EDITOR'S NOTE: In our effort to bring you all kinds of entertainment-related content, we occasionally stray from reviewing DVD's and review other e-media, such as CD's, video games, media tie-ins, and books. This is one of those occasions!
Official Synopsis:
1. Rain King
2. Richard Manuel Is Dead
3. Catapult
4. Goodnight LA
5. Four White Stallions
6. Omaha
7. Miami
8. Hazy
9. Good Time
10. St. Robinson in His Cadillac Dream
11. Perfect Blue Buildings
12. Hanginaround
13. Goodnight Elisabeth
14. Hard Candy
15. Holiday in Spain
Our Take:
I've been a Counting Crows fan since they first hit the airwaves, and I've followed the band pretty closely over their career. Their first two-disc live album, however, left me a bit disappointed. Having seen the band three or four times in concert, I've discovered that they can run hot and cold in live performances. Sometimes they sound simply amazing, and other times they let their mellow side take over a bit too much and can be a bit on the boring side. Such was the case with much of that first release.
Initially, Live At Heineken Music Hall had me worried that we were in for a repeat. The opening track, Rain King, should have been a raucous, rocking number. Instead, it’s a meandering mid-tempo ballad clocking in at a bloated seven minutes. Luckily, the rest of the CD is nothing like that first track; it's brimming with a slightly restrained energy. There's not much talking, just music, and the Crows focus on their more recent releases; you won't find Mr. Jones or Round Here on this disc. They dig deep into their catalog and even present a few songs that are new, or at least cover tunes that I'm not familiar with.
Some songs benefit from the live production; Catapult has never sounded better, Miami is a bit more restrained than the album version but just as melodic, Perfect Blue Buildings sounds as good as it ever has, and Holiday in Spain is simply beautiful. The new/cover songs are enjoyable, too, even if none of them are overly upbeat numbers.
The CD skips over most of the group's singles (although Hanginaround is on there), but instead, they present live versions of fan favorites, such as Omaha, Goodnight Elisabeth, and Richard Manuel Is Dead. Even though the first track is a let down, the rest of the CD is the live Counting Crows that are so much fun to listen to, not the boring ones.
Overall Picture:
CD: B+
- Mike Spring
Editor
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