Bubble Like a 7up

 

October 2, 2021

Bubble Like a 7up

I realize that the average person might think that I am a bit crazy having been to see my favorite band, Counting Crows 104 times since 1993, but there is something I just love about the dynamic experience of seeing them that keeps me coming back, over and over and over. This time, they had another one of my all-time favorite artists, Frank Turner as their opener for a run of shows to conclude their US summer tour and I just knew I had to go.

Unlike when I was young and crazier and more energetic when I would have no problem catching multiple shows in a row on a given tour, I now tend to go for quantity rather than quantity. So I splurge on the front row VIP experience that not only got us seats in the dead center of the front row, but also allowed us to get access to watch the sound check- which is always fascinating and gift bags with stuff like a signed lyric sheet and even a special Counting Crows guitar which will be shipped to the house. 

I picked the show at National Harbor in Oxon, Maryland- which is along the Potomoc River just south of Washington DC and across from Alexandria, Virginia where we stayed. The venue was smallish but intimate and we went over early on the day of the show to see the soundcheck. As usual when I go to a show, I tend to know at least a few people who are crazed fans like myself and this was no exception as my friend Wendy was in the middle of a multi-show tour and somewhere in the neighborhood of 110 total shows and my friend Nicole, who I have seen at multiple shows and is somewhere in the mid-200s as far as seeing the band.

Why in the world most people wonder why would anyone go see the same band over and over and over again and why beyond that would it be Counting Crows. I can only speak for myself as I never tire of seeing them. Unlike many bands that stick to a rigid setlist, have the same banter (hello…insert city here) every show, they tend to mix it up. And not just the setlist where they often dig deep into back catalog songs, covers and reimaging their old songs often with various alternative lyrics or mashing it up with some random cover that makes each show a unique work of art itself.

I really love watching the sound check, where they generally play 4 or 5 songs, sometimes multiple times and stopping and starting to emphasize various instrumentals, pauses or lyric changes. Even after 30 years performing together, they are perfectionists and watching is a behind the scenes glimpse into how the shows and songs are arranged and performed in the live show later.

This sound check was especially fun because as they always do, they were allowing the opening act to join them onstage during the encore and sing “Hanging Around” with them and so they had Frank Turner practicing the song multiple times with them during this sound check. While the usual meet and greet was canceled due to Covid, it is still a really awesome experience.

After the soundcheck, we had a few hours to kill so we walked over to nearby National Harbor, where we rode the huge Ferris Wheel- The Capital Wheel, which offered amazing views of the river, Alexandria and all the way to Washington DC. We wandered around the collection of bars, restaurants and shops before heading back to the MGM where the show was being held.

Frank Turner may be one of the best opening acts of all-time. I believe that he and his band the Sleeping Souls put on one of the three or four best live shows going (along with Cage the Elephant, Reverend Peyton’s Big Damn Band and Gang of Youths). Since he did not have the full band, but only a single guy to assist him on the acoustic guitar- his performance did not have the same power as his usual live shows, but it was still pretty awesome.

The Counting Crows were excellent as per usual. I am not yet a huge fan of their latest release, which they played in its entirety, but they always put on a solid show and this was an excellent, though not outstanding example. The tours of late have been a bit less free than the band once was and so while people seem to proclaim after every show they see that it was the best one ever, it certainly was not in my opinion. It ranks somewhere mid-pack of the many I have seen, which is still better than most and the addition of Frank Turner makes it one of the best double bills ever.