Counting Crows
With David Rosales & His Band of Scoundrels
Butter Miracle Tour
Pacific Amphitheater, Costa Mesa
July 27, 2022
Photos and Review by JULIE ANN SHAW
COSTA MESA, Ca. – On my way to see Counting Crows at the Pacific Amphitheater, I was more excited than I had been in a long time. After all, I’d been counting down the days until I could see one of my favorite bands, having not seen them since they co-headlined with Live back when I was in high school. That was the show that helped shape my obsession with music.
Opening for Counting Crows was Huntington Beach-based band, David Rosales & His Band of Scoundrels. What an incredible and fun way to start the evening, Davis Rosales & His Band of Scoundrels were upbeat, cheery, joyful, and obviously had the best time on stage.
Once the sun had set and we all had a chance to enjoy the fair food right outside the venue entrance, Counting Crows, Adam Duritz (vocals), David Bryson (guitar), David Immerglück (guitar), Millard Powers (bass), Dan Vickery (guitar), Charlie Gillingham (keyboards, piano), and Jim Bogios (drums), took the stage. They opened with “Recovering The Satellites,” which immediately inspired the crowd to cheer and sing along, even the fans who, due to the sheer amount of people packed into the venue, were still making their way to their seats.
“Hard Candy” came next, and by the time they were 30 seconds into the song, I could not find a single face without a smile on it. Things really turned up when Counting Crows played the first couple of notes of the next song, “Mr. Jones,” which brought the entire venue to their feet. I must admit, I had a hard time photographing during this song because all I wanted to do was sing it with Duritz and the rest of the venue. One of my favorite moments of the night was because of Immerglück, who was having the best time playing to the crowd and to my camera, and he put the biggest smile on my face. Thank you, David.
They continued with “Colorblind” before Duritz took a few minutes to regale us with a fun accidote about the next song, “Butterfly In Reverse”, which is one of Duritz’s favorite songs, but rarely played until his girlfriend refused to let up about putting the song back into their regular setlist. Another of my all time old school favorites came next, “Omaha”, followed by “Miami” and “Palisades Park”. Duritz took another moment to explain to the audience that the next song, “Washington Square”, is about his neighborhood, and the pain of returning to it, as well as the pain of leaving it.
The rest of the set included “The Tall Grass,” “Elevator Boots,” “Angel Of 14th Street,” “Bobby And The Rat-Kings,” and “Rain King.” The final song of the set was my all time favorite song of theirs, the one song that always makes me feel everything all at once and forever. For “A Long December,” Duritz sang and played the piano so beautifully that to describe it as “moving” would be a disservice to his remarkable talent. Immerglück also took this opportunity to show off his incredible skill on the mandolin.
Sadly, all good things must come to an end, and this night ended with two encores. The first encore was “Round Here,” which was absolutely perfect in every way. The final song of the night, which was bittersweet, was “Hanginround.”