The Creation of Mr Jones: How Counting Crows Crafted Their Defining Song

The Lead Singer Remembers the Early Days

The initial four records were primarily recorded in houses located in the foothills above Los Angeles. Their debut major label album signified a major milestone for the band, as it was their inaugural release on a large record company. Each member got an advance of $3,000; with it, I to purchase a 1971 cherry red VW Karmann Ghia and traveled to LA.

Every morning, I would start by listening to Pickin’ Up the Pieces by Poco, which sounds like the Beatles exploring American folk. Also, I was into a Benny Goodman album that my dad had picked up as a complimentary item at a Texaco station during my childhood.

The song Mr Jones was included on a demo tape that we submitted to labels, but it proved a very difficult song to complete. We didn’t have a solid grasp at first. It’s not a slow ballad or a fast-paced rock song; rather, it gallops along, demanding a real feel to play. The style is soulful – more akin to the Memphis soul sound than folk.

The band’s drummer struggled to grasp the song as the rest of us did – so the producer brought in one of his idols to perform on it.

We looked at a few production candidates, but when I discussed things with T Bone Burnett, he seemed to understand where the band was at. We had a lot of promise, but I didn’t like with our overall tone – we hadn’t learned how to be a band. Eliminated all the synths and effects pedals. The drummer had trouble with the song’s rhythm, so T Bone invited a renowned drummer, one of Steve’s heroes, to play on it. Looking back, it’s amusing, but it was hard on Steve back then.

My best friend Marty and I performed in bands together prior to Counting Crows. His father, a flamenco musician, had succeeded in Spain and was back in the San Francisco area performing a series of shows. Attended one of his shows and hung out with the musicians bar-hopping. The next morning, I returned and composed the song. The lyrics reflect our experience that night, dreaming we were cool musicians so we could connect with the girls more confidently.

In my view, it’s one of the best songs I’ve ever written. We performed another track on Saturday Night Live in 1994, the record climbed dozens of positions weekly for five or six weeks. Afterwards, the song became a major success.

The Multi-Instrumentalist Recalls His Perspective

In the late 1980s, 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.

One evening, I found Adam with a new demo he’d just done with the guitarist. He played me this track titled Mr Jones. Recorded with a Dr Rhythm pocket drum machine that sounded like a video game or popcorn popping, but his vocals were on another level.

After the producer got involved, it was a total reinvention of Counting Crows. They shifted toward roots influenced by folk and soul legends.

Adam called me saying, “Hey, man, can you join us and play on this album?” When I arrived, the producer had moved us to a recording space in Encino, Los Angeles – formerly used by Tito Jackson. There were instruments that Dylan had just recorded on.

He instructed me to play my guitar slightly behind the drums. He said, “Playing too fast before the drums makes you sound like an teenager rushing.” With his southern accent, and his advice was to visualize relaxing on the mixing board and staying casual during the performance.

Counting Crows was, to an extent, a response to the grunge movement. The tragic end of Cobain felt like the final act. Back then, everyone used heroin. The aim was obliteration, not mind expansion. That negativity had gone too far, and the pendulum swung toward something more human and sincere. Counting Crows blended acoustic and electric with a strong influence of soulful vibes.

The song never gets old. Sometimes, when I am rocking out with the singer, I recall that moment when he first shared the demo. Absolutely incredible.