Red Mosquito

Dave Matthews Band - Remember Two Things

Hybrid live album and studio, in the same vein as Eat a Peach, trying to decipher a line in the sand as to whether it is a proper studio album or live album seems possibly silly. I didn’t cover it in the Essential Live Albums from a couple years ago, so we’ll tackle it here. Of course the problem is the same as in a live album: my favorite song here isn’t the best performance. My favorite song here is Seek Up, but that’s from my knowledge of the song as it exists on Live at Red Rocks. The best performance on here, in my opinion at least, is Recently. And then what about the 5 or so studio songs? Well, I guess I prefer the rougher mix of Typical Situation, possibly because I prefer it to the recording that made it on their next album. It makes for a mess, except most everything on this hybrid is a solid representation of a young band that is about the get better.

The Essential Track: Recently

Up Next: Counting Crows - August and Everything After

wease wrote: Thu July 30, 2026 7:49 pm Goddamn, I love Trombone Shorty

He was outstanding to see live.

Counting Crows - August and Everything After

Back in ‘94 I think, I was really into this album. I listened to it probably a few dozen times. And then I put it down and haven’t picked it or Counting Crows back up until now. The singles are of course embedded in my memory as they would for just about anyone alive and alert in 1994 and 1995. And the singles are pretty solid here. Beyond that, Omaha, Anna Begins, and Sullivan Street stick out as highlights - but those singles are solid and really some sort of first step away from grunge into a new more mature classic rock.

The Essential Track: A Murder of One

Up Next: Sheryl Crow - Tuesday Nighe Music Club