The Story of the Hit Song Mr Jones: How Counting Crows Produced Their Defining Anthem

The Lead Singer Remembers the Early Days

The initial albums were primarily produced in houses situated in the foothills above Los Angeles. August and Everything After marked a significant step for the group, as it was their first release on a large record company. Each member received an advance of $3,000; I used mine to buy a classic red convertible and drove it to LA.

Each day, I would start by listening to a Poco track, which sounds like the Beatles exploring American folk. Also, I was into a Benny Goodman album that my dad had picked up as a free giveaway at a Texaco station when I was young.

The song Mr Jones was included on a demo that we submitted to labels, but it was a challenging track to complete. It lacked a clear direction at first. Neither a slow ballad or a fast-paced number; instead, it gallops along, demanding a deep understanding to perform. It’s soul music – more akin to the Memphis soul style than folk.

The band’s drummer couldn’t hear the track as the rest of us did – thus the producer brought in one of his idols to perform on it.

We considered a few producers, but when I discussed things with the producer, he really understand where the group was headed. There was a lot of promise, but I didn’t like with our sound – we hadn’t learned how to be a band. We removed all the synths and guitar effects. The drummer had trouble with the tempo, so the producer invited a renowned drummer, one of Steve’s heroes, to lay down the drums. It’s a funny story, but it was hard on Steve at the time.

Marty Jones and I performed in bands together prior to Counting Crows. His father, David Serva, had succeeded in Spain and was back in the Bay Area performing a series of shows. We went one of his performances and hung out with the flamenco troupe visiting bars. The next morning, I went home and wrote Mr Jones. The lyrics reflect me and Marty that night, dreaming we were accomplished artists so we could connect with the girls more confidently.

I believe, it’s one of the best pieces I’ve ever written. We performed another track on SNL in 1994, the album climbed dozens of positions each week for five or six weeks. Afterwards, the song became a major success.

The Multi-Instrumentalist Recalls His Memories

Back in the 80s, the band members were sharing a space in a industrial building in Berkeley. I had been playing with Camper Van Beethoven and was in an side project named Monks of Doom.

Returning home one night, Adam had a fresh recording he’d just done with Bryson. He played me this track called the now-famous tune. Recorded with a basic drum machine that resembled a video game or random noise, but his singing were exceptional.

After the producer got involved, it felt like a complete transformation of Counting Crows. They shifted back to basics influenced by folk and soul legends.

Adam called me saying, “Hey, man, can you join us and play on this album?” By the time I arrived, T Bone had moved us to a studio in LA’s Encino – previously used by Tito Jackson. There were guitars that Bob Dylan had recently used.

T Bone told me to play my guitar behind the tempo the drums. His words were, “If you rush before the drums comes off like an adolescent hurrying.” He has a Texas drawl, and his advice was to visualize relaxing on the mixing board and chewing gum during the performance.

The band was, to an extent, a reaction to grunge. The tragic end of Cobain seemed the culmination. At the time, many were on heroin. The aim was self-destruction, not enlightenment. That negativity had reached an extreme, and the pendulum swung toward something more human and heartfelt. Counting Crows combined acoustic and electric with a heavy dose of Van Morrison soul.

The song never gets old. On stage, when performing with Adam, I remember that time when he first shared the early version. It’s insane.