Counting Crows stopped by the St. Augustine Amphitheatre June 14th having kicked off their summer tour earlier that week in Tampa, Fl. The tour is in support of the upcoming September release of their new album, Somewhere Under Wonderland. This will be the Counting Crows first original release since 2008's, Saturday Nights & Sunday Mornings. The tour is being supported by fellow alternative rockers Toad the Wet Sprocket and Daniel and the Lion.
The afternoon Florida storms had cleared and the crowd was properly warmed up with a stellar set from Toad the Wet Sprocket who played 12 songs in total including some of their 90's hits like All I Want and Walk on the Ocean. Counting Crows took the stage just before their 8:30pm scheduled start and opened with Time and Time Again. The set list was comprised of many rarities and the audience was treated to 3 new songs off of their new album, two of which had never been performed live before that evening. While the show did include a handful of hits like A Long December, Hangingaround, Anna Begins and Rain king, lead singer Adam Duritz didn't sing them like you remember. I don't believe an artist must perform a song every night just the way it was recorded, but it should bear some semblance to the original. Is Adam bored with their hit songs? While the band played the music true to the original recording Duritz would sing them to a different beat and tune, or even leave out or change the words while laughing, rendering the song almost un-recognizable. I didn't want to remember my favorite songs from my youth, completely re-written. It's like adding to the Mona Lisa or repainting her smile because you find it boring and in need of refinement. All the new songs or covers were played perfect making me question if he was angry with the crowd for wanting the old songs. A Youtube search confirmed this is a common occurrence during their live shows.
The summer season is in full swing at the St. Augustine Amphitheatre and the Counting Crows, Toad the Wet Sprocket and Daniel and the Lion are just the beginning of their stellar concert series. Check out the Amphitheatre website here for more info on upcoming shows.
Enjoy the photo spread of the show below.
You must not be a real fan…..or ever even been to a concert….this is classic Counting Crows….don’t write a review if you do not know what you are talking about….at least do some research first.
I have actually been reviewing concerts for years. The Crows played this same venue a few years back and the show was nothing like this one. Adam laughed instead of singing, and scolded the crowd on a few occasions because they needed to be “watching him.” It was a very different feel and definitely not the norm. I understand you are a big fan, and respect your opinion, but this was not a good show.
I would love to go see this, to bad I will be out of town that weekend.
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woops got excited and didnt notice year LOL
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