The Best of What's Around

This month’s induction into the Scooter Hall of Fame is by a band I love so much, I devoted a whole week to celebrate the band’s latest album last year. But SHoF honor goes to the album that started it all, Under the Table and Dreaming. The band of course is the Dave Matthews Band. The band came from the south just as grunge was dying and rock fans were looking for something new, and things don’t get much more different than having a full time violinist and sax man.

It took me a while to be sold on DMB because I really didn’t care too much for the first single, What Would You Say as I found it a little too odd. But as each subsequent single was released, Ants Marching followed by Satellite, the band grew on my more. Eventually a buddy of mine got me the album for my birthday and I was blown away. The interchanging of the different instrumentation was refreshing and the melodies were so well crafted you never realize that most of the songs clock in at over five minutes.

The album starts off with what still remains as one of my favorite songs, The Best of What’s Around. The song start what seems to be the common theme of the album, no matter how bad things get, you still have me, and I still have you so let’s live life to the fullest. And whenever you want to go a little further with a lady friend, you can always bust out the line, “See, you and me have a better time than most can dream, have it better than the best.” Further along on the album is Dancing Nancies, a clever ditty pondering your life as someone else then realizing the one you have is good enough.

Ants Marching is a great song that I would always put on whenever my life got too monotonous. It always reminds me never to get in a rut or I’d become another marching ant on the sidewalk. Jimi Thing is just on of those songs you need to play in the summertime blaring in your car with the windows down. The song was the highlight of my first ever DMB concert. Then near the end is the best song on the album, Warehouse, a song that has only gotten better with age. If you are lucky, they will play this the next time you go to one of there concerts so you can go “woo” at the beginning. The album caps off with the instrumental #34, which is also the track number, a song is a light, moving song, that plays as a lullaby to the album.

Dave Matthews Band has gone on to make many more album, all of which I own, including most of there live ones, although Under the Table and Dreaming still remains their best. To look a look back at my special DMB Week here are the links to those pages:

Ranking the Albums
My History
Best Songs
Best Live Albums
Stand Up Album Review