The Making of the Hit Song Mr Jones: The Way Counting Crows Produced Their Signature Song

The Lead Singer Remembers the Early Days

Our first albums were primarily produced in homes located in the hills above Los Angeles. Their debut major label album marked a major milestone for the band, as it was their inaugural release on a large record company. We each received an advance of $3,000; with it, I to buy a 1971 cherry red VW Karmann Ghia and traveled to LA.

Every morning, my routine included by listening to Pickin’ Up the Pieces by Poco, which sounds like the Beatles venturing into American folk. Also, I was into a Benny Goodman album that my dad had acquired as a complimentary item at a Texaco station when I was young.

Mr Jones was part of a demo tape that we submitted to record companies, but it proved a very difficult track to complete. It lacked a solid grasp at first. It’s not a leisurely tune or a fast-paced number; instead, it moves with a rhythm, requiring a real feel to play. The style is soulful – closer to the Stax Records sound than country.

The band’s drummer couldn’t hear the track like the rest of us did – so T Bone enlisted one of his idols to perform on it.

We looked at several producers, but when I discussed things with the producer, he seemed to get where the band was headed. There was great potential, but I wasn’t satisfied with our overall tone – we were still learning how to be a band. Eliminated all the synthesizers and guitar effects. Our drummer Steve Bowman couldn’t sync with the tempo, so the producer called in a renowned drummer, one of Steve’s favorites, to lay down the drums. Looking back, it’s amusing, but it was hard on Steve at the time.

My best friend Marty and I had played in bands together prior to Counting Crows. His father, David Serva, had succeeded in Spain and was back in the San Francisco area doing a series of shows. Attended one of his shows and spent the night with the flamenco troupe bar-hopping. The next morning, I returned and wrote the song. The lyrics reflect me and Marty that night, dreaming we were cool musicians so we could connect with the women more easily.

In my view, it’s one of the best songs I’ve ever written. We performed Round Here on Saturday Night Live in 1994, the album jumped 40 spots weekly for over a month. Afterwards, the song became a huge hit.

David Immerglück Shares His Perspective

In the late 1980s, the band members were living together in a warehouse complex in Berkeley. I had been playing with Camper Van Beethoven and had an offshoot band called Monks of Doom.

One evening, Adam had a new demo he’d just done with Bryson. He played me this track called the now-famous tune. Recorded with a Dr Rhythm pocket drum machine that sounded like a video game or random noise, but his vocals were exceptional.

Once T Bone took over, it was a total reinvention of Counting Crows. The approach toward roots echoing Bob Dylan, Van Morrison, and the Band.

Adam called me saying, “Listen, can you join us and contribute to this album?” By the time I got there, T Bone had relocated us to a recording space in Encino, Los Angeles – formerly used by a Jackson 5 member. There were instruments that Bob Dylan had recently used.

He instructed me to perform behind the tempo the drums. His words were, “Playing too fast ahead of the drums comes off like an teenager rushing.” He has a Texas drawl, and his advice was to visualize relaxing on the mixing board and staying casual while playing.

The band was, in some ways, a response to the grunge movement. Kurt Cobain’s death seemed the final act. Back then, many used heroin. The goal was obliteration, not mind expansion. The nihilism had gone too far, and the trend shifted toward something emotional and heartfelt. Counting Crows combined acoustic and electric with a strong influence of Van Morrison soul.

The song never gets old. Sometimes, when I am rocking out with the singer, I recall that time when he played me the early version. Absolutely incredible.