For the group's first album, Adam and David added bassist Matt Malley, multi-instrument talent Charlie Gillingham, and drummer Steve Bowman. David Immergluck served as the second guitarist on the first album, but he did not officially join the band until 1999. Guitarist Dan Vickery was added just as the band set out on their first tour. As stated before, 'August and Everything After' provided the band with a surprise yet very welcome success, garnering them critical praise. Released on September 14, 1993 through Geffen Records, the album hit #2 on Billboard's Heatseekers chart, showing that their tunes had tapped into something.
Counting Crows, with their intimate and confessional yet smooth, often catchy musical approach, achieved a large fan base among melodic rock fans over the years. Their 90s acclaim reflected that a significant music scene looked for something different from the raging guitars of the Seattle-based grunge movement as well as from either boilerplate pop music or the budding electronic music subgenres. The group kept on releasing new songs into the new millennium.
The band's more recent successes include the 2004 hit song "Accidentally In Love", which was featured on the Shrek 2 soundtrack (that has sold over 1,000,000 copies). That song has also garnered nominations for a Grammy Award, a Golden Globe Award, and an Academy Award. That same year, the band released their first ever best of set, which they titled 'Films about Ghosts'. That album features songs from every phase of the Counting Crows' recording career. To date, the band has sold over 20 million albums worldwide.
The group made the news when 'Saturday Nights & Sunday Mornings' was released on March 25th, 2008. In addition, on January 16, 2008, the band released a digital EP as a free download on their official web site, consisting of the songs "1492" and "When I Dream Of Michelangelo". The lead single from the album was "You Can't Count On Me", which was released for radio play on February 4, 2008.
The album itself is thematically and stylistically divided into two parts: the first, more rock-influenced Saturday Nights, and the second, more country-influenced Sunday Mornings. Theme changes along with style; in the Sunday Mornings portion of the album, songs become more reflective. The iTunes release contains several bonus tracks, including a track-by-track interview with Duritz.
Members of the band:
Adam Duritz - lead vocals, piano, wurlitzer, tamborine
David Bryson - guitars, dobro, vocals
Charles Gillingham - piano, organ, accordion, mellotron, vocals
Dan Vickery - guitars, sitar, banjo, vocals
David Immergluck - guitars, bass, electric sitar, mandolin, vocals
Jim Bogios - drums, percussion loops, vocals
Millard Powers - bass guitar, upright bass, piano, vocals
Ex-members of the band:
Matt Malley - guitars, double bass, vocals
Ben Mize - drums, percussion, tambourine, bulbs, vocals
Steve Bowman - drums, vocals
Ben Ulrich - drums
Marty Jones - bass guitar
Lydia Holly - keyboards
Toby Hawkins - drums
Albums
August And Everything After - (September 14, 1993)
Recovering The Satellites - (October 14, 1996)
Across a Wire - Live in New York City - (1998)
This Desert Life - (November 1, 1999)
Hard Candy - (July 8, 2002)
Films About Ghosts: The Best Of - (November 25, 2003)
*New Amsterdam: Live At Heineken Music Hall - (June 19, 2006)
August And Everything After, Deluxe Edition - (Fall 2007)
Saturday Nights & Sunday Mornings - (March 25, 2008)
Somewhere Under Wonderland - (September 2, 2014)
Atlantic City
Counting Crows Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Then they blew up his house too,
Down on the board walk they're gettin' ready for a fight,
Gonna see what them racket boys can do,
Now there's trouble busin' in from outta state,
And the DA can't get no relief,
Gonna be a rumble out on the promenade,
And the gamblin' commission's hangin' on by the skin of its teeth.
And now everything dies baby that's a fact,
But maybe everything that dies someday comes back,
Put your make-up on fix your hair up pretty,
And meet me tonight in Atlantic City, yeah.
Yeah well I got a job and tried to put my money away,
But I got debts that no honest man can pay,
So I drew what I had from the Central Trust,
Yeah and I got us two tickets on that Coast City bus.
And now everything dies baby that's a fact,
But maybe everything that dies someday comes back,
Put your make-up on fix your hair up pretty,
And meet me tonight in Atlantic City, c'mon.
Now our luck may have died and our love may be cold,
But with you forever I'll stay,
We're goin' out where the sand's turnin' to gold,
So put on your stocking's baby 'cause, the night's getting cold,
Baby everything dies baby that's a fact,
But maybe everything that dies someday comes back.
Oh I been lookin' for a job but it's hard to find,
Down here it's just winners and losers,
And don't get caught on the wrong side of that line,
Now I'm tired of comin' out on the losin' end,
So last night I met this guy and I'm gonna do a little favor for him.
And I guess everything dies baby that's a fact,
But maybe everything that dies someday comes back,
Put your hair up nice and put up pretty,
And meet me tonight in Atlantic City,
Oh meet me tonight in Atlantic City,
Meet me tonight in Atlantic City, yeah,
Meet me tonight in Atlantic City, oh, oh.
The lyrics to Counting Crows' "Atlantic City" paint a picture of a world where crime and corruption are rampant. The song's opening lines recount the brutal murder of the "chicken man" in Philadelphia and the destruction of his home. The singer goes on to describe a growing sense of tension on the boardwalk, with trouble brewing from out of state and the district attorney unable to do anything about it. The song suggests that the gambling commission is hanging on by the skin of its teeth, hinting that organized crime may have a hand in the goings-on.
Line by Line Meaning
Well they blew up the chicken man in Philly last night,
There was a bombing in Philadelphia where the man known as the 'chicken man' was killed.
Then they blew up his house too,
In addition to the bombing, the chicken man's house was also destroyed.
Down on the board walk they're gettin' ready for a fight,
There is a tense atmosphere on the boardwalk, and it seems like there may be a fight soon.
Gonna see what them racket boys can do,
The criminals in the area are getting ready to show off their power.
Now there's trouble busin' in from outta state,
More problems are arising from outside of the local area.
And the DA can't get no relief,
The district attorney is unable to find any solutions to the problems.
Gonna be a rumble out on the promenade,
There will be a violent confrontation happening soon.
And the gamblin' commission's hangin' on by the skin of its teeth.
The gambling commission is barely holding on and may not survive much longer.
And now everything dies baby that's a fact,
Everything in life eventually comes to an end.
But maybe everything that dies someday comes back,
There is a chance for revival or renewal after things have ended.
Put your make-up on fix your hair up pretty,
Get ready and look nice for the evening.
And meet me tonight in Atlantic City, yeah.
Let's meet up tonight in Atlantic City.
Yeah well I got a job and tried to put my money away,
I worked hard and attempted to save money.
But I got debts that no honest man can pay,
I have debts that are difficult or impossible to repay.
So I drew what I had from the Central Trust,
I withdrew all the money I had from my account at the Central Trust bank.
Yeah and I got us two tickets on that Coast City bus.
I used the money to buy two bus tickets to Coast City.
Now our luck may have died and our love may be cold,
We have had some bad luck and our relationship may not be as strong as it used to be.
But with you forever I'll stay,
Despite our struggles, I am committed to staying with you forever.
We're goin' out where the sand's turnin' to gold,
We are heading to a place where we hope to find good fortune.
So put on your stocking's baby 'cause, the night's getting cold,
It's starting to get cold out, so it's important to wear warm clothing.
Oh I been lookin' for a job but it's hard to find,
I have been searching for employment, but it has been difficult to find job opportunities.
Down here it's just winners and losers,
The area we are currently in is full of people who are either successful or unsuccessful.
And don't get caught on the wrong side of that line,
It's important to be on the right side of the divide between winners and losers.
Now I'm tired of comin' out on the losin' end,
I'm tired of always being on the losing side of things.
So last night I met this guy and I'm gonna do a little favor for him.
I met someone last night and am going to do something for him as a favor.
Oh meet me tonight in Atlantic City,
Once again, let's meet up tonight in Atlantic City.
Meet me tonight in Atlantic City, yeah,
One more time, let's meet up tonight in Atlantic City.
Meet me tonight in Atlantic City, oh, oh.
The singer is passionate about meeting up in Atlantic City, as it is a place of hope and possibility.
Contributed by Amelia O. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Springsteen Disciple
I heard he was a big Springsteen fan as well. Nicely done !
SnakesNSquids
I think I prefer this to the original! Probably the best version I've heard.
C B
Check out the cover done by The Hold Steady.
Al Costanza
No one did this better the The Band.
Philip Reeder
You're 100% right. Levon Helm and The Band do this Springsteen classic better than anyone. My opinion.
Landon Ramey
This may be from Kalamazoo, MI back in 2000. It was a show I saw, Adam introduced the song as one they had never played live before. They had recorded it for a tribute to the Nebraska album but I don't think it ever got released.
SnakesNSquids
Actually, where did you find this? Or did you record it yourself? Can't find any clearer versions but I wish they'd record it!
Jared Garcia
found it on a crows fan website that no longer exist! I never cared for song until i heard this
Trev Mac
you never cared for this my friend..please listen to the springsteen version..and if you really want to listen to the best..try the Bands version
iamthebyron
Is this the one that Adam introduces by mentioning the tribute to "Nebraska," the crowd gives lackluster applause, and he admonishes them that they all need to go buy the original "Nebraska"?