Recovering the Satellites
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Recovering the Satellites is the second album by Counting Crows, released on October 14, 1996 in the United Kingdom and two days later in the United States. Released three years (and two years of worldwide touring) after their debut album, it reached #1 in the United States and was a top seller in Australia, Canada, and the UK as well.
For this album, the quintet became a sextet, with fellow San Franciscan Dan Vickrey added, contributing a second guitar as well as sharing in songwriting credits on four of the fourteen tracks. Steve Bowman was replaced as drummer by Ben Mize.
Counting Crows brought in producer Gil Norton for Recovering the Satellites.
Reception
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   [1] |
| Entertainment Weekly | C[2] |
| The Independent | (unfavorable)[3] |
| Q | [4] |
| Rolling Stone | [5] |
| Spin | (6/10)[4] |
Writing for Rolling Stone, Anthony DeCurtis gave the album a star rating of four out of five stars. He said that the band's second album develops the sounds of August and Everything After and that they "largely achieve their serious ambitions". He praised Adam Duritz' lyrics and called the album "deeply satisfying".[5]
In a review for Allmusic, Stephen Thomas Erlewine gave the album a rating of four stars out of five. He called it a "self-consciously challenging response" to their successful debut album. He described the songs as "slightly more somber" than those on the first album but "more affecting". He noted an occasional "pretentiousness" on the album but praised "A Long December" as particularly articulate.[1]
Andy Gill from The Independent gave the album a more negative review. He criticized Duritz' song-writing as "self-pity[ing]" and called him a "classic solipsistic soul-barer, he just won't shut up about himself". He called the album "bland" with "obvious" influences (including R.E.M., Bruce Springsteen and Lynyrd Skynyrd). Gill had some praise for producer Gil Norton's work on the album.[3]
In a review for Entertainment Weekly, Ken Tucker also had negative feelings about the album, and gave it a "C" grade. He criticized Duritz' "yowling" and "moans" and called Counting Crows a "pastiche of its influences".[2]
Track listing
All tracks written by Adam Duritz unless otherwise indicated
- "Catapult" (Duritz, David Bryson, Charlie Gillingham, Matt Malley, Dan Vickrey, Ben Mize) – 3:34
- "Angels of the Silences" (Duritz, Gillingham) – 3:39
- "Daylight Fading" (Duritz, Vickrey, Gillingham) – 3:50
- "I'm Not Sleeping" – 4:57
- "Goodnight Elisabeth" – 5:20
- "Children in Bloom" – 5:23
- "Have You Seen Me Lately?" – 4:11
- "Miller's Angels" (Duritz, Vickrey) – 6:33
- "Another Horsedreamer's Blues" – 4:32
- "Recovering the Satellites" – 5:24
- "Monkey" – 3:02
- "Mercury" – 2:48
- "A Long December" – 4:57
- "Walkaways" (Duritz, Vickrey) – 1:12
Personnel
- Counting Crows
- David Bryson – guitars, Dobro, tambourine, vocals
- Adam Duritz – piano, tambourine, Wurlitzer, vocals
- Charlie Gillingham – Hammond B-3, piano, Mellotron, Wurlitzer, accordion, harmonica, vocals, string arrangements on "Daylight Fading", "I'm Not Sleeping", and "Another Horsedreamer's Blues"
- Matt Malley – electric bass guitar, double bass, vocals
- Ben Mize – drums, tambourine, percussion, light bulbs, Zippo lighter, vocals
- Dan Vickrey – guitars, vocals
- Additional musicians
- Paul Buckmaster – Orchestra conductor on "Daylight Fading", "I'm Not Sleeping", and "Another Horsedreamer's Blues"
- Marvin Etzione – mandolin on "Mercury"
- David Immerglück – pedal steel guitar and octave mandolin on "Miller's Angels"
Charts
- Album
| Year | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 1996 | The Billboard 200 | 1[citation needed] |
| UK Albums Chart | 4[citation needed] | |
| Australian Albums Chart | 7[citation needed] | |
| 1997 | Billboard Top Canadian Albums | 19[citation needed] |
- Singles
| Year | Single | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | "Angels of the Silences" | Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks | 4[citation needed] |
| Billboard Modern Rock Tracks | 3[citation needed] | ||
| "A Long December" | Billboard Adult Top 40 | 6[citation needed] | |
| Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks | 9[citation needed] | ||
| Billboard Modern Rock Tracks | 5[citation needed] | ||
| Billboard Top 40 Mainstream | 7[citation needed] | ||
| 1997 | "Daylight Fading" | Billboard Adult Top 40 | 20[citation needed] |
| Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks | 24[citation needed] | ||
| Billboard Modern Rock Tracks | 26[citation needed] | ||
| Billboard Top 40 Mainstream | 26[citation needed] | ||
| Billboard Top 40 Adult Recurrents | 2[citation needed] | ||
| "Have You Seen Me Lately?" | Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks | 34[citation needed] | |
| Billboard Modern Rock Tracks | 34[citation needed] |
Certifications
| Organization | Level | Date |
|---|---|---|
| RIAA – U.S. | Gold | December 19, 1996[citation needed] |
| Platinum | ||
| Double Platinum | June 6, 1997[citation needed] | |
| BPI – UK | Gold | March 1, 1997[citation needed] |
References
- ^ a b Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Recovering the Satellites: Review". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved April 26, 2011.
- ^ a b Tucker, Ken (October 25, 1996). "Recovering the Satellites Review". Entertainment Weekly. Time Warner. Retrieved April 26, 2011.
- ^ a b Gill, Andy (October 11, 1996). "Album Reviews: Counting Crows Recovering the Satellites". The Independent. Independent Print Limited. Retrieved April 26, 2011.
- ^ a b "Counting Crows - Recovering the Satellites CD Album". CD Universe. Retrieved October 20, 2012.
- ^ a b DeCurtis, Anthony (November 4, 1996). "Counting Crows: Recovering the Satellites". Rolling Stone. Wenner Media. Archived from the original on April 22, 2009. Retrieved April 26, 2011.