعدتي على فهم والده هو الأغنية يتحدث عن السيد جونز الأب. هيلويزا الأرجنتين - كوردوبا، الأرجنتين الله هذه الأغنية يحصل حقا القديمة حقا سريع الطين - هيناغار، اعتقدت أن السيد جونز كان مشروب في الأغنية. كزافييه - سشينكتادي، ني حسنا، مهما اخترت، اسم، السيد جونز هو اسم شائع - لا أحد. اسم مشترك سوف تتغير سومتيمس عندما يحقق الشخص الشهرة والموسيقى نفسها في بعض الأحيان يحول اسم عندما الرجل بوكسمس الموسيقار الشهير. أحيانا الموسيقار سيحتفظ باسمه، ولكن في كثير من الأحيان يتغير بعد هيش يحقق الشهرة. أو نادرا ما يعرف كل فرد أعضاء الفرقة اسم. على سبيل المثال، ونحن نعلم المجموعة التي لعبت الأغنية كما كوتكونتينغ كروسكوت، ولكن ما زلت لا يمكن أن أقول لكم كل إندفيدوال أعضاء الفرقة اسم.- نأمل أن يساعد. تشاد - ويلمينغتون، دي لأطول وقت، اعتقدت أن السيد جونز كان استعارة للوحدة. لا تزال أغنية كبيرة براد - توبيكا، كس هيريس بلوق أبو نيو أمستردام يتميز في الأغنية: frazing. wordpress20081217google ستريفيو فريزر - ستيرلنغ، المملكة المتحدة وأعتقد أن من الواضح أن هذه الأغنية هي حول الأوقات التي تعتقد أنه إذا كنت سوف تكون غنية أندور الشهيرة، سوف تحصل كل شيء في الحياة ما تريد. الجميع الذي يدعي أنه آف عد الغربان مروحة يعرف أن المغني سرعان ما اكتشف أن هذا ليس الحال. ولهذا السبب، في الإصدارات الحية، كلمات تتغير في كل مرة، وينهار على حالة مزاجه. يناير - أنتويرب، - إم قليلا بومد أن السيد جونز هو مجرد صديق حصل في حالة سكر مع في حانة. اعتقدت دائما السيد جونز كان يوفاميز ذكي للحسد والرغبة كما هو الحال في ام جونزون عن شيء أو مواكبة جونز. في الابن مدرسة ثانوية كان لي صديق أنني سوف التسلل والدخان السجائر مع وقال انه دائما يقول إم جونسن لدخان رجل إم السيد جونز اليوم. للرد على وظيفة أخرى، وهناك العديد من الأغاني الجيدة عن الهيروين حتى لو لم يكن هذا واحد. الزهور الميتة من الحجارة هو المفضل لدي ولكن ككمب من قبل ستيف إيرل، أبيض بطانة الشحن من قبل تاونز فان زاندت والإبرة والأضرار التي قام بها نيل يونغ هي بعض الآخرين. ستيف - شارلوت، سك ماريا هو آدم دوريتز كما ماري هو بروس سبرينغستين. إكريستيه - هالاث، الولايات المتحدة ستيوارت، أنا لا أعرف الأغنية الناصرة التي أشار إليها، لذلك من الممكن أن خطوط لذلك كنت تريد أن تكون نجمة روكنرول مجرد الاستماع الآن إلى ما أقول الحصول على نفسك الغيتار الكهربائي وتأخذ بعض الوقت وتعلم اللعب تظهر في ذلك، ولكن تلك الخطوط هي من الأغنية لذلك كنت تريد أن تكون صخرة ولفة ستار من قبل بيردس. من الممكن أن الناصرة كان يقتبس تلك الأغنية. مايكل - بيتسبيرغ، با أوك، فكيف هيك يمكن أن تكون هذه الأغنية عن دينغ دونغ مرحبا يسوع أن غريبة فقط، إيف تعرف هذه الأغنية إلى الأبد والطريقة التي أفسر هو هذا: الرجل لديه صديق أن كيولر منه وكلاهما على حد سواء أريد أن تكون مشهورة والحصول على الفتيات، وأنا أعلم ثيريس طرق أكثر أغنية يمكن تفسيرها، ولكن على محمل الجد، القضيب سييرا - غراند فوركس، ند أنا فعلا التقى مارتي جونز أثناء كتابة مقال مجلة عن البحث عن ماريا. وكان رجل رائع حقا الذي يقول خلفية السيد جونز في القصة: 801mag. orgcsContentServerchildpagename801Mag2FJRNContentC2FArticleDetailcJRNContentCp1165270039399pagenameJRN2F801Wrappercid1175372067481 ستيف - نيويورك، ني صوت العد الغربان يؤدي المطرب آدم دوريتز هو أداة رائعة. قدم السيد جونز مشجعي الموسيقى إلى دوريتز منشأة مذهلة في القص في سياق أغنية. مجرد محاولة للغناء على طول السيد جونز وبعد الانتهاء من التنفس عن النفس، كنت أدرك فقط كيف ظاهرة هذا الأداء هو. برتراند - باريس، فرنسا إيف فقط سجلت فقط للاحتجاج على تعليق مكتوب الطريق أعلاه: أغنية لا تحتاج إلى أن تكون معقدة لتكون جيدة. مجرد إلقاء نظرة على ريك نيلسونس حديقة الحزب. بسيطة ونقية، ولكن فليبين كبير روك ن لفة. - توني، بوسطن، ما كانت نقطة المؤلفين هي أن أقول كيف لا يكون هناك معنى أعمق لأغنية لجعلها جيدة (التي أتفق مع، ثو أنا لا أحب كلمات ذات معنى) ولكن للأسف مثال حزب حديقة لا يعمل - حديقة الحزب هي معبأة مع معاني خفية. كل شيء عن كيف خيبة أمل ريك نيلسون كان عندما لعب في حفلة موسيقية وكان أحد مهتما في مواده الجديدة، وليس تماما عن الذهاب إلى حديقة الطرف في كل معبأة مع الاستعارات والمراجع ولكن العودة إلى Mr. Jones، أحب تلك الأغنية ، ضرب العالم، حتى أنني سمعت ذلك مرة واحدة في حين في الأندية في إسبانيا عندما كنت أعيش هناك، وكان ذلك 2001-2005 لا يمكن أن نعتقد يعتقد بل كان حول قضيبه، وأنا لا حتى الحصول على كيفية العمل من هذا القبيل تشارلي - دورهام، إنجلترا هذه الأغنية لم يحذف لأن الكثير من الناس ما زالوا يحبون هذه الأغنية وأنا أعلم أنني لا أثيرت من الغربان العد. ناتالي - تشياغو، إيل أنا لا أعرف عنك الناس ولكن أنا أحب هذه الأغنية. J - جاكسون، غا أنا لا أستطيع أن أصدق الأغنية ليست عنه (حذف). أنا على محمل الجد فكرت أنه على مدى السنوات ال 13 الماضية. كوري - موردن، كندا على الرغم من أنه حول مارتي جونز في هذه الأغنية، ويشاع بوب ديلانز السيد جونز ليكون بريان جونز من رولينج ستونز تي - إنديانابوليس، في إذا كنت تستمع إلى الإصدار على عبر سلك - يعيش في جديد يورك الألبوم، الأغنية تبدأ مع كلمات لذلك كنت تريد أن تكون نجمة روكنرول مجرد الاستماع الآن إلى ما أقول الحصول على نفسك الغيتار الكهربائي وتأخذ بعض الوقت وتعلم العزف. يتم اقتراض هذه الكلمات مباشرة من أغنية الناصرة برقية. ستيوارت - ليفربول. إنكلترا الجميع يمضي حول ماريا كونها شخصية حقيقية، ولكن آدم دوريتز يقول بوضوح أن شيس ليس شيس يعني فقط لتمثيل الفتيات. لكنها لا المحاصيل حتى في الكثير من الأغاني، وكلمات على غلاف الألبوم هي أغنية أغسطس وكل شيء بعد الذي يحصل فقط لعبت على الهواء مباشرة. نيكول شكس نيكول - ديربي، إنجلترا أو هذه الأغنية هو لطيف جدا وكلمات هي حادة حتى تتوقف عن محاولة تفسير لهم كايلا - كاري، نك هذه الأغنية هي أيضا تغنى من قبل مخبأة في عرض عادي ولكن ليس في أي من الأقراص المدمجة لديهم مصنوع. ستيفاني - وادي مورينو، كاليفورنيا هذا هو واحد فقط من تلك الأغاني العظيمة التي سيتم دائما أن تؤخذ من السياق. كتب آدم دوريتز هذه الأغنية كذكرى محادثة ممتعة هو وصديقه، مارتي (السيد) جونز كان مرة واحدة في حانة. سهل هكذا. لاأكثر ولا أقل. أغنية لا تحتاج إلى أن تكون معقدة لتكون جيدة. مجرد إلقاء نظرة على ريك نيلسونس حديقة الحزب. بسيطة ونقية، ولكن فليبين كبير روك ن لفة. توني - بوسطن، ما لوضع هذا على التوالي، والفكرة هي الحصول على العديد من الكتاكيت والأصدقاء أو أيا كان من قبل أن تصبح مشهورة، مثل يجري في فرقة الروك أو شيء من هذا. أغنية كبيرة مع كلمات كبيرة، من السهل أن تلعب على الفرقة. جو-ج - ليما، بيرو أعتقد أن هذا التعليق الهيروين المتكرر هو مزحة. يظهر في حقل التعليقات من كل أغنية تقريبا لقد بحثت في سونغفاكتس. إذا كان شخص ما لنشر سونغفاكت ل فيني، الخالق سبيريتوس أو الأخت جانيت ميدز صلاة اللوردات، شخص ما سوف يكون على يقين من التعليق تماما أغنية الهيروين. على الأقل، هذا هو كيف يبدو لي. إكريسته - هالاث، الولايات المتحدة الأمريكية أوصي بأن جميع الذين يتمتعون الموسيقى تغنى آدم وتدعمها تيمبرامنتس جميلة من الفرقة نفسها هو أفضل سمعت من خلال أسلاك - يعيش في مدينة نيويورك. كما قال آدم أفضل بين الأغاني كان يلعب بعض من هذه الأغاني الكهربائية لأنها تغيرت كثيرا ولأنني أعتقد أننا نعرف حقا كيف تلعب لهم الآن. حتى إذا كنت تريد أن تسمع معنى الأغاني تحب (وخاصة السيد جونز) الألبوم يغلف الكثير من النية الحالية. يمكنك أن تشعر فعلا صوته ترتعش مع العاطفة وتعميق مع الشعور، قد يكون مجرد خيالي ولكن يمكنني أن أسمع فعلا كل ما يريدون حقا أن أقول. أحب أن أرى العديد من الألبومات مثل هذا واحد. فيما يتعلق بالسيد جونز، لماذا كنت وضعت أغنية لالمخاطرة من خلال شرح ذلك من خلال تسمية له ديك أو إسهام الإبداع العظيم للمخدرات، والسماح لها أن تكون ما هو عليه، والعثور على الجمال في الصور التي يخلقها. في نهاية اليوم أعتقد أن التفسخ يقول أكثر عن الشخص تفسيره من الشخص ووس أغنية هو في الواقع. ليزا - بيرث، أستراليا اعتقدت دائما أن الأغنية كانت حول قضيبه. شيري - ني، ني أتفق مع من قال أن هذا هو واحد من تلك الأغاني التي هي كبيرة لأنه يمكنك وضع نفسك والتجارب الخاصة بك في الأغنية. لا بد لي من القول بأن قول هذه الأغنية هو عن الهيروين هو قليلا من امتداد - خاصة لأن ثيريس بالكاد أي دليل في الأغنية لدعم ذلك. بالتأكيد، يتحدث عن غيتاره، ولكن هذا هو الاتصال الوحيد الذي يمكن أن تجعل بين حجتك والأغنية. بيث - ليفونيا، مي أغنية كبيرة مع كلمات كبيرة المفضلة. وسوف أرسم صورتي، الطلاء نفسي باللونين الأزرق والأحمر والأسود والرمادي كل من الألوان الجميلة هي غاية جدا ذات مغزى. دان - كولومبيا، مد مضحك، هذه الأغنية يجعلني أفكر في صديق جيد جيد لي عندما كنا أصغر سنا. في ذلك الوقت بدأنا حقا الاستماع إلى ذلك، الكثير من كلمات تشير إلى حياتنا الحقيقية. وتشير الأسطر الأربعة الأولى إلى بلدي (في ذلك الوقت) صديقة شقراء وأيضا شعر الفتاة السوداء صديقي كان يرجع تاريخها، الذي كان أيضا راقصة. والخط انها ترقص بينما يلعب والده الغيتار أيضا يجعلنا نفكر في حقيقة أن هناك فامليز كانت في الأعمال التجارية لفترة قصيرة. أنا يمكن أن ندخل حقا، ولكن لها أغنية كبيرة أن ديفيناتيلي سوف يكون المفضل لي لفترة ما. جون - كليفلاند، تن هذه الأغنية عميقة جدا بالنسبة لي. ويذكرني كيف شعرت عندما انفصلت طفلي وأنا، في نفس الوقت تركت أعمامي فتاة له أيضا. نحن على حد سواء مجرد علقت بها معا الحصول على حالة سكر وعالية الحديث عن نساءنا. هذه الأغنية هي حوالي اثنين من اللاعبين الذين يشعرون بمفردهم فقط بحاجة إلى شخص يهتمون بها. لحسن الحظ عمي وأنا على حد سواء حصلت على العودة مع بناتنا. هذه الأغنية تسمح لي أن نرى كيف وحيدا كنا يمكن أن تنتهي. دانتي - هنا، الصين هذا هو في الواقع أغنية جيدة حقا. في حين أن الجميع من حولهم كان يقفز على قطار المرق البوب ​​التجاري، وكان هؤلاء الرجال الشجاعة للخروج مع أغنية كان في الواقع معنى للكلمات. لهذا، أشيد. مات - ميلبراي، كا أعتقد أن السيد جونز هو دورتز تغيير الأنا وعندما يحصل في حالة سكر حقا أو عالية أو أيا كان السيد جونز أفرج عنه، وهذا هو بلدي إنبريتاتيون لتلك الأغنية. فابيان - نوغاليس، المكسيك الأغنية يبدو أيضا مثل أنه يمكن أن تذهب جنبا إلى جنب مع مسرحية وفاة بائع. بن - وايموث، ما أفهم كيف كان من المفترض أن تكون هذه الأغنية عن أدامز صديق، ولكن لدي إنتيربيراتيون مختلفة. وأنا أعلم أنه ليس ما آدم المقصود، ولكن أعتقد أن هذا هو السبب لماذا السيد. جونز مثل هذه الأغنية مذهلة: إيفيفريبودي يمكن العثور على وسيلة لجعل هذه الأغنية شخصية جدا لأنفسهم. ومع ذلك عرجاء بعض إنتيربيراتاتيونس هي، إذا كانت تعني شيئا لهذا الشخص، ثم حتى يكون ذلك آمل أن يؤخذ هذا في الاعتبار ميشيل - مونتريال، الولايات المتحدة كنت أعتقد أن هذه الأغنية كان عن سكيزوفرينيك، الذي أصبح شخصا آخر عندما كان يفتقر إلى الثقة ، ويعتقد في نهاية المطاف الجميع يحب هذا الأنا تغيير أكثر منه. هناك نسخة صوتية رائعة من هذا هو للموت، باستثناء حقيقة أنها إزالة خط المفضلة لدي: السيد جونز و مر، يحدق في الفيديو عندما أنظر إلى التلفزيون أريد أن أرى لي، يحدق العودة إلى الوراء في وجهي. بات - مونتريال، كندا أود أن أعرف لماذا الدواء الذي الأغاني الروك هي دائما عن هو البطلة. هذا ليس عن البطلة. أشك في أن هناك العديد من الأغاني الجيدة حول البطلة. بريتاني - وافيرلي، ني التقيت آدم دوريتيز في 200 عندما كنت أعمل في محطة إذاعية محلية، سألته عن الإلهام لهذه الأغنية وأوماها. وهذا لا علاقة له بالمخدرات. لماذا، لماذا الجميع يعتقدون الهيروين هو الشاسيه لأغاني آل روك. بصراحة، عندما يقول شخص ما من أي وقت مضى هذه الأغنية هي عن الهيروين أنا تجاهل هذا المنصب. يا تعلمون أن الأغنية، عيد ميلاد سعيد لها عن الهيروين. نعم كتبوا عن أخذ صفعة لأول مرة، كما تعلمون عيد ميلادك و أديكت. سي كيف غبي أن يبدو مونتي - أوماها، ن سمعت نظرية واحدة من شخص يعتقد أن Mr. Jones كان الخمور العلامة التجارية. حتى إذا كنت تحصل على كلمات قليلا خطأ قد يكون تمرير لي زجاجة من Mr. Jones - وبعد ذلك عندما يغني السيد جونز يضرب محادثة مع هذا الشعر الأسود راقصة الفلامنكو هس في حالة سكر و مجرد الحديث الحديث. هيه، لن تضع الكثير من الوزن في تلك النظرية على الرغم من. توربجرن - تروندهايم، النرويج لديها أي واحد منكم يا رفاق سمعوا من الفيلم النساء الجميلات. أنا لا كنو عندما جاء الفيلم أو الأغنية ولكن بعد رأيت الفيلم كنت مقتنعا أنه كان متصلا. واحد، شريط حيث علقت بها كان السيد يونيس. عندما كانوا يجلسون في ذلك المبنى كانوا يتحدثون نوبة الرجل في الحب مع الفتاة وقال اننا جميعا نريد شيئا جميلة. اسم الفيلم هو النساء الجميلات. و أنا لا كنو بالضبط أين أمستردام الجديدة ولكن أنا متأكد من أنه حتى في يانكي تيريتوري بحيث ربما أيضا إعداد الفيلم. هناك المزيد من الأشياء ولكن أنا هافنت رأى الفيلم في حين أن أي شخص آخر نرى الاتصال كاتي - رويستون، غا دوريتز أيضا بديلا ديف لوري من المفرقع لبوب ديلان على أداء التلفزيون آخر، وكان أيضا يرتدي دريتز قميص تكسير خلال هذا الأداء نيك - أرلينغتون مرتفعات، ايل لا يهمني الذي يقول عنه. السيد جونز هو ليستر بانغز. مات - دورهام، نه آدم يعرف أنها كانت تبحث في وجهي. وذهبت والتحدث إلى (وجعل أحمق لعنة من نفسي) مع واحد كان لي عيني. ولكن ربما لو كنت نجم الصخرة. مارتي - يوجين، أو إيف حصلت على هذا زميله ديفيد الذي يعتقد أن أغنية جونز جونز من قبل الغربان العد هو غطاء ينقط ل ساك كريست. آمل أن يكون هذا وإدخالات أخرى على الإنترنت و تفبوبليكاتيونس على حد سواء تعيينه على التوالي. غود سونغ وكتبه آدم دوريتز والعد الغربان رود - إبسويتش، أستراليا أحب فكرة السيد جونز يجري آدمز يغير الأنا. أعتقد أنه يظهر حقا الفرق بين الشخص الذي هو الرصين، وشخص مرتفع أو في حالة سكر (السيد جونز). في كلتا الحالتين أغنية كبيرة التي لم تحصل على الاحترام الذي تستحقه. مات - سانت تشارلز، مو جيفق الذي نشر التعليق الأول هو الخلط أوفيوسلي. أود أن أعرف من أين سمعت أن آدم كان لديه إهانة الأفعال و بوندد من الغيتار قبل العروض. هل تعرف كيف سخيفة لك صوت كاتي - عدن المرج، من هذا هو عن المغني الرصاص آدم دوريتز الإدمان الهيروين. السيد جونز هو تاجره، والمصاعب من كونه مدمن الهيروين. تم تسمية الفرقة بعد هواية المفضلة له في حين تحلق عاليا من الهروين العد الغربان. وقال انه عادة بيدق الغيتار له للحصول على المال المخدرات والباقي من الفرقة سوف تضطر إلى شراء شرائه مرة أخرى قبل كل عرض. جيفق - نيكوسا، قال واي آدم دريتز على VH1 ستوريتلرز أن الأغنية كتبت عندما كان هو وصديق يستمع إلى أصدقائه الأب (الذي كان لاعب الغيتار الفلامنكو) اللعب في حانة تسمى نيو أمستردام. كانت هناك كل هذه الفتيات الجميلات في الحانة، والرقص على الموسيقى. كان السيد جونز وآدم يشربون ويتحدثان عن الكيفية التي سيكون بها العصبية للتحدث إلى هؤلاء النساء إذا كن مشهورات. ثم يذهبون إلى حلم كيف سيتم حل جميع مشاكلهم إذا كانت مشهورة. جيريمي - غونزاليس، لا يمكن أن يكون ما يريد أن يكون ولكن خائفة لمحاولة يافا - أوكلاند، نيوزيلندا جونز يمكن أن يعني العاطفة، والانشغال، والإدمان أو حنين. السيد جونز هو المطربين الأنا. الذي يشتهي الشهرة بيليفينغ أنها سوف تجلب له الحب والسعادة. المغني غير متأكد من كيف يرى الناس له، هل يرون الحقيقي له أو الشهرة. شيس ينظر إليك، أنا لا أعتقد ذلك. شيس تبحث في وجهي. شكرا لك بيل لشرح هذا بالنسبة لي، أغنية كبيرة كارين :-) كارين - فيرجينيا بيتش، فا مستوحاة جونز من قبل السيد جونز في أغنية ديلان. حول مارتي جونز واحد من أصدقاء آدمز من منطقة الخليج. تحقق من أي الغربان الصحافة من أي وقت مضى لدعم هذا الأمر. ريتشارد - نيديرلاند، تكس هل يمكن للسيد جونز أن يكون ما يتحول إليه المغني عندما يكون في حالة سكر. شخص ما التحقق من ذلك. Pass me the bottle Mr. Jones. Live Freak - Beirut, Other see more commentsRanking All 69 Counting Crows Songs Counting Crows is my favorite band. So, in celebration of the upcoming release of their new album, Somewhere Under Wonderland Im presenting to you a countdown of all of their original, studio tracks. Im leaving off bootlegs and songs that were never officially released (40 Years, Were Only Love, Barely Out of Tuesday, etc.), songs that appear exclusively on live albums, and covers (including the entire Underwater Sunshine (Or What We Did On Our Summer Vacation) album). In instances in which the band released more than one studio version of the song, I defaulted to the first version the band released. The criteria for the countdown are wholly subjectivemy preferred picks for lyrics, melody, and personal impact. Note, Im a fan of the entire Crows catalog, so even the songs at the bottom of the list are not ones I actively dislikejust ones I love less, and my purposes here are more to have fun reflecting on the bands music than to produce a definitive list. Feel free to debate the order amongst yourselves and let me know if I missed any songs in the comments section. 69. New Frontier Hard Candy In the right moment, I can find this song sort of catchy but the synth pop vibe and largely nonsensical lyrics dont do much to inspire a devoted Counting Crows fan. From what I can gather its a song about failure to communicatea message that the song, itself, fails to communicate all that effectively, and that sounds strangely dated for a post-eighties band. 68. All My Friends This Desert Life Counting Crows offers up its share of songs about feelings of isolation, abandonment, and otherness, and often does so in creative, thought-provoking ways. This song, in which Adam Duritz intones, all my friends and lovers leave me alone to try to have a little fun, feels altogether too trueabout a narrator who is not just depressed, but too depressing for anyone to have a good time around. 67. Cowboys Saturday Nights Sunday Mornings A big part of why Saturday Nights Sunday Mornings rates as my overall least favorite Counting Crows album is because the impassioned noise that seems to bleed from one song to another on the first half of the albumnot bad if youre in the right mood for it, but also not the sound that I turn to Counting Crows to hear. This song seems to have appreciable political implicationspossibly about a certain president being too much of a cowboy in office it may also be more about self-flagellation. In either case, I can appreciate the emotional intensity of the song, but its far from my favorite to listen to. 66. Anyone But You Saturday Nights Sunday Mornings Theres a dreamy, meditative quality to this song that captures the stunted funk of post-relationship wallowing, and I reckon the song works on that level, but otherwise it feels as though the song says a bit too little to really say much of anything meaningful at all. 65. Good Time Hard Candy This one comes across as a song about awkward attempts at first moves in between more meaningful relationships. I dig the I really love those red-haired girls, Im just another boy from Texas refrain at the end of the song, but its otherwise kind of a snooze, a momentum killer, and a relative weak spot in the early stages of an otherwise largely underrated Hard Candy album. 64. Children in Bloom Recovering the Satellites This is one of the more off-kilter tracks on Recovering . vacillating between the cool, mellow repetition of I gottta get out on my own and shouting eccentricities. It sounds like a coming of age song andor one about disillusionment. It never quite connected for me, though the outro is cool and memorable. 63. Hanging Tree Saturday Nights Sunday Mornings Theres an unstable edge to this song that I find appealingdivergent from the more pensive, self-reflective side the band usually embraces, more at home among, but also a bit more aggressively unpredictable than the rough-edged Saturday night half of this album. With the arguable exception of the chorus, the song isnt exactly catchy or pleasant to listen to as interesting as the lyrics and composition are, that docks it a few places in the countdown. 62. Why Should You Come When I Call Hard Candy This song is catchy in a cheesy sort of way, not much like other tracks from the Crows catalog, but still aurally pleasing almost in spite of itself with the chorus of ba-ba-ba-ba-bas that easily could have been annoying and yet register for me as almost impossible not to sing along with. The content of the song is comparably dubiousostensibly about an insomniac making the rounds trying to set up late night rendezvous with lovers, ex-girlfriends, and whoever else probably ought to know better. 61. Goodnight LA Hard Candy While I dont actively dislike this song, I cant help feeling that it comes across as a caricature of better songs in the Counting Crows catalog. The refrain of What brings me down now is love, cause I can never get enough feels forced rather than earned in this tepid visit to melancholia. 60. Butterfly in Reverse Hard Candy Theres a simple, old-time feel to this song, adorned with piano keys and strings. Its one of the prettier Crows songs and manages to capture nostalgia without slipping into a forlorn place, but rather focusing on more innocent memories and capturing them as they once were. 59. Insignificant Saturday Nights Sunday Mornings This song has a lot of the jumping-off-the-top-of-a-building imagery that pervades other Crows songs, but rather than melancholy or particularly lost, Duritzs narrator sounds indignant and righteously pissed off to have been rendered insignificant. Its a song of defying rejection in favor of achieving his own significance. 58. Black and Blue Hard Candy A pretty melody and suicidal imagery intertwine for a song thats a little melodramatic and colorless (no pun intended) for my tastes, but nonetheless pretty in its own way. In a sense, my feelings for this song are similar to Goodnight LAnot that its a bad song, just that the band has done the essentially the same thing so much better. 57. American Girls Hard Candy I probably underrate this song a bit, not because I dont like it, but because on an album with so many really good songs, this largely uninspired pop ditty was the first singleonly to be followed a cutesy reimagining of the Big Yellow Taxi cover that started as a delightful hidden track at the end of the album, and ended up with Vanessa Carlton singing backup for a single that overshadowed far better original music. Back to American Girls, it has its catchy bits, but otherwise feels simultaneously conspicuously lightweight and weirdly sentimental in the you make me cry refrain. It feels like a knock off of the tradition of great American rock songs about women, but never quite finds its own voice. 56. Four Days This Desert Life This is a song of separationprobably a long distance romance, for which four days and nights feels like an interminably long period of time to wait to see someone again. As such, the song encapsulates a sense of young, impatient love, making marks on a wall like a prisoner. Its a beautiful, off-beat piece of music. 55. Millers Angels Recovering the Satellites Down trodden, mystified, with a hint of anger this song is a meditation on watching for angels that may not be so benevolent. Its a song of victimhood without a hint of recovery. I like it as a mood piece, and particularly like the contrast when it briefly transitions to more of a rock song. That said its not exactly a fun or entirely coherent listening experience. 54. Another Horsedreamers Blues Recovering the Satellites This song was purportedly written in response to Sam Shepards Geography of a Horsedreamer . about a woman who can predict which horse will win races and is subject to all manner of manipulation and mistreatment as a result. However literal that translation may be, the song is a simultaneously lovely and ugly depiction of a woman in crisis, trying to do whats right and escaping into a world of pill-induced sleep to escape from it all. 53. I Wish I Was a Girl This Desert Life Errant use of the subjunctive aside, this is a pretty profound little song about dreams of jumping to your death, and wishing people would trust what you say. I love the pleading to Elizabeth, which reads distinctly as a series of long distance phone calls. Its a both a song of resignation and absurdist speculation about what it would be like to be the opposite genderthough the band only addresses that theme explicitly in the title and its iteration in each chorus. I think that the popular interpretation of this song as Adam saying that women only trust other women and wont listen to men is a little too simplistic, but dont necessarily have a much better one. 52. Le Ballet DOr Saturday Nights Sunday Mornings Despite its relatively low ranking, this track represents one of my favorite qualities about Crows songs, introducing an edgy, mysterious, almost macabre sound at an unexpected point in the mostly mellow Sunday morning half of the album. The song earns bonus points for the liner notes bit, crediting Brian Deck for climbing inside a piano and playing it like a harp to provide the instrumentation for the end of the song. 51. You Cant Count On Me Saturday Nights Sunday Mornings Theres an interesting dissonance between music and lyrics on this one, particularly in the chorus which sounds so warm and inviting and yet is all about the narrator affirming that he shouldnt be counted on. Its a song about someone who toys with people and openly admits he isnt reliableand yet seems all the more magnetic for the admission. Its one of the catchier and certainly the most radio-friendly of the tracks from the Saturday Nights Sunday Mornings album. 50. Carriage Hard Candy I went to my first Counting Crows show in the autumn of 2005, and the band played a number of songs that would be featured on Hard Candy when it was released the following summer. This particular song may always stand out for me more based on the story behind itas Duritz explained it at the showthan the song itself which, while contemplative and laced with smart lyric choices, nonetheless feels a bit plodding and as though it never truly reaches its climax. Adam told the story of an unexpected pregnancy and the couple contemplating an abortion, deciding against it, only for the would-be mother to have a miscarriage. I particularly appreciated Duritzs rejection of the audiences cheers about deciding against the abortion he refused to take a side on the issue, placing it as a personal decision and not a moral stand. The recounting of the story offered a unique glance behind the curtain of another human beings life. 49. Washington Square Saturday Nights Sunday Mornings The opening lines of this song, narrating the choice to sell a piano, sets a tone of forlorn listlessness to key off the Sunday Morning half of this album. The song has been interpreted as one about going home (the traveling homeward to Washington Square lyric toward the end seems to support this reading), but given the itinerant motif and distance from family, I think its more about trying to forge a new home far away from a real home in the wake of major life changes. 48. Daylight Fading Recovering The Satellites Historically, I discounted this song for its seemingly out place countrified, laid back leanings on an otherwise more openly emotionally intense album. The track grew on me over the years, though. Melodically, its not as aggressively sad or angry as others on Recovering . but on further reflection, it feels more like a song of numbnesscoping with lack of meaning and inability to create, despite friends reassurances that everybody loves you and everybody cares. Its a song of quiet resignation and best attempts at patience, waiting for an emotion to pass so the narrator can get on with his life. 47. Speedway This Desert Life One of the sentiments I feel Counting Crows nails best in songs like this one is not so much emotional outbursts or agony as the sense of numbness and inaction that can come after breakups and other emotional trauma. The narrator spends so much of this song thinking about what he ought to do that it underscores how little he has actually done. 46. Ghost Train August and Everything After This song does a sensational job of synergizing the more literal interpretation of a ghostly, ethereal train with the metaphorical interpretation of looking at all of these past relationships and lovers as ghoststhe remnants and memories of which never go away entirely. The repetition of the Hey, how do you do first meeting is perfectly haunting on this off beat track. 45. Sundays Saturday Nights Sunday Mornings On an album of rock and roll, followed by melancholy reflection, this song marks a good balancing point, upbeat, fast, intricate, and conversationalthe narrator denied, rejected, or dumped depending on your reading of it. Given how fundamentally different they are from the rest of the song, the choruses either make or completely fail the song, depending on your interpretation. Im partial to the verses, myself. 44. Perfect Blue Buildings August and Everything After This song exists in the space between depression and catatonia, looking at everything as mundane to the point that it both runs together and becomes vaguely fantasticala perfect blue building, a green apple seamore visions from a painting than pieces of the world that the narrator could ever access himself. The song is alternately a little plodding and a little tidy for my tastes, but the line about getting myself a little oblivion still resonates with me after all these years. 43. 1492 Saturday Nights Sunday Mornings This hard rock anthem of a song is wholly different from anything else in the Counting Crows catalog, and offers a jaw-dropping intro to the Saturday nights half of the Saturday Nights Sunday Mornings album. Vocal tapestries of sex and violence flash across a back drop of a ripping electric guitar. I didnt much care for this track when I first heard it, but it grew on me upon repeat listeningsparticularly the desperation of the bridge as Duritz swells up to scream I am the king of everything, I am the king of nothing. 42. Time and Time Again August and Everything After I really liked Time and Time Again when I first heard August and Everything After and I still think its a good song, but ultimately more of a role player track on a great album than a stand out songs in its own right. It captures a lot of the angst that recurs and is arguably improved upon in the Counting Crows catalog, but does also paint some unique, impressive imagesthe idea of watching someone in reverse to see them coming home rather than leaving, and the idea of laying waste to a whole city and riding out into the desert. 41. Shallow Days August and Everything After (Deluxe Edition) Theres something simple and understated about this early demo that brings a smile to my face on every listen. Its ostensibly a love song about Adam and a girl named Mary Jane, more likely an extended metaphor for his relationship with weed. In the end, I prefer to focus on the sentiment of small people squeezing out a good life, who need a little good time. 40. Im Not Sleeping Recovering the Satellites There are times when this band teeters on the edge of artistry and just having too much go on at once. This is among the songs that walks that line, and while it doesnt land as one my favorites, I do feel that the overall product is successful in selling a narrators desperation and anger. Its difficult to tell if the ubiquitous she is a lover, the narrators mother, a friend, or more of a conceptlike his conscience or his paranoia. Regardless, the song works best on its explosions, which the shifts in dynamics set up beautifully, and Im particularly fond of the closing sequence, led off with a sample of Rain, Rain Go Away. 39. Monkey Recovering the Satellites This is probably the most light hearted track on the Crows darkest album. While doom, gloom, and hints of desperation weave together for an intoxicating collection of music, this songs includes the whimsical confession, Im all messed up, thats nothing new, which communicates a sensation of someone who has come to terms with his otherness and life problems just the same, its a mostly upbeat melody and comes across as at least an approximation of a love song, questioning where the narrators monkey has been all his life. 38. High Life This Desert Life This is, in a sense, the title track of its albumthe only song to explicitly reference this desert life. Its a fascinating bit of a dreamscape, navigating differences and overlaps between the desert and the big city, and the sense of waiting for someone and hoping shell stick around. The song has a distinctive sound and captures loneliness in an almost playful way. Its long and has an ethereal sound and, thus, I think it tends to get overlooked on this album, but its a real forgotten gem. 37. If I Could Give All My Love (Richard Manuel Is dead) Hard Candy This song is about Adam Duritzs revelation of the impermanence of all things, people, and relationships upon learning Richard Manuel from The Band had passed. I love the recurring guitar riff in this song, and will always feel connected to it for becoming acquainted with the track during a summer crush and envisioning it as more of a love song than an exploration of why its hard to love anyone at all. 36. Love and Addiction August and Everything After (Deluxe Edition) This early demo never made it onto a Counting Crows disc until the re-release of August and Everything After in 2007. Based on a few critical turns, I preferred the bootleg recordings floating around the interwebs to this album version. Just the same its a fun courtship song about the intersection of affection and obsession, with a whole lot of youthful ambition woven in. Its a worthy track that didnt quite fit the vibe of the August album, but that nonetheless stands up on its own. 35. Omaha August and Everything After Duritz wrote this song before ever visiting Omaha, and claims that having written it earned him the key to the city, which he felt pretty awkward about. More so than the city itself, its a piece about leaving a place only to come back to it, and a feeling tread upon. Omaha all but explicitly stands for any number of faceless places in middle America, and conflicting impulses to find a new life and to come back to whats familiar. 34. Accidentally In Love Shrek 2: Motion Picture Sountrack I actually like this song a good bit, but just the same lament that, behind Mr. Jones and A Long December, its probably the song casual listeners most readily identify with Counting Crows. Its not a bad song, but it is a bubble gum pop song that isnt meaningfully representative of much else from the bands catalog. But lets stay positive. As far as Im concerned, (Come on, come on) jump a little higher, (come on, come on) if you feel a little lighter remains one of the purest representations of what new love really feels like. And Ill be darned if this song isnt catchy. 33. Mercury Recovering the Satellites This off-beat, almost bluesy song is an interesting mood piece amongst an otherwise more obviously emotional Recovering the Satellites album. It tells the tale of a mercurial relationship and the narrators willingness to tolerate or embrace all of it. The song is simultaneously conflicted and understated for a pretty intriguing final product. 32. Kid Things This Desert Life Ive never quite understood the fad of leaving several minutes of blank space on a track before giving way to a hidden track on an album. Sure, the surprise of a bonus song is great, but couldnt you just leave it off the liner notes This trend seems to have given way to exclusive tracksas in, exclusive to iTunes download, or exclusive to buying a CD at Target. Or maybe thats just been the case for artists I like. Anywho, for those of us willing to hold down the fast forward button for a minute or so or who were too lazy to get up to change CDs after St. Robinson in His Cadillac Dream, the reward was Kid Thingsa plucky song with country roots in which Duritz implores his homebody love interest to come out and play, extolling the value of immature activities, and their potential to lead to greater things. Its a really fun song that Id probably love even more had it gotten its own track originally, and thus lent itself better to repeat listening. 31. Amy Hit the Atmosphere This Desert Life This is a mood piece in the melancholiest of senses. No, it doesnt carry the tragic weight of On a Tuesday in Amsterdam Long Ago or Raining In Baltimore but rather is, in a sense, is even sadder for the lack of energy and the general malaise of the song. This isnt a song of sudden heartbreak, but rather an ongoing one that the narrator has grown resigned to. I remember identifying with this song after long days during my high school careerworn out from early mornings to get to school on time, a heavy load of AP courses and extracurriculars, followed by late nights of homework and pining for a life that was less exhausting and more loving. The particular circumstances may vary, but I suspect weve all been there at one time and in one way or another. 30. Los Angeles Saturday Nights Sunday Mornings In the hyperactive Saturday night half of this album, Id argue that the Crows sound most at home on Los Angelesnot a hard rocker, more of a lazy party song about going out with friends and revisiting a Crows theme of coming to terms with fame and retaining ones humanity. 29. Einstein on the Beach (For an Egg Man) DGC Rarities Volume 1 By Duritzs own description, this was a song the Crows assembled when they were still learning to write pop songs, and he never intended for it to be released in any meaningful setting. Yet it went from a rarities compilation to radio play, and became one of the bands most recognizable tracks from its early years. No, its not the weightiest or more coherent Crows track, but it is the essence of a fun summer song, edging toward deep philosophical thought, but consistently tipping back to its lighter roots. 28. She Dont Want Nobody Near Films About Ghosts This early Counting Crows song never got a formal studio release until their greatest hits album. Like a number of Crows tracks it has an upbeat melody, but dont let that misguide you to thinking its a happy-go-lucky song. Its ostensibly a piece about social anxiety, wrestling with the competing impulses of a desire to be alone and fear of loneliness, all set against classic Crows pop song instrumentation. 27. Walkaways Recovering the Satellites Clocking in at one minute, thirteen seconds, its easy to dismiss this song, but I actually feel its one of the most underrated pieces of the brilliant Satellites album. Down-trodden and defeated, the song at first feels like one about abandonment, and yet takes a turn in the final lines in which Duritz sings that one day, Im gonna stay. But not today. The lyric hints at shared responsibility for lonelinessa culture of one-night stands and short engagements. Just the same, the finish sounds something like hopethat the narrator can foresee an end to that lifestyle amidst his current malaise. 26. On Almost Any Sunday Morning Saturday Nights Sunday Mornings This is the kind of track that its easy to overlook for just how understated it is, but I really dig the quiet depression and desperation inherent to it, reflecting on lonely Sunday mornings with a brand of disillusionment thats especially apparent after a raucous Saturday night. Its one of the clearest, most fully realized tracks of the Saturday Nights Sunday Mornings album. 25. When I Dream of Michelangelo Saturday Nights Sunday Mornings The title of this song is a callback to Angels of the Silences in which dreaming of Michelangelo hints at hidden depths and madness in the narrator. This beautiful ballad with a fundamentally different vibe lingers on that image and explores the space between being an artist and a person of strong opinions, and being torn between that and a plainer, less nuanced life and the love interest that seems to embody that simpler life. The soft, smooth instrumentation paints this inner conflict in a soft light, creating a beautiful song in its own right. 24. Colorblind This Desert Life This song will probably always receive disproportionate attention in the Counting Crows catalog for having been featured in a sexy scene from Cruel Intentions . Of course, its no more fair that I tend discount it because bandwagon fans only recognize it from the movie. All of that said, it is a beautiful piano-driven ballad that at once captures loneliness and a complete willingness on the part of the songs narrator to unfold and release himself to the trusting arms of another. 23. On a Tuesday in Amsterdam Long Ago Saturday Nights Sunday Mornings I think of this song a bit like a poor mans Raining In Baltimore. The thing is that Baltimore is a such a good song that even a poor mans version is perfectly worth listening to. Its Counting Crows at the bands most down-trodden and melodramatic with a tragic refrain of the narrator pleading, come back to me. Its haunting. Its beautiful. 22. Baby Im a Big Star Now Rounders: Motion Picture Soundtrack This is a pretty infectious song, released as a hidden track on the vinyl version of This Desert Life and, more prominently on the Rounders soundtrack. It revisits Crows themes of disillusionment and self-loathing, with the catchiest of hooks that suggests an undercurrent of optimism and continuing to try. 21. Come Around Saturday Nights Sunday Mornings I remember listening to this track along a road trip to see my friends for the time in months after I first moved to Baltimore. The song perfectly encapsulates the spirit a reunionthe idea that old friends and family will find a way to come back around to each other, surviving all manner of short-term relationships and other pursuits. Sure, theres an underlying tone of abandonment and heartache to lyrics like, What I know is, shes going. When you know it, its all right. So you put yourself between you and your pride. Just the same, the song has more of the trappings of recovery than misery, and as such functions as an excellent track to close an album. 20. Have You Seen Me Lately Recovering the Satellites Throughout this countdown I refer to the narratora term that my background in writing workshops and literature classrooms has driven into my skull, demanding that the consumer never assume the author speaks for herself. That said, Duritz has been pretty open about the autobiographical nature of Recovering the Satellites (not altogether different from the bands other albums). The dynamic is particularly true of this song, a meditation on exploding from artist to superstar based on the commercial success of August and Everything After . and trying to decipher real relationships from faux ones real identity from public persona. On top of all of that, its a kickass rock song that subverts the expectations set by the songs that immediately surround it. 19. Holiday in Spain Hard Candy This whimsical, but downtrodden piece about a narrator retreating from a stark reality to an exotic location ostensibly caps Hard Candy (excluding the hidden track cover of Big Yellow Taxi). One of the sensations this band and particularly this song captures with pure artistry is the sense of keeping busy, keeping up appearances, and trying to stay cool when all the while you know your life is in shambles. For me, this is a song about attempting to recover, and just the same acknowledging that the flying away to someone new is part of cycle, not an elixir in and of itself. 18. Sullivan Street August and Everything After The debut album from Counting Crows is full of heartbreaking music. This conflicted song is all about the desperation that comes with a relationship falling apartthat uncomfortable period in which youre still together, but know that it will be over before long. From what Ive heard, Duritz wrote the song when he was in the habit of driving a girlfriend home, but the lyrics double up with the sensation of fighting a losing battledoing drivebys past an ex-lovers place with no real reason for doing so, no intention of stopping in. 17. Up All Night Hard Candy To me, this was the sweetest surprise of the Hard Candy album, a song that starts melancholy and lonesome that keys into feel like a late-night adventure, albeit one for which the narrator may still be forlorn. Indeed, Duritz ostensibly sounds as though he cant sleep for his dreams having slipped away. He acknowledges its too late to get high, in the same breath observing that his sleepless night may well give way to a cycle of sleeping through the daylight hours. The song seamlessly weaves together sensations of a partying and sex with disillusionment and disappointment, all against a backdrop of booming piano chords. 16. Hard Candy Hard Candy The title track of its album is all about memoriesstudying old photographs, remembering the best parts of a relationship past. The imagery of a girl standing by the water as a smile begins to curl and the evenings on Long Island when the colors start to fade always grab me when Im listening to this songwe may not all of have quite the same memories, but I reckon every one of us has specific people, signature landscapes, and moments that make us smile and sigh and reflect in all of the happiest and most gut-wrenching ways imaginable. 15. Catapult Recovering the Satellites This opening track is certainly off beat. It starts out with dreamy a quality before a solitary electric guitar chord shakes up the scene, crystallizes the vision, and stirs the listener to wakefulness. The song encapsulates longing, fear of abandonment, self-realization and so many other themes of the album that it functions something like a de facto overture. Ironically, its a song that I think listeners tend to overlook for such a loaded album to follow, but regardless, it is not a track for any serious listener to sleep on. 14. Hanginaround This Desert Life I know plenty of Crows fans tend to look down on this song as lightweight and uninspired. I think the lack of doom and gloom makes this song all the more special to me, thoughdespite the undercurrent of hanging around too long, theres also an unapologetic air about this song. Its not quite a party song, but more so a chill piece about hanging out with friends with nowhere to go, nothing to do, and little interest in changing all of that. Moreover, the song is smarter than folks may give it credit for, recorded using looping techniques that repeat the drum and guitar riff over and over again in a song about hanging around the same place. 13. Round Here August and Everything After The opening flicker of an electric guitar and lyrics about stepping out the front door at the beginning of this song function as an iconic introduction to the Counting Crows catalogthe first track on the groups first studio album. The song proceeds to take listeners along an emotional roller coaster about coming of age and disillusionment. The song most truly comes to life on the positively electric bridge segment about the girl in the car in the parking lot who says man, you should try to take a shot. The song comes full circle with a soft outro for which the instrumentation falls away to leave the narrator all alone, just like he started. 12. Angels of the Silences Recovering the Satellites For me this has always been a song about wanting to believe, and I love the choice for it to be an upbeat rocker, bursting with youthful energy. The sentiment that, all my sins, I said that I would pay for them if I could come back to you, is a perfect encapsulation of bargaining and the desperation to hold onto something thats already gone. Moreover, I appreciate the songs vacillation between bitterness, regret, desire, philosophy, and crises of faithperfectly conflicted and perfectly complete. 11. Miami Hard Candy I love the economy of this song. It, at once, has the mellow easy feel of a vacation song, but just the same, an undercurrent of longing for Duritzs angel who wont return his calls, and the borderline epic feel of a heros journey in the triumphant closing lines about shutting it down in New Orleans. The song also has its double meaning embedded in the title, with Miami purportedly equating to my Amy, a frequent Crows muse, and a brilliant way of showing the way in which a person and a place can be become one in a persons memories. 10. Rain King August and Everything After No doubt, Rain King charts as one of Counting Crows most recognizable songs, and fittingly so. In its original recording, despite bits of doubt and discontent, it nonetheless sounds like a carefree, rocking pop song. Moreover, Duritz has talked about the song in the context of an artists statementa song about being an artist and all the disparate pieces of a life that come together to manifest in the form of self-expression through music and writing. The song also accounts for the intrinsic sense of deserving morethe sensation that the artists work is worth more than hes getting credit for at this point. The closing exclamation of yeah, registers as something akin to Duritzs barbaric yawp. While Im focusing on original recordings, its also worth noting this song as the one the Crows may have reinvented more than any other on the live stage, and used as a portal to cover many, many other songs. 9. Good Night Elisabeth Recovering the Satellites Its difficult for me to separate this song from Rain King, for its most iconic line at the climax of the song. Theres a sparseness to this song that, for me, has always encapsulated loneliness, or perhaps more precisely the feeling of missing a specific person. The song portrays Duritzs lullaby to a lover he lost when he was on the road. The final verse in particular captures him in a phase of simultaneous acceptance and complete denial of his circumstances. Hes accepted he wont be with Elisabeth and readies himself to sleep with someone else, all the while thinking of, waiting for his true love. Its a beautiful, tragic, and very real song. 8. Mrs. Potters Lullaby This Desert Life This elaborate dreamscape of a seven-minute song probably never should have been released as a singlefar too long, thoughtful, and abstract for a top 40 audience. Duritz reportedly wrote the song as an ode to an actress, hence the references to singing to someone on a TV or movie screen and imploring her to come meet him he his framed the song as introducing himself, by way of encapsulating everything going on his mind. Lines like theres a piece of Maria in every song that I sing, speak to the roots of a writerthe people and the concepts that inform everything he does. Moreover, the song somehow manages to connect all of these disparate, abstract vignettes into one epic, greater whole. Its an unforgettable memoir of a song. 7. A Long December Recovering the Satellites Though I tend to think of Counting Crows signature sound as skewing melancholy, a disproportionate number of the bands singles are upbeat pop songs. This is one of the most prominent exceptions, probably the bands second most famous song after Mr. Jones and one of their most melancholy numbers. Its a song about everything going wrong, spending long nights in hospitals at the end of a cruddy year. And, just the same, its a song of remembering better times, like when all at once you look across a crowded room and see the way that light attaches to a girl. Better yet, theres the closing sentiment of getting out to see the ocean, which carries the suggestion of rediscovering the things that used to make the narrator happy. I listened to this track on repeat in my earbuds, walking alone, my very first time setting foot in the Pacific Ocean four years ago. 6. Raining in Baltimore August and Everything After When I first heard August and Everything After at the ripe age of 10, I remember being struck by it. It was tragic, and as such it was beautiful. Before I had experienced any real sense of heartache or loss in my own life, I instinctively embraced this song about being so far away from the person you love that it actively hurts. This song took on another level of meaning for me when I moved to Baltimore, closer to three hundred than three thousand miles from the people I knew and my girlfriend at the time, but nonetheless recognized so many of the sentiments of the song, perhaps on an altogether too literal level. As time has gone by, Ive developed a greater appreciation for a handful of Crows songs that I feel encompass not only sadness, but an additional layer of conflict and redemption. Just the same, the song remains a key teacher in my emotional education and a track that still holds up after all these years. 5. St. Robinson in his Cadillac Dream This Desert Life Excluding the hidden track at the end of the CD, St. Robinson wraps up This Desert Life and certainly fits as a closing numbercomplex, epic, and endlessly narrative. Its a song about dreaming and all the things that get between everyday people and all of the things they want for themselves. The song clicks on a whole new level for me on the devil-may-care FU to normalcy in the closing movements of the song, when Duritz retorts to whoever dare challenge him, there are people who will say that they knew me so well I may not go to heavenI hope you go to hell. The song ends on a delicious slice of Americana, the narrator inviting his lover get into his car, not to head toward any specific destination, but rather just to drive . 4. A Murder of One August and Everything After This is the epic, lovely, desperate, heartbreaking, rise-from-the-ashes finale of Counting Crows first studio album, and it is a masterpiece. The song is often misinterpreted as, in some way, being about homicide, and Duritz may well have been playing with that idea in a song ostensibly about an abusive relationship and urging someone not to waste her life. Just the same the song also seems to be about flock of crowsa murderand all the more interesting for the title suggesting a flock of just one. Like so many of my favorite songs, this one resonates me on a personal level. I remember listening to those gritted-teeth lyrics, Does he tell you when youre sorry Does he tell you when youre wrong as a junior high kid and thinking about the way my father controlled me and tried to tell me what was right or wrong from the perspective his aberrant and misguided sense of morality and prioritization. And I remember thinking of being feathered by moonlight as walking free and even taking flight. Counting Crows is often at its best on deeply conflicted song and this song nails so many emotions around confinement and freedom. أحبه. 3. Recovering the Satellites Recovering the Satellites For me, this is a song about rediscovering oneself and the realization that time is fleeting. Duritz sings about getting back to basics and staring at the sky in a way that feels very small town to mebut maybe thats my small town upbringing and recollections of my first encounters with this song that inform that interpretation, and the reference to this angel town suggests it might have been written about Los Angeles, where other Crows songs from this era are set. Regardless, theres a sense of inevitable loss and yearning to the song, particularly in my favorite lyric: we only stay in orbit for a moment of time. And youre everybodys satelliteI wish that you were mine. 2. Anna Begins August and Everything After Duritz inked this song in remembrance of a love affair he engaged in, backpacking through Europe in his youth. In my totally subjective opinion, its the most beautiful love song ever written. I can take or leave most of the verses, but each chorus pulls at my heart strings to truly profound effectthe sentiment of falling in love for every minor gesture a woman might make, such as sneezing the idea of lovers understanding each others every nonsense-sleep-talking mumbled syllable. Perhaps the song is a bit melodramatic, but as such it captures young love and infatuation in strikingly earnest ways. 1. Mr. Jones August and Everything After For all of my self-professed modesty and focus cast on the craft of my art as opposed to recognition, I cant deny the impulse to strive toward fame and fortune. The American Dream is engrained in me like so many of my contemporaries and those who came before me, indoctrinated in a culture of self-betterment and boot strapping, and the implicit suggestion that celebrity is the natural and inherently desirable reward of all that hard work. The song is about seeking celebrity without a concrete sense of why youre doing so, and the companion amorphous desires for love and companionship and influence, all couched with in the setting of San Francisco dive bar, making bold claims with a drinking buddy whilst watching a flamenco dancer strut her stuff. Mr. Jones is nothing short of a portrait of a generationa song all about dreams and desires that closes on the sorrowful, unspoken recognition that the narrator may never achieve his lofty goals. Read stories and miscellaneous criticism from Mike Chin at his website and his thoughts on a cappella music at The A Cappella Blog. Follow him on Twitter miketchin. Check out more articles on BuzzFeedRanking All 69 Counting Crows Songs Counting Crows is my favorite band. So, in celebration of the upcoming release of their new album, Somewhere Under Wonderland Im presenting to you a countdown of all of their original, studio tracks. Im leaving off bootlegs and songs that were never officially released (40 Years, Were Only Love, Barely Out of Tuesday, etc.), songs that appear exclusively on live albums, and covers (including the entire Underwater Sunshine (Or What We Did On Our Summer Vacation) album). In instances in which the band released more than one studio version of the song, I defaulted to the first version the band released. The criteria for the countdown are wholly subjectivemy preferred picks for lyrics, melody, and personal impact. Note, Im a fan of the entire Crows catalog, so even the songs at the bottom of the list are not ones I actively dislikejust ones I love less, and my purposes here are more to have fun reflecting on the bands music than to produce a definitive list. Feel free to debate the order amongst yourselves and let me know if I missed any songs in the comments section. 69. New Frontier Hard Candy In the right moment, I can find this song sort of catchy but the synth pop vibe and largely nonsensical lyrics dont do much to inspire a devoted Counting Crows fan. From what I can gather its a song about failure to communicatea message that the song, itself, fails to communicate all that effectively, and that sounds strangely dated for a post-eighties band. 68. All My Friends This Desert Life Counting Crows offers up its share of songs about feelings of isolation, abandonment, and otherness, and often does so in creative, thought-provoking ways. This song, in which Adam Duritz intones, all my friends and lovers leave me alone to try to have a little fun, feels altogether too trueabout a narrator who is not just depressed, but too depressing for anyone to have a good time around. 67. Cowboys Saturday Nights Sunday Mornings A big part of why Saturday Nights Sunday Mornings rates as my overall least favorite Counting Crows album is because the impassioned noise that seems to bleed from one song to another on the first half of the albumnot bad if youre in the right mood for it, but also not the sound that I turn to Counting Crows to hear. This song seems to have appreciable political implicationspossibly about a certain president being too much of a cowboy in office it may also be more about self-flagellation. In either case, I can appreciate the emotional intensity of the song, but its far from my favorite to listen to. 66. Anyone But You Saturday Nights Sunday Mornings Theres a dreamy, meditative quality to this song that captures the stunted funk of post-relationship wallowing, and I reckon the song works on that level, but otherwise it feels as though the song says a bit too little to really say much of anything meaningful at all. 65. Good Time Hard Candy This one comes across as a song about awkward attempts at first moves in between more meaningful relationships. I dig the I really love those red-haired girls, Im just another boy from Texas refrain at the end of the song, but its otherwise kind of a snooze, a momentum killer, and a relative weak spot in the early stages of an otherwise largely underrated Hard Candy album. 64. Children in Bloom Recovering the Satellites This is one of the more off-kilter tracks on Recovering . vacillating between the cool, mellow repetition of I gottta get out on my own and shouting eccentricities. It sounds like a coming of age song andor one about disillusionment. It never quite connected for me, though the outro is cool and memorable. 63. Hanging Tree Saturday Nights Sunday Mornings Theres an unstable edge to this song that I find appealingdivergent from the more pensive, self-reflective side the band usually embraces, more at home among, but also a bit more aggressively unpredictable than the rough-edged Saturday night half of this album. With the arguable exception of the chorus, the song isnt exactly catchy or pleasant to listen to as interesting as the lyrics and composition are, that docks it a few places in the countdown. 62. Why Should You Come When I Call Hard Candy This song is catchy in a cheesy sort of way, not much like other tracks from the Crows catalog, but still aurally pleasing almost in spite of itself with the chorus of ba-ba-ba-ba-bas that easily could have been annoying and yet register for me as almost impossible not to sing along with. The content of the song is comparably dubiousostensibly about an insomniac making the rounds trying to set up late night rendezvous with lovers, ex-girlfriends, and whoever else probably ought to know better. 61. Goodnight LA Hard Candy While I dont actively dislike this song, I cant help feeling that it comes across as a caricature of better songs in the Counting Crows catalog. The refrain of What brings me down now is love, cause I can never get enough feels forced rather than earned in this tepid visit to melancholia. 60. Butterfly in Reverse Hard Candy Theres a simple, old-time feel to this song, adorned with piano keys and strings. Its one of the prettier Crows songs and manages to capture nostalgia without slipping into a forlorn place, but rather focusing on more innocent memories and capturing them as they once were. 59. Insignificant Saturday Nights Sunday Mornings This song has a lot of the jumping-off-the-top-of-a-building imagery that pervades other Crows songs, but rather than melancholy or particularly lost, Duritzs narrator sounds indignant and righteously pissed off to have been rendered insignificant. Its a song of defying rejection in favor of achieving his own significance. 58. Black and Blue Hard Candy A pretty melody and suicidal imagery intertwine for a song thats a little melodramatic and colorless (no pun intended) for my tastes, but nonetheless pretty in its own way. In a sense, my feelings for this song are similar to Goodnight LAnot that its a bad song, just that the band has done the essentially the same thing so much better. 57. American Girls Hard Candy I probably underrate this song a bit, not because I dont like it, but because on an album with so many really good songs, this largely uninspired pop ditty was the first singleonly to be followed a cutesy reimagining of the Big Yellow Taxi cover that started as a delightful hidden track at the end of the album, and ended up with Vanessa Carlton singing backup for a single that overshadowed far better original music. Back to American Girls, it has its catchy bits, but otherwise feels simultaneously conspicuously lightweight and weirdly sentimental in the you make me cry refrain. It feels like a knock off of the tradition of great American rock songs about women, but never quite finds its own voice. 56. Four Days This Desert Life This is a song of separationprobably a long distance romance, for which four days and nights feels like an interminably long period of time to wait to see someone again. As such, the song encapsulates a sense of young, impatient love, making marks on a wall like a prisoner. Its a beautiful, off-beat piece of music. 55. Millers Angels Recovering the Satellites Down trodden, mystified, with a hint of anger this song is a meditation on watching for angels that may not be so benevolent. Its a song of victimhood without a hint of recovery. I like it as a mood piece, and particularly like the contrast when it briefly transitions to more of a rock song. That said its not exactly a fun or entirely coherent listening experience. 54. Another Horsedreamers Blues Recovering the Satellites This song was purportedly written in response to Sam Shepards Geography of a Horsedreamer . about a woman who can predict which horse will win races and is subject to all manner of manipulation and mistreatment as a result. However literal that translation may be, the song is a simultaneously lovely and ugly depiction of a woman in crisis, trying to do whats right and escaping into a world of pill-induced sleep to escape from it all. 53. I Wish I Was a Girl This Desert Life Errant use of the subjunctive aside, this is a pretty profound little song about dreams of jumping to your death, and wishing people would trust what you say. I love the pleading to Elizabeth, which reads distinctly as a series of long distance phone calls. Its a both a song of resignation and absurdist speculation about what it would be like to be the opposite genderthough the band only addresses that theme explicitly in the title and its iteration in each chorus. I think that the popular interpretation of this song as Adam saying that women only trust other women and wont listen to men is a little too simplistic, but dont necessarily have a much better one. 52. Le Ballet DOr Saturday Nights Sunday Mornings Despite its relatively low ranking, this track represents one of my favorite qualities about Crows songs, introducing an edgy, mysterious, almost macabre sound at an unexpected point in the mostly mellow Sunday morning half of the album. The song earns bonus points for the liner notes bit, crediting Brian Deck for climbing inside a piano and playing it like a harp to provide the instrumentation for the end of the song. 51. You Cant Count On Me Saturday Nights Sunday Mornings Theres an interesting dissonance between music and lyrics on this one, particularly in the chorus which sounds so warm and inviting and yet is all about the narrator affirming that he shouldnt be counted on. Its a song about someone who toys with people and openly admits he isnt reliableand yet seems all the more magnetic for the admission. Its one of the catchier and certainly the most radio-friendly of the tracks from the Saturday Nights Sunday Mornings album. 50. Carriage Hard Candy I went to my first Counting Crows show in the autumn of 2005, and the band played a number of songs that would be featured on Hard Candy when it was released the following summer. This particular song may always stand out for me more based on the story behind itas Duritz explained it at the showthan the song itself which, while contemplative and laced with smart lyric choices, nonetheless feels a bit plodding and as though it never truly reaches its climax. Adam told the story of an unexpected pregnancy and the couple contemplating an abortion, deciding against it, only for the would-be mother to have a miscarriage. I particularly appreciated Duritzs rejection of the audiences cheers about deciding against the abortion he refused to take a side on the issue, placing it as a personal decision and not a moral stand. The recounting of the story offered a unique glance behind the curtain of another human beings life. 49. Washington Square Saturday Nights Sunday Mornings The opening lines of this song, narrating the choice to sell a piano, sets a tone of forlorn listlessness to key off the Sunday Morning half of this album. The song has been interpreted as one about going home (the traveling homeward to Washington Square lyric toward the end seems to support this reading), but given the itinerant motif and distance from family, I think its more about trying to forge a new home far away from a real home in the wake of major life changes. 48. Daylight Fading Recovering The Satellites Historically, I discounted this song for its seemingly out place countrified, laid back leanings on an otherwise more openly emotionally intense album. The track grew on me over the years, though. Melodically, its not as aggressively sad or angry as others on Recovering . but on further reflection, it feels more like a song of numbnesscoping with lack of meaning and inability to create, despite friends reassurances that everybody loves you and everybody cares. Its a song of quiet resignation and best attempts at patience, waiting for an emotion to pass so the narrator can get on with his life. 47. Speedway This Desert Life One of the sentiments I feel Counting Crows nails best in songs like this one is not so much emotional outbursts or agony as the sense of numbness and inaction that can come after breakups and other emotional trauma. The narrator spends so much of this song thinking about what he ought to do that it underscores how little he has actually done. 46. Ghost Train August and Everything After This song does a sensational job of synergizing the more literal interpretation of a ghostly, ethereal train with the metaphorical interpretation of looking at all of these past relationships and lovers as ghoststhe remnants and memories of which never go away entirely. The repetition of the Hey, how do you do first meeting is perfectly haunting on this off beat track. 45. Sundays Saturday Nights Sunday Mornings On an album of rock and roll, followed by melancholy reflection, this song marks a good balancing point, upbeat, fast, intricate, and conversationalthe narrator denied, rejected, or dumped depending on your reading of it. Given how fundamentally different they are from the rest of the song, the choruses either make or completely fail the song, depending on your interpretation. Im partial to the verses, myself. 44. Perfect Blue Buildings August and Everything After This song exists in the space between depression and catatonia, looking at everything as mundane to the point that it both runs together and becomes vaguely fantasticala perfect blue building, a green apple seamore visions from a painting than pieces of the world that the narrator could ever access himself. The song is alternately a little plodding and a little tidy for my tastes, but the line about getting myself a little oblivion still resonates with me after all these years. 43. 1492 Saturday Nights Sunday Mornings This hard rock anthem of a song is wholly different from anything else in the Counting Crows catalog, and offers a jaw-dropping intro to the Saturday nights half of the Saturday Nights Sunday Mornings album. Vocal tapestries of sex and violence flash across a back drop of a ripping electric guitar. I didnt much care for this track when I first heard it, but it grew on me upon repeat listeningsparticularly the desperation of the bridge as Duritz swells up to scream I am the king of everything, I am the king of nothing. 42. Time and Time Again August and Everything After I really liked Time and Time Again when I first heard August and Everything After and I still think its a good song, but ultimately more of a role player track on a great album than a stand out songs in its own right. It captures a lot of the angst that recurs and is arguably improved upon in the Counting Crows catalog, but does also paint some unique, impressive imagesthe idea of watching someone in reverse to see them coming home rather than leaving, and the idea of laying waste to a whole city and riding out into the desert. 41. Shallow Days August and Everything After (Deluxe Edition) Theres something simple and understated about this early demo that brings a smile to my face on every listen. Its ostensibly a love song about Adam and a girl named Mary Jane, more likely an extended metaphor for his relationship with weed. In the end, I prefer to focus on the sentiment of small people squeezing out a good life, who need a little good time. 40. Im Not Sleeping Recovering the Satellites There are times when this band teeters on the edge of artistry and just having too much go on at once. This is among the songs that walks that line, and while it doesnt land as one my favorites, I do feel that the overall product is successful in selling a narrators desperation and anger. Its difficult to tell if the ubiquitous she is a lover, the narrators mother, a friend, or more of a conceptlike his conscience or his paranoia. Regardless, the song works best on its explosions, which the shifts in dynamics set up beautifully, and Im particularly fond of the closing sequence, led off with a sample of Rain, Rain Go Away. 39. Monkey Recovering the Satellites This is probably the most light hearted track on the Crows darkest album. While doom, gloom, and hints of desperation weave together for an intoxicating collection of music, this songs includes the whimsical confession, Im all messed up, thats nothing new, which communicates a sensation of someone who has come to terms with his otherness and life problems just the same, its a mostly upbeat melody and comes across as at least an approximation of a love song, questioning where the narrators monkey has been all his life. 38. High Life This Desert Life This is, in a sense, the title track of its albumthe only song to explicitly reference this desert life. Its a fascinating bit of a dreamscape, navigating differences and overlaps between the desert and the big city, and the sense of waiting for someone and hoping shell stick around. The song has a distinctive sound and captures loneliness in an almost playful way. Its long and has an ethereal sound and, thus, I think it tends to get overlooked on this album, but its a real forgotten gem. 37. If I Could Give All My Love (Richard Manuel Is dead) Hard Candy This song is about Adam Duritzs revelation of the impermanence of all things, people, and relationships upon learning Richard Manuel from The Band had passed. I love the recurring guitar riff in this song, and will always feel connected to it for becoming acquainted with the track during a summer crush and envisioning it as more of a love song than an exploration of why its hard to love anyone at all. 36. Love and Addiction August and Everything After (Deluxe Edition) This early demo never made it onto a Counting Crows disc until the re-release of August and Everything After in 2007. Based on a few critical turns, I preferred the bootleg recordings floating around the interwebs to this album version. Just the same its a fun courtship song about the intersection of affection and obsession, with a whole lot of youthful ambition woven in. Its a worthy track that didnt quite fit the vibe of the August album, but that nonetheless stands up on its own. 35. Omaha August and Everything After Duritz wrote this song before ever visiting Omaha, and claims that having written it earned him the key to the city, which he felt pretty awkward about. More so than the city itself, its a piece about leaving a place only to come back to it, and a feeling tread upon. Omaha all but explicitly stands for any number of faceless places in middle America, and conflicting impulses to find a new life and to come back to whats familiar. 34. Accidentally In Love Shrek 2: Motion Picture Sountrack I actually like this song a good bit, but just the same lament that, behind Mr. Jones and A Long December, its probably the song casual listeners most readily identify with Counting Crows. Its not a bad song, but it is a bubble gum pop song that isnt meaningfully representative of much else from the bands catalog. But lets stay positive. As far as Im concerned, (Come on, come on) jump a little higher, (come on, come on) if you feel a little lighter remains one of the purest representations of what new love really feels like. And Ill be darned if this song isnt catchy. 33. Mercury Recovering the Satellites This off-beat, almost bluesy song is an interesting mood piece amongst an otherwise more obviously emotional Recovering the Satellites album. It tells the tale of a mercurial relationship and the narrators willingness to tolerate or embrace all of it. The song is simultaneously conflicted and understated for a pretty intriguing final product. 32. Kid Things This Desert Life Ive never quite understood the fad of leaving several minutes of blank space on a track before giving way to a hidden track on an album. Sure, the surprise of a bonus song is great, but couldnt you just leave it off the liner notes This trend seems to have given way to exclusive tracksas in, exclusive to iTunes download, or exclusive to buying a CD at Target. Or maybe thats just been the case for artists I like. Anywho, for those of us willing to hold down the fast forward button for a minute or so or who were too lazy to get up to change CDs after St. Robinson in His Cadillac Dream, the reward was Kid Thingsa plucky song with country roots in which Duritz implores his homebody love interest to come out and play, extolling the value of immature activities, and their potential to lead to greater things. Its a really fun song that Id probably love even more had it gotten its own track originally, and thus lent itself better to repeat listening. 31. Amy Hit the Atmosphere This Desert Life This is a mood piece in the melancholiest of senses. No, it doesnt carry the tragic weight of On a Tuesday in Amsterdam Long Ago or Raining In Baltimore but rather is, in a sense, is even sadder for the lack of energy and the general malaise of the song. This isnt a song of sudden heartbreak, but rather an ongoing one that the narrator has grown resigned to. I remember identifying with this song after long days during my high school careerworn out from early mornings to get to school on time, a heavy load of AP courses and extracurriculars, followed by late nights of homework and pining for a life that was less exhausting and more loving. The particular circumstances may vary, but I suspect weve all been there at one time and in one way or another. 30. Los Angeles Saturday Nights Sunday Mornings In the hyperactive Saturday night half of this album, Id argue that the Crows sound most at home on Los Angelesnot a hard rocker, more of a lazy party song about going out with friends and revisiting a Crows theme of coming to terms with fame and retaining ones humanity. 29. Einstein on the Beach (For an Egg Man) DGC Rarities Volume 1 By Duritzs own description, this was a song the Crows assembled when they were still learning to write pop songs, and he never intended for it to be released in any meaningful setting. Yet it went from a rarities compilation to radio play, and became one of the bands most recognizable tracks from its early years. No, its not the weightiest or more coherent Crows track, but it is the essence of a fun summer song, edging toward deep philosophical thought, but consistently tipping back to its lighter roots. 28. She Dont Want Nobody Near Films About Ghosts This early Counting Crows song never got a formal studio release until their greatest hits album. Like a number of Crows tracks it has an upbeat melody, but dont let that misguide you to thinking its a happy-go-lucky song. Its ostensibly a piece about social anxiety, wrestling with the competing impulses of a desire to be alone and fear of loneliness, all set against classic Crows pop song instrumentation. 27. Walkaways Recovering the Satellites Clocking in at one minute, thirteen seconds, its easy to dismiss this song, but I actually feel its one of the most underrated pieces of the brilliant Satellites album. Down-trodden and defeated, the song at first feels like one about abandonment, and yet takes a turn in the final lines in which Duritz sings that one day, Im gonna stay. But not today. The lyric hints at shared responsibility for lonelinessa culture of one-night stands and short engagements. Just the same, the finish sounds something like hopethat the narrator can foresee an end to that lifestyle amidst his current malaise. 26. On Almost Any Sunday Morning Saturday Nights Sunday Mornings This is the kind of track that its easy to overlook for just how understated it is, but I really dig the quiet depression and desperation inherent to it, reflecting on lonely Sunday mornings with a brand of disillusionment thats especially apparent after a raucous Saturday night. Its one of the clearest, most fully realized tracks of the Saturday Nights Sunday Mornings album. 25. When I Dream of Michelangelo Saturday Nights Sunday Mornings The title of this song is a callback to Angels of the Silences in which dreaming of Michelangelo hints at hidden depths and madness in the narrator. This beautiful ballad with a fundamentally different vibe lingers on that image and explores the space between being an artist and a person of strong opinions, and being torn between that and a plainer, less nuanced life and the love interest that seems to embody that simpler life. The soft, smooth instrumentation paints this inner conflict in a soft light, creating a beautiful song in its own right. 24. Colorblind This Desert Life This song will probably always receive disproportionate attention in the Counting Crows catalog for having been featured in a sexy scene from Cruel Intentions . Of course, its no more fair that I tend discount it because bandwagon fans only recognize it from the movie. All of that said, it is a beautiful piano-driven ballad that at once captures loneliness and a complete willingness on the part of the songs narrator to unfold and release himself to the trusting arms of another. 23. On a Tuesday in Amsterdam Long Ago Saturday Nights Sunday Mornings I think of this song a bit like a poor mans Raining In Baltimore. The thing is that Baltimore is a such a good song that even a poor mans version is perfectly worth listening to. Its Counting Crows at the bands most down-trodden and melodramatic with a tragic refrain of the narrator pleading, come back to me. Its haunting. Its beautiful. 22. Baby Im a Big Star Now Rounders: Motion Picture Soundtrack This is a pretty infectious song, released as a hidden track on the vinyl version of This Desert Life and, more prominently on the Rounders soundtrack. It revisits Crows themes of disillusionment and self-loathing, with the catchiest of hooks that suggests an undercurrent of optimism and continuing to try. 21. Come Around Saturday Nights Sunday Mornings I remember listening to this track along a road trip to see my friends for the time in months after I first moved to Baltimore. The song perfectly encapsulates the spirit a reunionthe idea that old friends and family will find a way to come back around to each other, surviving all manner of short-term relationships and other pursuits. Sure, theres an underlying tone of abandonment and heartache to lyrics like, What I know is, shes going. When you know it, its all right. So you put yourself between you and your pride. Just the same, the song has more of the trappings of recovery than misery, and as such functions as an excellent track to close an album. 20. Have You Seen Me Lately Recovering the Satellites Throughout this countdown I refer to the narratora term that my background in writing workshops and literature classrooms has driven into my skull, demanding that the consumer never assume the author speaks for herself. That said, Duritz has been pretty open about the autobiographical nature of Recovering the Satellites (not altogether different from the bands other albums). The dynamic is particularly true of this song, a meditation on exploding from artist to superstar based on the commercial success of August and Everything After . and trying to decipher real relationships from faux ones real identity from public persona. On top of all of that, its a kickass rock song that subverts the expectations set by the songs that immediately surround it. 19. Holiday in Spain Hard Candy This whimsical, but downtrodden piece about a narrator retreating from a stark reality to an exotic location ostensibly caps Hard Candy (excluding the hidden track cover of Big Yellow Taxi). One of the sensations this band and particularly this song captures with pure artistry is the sense of keeping busy, keeping up appearances, and trying to stay cool when all the while you know your life is in shambles. For me, this is a song about attempting to recover, and just the same acknowledging that the flying away to someone new is part of cycle, not an elixir in and of itself. 18. Sullivan Street August and Everything After The debut album from Counting Crows is full of heartbreaking music. This conflicted song is all about the desperation that comes with a relationship falling apartthat uncomfortable period in which youre still together, but know that it will be over before long. From what Ive heard, Duritz wrote the song when he was in the habit of driving a girlfriend home, but the lyrics double up with the sensation of fighting a losing battledoing drivebys past an ex-lovers place with no real reason for doing so, no intention of stopping in. 17. Up All Night Hard Candy To me, this was the sweetest surprise of the Hard Candy album, a song that starts melancholy and lonesome that keys into feel like a late-night adventure, albeit one for which the narrator may still be forlorn. Indeed, Duritz ostensibly sounds as though he cant sleep for his dreams having slipped away. He acknowledges its too late to get high, in the same breath observing that his sleepless night may well give way to a cycle of sleeping through the daylight hours. The song seamlessly weaves together sensations of a partying and sex with disillusionment and disappointment, all against a backdrop of booming piano chords. 16. Hard Candy Hard Candy The title track of its album is all about memoriesstudying old photographs, remembering the best parts of a relationship past. The imagery of a girl standing by the water as a smile begins to curl and the evenings on Long Island when the colors start to fade always grab me when Im listening to this songwe may not all of have quite the same memories, but I reckon every one of us has specific people, signature landscapes, and moments that make us smile and sigh and reflect in all of the happiest and most gut-wrenching ways imaginable. 15. Catapult Recovering the Satellites This opening track is certainly off beat. It starts out with dreamy a quality before a solitary electric guitar chord shakes up the scene, crystallizes the vision, and stirs the listener to wakefulness. The song encapsulates longing, fear of abandonment, self-realization and so many other themes of the album that it functions something like a de facto overture. Ironically, its a song that I think listeners tend to overlook for such a loaded album to follow, but regardless, it is not a track for any serious listener to sleep on. 14. Hanginaround This Desert Life I know plenty of Crows fans tend to look down on this song as lightweight and uninspired. I think the lack of doom and gloom makes this song all the more special to me, thoughdespite the undercurrent of hanging around too long, theres also an unapologetic air about this song. Its not quite a party song, but more so a chill piece about hanging out with friends with nowhere to go, nothing to do, and little interest in changing all of that. Moreover, the song is smarter than folks may give it credit for, recorded using looping techniques that repeat the drum and guitar riff over and over again in a song about hanging around the same place. 13. Round Here August and Everything After The opening flicker of an electric guitar and lyrics about stepping out the front door at the beginning of this song function as an iconic introduction to the Counting Crows catalogthe first track on the groups first studio album. The song proceeds to take listeners along an emotional roller coaster about coming of age and disillusionment. The song most truly comes to life on the positively electric bridge segment about the girl in the car in the parking lot who says man, you should try to take a shot. The song comes full circle with a soft outro for which the instrumentation falls away to leave the narrator all alone, just like he started. 12. Angels of the Silences Recovering the Satellites For me this has always been a song about wanting to believe, and I love the choice for it to be an upbeat rocker, bursting with youthful energy. The sentiment that, all my sins, I said that I would pay for them if I could come back to you, is a perfect encapsulation of bargaining and the desperation to hold onto something thats already gone. Moreover, I appreciate the songs vacillation between bitterness, regret, desire, philosophy, and crises of faithperfectly conflicted and perfectly complete. 11. Miami Hard Candy I love the economy of this song. It, at once, has the mellow easy feel of a vacation song, but just the same, an undercurrent of longing for Duritzs angel who wont return his calls, and the borderline epic feel of a heros journey in the triumphant closing lines about shutting it down in New Orleans. The song also has its double meaning embedded in the title, with Miami purportedly equating to my Amy, a frequent Crows muse, and a brilliant way of showing the way in which a person and a place can be become one in a persons memories. 10. Rain King August and Everything After No doubt, Rain King charts as one of Counting Crows most recognizable songs, and fittingly so. In its original recording, despite bits of doubt and discontent, it nonetheless sounds like a carefree, rocking pop song. Moreover, Duritz has talked about the song in the context of an artists statementa song about being an artist and all the disparate pieces of a life that come together to manifest in the form of self-expression through music and writing. The song also accounts for the intrinsic sense of deserving morethe sensation that the artists work is worth more than hes getting credit for at this point. The closing exclamation of yeah, registers as something akin to Duritzs barbaric yawp. While Im focusing on original recordings, its also worth noting this song as the one the Crows may have reinvented more than any other on the live stage, and used as a portal to cover many, many other songs. 9. Good Night Elisabeth Recovering the Satellites Its difficult for me to separate this song from Rain King, for its most iconic line at the climax of the song. Theres a sparseness to this song that, for me, has always encapsulated loneliness, or perhaps more precisely the feeling of missing a specific person. The song portrays Duritzs lullaby to a lover he lost when he was on the road. The final verse in particular captures him in a phase of simultaneous acceptance and complete denial of his circumstances. Hes accepted he wont be with Elisabeth and readies himself to sleep with someone else, all the while thinking of, waiting for his true love. Its a beautiful, tragic, and very real song. 8. Mrs. Potters Lullaby This Desert Life This elaborate dreamscape of a seven-minute song probably never should have been released as a singlefar too long, thoughtful, and abstract for a top 40 audience. Duritz reportedly wrote the song as an ode to an actress, hence the references to singing to someone on a TV or movie screen and imploring her to come meet him he his framed the song as introducing himself, by way of encapsulating everything going on his mind. Lines like theres a piece of Maria in every song that I sing, speak to the roots of a writerthe people and the concepts that inform everything he does. Moreover, the song somehow manages to connect all of these disparate, abstract vignettes into one epic, greater whole. Its an unforgettable memoir of a song. 7. A Long December Recovering the Satellites Though I tend to think of Counting Crows signature sound as skewing melancholy, a disproportionate number of the bands singles are upbeat pop songs. This is one of the most prominent exceptions, probably the bands second most famous song after Mr. Jones and one of their most melancholy numbers. Its a song about everything going wrong, spending long nights in hospitals at the end of a cruddy year. And, just the same, its a song of remembering better times, like when all at once you look across a crowded room and see the way that light attaches to a girl. Better yet, theres the closing sentiment of getting out to see the ocean, which carries the suggestion of rediscovering the things that used to make the narrator happy. I listened to this track on repeat in my earbuds, walking alone, my very first time setting foot in the Pacific Ocean four years ago. 6. Raining in Baltimore August and Everything After When I first heard August and Everything After at the ripe age of 10, I remember being struck by it. It was tragic, and as such it was beautiful. Before I had experienced any real sense of heartache or loss in my own life, I instinctively embraced this song about being so far away from the person you love that it actively hurts. This song took on another level of meaning for me when I moved to Baltimore, closer to three hundred than three thousand miles from the people I knew and my girlfriend at the time, but nonetheless recognized so many of the sentiments of the song, perhaps on an altogether too literal level. As time has gone by, Ive developed a greater appreciation for a handful of Crows songs that I feel encompass not only sadness, but an additional layer of conflict and redemption. Just the same, the song remains a key teacher in my emotional education and a track that still holds up after all these years. 5. St. Robinson in his Cadillac Dream This Desert Life Excluding the hidden track at the end of the CD, St. Robinson wraps up This Desert Life and certainly fits as a closing numbercomplex, epic, and endlessly narrative. Its a song about dreaming and all the things that get between everyday people and all of the things they want for themselves. The song clicks on a whole new level for me on the devil-may-care FU to normalcy in the closing movements of the song, when Duritz retorts to whoever dare challenge him, there are people who will say that they knew me so well I may not go to heavenI hope you go to hell. The song ends on a delicious slice of Americana, the narrator inviting his lover get into his car, not to head toward any specific destination, but rather just to drive . 4. A Murder of One August and Everything After This is the epic, lovely, desperate, heartbreaking, rise-from-the-ashes finale of Counting Crows first studio album, and it is a masterpiece. The song is often misinterpreted as, in some way, being about homicide, and Duritz may well have been playing with that idea in a song ostensibly about an abusive relationship and urging someone not to waste her life. Just the same the song also seems to be about flock of crowsa murderand all the more interesting for the title suggesting a flock of just one. Like so many of my favorite songs, this one resonates me on a personal level. I remember listening to those gritted-teeth lyrics, Does he tell you when youre sorry Does he tell you when youre wrong as a junior high kid and thinking about the way my father controlled me and tried to tell me what was right or wrong from the perspective his aberrant and misguided sense of morality and prioritization. And I remember thinking of being feathered by moonlight as walking free and even taking flight. Counting Crows is often at its best on deeply conflicted song and this song nails so many emotions around confinement and freedom. أحبه. 3. Recovering the Satellites Recovering the Satellites For me, this is a song about rediscovering oneself and the realization that time is fleeting. Duritz sings about getting back to basics and staring at the sky in a way that feels very small town to mebut maybe thats my small town upbringing and recollections of my first encounters with this song that inform that interpretation, and the reference to this angel town suggests it might have been written about Los Angeles, where other Crows songs from this era are set. Regardless, theres a sense of inevitable loss and yearning to the song, particularly in my favorite lyric: we only stay in orbit for a moment of time. And youre everybodys satelliteI wish that you were mine. 2. Anna Begins August and Everything After Duritz inked this song in remembrance of a love affair he engaged in, backpacking through Europe in his youth. In my totally subjective opinion, its the most beautiful love song ever written. I can take or leave most of the verses, but each chorus pulls at my heart strings to truly profound effectthe sentiment of falling in love for every minor gesture a woman might make, such as sneezing the idea of lovers understanding each others every nonsense-sleep-talking mumbled syllable. Perhaps the song is a bit melodramatic, but as such it captures young love and infatuation in strikingly earnest ways. 1. Mr. Jones August and Everything After For all of my self-professed modesty and focus cast on the craft of my art as opposed to recognition, I cant deny the impulse to strive toward fame and fortune. The American Dream is engrained in me like so many of my contemporaries and those who came before me, indoctrinated in a culture of self-betterment and boot strapping, and the implicit suggestion that celebrity is the natural and inherently desirable reward of all that hard work. The song is about seeking celebrity without a concrete sense of why youre doing so, and the companion amorphous desires for love and companionship and influence, all couched with in the setting of San Francisco dive bar, making bold claims with a drinking buddy whilst watching a flamenco dancer strut her stuff. Mr. Jones is nothing short of a portrait of a generationa song all about dreams and desires that closes on the sorrowful, unspoken recognition that the narrator may never achieve his lofty goals. Read stories and miscellaneous criticism from Mike Chin at his website and his thoughts on a cappella music at The A Cappella Blog. Follow him on Twitter miketchin. Check out more articles on BuzzFeed