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List Price: $18.97 | | Label: RCA
Salesrank: 2766
Released: April 28, 1998 |
| Our Price: $9.31 |
| Used Price: $1.57 |
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| Media: Audio CD |
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Before These Crowded Streets Track Listing:
1. Pantala Naga Pampa
2. Rapunzel
3. Last Stop
4. Don't Drink the Water
5. Stay (Wasting Time)
6. Halloween
7. Stone
8. Crush
9. Dreaming Tree
10. Pig
11. Spoon
Editorial Review:
The Dave Matthews Band moves its music forward by increments on Before These Crowded Streets. While the album offers more of the folkish melodies and vaguely internationalist rhythms that made this Charlottesville, Virginia, group a major record and concert draw, it also finds them adding new colorings to the mix. Alanis Morissette guests on two cuts, "Spoon" and the disc's first single, "Don't Drink the Water," and banjo whiz Bela Fleck sits in, too. More interesting, though, is the modernist string arrangement played by the Kronos Quartet on the driving "Halloween." Matthews's obvious hopes to lead something other than a jam band are at least partly fulfilled here; at the same time, Streets should keep his customers satisfied.--Rickey Wright
Before These Crowded Streets Reviews:
Failure to Warn 
2009-09-20 - Seller failed to warn buyers that the last three tracks are unplayable due to skipping. Seller stated that CD was in good or great condition (I don't remember which). I will be avoiding the seller in the future.
Every Human Emotion 
2009-06-30 - Before These Crowded Streets is Human. Within every song is a Human emotion that has been felt by every one. Each song delves into a different Human emotion and in so doing it covers every emotion we as Human Beings could ever experience.
This album is a documentation of the development of a Human Being. Beginning with an innocent type of joy that then turns into anger once the ways of the world are discovered and the child is innocent no more. Then there is joy again, though with the knowledge that it cannot last forever and from this comes an appreciation for the good times. Anger resumes and then a decision comes to get away, to find a new life. Love is found and then lost. With memories left inside and a longing for one who may or may not ever return to your arms, you're stranded in a state of agony. More of the worlds woes are seen clearly, only these woes bring sadness and pain. Finally however, a realization comes that this is life and you must find the joy and positivity in everything and make the most of each day. Then comes peace.
If you listen to this album you will see how in the exact order that I have described the songs follow this paragraph. You will be in for a treat as this is some of the greatest music of varying tempos and rythms you have ever heard. The lyrics are Poetry, I'm a Poet and I don't use the term lightly. Dave really writes some incredibly moving stuff here. If the DMB had one best album, this...would be it.
Dave at his best!!!
2009-06-10 - My wife's classic Dave CD that needed replacing from being played about 1000 past its prime. Definitely put a smile on her face!!!
Spectacular
2009-02-09 - It's been probably seven years since I've listened to this album, and just tonight I became reacquainted with it. These are honestly some of the most masterful auditory sounds I've ever heard. The definition of beautiful music.
It's rare that any album contains just one song that can make me feel like I'm in another world; this album contains three: Spoon (it is painful how perfect this song is), the Stone, and the Dreaming Tree. Pig and Crush are up there too.
PS - Like I said, it's been awhile, but when I was younger my DMB friend insisted that Under the Table and Dreaming was better. I've always highly preferred Before These Crowded Streets (seriously, those last five songs... inexplicably beautiful...)
More Personality But Not Enough Development 
2008-07-17 - I didn't have high hopes for this album, but I didn't think it would be like this. This album has high potential. Really high potential. Consider what they have here:
A vocalist that can't be imitated (despite the criticism, I like his vocals). Acoustic guitar and it's range of dynamics and flavors (I dig his playing). The grooving, peaceful, graceful, can do anything rhythm section of Carter and Steffan. A full time wind player and violinist. Tim Reynolds on every track playing electric guitar (in a great way instead of the the way that bogged down Everyday). And pianos, banjos, and organ the Chapman Stick, a trumpet, soulful background vocals from the Lovely Ladies, and the Kronos Quartet. A great variety of atmosphere and mood.
But it's too bad that this album wallows in unbearably repetitive. Some of the material here is excellent, but the rest of either too undeveloped and runs or unbearabley soft, unemotional, and BORING. The ballads are awful, muzak worthy with not enough melody and absolutely no conveying of emotion in Dave Matthews' voice. And a lot of the tracks on here run on too long with no real ideas and no real progression giving their time length. A lot of the songs end with jams, and they are interesting, but it's kind of hard to get to them with an endless flotation of weak melodies. Dave is also not very good at being angry in his vocals, and, for me, it's pretty bad. His lyrics sometimes are questionable to begin with, and it's apparent on this album as well.
But the good things? Well, they are there, and there are some great songs on here worthy if you like the band. The intro, of course, is fine, along with some of the other tracks, like Stay, Rapunzel (though the bridge jam part is boring), and The Last Stop. Crush is a great song, and it justifies the time length, which is what many of the songs should have been like, or at least an example: a variety, great jams like speaking, the like. Don't Drink The Water starts out great, though it kind of fades at the end with repetition. IT's not terrible, but there's a lot of material on this album not worth your time.
It's kind of sad really, that Dave Matthews Band would even be worse with the release of their next album, the craptastic everyday. You might like it more than I did, and I think you should at least check it out, along with their first albums.
5.5/10
