Track Listing

1. Catapult
2. Angels Of The Silences
3. Daylight Fading - Charles Gillingham, Counting Crows, Gil Norton, Michael Barbiero, Paul Buckmaster
4. I'm Not Sleeping - Charles Gillingham, Counting Crows, Gil Norton, Michael Barbiero, Paul Buckmaster
5. Goodnight Elisabeth
6. Children In Bloom - Counting Crows
7. Have You Seen Me Lately?
8. Miller's Angels - Counting Crows
9. Another Horsedreamer's Blues - Counting Crows
10. Recovering The Satellites
11. Monkey
12. Mercury
13. A Long December
14. Walkaways

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #12180 in Music
• Released on: 1999-06-18
• Number of discs: 1
• Dimensions: .23 pounds
• Running time: 59 minutes

Amazon.co.uk Review
Recovering the Satellites may not be quite the tower of song that the Crows' debut August and Everything After was, but it could hardly be called a sophomore slump. Vocalist Adam Duritz and crew mine similar territory on the more densely produced Satellites, couching tales of dreamers, lovers, and losers in music that's part classic rock redux and part heartfelt folk jangle. As able as the band is though, it remains Duritz's show, and his plaintive voice and serpentine lyrics are what drive this record home, particularly on "Daylight Fading", "Miller's Angels" and the aching hit "A Long December." --Michael Ruby

CD Description
Three years after AUGUST AND EVERYTHING AFTER paved the Triple A way for the likes of Hootie & The Blowfish, Counting Crows take a more aggressive tack with their sophomore release. As with the debut, the sound takes its cue from singer Adam Duritz's introspective lyrics, but Duritz deals with especially weighty topics this time--the ups and downs of fame are on his mind now--and the band's approach is more slashingthan subdued.
The yearning "Catapult" opens the record with a quavering guitar and Mellotron, but it gives way to the crashing cymbals, raging guitar and screaming organ of "Angels Of The Silences", a song about rejection. Even the strings on "I'm Not Sleeping" attack with an angry urgency before they are finally consumed by Dan Vickrey's squalling guitar. The Counting Crows showed off their bark on their debut; now they're showing off their bite.

Customer Reviews

Their best album. So there.
Counting Crows' first album, August & Everything After, was a fine debut. It contained some truly memorable songs such as "Round Here" and "Mr Jones". But taken as a whole album it was disappointing. It contained a few lacklustre songs and there was no real "light and shade".

So then three years later, they released this album, and what a change has taken place. Gone is the bare bones production of T-Bone Burnett, replaced by the sympathetic, but still fairly raw, sonic honing of veteran Gil Norton. Adam Duritz's songwriting is flawless and the (vastly underrated) band play as a far more pleasing whole. It is my favourite Counting Crows album and one of my favourite albums of all time.

It opens with a "Strawberry Fields"-like organ line, leading into "Catapult", a song in which Duritz sets up the mood for what follows, singing "What a big baby / Won't somebody save me please?" Duritz's voice, while never pitch perfect, is nevertheless ideal for this sort of song, positively crying out in loneliness and desperation. "Someone should be with me here / ('Cause I don't wanna be alone)."

"Angels of the Silences" is the first song that tells you this is going to be a different ride than the previous album, with it's punk-esque guitar and frantic pace. It's followed by the most Country-esque song on the album, "Daylight Fading".

The sequencing of songs on the album is slightly odd, because we're still just getting into it. "I'm Not Sleeping" is memorable for it's piercing strings line and it's insomniacal lyrics, possibly written in frustration at four in the morning! "1-2-3-4-5-6-7 am / All alone again." The strings fairly throb in sympathy.

"Goodnight Elizabeth" is next and it's an album highlight for most, showcasing Duritz's songwriting at it's most beautiful but vulnerable. "We couldn't all be cowboys / So some of us are clowns". Great stuff! It also showcases David Bryson's wonderful guitar playing - I really think the band deserves more credit than they get. Yes, it's Duritz's show but these guys are a phenomenal support cast.

Next is one of my favourites, "Children in Bloom", with Duritz returning to his favourite theme of dislocation and uncertainty. "I gotta get out of this sunlight / It's melting my bones." The opening chord is stunning and the closing guitar solo is inspired. It's a perfect song.

If you want to understand just how far Duritz's emotional state has moved on since the last album, you only have to contrast "Mr Jones" with the next song, "Have You Seen Me Lately?" In "Mr Jones" Duritz sings "We all wanna be big stars . . . " In this song Duritz ruminates on the possibility that he is merely a voice on someone's radio, singing to his fans "You got a piece of me / But it's just a little piece of me." It shows his disillusionment perfectly, while set to one of the bounciest and light-hearted tracks on the album - a great juxtaposition.

On "Miller's Angels" Duritz's voice has rarely been bettered. When he sings "In the shadow of God's unwavering love / I am a fortunate son" even a cynical atheist like me is moved to tears! A wonderful piano and voice track, with a superbly subtle backing from the band, it's another highlight.

For me the next two tracks are the centrepiece of the whole album. "Another Horsedreamer's Blues" is a stunning song, telling a story of a gambling dreamer. Duritz sings the line "One of these days she's gonna throw the whole bottle down" with such rage in his voice. There's a gorgeous Wurlitzer electric piano line on this song.

My absolute favourite song on the album is the title track "Recovering the Satellites". Duritz is back at the theme of displacement, singing "It's a lifetime commitment / Recovering the satellites / All anybody wants to know is / When you gonna come down?" Anyone who's been there knows what he's talking about . . .

"Monkey" is a Ben Fold's-esque piano number (he even mentions Fold's name in the song!), and "Mercury" is another song in the country vein.

"A Long December" is Duritz doing what he does best, a wonderful conversational piece ("It's been so long since I've seen the ocean . . . I guess I should") with a piano part to die for.

So how do you end a perfect album? With a perfect little song. "Walkaway" is 1:10 of genius, just Duritz's voice and Bryson's guitar, sending us on our way with "Someday I'm gonna stay / But not today".

I can't even begin to describe what effect this album has had on my life. I bought it when it came out and I've been listening to it constantly ever since. It never loses it's appeal and always lifts my spirits. It's glorious.

That's all. So there.

Another classic album
After hearing Mr Jones i decided to get the Counting Crows first album 'August and Everything After.' That album blew me away and made me an avid fan of the counting crows. The next step was to buy this album, their second studio album.

I didn't really know what to expect, did i want an album that was the same to the first, or a new sound? What i got was something in between, and the results were once again spectacular.

The thing that made me love August and Everything after was the intro track 'Round Here' and i thought that the band would need to start the album in emphatic fashion in order to impress me. The first song on this album is an instant classic, called 'Catapult' it is such a fast intro that you will feel like you are hurtling along at a 100mph!

The album continues in this vein with 'Angels of the silences' and 'I'm not sleeping' but slows down for the beautiful 'Goodnight Elisabeth' which reminded me of 'Sullivan Street' from the first album.

But for me, the album peaks half way though with the stunning 'Millers Angels.' he song is so good i cannot describe it!

The title track is another highlight and will get you tapping along for a long time.

The major disapointment for me was the next two songs. 'Monkey' and 'Mercury' are the weakest counting crows songs that i have heard and in my opinion should have been omitted from the final listing.

However, this album finishes emphaticaly with 'Walkaways' and left me with the urge to get more albums from this band.

Please buy this and their first album. Your hearing senses will never be the same again.

Listen to it a couple of times...
I became a huge Counting Crows fan about 5 years ago, and the first purchase I made of theirs was-of course-'August and Everything After' and naturally, I was amazed!! I then had to go out and buy 'Recovering the Satellites'. I hurried home to put my new album on and to be honest, I was quite disappointed-it sounded really to different to 'August' and I was convinced that it would never grow on me. However, I persevered and listened to it a couple more times and I started to properly listen to the music and the lyrics and something just clicked-I loved it!! It may be different to what you are used to if you only have 'August' at the moment, but it has to be said that the change is not a bad one at all-if anything, it could be said that it is even more mature. The song and music writing is as good as ever and Adam Duritz is-of course-still fantastic!! As I listened to the album more and more, I began hearing and noticing new things-its one of those albums that you think you know really well and then one day when you put it on, you hear something that you'd missed before-you just keep discovering new things about each song and I think that is the beauty of this album!! Outstanding tracks to listen out for on the album are "Angels of the Silences", "Goodnight Elisabeth" (my absolute fav on the album-a really beautiful track), "Have You Seen Me Lately?", "Recovering the Satellites" and "Walkways". "Walkways" is a really clever song, it is purely acoustic with Adam singing over the top and its only just over a minute long!! "'I gotta rush away', she said, 'Been to Boston before, and anyway, this change I've been feeling, doesn't make the rain fall'"-brilliant track!!

So, do not despair!! If you already have it or are going to buy it-you may fall in love with it straight away!! Its true that you can really tell a distinct difference between this album and 'August', but I think it's a good thing because it shows that they are moving onwards and upwards and at least it can certainly be said that their songs do not sound the same!! 'August' was a fantastic debut for the Crows and in my opinion, it will never be bettered-so I am just thankful to the guys for doing their best and coming up with a brilliant second album!!! But take my advice-if you think you don't like it at first, just play it a few more times and you will understand why everyone thinks its such a good album!!