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Adam Duritz of Counting Crows


Carl

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When I prepare for an interview, at some point the essence of the subject becomes clear, and I know what I want to ask. It took me a few days to get there with Adam Duritz.

Most of us have some overarching theme that comes through in our worldview, and songwriters often express that in their songs. For much of Adam's career, this was the burden of fame, as Counting Crows released one of the best-selling debut albums of all-time, and in a short period of time, Adam's intimate moments became public - not just in his terrestrial life, but also in his songs.

But that was a long time ago.

Now that the adulation has subsided, Adam has become more guarded in his creative output, which means he won't just pour his heart out in a song and foist it on the public. The last Counting Crows album was all cover songs, which spared him this burden.

This all stems from Adam's revelation that his songs are all about him. He doesn't enter the mind of someone else, and he doesn't write on spec (even that Shrek song delved into his psyche).

When I spoke with Adam yesterday, I was happy to hear him expound on upcoming projects with a newfound passion. With that out of the way, we explored songwriting technique, where he explained that it's the rich, authentic details that matter. Adam mentions real and specific people and places in his songs (Anna, the New Amsterdam), which is what paints their vibrant colors. And yes, Springsteen came up in this conversation.

I'll post the link once we put this together, but wanted to share some of these thoughts while they were still fresh.

As an aside, if you were to put boy parts together to create the perfect specimen that would attract beautiful actresses, you would end up with the 1994-1996 version of Adam. His combination of mystery and talent landed him two Friends stars when the show was the hottest thing on TV, plus Mary Louise Parker, Samantha Mathis, and a few others he remains coy about.

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  • 5 years later...
On 7/15/2010 at 4:27 PM, LeeBB said:

Poor Bob Marley... not even nominated. It ain't love that he's feeling.

 

LBB

 

On 11/9/2013 at 2:45 AM, Carl said:

When I prepare for an interview, at some point the essence of the subject becomes clear, and I know what I want to ask. It took me a few days to get there with Adam Duritz.

 

Most of us have some overarching theme that comes through in our worldview, and songwriters often express that in their songs. For much of Adam's career, this was the burden of fame, as Counting Crows released one of the best-selling debut albums of all-time, and in a short period of time, Adam's intimate moments became public - not just in his terrestrial life, but also in his songs.

 

But that was a long time ago.

 

Now that the adulation has subsided, Adam has become more guarded in his creative output, which means he won't just pour his heart out in a song and foist it on the public. The last Counting Crows album was all cover songs, which spared him this burden.

 

This all stems from Adam's revelation that his songs are all about him. He doesn't enter the mind of someone else, and he doesn't write on spec (even that Shrek song delved into his psyche).

 

When I spoke with Adam yesterday, I was happy to hear him expound on upcoming projects with a newfound passion. With that out of the way, we explored songwriting technique, where he explained that it's the rich, authentic details that matter. Adam mentions real and specific people and places in his songs (Anna, the New Amsterdam), which is what paints their vibrant colors. And yes, Springsteen came up in this conversation.

 

I'll post the link once we put this together, but wanted to share some of these thoughts while they were still fresh.

 

As an aside, if you were to put boy parts together to create the perfect specimen that would attract beautiful actresses, you would end up with the 1994-1996 version of Adam. His combination of mystery and talent landed him two Friends stars when the show was the hottest thing on TV, plus Mary Louise Parker, Samantha Mathis, and a few others he remains coy about.

 

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