Counting Crows - 'August and Everything After: Live at Town Hall'

The Counting Crows felt the love in Baltimore when they made August and Everything After: Live at Town Hall. The album features a great set, and includes some of what lead singer Adam Duritz said to the audience in between songs, which tended to be pretty amusing. The crowd noise is only really audible before and after songs, which is unfortunately rare for a live album. The sound quality is excellent, nearly studio quality. Fans of Counting Crows will enjoy the compilation of great songs and the natural, emotional sound the live recordings offer.

The album starts with “Round Here/Raining in Baltimore”, a very impassioned song with a heartfelt sound. Next up is “Omaha” which is a little more upbeat and has a very slight hint of country sound to it. They follow that up with one of their most popular songs, “Mr. Jones”. The song is very upbeat and really got the crowd going. Then after a failed attempt to say something serious to the audience, Duritz introduces “Perfect Blue Buildings”, a song that has a more mellow and somber tone to it. “Anna Begins” is next, which starts off with a scintillating string bit and turns into an emotionally charged piece. “Time and Time Again” follows, with the keyboard in the beginning overtop of the repetitive guitar alluding to the passionate song that follows. They follow that up with “Rain King”, which the audience clapped them into. The song pumps the energy right back up. Duritz then talks some more, discusses his potentially tiger-skin underwear, then introduces the next song, “Sullivan Street”. Then comes a slightly more powerful, heavier song in the form of “Ghost Train”, which starts with a guitar piece worthy of classic rock bands in the vein of Deep Purple or The Doors. They wrap things up with a bang, playing “A Murder of One”.

All in all, this is one of the better live recorded albums I've heard, with superior sound quality and just the right amount of the concert atmosphere. You really get to feel the emotional level of the band and the audience, and the album is sure to be loved by any fans of the band.