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Cover of Under the Table and Dreaming by Dave Matthews Band
Cover: Under the Table and Dreaming

Song · Dave Matthews Band

“What Would You Say” by Dave Matthews Band

From the album Under the Table and Dreaming (1994)

“What Would You Say” by Dave Matthews Band appears on 51 radio countdowns from 23 stations between 1994 and 2025. It was first released in 1994 on the album Under the Table and Dreaming. Its best result is #4 on the WMRQ Top 104 Songs of 1995. In the combined RockLists rankings it is the #42 alternative song of 1995, #280 alternative song of all time and #220 of the '90s.

51countdowns
23stations
#4best position
0#1 finishes
4top 10 finishes
1994–2025years charted

Watch

Dave Matthews Band - What Would You Say (Official Video)

Video from YouTube (davematthewsbandVEVO). Pressing play loads YouTube's player. Watch on YouTube

"What Would You Say" was the first single from Under the Table and Dreaming, Dave Matthews Band's 1994 debut album, released in September of that year, and it's a jittery, jubilant introduction. Dave Matthews wrote it and plays the acoustic guitar that drives it, Carter Beauford's drums skitter and snap in all directions, and Stefan Lessard's bass bounces along underneath. The whole thing has a loose, jam-happy funk that sounds like a band that can't sit still.

Steve Lillywhite produced it, Chris Dickie engineered and Tom Lord-Alge mixed it bright and punchy. The guest list is part of the charm: John Popper of Blues Traveler blows a squealing harmonica, and the extra voices include John Alagia, Andrew Page, Jeff Thomas and none other than Michael McDonald.

It reached number 11 on the Modern Rock Tracks chart and, in June 1995, peaked at number 9 on the Mainstream Top 40.

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

RockLists rankings

Alternative & Modern Rock

Indie & Adult Alternative

Classic Rock

All Rock Formats

Year-end countdowns

Year#StationCountdownof
1995 81 KROQ Los Angeles, CA KROQ Top 106.7 Songs of 1995 107
1995 54 Q101 Chicago, IL Q101 Top 101 Songs of 1995 101
1995 11 WHFS Washington, DC / Baltimore, MD WHFS Top 99.1 Songs of 1995 100
1995 4 Radio 104.1 Hartford-New Haven, CT WMRQ Top 104 Songs of 1995 104
1995 98 103.1 The Buzz West Palm Beach, FL The Buzz Top 103 Alternative Songs of '95 103
1995 29 Radio & Records United States (national airplay chart) Radio & Records Top 95 Songs of 1995 95
1995 16 WDRE Philadelphia Philadelphia, PA WDRE Top 103.9 Songs of 1995 104

All-time and decade countdowns

Year#StationCountdownof
1994 414 WOXY 97X WOXY Modern Rock 500 (1994) 500
1996 409 Q101 Q101 Top 500 Songs of All-Time (1996) 500
1996 401 WOXY 97X WOXY Modern Rock 500 (1996) 498
1996 114 WNEW-FM WNEW Firecracker 500 (1996) 500
1997 294 102.3 WBAB WBAB Top 1,023 Rock and Roll Songs of All Time (1997) 1023
1999 95 WHFS WHFS Top 500 Songs of the '90s (December 1999) 500
1999 145 Q101 Q101 Top 1,011 Songs of All-Time (December 1999) 1017
1999 73 WLIR / WDRE WLIR Top 300 Songs of All-Time (December 1999) 300
1999 243 WFNX WFNX Top 500 Songs of All-Time (June 1999) 500
1999 119 107.7 The End The End Top 1077 Songs of All-Time (December 1999) 1077
1999 28 WOXY 97X WOXY Modern Rock 500 (1999) 500
1999 220 CD101 CD101 Top 2000 Songs of All-Time (December 1999) 2000
2000 5 Y100 Y100 Top 300 Songs of the '90s (September 2000) 100
2000 6 DC101 DC101 Top 101 Rock Songs of the 90s 101
2000 74 WOXY 97X WOXY Modern Rock 500 (2000) 500
2000 220 CD101 CD101 Top 2001 Songs of All-Time (December 2000) 2001
2001 76 WOXY 97X WOXY Modern Rock 500 (2001) 498
2001 220 CD101 CD101 Top 2002 Songs of All-Time (December 2001) 2002
2001 54 WBRU WBRU Modern Rock Top 500 (2001) 500
2002 88 WOXY 97X WOXY Modern Rock 500 (2002) 500
2002 220 CD101 CD101 Top 2003 Songs of All-Time (December 2002) 2003
2003 75 WOXY 97X WOXY Modern Rock 500 (2003) 500
2003 220 CD101 CD101 Top 2004 Songs of All-Time (December 2003) 2004
2004 469 107.7 The End The End Original Alternative 500 (May 2004) 500
2004 220 CD101 CD101 Top 2005 Songs of All-Time (December 2004) 2005
2004 10 Y100 Y100 Top 300 Songs of All-Time (July 2004) 300
2005 82 96.5 The Buzz 96.5 The Buzz Top 96 of the 90s 96
2005 222 CD101 CD101 Top 2006 Songs of All-Time (December 2005) 1994
2005 362 99X 99X Freedom of Choice 1000 (2005) 1000
2007 538 CD101 CD101 Top 2008 Songs of All-Time (December 2007) 2008
2008 563 CD101 CD101 Top 2009 Songs of All-Time (December 2008) 2009
2009 569 CD101 CD101 Top 2010 Songs of All-Time (December 2009) 2010
2010 589 CD101 CD101 Top 2011 Songs of All-Time (December 2010) 2011
2011 610 CD101 CD101 Top 2012 Songs of All-Time (December 2011) 2011
2013 641 CD101 CD101 Top 2013 Songs of All-Time (December 2013) 2012
2014 667 CD101 CD101 Top 2014 Songs of All-Time (2014) 2013
2020 225 105.9 The X 105.9 The X July 420 (2020) 420
2020 342 DC101 The DC101 Top 500 500
2021 593 90.9 The Bridge 90.9 The Bridge Top 909 Songs of the '90s 908
2021 229 105.9 The X 105.9 The X July 420 (2021) 420
2022 230 105.9 The X 105.9 The X July 420 (2022) 420
2023 219 105.9 The X 105.9 The X July 420 (2023) 420
2023 1175 WYEP WYEP Countdown to Fall 2023 1229
2025 361 WFPK WFPK Top 500 Songs of the '90s 500

Also listed as: What Would You Say?.

Charting alongside it in 1995

Best songs of 1995 →
  1. 1You Oughta KnowAlanis Morissette
  2. 2LumpThe Presidents of the United States of America
  3. 3Lightning CrashesLive
  4. 4Bullet With Butterfly WingsThe Smashing Pumpkins
  5. 5NameGoo Goo Dolls
  6. 6My FriendsRed Hot Chili Peppers

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