BB's Album Rankings - Counting Crows

BB's Album Rankings

Counting Crows

Counting Crows recently released their first new music in over 7 years, the wonderful Butter Miracle Suite One (even if it is only a 4-song EP - Hopefully more will be on its way soon.), and since Counting Crows are one of my favorite bands, I thought this would be a good time to do an album ranking of all the Counting Crows studio albums. That is, listing my favorites in order from least to most favorite (all just my own personal opinion).
Counting Crows are a great band, and I think quite underrated, as they are certainly one of the best rock bands of the last 30 years. Yet, for whatever reason, they have been somewhat dismissed by many. Known for their dynamic live performances and the moody, impassioned songs and vocals of Adam Duritz, but the entire band is top-notch, creating rich and engrossing atmospheres, infectious grooves, and cool arrangements.
Their first album, August and Everything After (1992) was released to much acclaim, fame, and notoriety, containing such classic songs and radio mainstays as 'Rain King', 'Round Here', and 'Mr. Jones'. But subsequent albums, even though the band has grown and developed into a more versatile and dynamic band, have not been as well-received or loved overall. But if you haven't listened much to those subsequent albums, you are really missing out on much of their best work. Although they have not been the most prolific band, releasing just 7 albums over nearly 30 years, each album has been a joy, containing much great music, with outstanding individual songs as well as wonderful overall albums. Yet there seems to be a common perception that their first album was great and all the rest are just OK, or maybe good but not great. But I have to disagree, as their entire catalog is quite excellent. Certainly there are some I like much more than others (which is what this list is about), but all their albums are very good and have something worthwhile to offer.

Counting Crows was first formed in Berkeley, CA in 1991, by songwriter-vocalist Adam Duritz and producer/guitarist David Bryson, initially as an acoustic duo, and ocasionally also performing with guitarist/multi-instrumentalist and friend David Immergluck. Other Bay area musicians eventually joined the emerging band to form the early lineup including Matt Malley (bass), Charlie Gillingham (keyboards), and Steve Bowman (drums). Their 1992 demo tape attracted a bidding war of interested labels, and their first album, August and Everything After (1992), was released to much acclaim. The first single, 'Mr. Jones' was an immediate breakthrough hit, and was followed by 'Round Here' and 'Rain King'. With the album a hit and large-scale touring throughout 1993 and 1994 to follow, they added another guitarist, Dan Vickrey, to the band. Their second album, Recovering the Satellites (1996) was heavier, darker, and a bit more eclectic, but solidified their status as a premier rock band, as did subsequent albums This Desert Life (1999), Hard Candy (2002), Saturday Nights and Sunday Mornings (2008), Underwater Sunshine (2012), and Somewhere Under Wonderland (2014). Although they have released several live albums (as well as made audio from most of their live shows available through their website), they have only released 7 studio albums throughout their history. This is my personal ranking of their illustrious output.   

7. Underwater Sunshine (2012).

This album takes the bottom position primarily because it is an all-covers album, with no original songs from the band. But with that said, it is still a very good collection of cover songs. The Crows put their own personal stamp on each one, and all are entertaining and worthy of being included. And the song choices are very good throughout, but maybe not what might be expected. I think it was a wise decision to choose mainly lesser-known songs from lesser-known artists, and not just do their versions of other's hits. The exception to this are the covers of 'Amie', 'You Ain't Goin Nowhere' and 'Ooh La La', all either hits or very well-known songs, but the rest are much lesser-known, but still all quite good. The big revelation of this album, however, is the band's affinity for country-rock, as easily half of the album consists of songs that are either outright country-rock (covers of Pure Prairie League, Gram Parsons, Bob Dylan) to ones that have a decidedly country-rock or folk-rock feel. And until this album, I never associated this band with country-rock at all. So, a very good album, but does not quite match any of their original material albums. Best Songs: 'Four White Stallions', 'Return of the Grievous Angel', 'Ballad of El Goodo', 'Amie'.

6. Saturday Nights and Sunday Mornings (2008)

Their 5th album is divided into 2 parts, the more upbeat and raucous Saturday Nights (6 songs), followed by the more subdued and introspective Sunday Mornings (8 songs). And although I get the concept here, this division very much hurts the flow of the album, and results in a very lopsided whole. The Saturday Nights portion is great from start to finish. It includes two of their hardest (and best) rocking songs,'Cowboys' and '1492', with screaming guitars and driving rhythms, as well as such delightful songs as 'Los Angeles' and the infectious groove of 'Sundays', just a superb start to the album. However, when it switches over to the softer, slower, more introspective side, the flow of the album comes to a halt. Although there are some gems on this side as well, such as 'Washington Square', 'When I Dream of Michelangelo', and the album closer, 'Come Around', the succession of multiple rather dreary, depressing (and overly long) songs, particularly the back-to back dirges of 'Le Ballet D'or' and 'On A Tuesday Afternoon in Amsterdam Long Ago' (which seems like just a another less-successful variation of 'Raining in Baltimore') drags the album down. Again, still many great songs here, but also a few of their dullest, least memorable songs.

5. Hard Candy (2002).

A greater consistency of good tracks throughout the album put this one just ahead of SNaSM, even though the best songs from SNaSM are better than anything on this album. Starts off with 'Hard Candy' and 'American Girls', two dynamite opening tracks. Other highlights include 'If I Could Give All My Love', 'Miami', 'New Frontier', and 'Carriage', songs with just great melodies and feel throughout. The album also includes 'Big Yellow Taxi' as a hidden bonus track after 'Holiday in Spain', and it is just great as well, with it's cool groove and vibe. It should be taken for what it is, not really part of the album, but a nice bonus track, just for fun. So, a very solid album, but one that does not quite rank with their very best.

Ok, now we come to the top 4, and all of these are just great, classic albums.
   
4. Recovering the Satellites (1996).

Their 2nd album, and following the breakthrough success of the first album. Showing a heavier, darker edge, which came about somewhat from the struggles the band (and especially Adam) had in dealing with their sudden fame. Harder rocking, more diverse, and more expansive (14 songs, nearly an hour long) than its predecessor, the album contained songs ranging from the screeching guitars of 'Angels of the Silences' to the bluesy groove of 'Mercury' to the gentle beauty of 'A Long December'. Although not as melodic and not as accessible (it takes several listens to fully appreciate), it is a great follow-up to their debut album. Best songs: 'A Long December', 'Daylight Fading', 'Goodnight Elizabeth', 'Another Horsedreamer's Blues', 'Mercury', 'Recovering the Satellites'. Weakest songs: 'Children in Bloom', 'Monkey'.

3. August and Everything After (1993).

Their stunning debut album, with its string of hit singles and FM radio staples introduced the band in spectacular fashion, and was a delightful and refreshing change from most of the music popular at that time. Includes some of their best and most well-known songs ('Rain King', 'Mr. Jones', 'Round Here', 'Omaha') These, in addition to joys such as 'Anna Begins' and the album closer, 'A Murder of One', makes this album always a wonderful listen. However, the album does have a couple weak spots, which is enough to keep it from claiming the very top spots on this list. Some weaker tracks on side 2 ('Ghost Train', 'Raining in Baltimore') slightly diminish the brilliance of the album. Although each of these songs are fine on their own, both of these somewhat dreary tracks together dampen the excitement and freshness of the album a bit. Still, a great album, but there are a couple that I think are even better.  

2. Somewhere Under Wonderland (2014).

Their 7th and still their most recent full album, and what a delight it is. A great selection of songs, including what I think is their very best rocker, 'Dislocation', as well as one of Adam's most impressive and passionate of his emotional songs 'Possibility Days', as well as an 8-minute story-song epic in 'Palisades Park' (Which Adam called the best song he's ever written). A diverse and compelling collection of songs from start to finish, also including the delightful country-rock of 'Cover Up the Sun', the pop-rock fun of 'Earthquake Driver' and 'Scarecrow' and the gentle beauty of 'God of Ocean Tides'. For me, this was the best album of 2014, by far, and it still is the album I play the most out of any from the last several years. Just great from start to finish. I only have a couple very minor complaints: 1) the album is too short (9 songs, 41 minutes, making it the shortest of all Counting Crows albums), one more song would have been great; and 2) the sequencing, in that I would not have opened the album with Palisades Park (with its plaintive lonely trumpet intro), as it is not representative of most of the album and does not make a great opener. It's a great song, but not a great album opener. Other than those minor issues, a thoroughly great album, and certainly one of their very best. Not a weak track on it.   

1. This Desert Life (1999).

For me, this is their best all-around album, and one of my favorite albums of all time. Just great from start to finish. And this is the album that they really came together as a great rock band, featuring all aspects of the band, a diversity of styles, and just great melodies, arrangements, and songs. Consists of a nice mix of uptempo songs, strong melodies and grooves, along with Adam's slower emotional heartwrenchers in a delectable blend. Opening with the more rockin' 'Hanginaround' and the fantastic rollicking piano groove of 'Mrs. Potter's Lullaby', the album just shines throughout. From the sparse, but melodic slow emotional songs like 'Colorblind' and 'Amy Hit The Atmosphere' to the more uptempo drive, groove, and beautiful melodies of 'Four Days', 'All My Friends;, and 'High Life' to the emotional angst of 'I Wish I Was a Girl' to the mandolin flourishes of 'St. Robinson in his Cadillac Dream', are just a delight throughout. Also includes a hidden bonus track, the energetic and delightful rocker 'Kid Things'. The bonus track also includes some recording session dialog and nonsense, which is not needed, but not too much of a distraction either. Excellent album.   

You may be wondering where I would place their newest, the 2021 EP Butter Miracle Suite One? Well, its hard to evaluate relative to their albums, with it only containing 4 songs. But based on those 4 songs, which are quite good, but not quite among their best, and assuming a full album would be of comparable quality to those songs, I would probably place it somewhere around the middle of their output, right around Hard Candy (not their best, but still quite good), and all of their music is worth checking out.

Ok, so that's where I stand on Counting Crows. What do you think? What are your favorites?