Dave Matthews Band

[liebzz]

Everyday

…instead we get Everyday, which in comparison is nothing short of a flaming turd of an album. Scrapping an album of sad and dark tunes for a different vibe in this context would only have worked with a near perfect album, which means this, put together in 10 days, and devoid of band collaboration in favor of working with a pop producer, was doomed from the start. This album has zero personality, with only the final title track having any feel of this band - and even then it belongs the bottom of the catalogue. The only songs to me that remotely belong with this band are When the World Ends and What You Are, and again, I don’t know if anyone is mistaking them for top level Dave Matthews Band songs. Much of this is simply horrid. Angel, I Did It, The Space Between, ugh. I can recall spending some time trying to convince myself that this was serviceable when it came out, and then once I heard the Lillywhite Sessions very soon after, I never picked this up again…until now. I wish I hadn’t.

I totally anticipated this response, happening upon tLWS shortly after makes it a virtually impossible pill to swallow.

I gave all the albums a full run through at some point during COVID and this was an interesting album to listen to with 20 years of live shows added to the mix. The album is beyond sterile and the #36 evolution to Everyday would feel sacrilegious had Vusi not been on the track.

edit: I remember getting a leak of it and one of the tracks was Patio by Nine Mile and almost everyone I burned it for preferred that song to the actual DMB tracks.

I think I may have done 2 dozen artist journeys on here in 3 years and I don’t recall once crapping on an album like this, but when you listen to one directly after the other, there’s no way around this. I will say as I have started Folsom Field that there’s a slight bit of redemption coming, but not nearly enough.

The thing is, those 3 shows I went to in 2001 were really fantastic and I have great memories of them - but not tied to the Everyday songs.

[oasisfan35]

Everyday

…instead we get Everyday, which in comparison is nothing short of a flaming turd of an album. Scrapping an album of sad and dark tunes for a different vibe in this context would only have worked with a near perfect album, which means this, put together in 10 days, and devoid of band collaboration in favor of working with a pop producer, was doomed from the start. This album has zero personality, with only the final title track having any feel of this band - and even then it belongs the bottom of the catalogue. The only songs to me that remotely belong with this band are When the World Ends and What You Are, and again, I don’t know if anyone is mistaking them for top level Dave Matthews Band songs. Much of this is simply horrid. Angel, I Did It, The Space Between, ugh. I can recall spending some time trying to convince myself that this was serviceable when it came out, and then once I heard the Lillywhite Sessions very soon after, I never picked this up again…until now. I wish I hadn’t.

I totally anticipated this response, happening upon tLWS shortly after makes it a virtually impossible pill to swallow.

I gave all the albums a full run through at some point during COVID and this was an interesting album to listen to with 20 years of live shows added to the mix. The album is beyond sterile and the #36 evolution to Everyday would feel sacrilegious had Vusi not been on the track.

edit: I remember getting a leak of it and one of the tracks was Patio by Nine Mile and almost everyone I burned it for preferred that song to the actual DMB tracks.

I think I may have done 2 dozen artist journeys on here in 3 years and I don’t recall once crapping on an album like this, but when you listen to one directly after the other, there’s no way around this. I will say as I have started Folsom Field that there’s a slight bit of redemption coming, but not nearly enough.

The thing is, those 3 shows I went to in 2001 were really fantastic and I have great memories of them - but not tied to the Everyday songs.

I saw two shows that tour and really enjoyed them as well, the band was actually in great spirits and sounded good, as I am sure you're hearing in the Folsom Field release.

This band over the years, especially incorporating some live shows, definitely exemplifies what kind of wild ride one of your career journeys can take you on.

[warehouse]

Glen Ballard is the devil

I'm not even sure I'll add anything other than my own frustration with this whole Lillywhite Sessions/Everyday debacle. I didn't even hear the Lillywhite Sessions until after Busted Stuff, which makes the whole thing even more frustrating. I understand the LWS didn't have a classic DMB feel, or at least something that would be on the radio. but you can absolutely hear the natural progression building off of BTCS, it just goes in a darker direction. instead, we get everyday, not even a DMB album, all songs written by dave matthews and some jerkoff. 'everyday' is a fine song, that originated like a decade earlier. i've enjoyed 'what you are' and 'when the world ends' live, but this album is mostly a pile of shit. i'm still mad about this over 2 decades later. i feel like a metallica fan talking about the black album, complaining about dave matthews playing an electric guitar the way people complained about metallica's hair length lol. but scrapping the LWS was such a bad decision it's baffling. this could have been dmb's best work, and instead it turned into...everyday

[Brett]

I have a bit of a soft spot for Everyday. It came out right around the time that I got heavy into the band for a short spell. I'm sure it was a rite of passage in the late '90s and early '00s to have a DMB phase in high school and mine just happened to coincide with a pretty dark time as I moved into young adulthood, so while Everyday wasn't as dark as the direction the band had been going up to that point, there was a certain kind of wistful melancholy that resonated with me as high profile tragedies and personal loss seemed to come in a tumult. Prior to the album's release, I had heard a handful of singles, and my brother might have obtained Under the Table and Dreaming through one of several CD trades, but I think Everyday was really my first full-album experience of the band. Later in the year I would get Crash and Before These Crowded Streets, so I eventually learned how much of an outlier Everyday really was, but I still like most of it.

[liebzz]

Live at Folsom Field 7/11/01

Getting a live show in here is of particular interest, given the dichotomy we are in the midst of discussing concerning the Lillywhite Sessions and Everyday. The live versions of the Lillywhite songs are fabulous: JTR, Big Eyed Fish, Bartender, and Digging A Ditch are here and great - heavily weighted in the first half of the set alongside Everyday songs. And those Everyday songs mostly go from intolerable to decent enough live, though Angel, I Did It, and The Space Between are still pretty insufferable to me, and even the more enjoyable Everyday tunes here feel like filler in a better show - Everyday being the exception in that it sounds pretty damn good here.

Where the band really ends up shining here is when it leaves all that behind and gets to the business of playing their more classic songs, which all sound full spirit and vigor, and the cover of All Along the Watchtower really phenomenal. An excellent show overall, but just as Everyday slowly started my descent on this band for a while, the cracks show, even if just a little bit at this point. As I noted before, I really enjoyed those 2001 shows and I enjoyed this one too, though I am glad this will be the heaviest weighted show to Everyday we’ll cover.

[liebzz]

Busted Stuff

As I sit here listening to this one, 20 years later, I am still confounded how these same songs from the Lillywhite Sessions re-recorded, lose most of the lie impact on the official release. All the darkness, intimacy, and character are somehow drained from these songs, presented more like middle of the road Dave Matthews Band songs. There was a natural fragility to these songs before, like at any given moment, they’d have to stop and gather themselves before they could go on. With that poignancy gone, the songs are still a massive upgrade from Everyday, but it doesn’t take much. The new songs added are fine, Where Are You Going seems like a much bigger success than You Never Know. Somehow this feels, in the end, like a compromise between the place Dave took the original sessions, and the mutiny that is Everyday. Makes for a perfectly acceptable album - which is only a shame because it turns 5-star material into a 3-star album. It was really at this point where I started really losing interest in the band - that perhaps they were just spent. It took another year and a free ticket to pull me away nearly completely, but the distance at this point was growing.

[oasisfan35]

Busted Stuff

As I sit here listening to this one, 20 years later, I am still confounded how these same songs from the Lillywhite Sessions re-recorded, lose most of the lie impact on the official release. All the darkness, intimacy, and character are somehow drained from these songs, presented more like middle of the road Dave Matthews Band songs. There was a natural fragility to these songs before, like at any given moment, they’d have to stop and gather themselves before they could go on. With that poignancy gone, the songs are still a massive upgrade from Everyday, but it doesn’t take much. The new songs added are fine, Where Are You Going seems like a much bigger success than You Never Know. Somehow this feels, in the end, like a compromise between the place Dave took the original sessions, and the mutiny that is Everyday. Makes for a perfectly acceptable album - which is only a shame because it turns 5-star material into a 3-star album. It was really at this point where I started really losing interest in the band - that perhaps they were just spent. It took another year and a free ticket to pull me away nearly completely, but the distance at this point was growing.

I don't think Stephen Harris was too forceful with the band in the studio nor do I think he was really expected to do much, basically trying to capitalize on the positive response to tLWS. For all the crap we talk of who produced what with Pearl Jam, the relationship of this band to it's myriad of producers in the new millennium is definitely somethin'.

[AndySlash]

i remember putting on everyday for the first time and being legitimately angry at what i was hearing. like, even today, i can still feel that response from that day when i think about it (and, also, my 'wtf, is my cd faulty?' response with the abrupt end of when the world ends). then, what, a month or so later?, listening to the lillywhite sessions leak and specifically bartender for the first time at like 3 am while a raging storm was going on outside and just being completely immersed in it all. what a world of difference those experiences were.

the band and its music has never been the same since. it's a real shame. i can't fault dave matthews or any other musician for being driven by what they want to create in that moment, or for not putting something out that they just aren't feeling. follow your muse, or whatever. but dave's muse has pretty much led him down a path i've had a real difficult time following him along on. there's been glimpses and glimmers of hope over the years - some devil gave me some early optimism the prior two years were an aberration, and i will go to bat for most of away from the world - but the bad material in the dave matthews catalog since 2001 far, far outweighs the good. and as the years have worn on and the various changes in the band have occurred, even the shows don't bring the same enjoyment any longer. granted, i haven't seen the new iteration- my last show was the super bowl eve gig where boyd announced he was out the night prior - but what i have heard and the songs they've been playing hasn't really compelled me to try.

[warehouse]

i blame this whole thing on dave matthews being drunk. how the hell does one of the best live bands in the world keep putting out subpar albums? the songs on busted stuff are great live, big eyed fish>bartender is probably my favorite show opener. grey street was one of the highlights of the show i saw in november. i even like 'grace is gone' and 'digging a ditch' a ton. they just sound so muted and held back on the album. i'm glad they didn't completely bail on what they did before 'everyday', but there are some strange choices on this album.

[liebzz]

I am glad others are feeling the same way I felt then and even glimmers of what I am feeling now about this wild period. Bands don’t often make you feel anguish but that is what 2001-2003 seem all about. A real if this then that moment. What would have happened if Dave insisted on Lillywhite Sessions, named it Busted Stuff in 2001, and solely promoted that. Would it have been a huge thing? A flop? What would they followed it with and how would it have informed their next few years, decades, etc.?

Not withstanding this, I’ll have a lot of great things to say again at some point forward, but it seems like a true journey sitting here on this divide if not for a pause to wonder.

[oasisfan35]

As far as studio output goes, this band has definitely been one of, if not the most, frustrating over the years. I believe one can effectively separate the live entity from the studio as they truly are gifted musicians and the band magic can elevate the weaker studio efforts... for a time anyway.

That said '01 though '03 certainly had its drama behind the scenes. The new producers, studio methods, Dave announcing the solo album and tour after a decade of tDMB touring machine, the subsequent scaling back from the arenas. The summer '03 run is kind of revered by many fans, mostly due to the return of some quality songs but it is a very rough tour as far as quality goes in my opinion. I felt the effort in those returning songs as an attempt to rekindle that fire during a pummeling rain storm.

I remember looking over to my buddy at the Hartford shows during Dancing Nancies just stating "this band is tired" and he very much agreed. You could see it all over the stage that weekend. Central Park is not reflective of that tour at all, an outlier but a testament to the professional musicians they are.

[liebzz]

Central Park is not reflective of that tour at all, an outlier but a testament to the professional musicians they are.

In a good way or bad way? I was at that show and will cover it both in the recording and my experience. Just curious on your thoughts about this.

[oasisfan35]

Central Park is not reflective of that tour at all, an outlier but a testament to the professional musicians they are.

In a good way or bad way? I was at that show and will cover it both in the recording and my experience. Just curious on your thoughts about this.

I think I don't want to skip ahead in time unless you aren't covering The Gorge release or Some Devil.

[Brett]

It's been a while since I've listened to The Lillywhite Sessions or Busted Stuff, so I don't recall much of the differences that have been brought up. I would guess that it's an issue of approaches to engineering and production. I'll try giving them both a listen shortly and see if I can pick up on anything.

[digster]

It's been a while since I've listened to this group, but Busted Stuff is probably my favorite record from them, or at least the one that's aged the best for me.

[liebzz]

Central Park is not reflective of that tour at all, an outlier but a testament to the professional musicians they are.

In a good way or bad way? I was at that show and will cover it both in the recording and my experience. Just curious on your thoughts about this.

I think I don't want to skip ahead in time unless you aren't covering The Gorge release or Some Devil.

Both will be covered.

[liebzz]

It's been a while since I've listened to The Lillywhite Sessions or Busted Stuff, so I don't recall much of the differences that have been brought up. I would guess that it's an issue of approaches to engineering and production. I'll try giving them both a listen shortly and see if I can pick up on anything.

They were also re-recorded, so some of the songs have slightly different arrangements that end up making a big difference.

[Brett]

It's been a while since I've listened to The Lillywhite Sessions or Busted Stuff, so I don't recall much of the differences that have been brought up. I would guess that it's an issue of approaches to engineering and production. I'll try giving them both a listen shortly and see if I can pick up on anything.

They were also re-recorded, so some of the songs have slightly different arrangements that end up making a big difference.

Right, I guess I totally glossed over the fact that the songs were re-recorded. I did listen to both albums last night, and what I hear on Busted Stuff is a bid for a similar kind of pop and adult contemporary draw that Everyday achieved. The arrangements feel brighter on the released product, with less room to breathe, though some of that I'm sure is down to the finished professional mastering vs. the amateur fan job on Lillywhite. Did Dave completely abandon the 12-string guitar when they redid these songs?

On the whole, the Lillywhite versions are all superior, though I do like the idea to try an instrumental version of "Kit Kat Jam," and the electric guitar parts added to "Busted Stuff" and "Captain" are lovely additions that could have elevated the original versions more (though I love "Captain" as it is; one of my top ten DMB songs if I ever were to put such a list together). I don't think "Where Are You Going" or "You Never Know" are worthy of taking the place of any of the three cut songs, especially not the wonderful "Monkey Man," which to my ears feels like the closest connection to Before These Crowded Streets. I agree with Liebzz, Warehouse, et al that a properly mastered Lillywhite Sessions following BTCS could have solidified this band's reputation as a serious fusion of jazz, alt and roots rock. It will be interesting to revisit the upcoming Some Devil and Stand Up because that's the point where I fell off.

[oasisfan35]

It's been a while since I've listened to The Lillywhite Sessions or Busted Stuff, so I don't recall much of the differences that have been brought up. I would guess that it's an issue of approaches to engineering and production. I'll try giving them both a listen shortly and see if I can pick up on anything.

They were also re-recorded, so some of the songs have slightly different arrangements that end up making a big difference.

Right, I guess I totally glossed over the fact that the songs were re-recorded. I did listen to both albums last night, and what I hear on Busted Stuff is a bid for a similar kind of pop and adult contemporary draw that Everyday achieved. The arrangements feel brighter on the released product, with less room to breathe, though some of that I'm sure is down to the finished professional mastering vs. the amateur fan job on Lillywhite. Did Dave completely abandon the 12-string guitar when they redid these songs?

On the whole, the Lillywhite versions are all superior, though I do like the idea to try an instrumental version of "Kit Kat Jam," and the electric guitar parts added to "Busted Stuff" and "Captain" are lovely additions that could have elevated the original versions more (though I love "Captain" as it is; one of my top ten DMB songs if I ever were to put such a list together). I don't think "Where Are You Going" or "You Never Know" are worthy of taking the place of any of the three cut songs, especially not the wonderful "Monkey Man," which to my ears feels like the closest connection to Before These Crowded Streets. I agree with Liebzz, Warehouse, et al that a properly mastered Lillywhite Sessions following BTCS could have solidified this band's reputation as a serious fusion of jazz, alt and roots rock. It will be interesting to revisit the upcoming Some Devil and Stand Up because that's the point where I fell off.

Grey Street is played with a 12-string on the album IIRC.

[Brett]

It's been a while since I've listened to The Lillywhite Sessions or Busted Stuff, so I don't recall much of the differences that have been brought up. I would guess that it's an issue of approaches to engineering and production. I'll try giving them both a listen shortly and see if I can pick up on anything.

They were also re-recorded, so some of the songs have slightly different arrangements that end up making a big difference.

Right, I guess I totally glossed over the fact that the songs were re-recorded. I did listen to both albums last night, and what I hear on Busted Stuff is a bid for a similar kind of pop and adult contemporary draw that Everyday achieved. The arrangements feel brighter on the released product, with less room to breathe, though some of that I'm sure is down to the finished professional mastering vs. the amateur fan job on Lillywhite. Did Dave completely abandon the 12-string guitar when they redid these songs?

On the whole, the Lillywhite versions are all superior, though I do like the idea to try an instrumental version of "Kit Kat Jam," and the electric guitar parts added to "Busted Stuff" and "Captain" are lovely additions that could have elevated the original versions more (though I love "Captain" as it is; one of my top ten DMB songs if I ever were to put such a list together). I don't think "Where Are You Going" or "You Never Know" are worthy of taking the place of any of the three cut songs, especially not the wonderful "Monkey Man," which to my ears feels like the closest connection to Before These Crowded Streets. I agree with Liebzz, Warehouse, et al that a properly mastered Lillywhite Sessions following BTCS could have solidified this band's reputation as a serious fusion of jazz, alt and roots rock. It will be interesting to revisit the upcoming Some Devil and Stand Up because that's the point where I fell off.

Grey Street is played with a 12-string on the album IIRC.

That was one of the ones I was uncertain about. There were a few moments where I thought I could hear those kinds of harmonics. It was a really prudent choice on the original versions, giving them a rich color.