Counting Crows

Counting Crows formed in 1991, a Berkeley band built around singer Adam Duritz, whose voice could slide from a murmur to an anguished bellow within a single line. Around him were David Bryson on rhythm guitar, Charlie Gillingham on keyboards, Matt Malley on bass and Steve Bowman on drums, with Dan Vickrey joining on lead guitar in 1993. The sound was rootsy, rambling and soulful, pop rock with its heart on its sleeve.

August and Everything After, in 1993, was the breakthrough, and "Mr. Jones", jangly and wistful, was the hit that did it; the album sold more than 7 million copies in America. "Round Here", a slow, aching ramble, earned them a Grammy nomination, and so did the band itself, for Best New Artist. MTV gave them its Best New Artist award in 1994, and the American Music Awards named them Favorite Alternative Artist in 1995. "Rain King" and "A Murder of One" kept the album glowing on the radio.

Recovering the Satellites, in 1996, went to number 1 on the Billboard 200, and that year brought "A Long December", a slow, wintry ballad, and the brooding "Daylight Fading". Ben Mize had taken over the drums by then. This Desert Life followed in 1999. "Hanginaround" was another hit, and proof they could still bounce.

They kept going through all the changes: David Immerglück and Jim Bogios joined, Millard Powers took over the bass in 2005, and their cover of Joni Mitchell's "Big Yellow Taxi" became another hit. "Accidentally in Love", from Shrek 2, earned an Academy Award nomination in 2004. Saturday Nights & Sunday Mornings arrived in 2008 and Somewhere Under Wonderland in 2014, and they've been known ever since as a band that comes alive on stage. The Butter Miracle EP in 2021 grew into a full album in 2025.

Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.