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I won't get too much into detail here about my love of DMB but perhaps might due that after next weekends concert. His music is a unique blend of darkness yet also an uplifting celebration of life. His lyrics are poetic, his voice is passionate, and his backed up by a unique array of musicians. The DMB sound is unlike any other music, quite worldly with it's infusion of keyboard, drums, bass, guitar, and the fiddle. I would consider his music a fusion of rock, jazz, folk, indie, jam, and even a bit of swamp rock. I really can't compare any other musician to his style and for that reason he stands as one of my favorites. So here is my well thought out list of my top 50 favorite DMB songs.
Top 50 Favorite Dave Matthews Songs
50. Pantala Naga Pampa
- Album: Before these Crowded Streets (1998)
- Significance: It's one of DMB's shortest songs at only 41 seconds but has such a blissful melody. It's mostly instrumental but Dave does deliver an orgasmic line where he welcomes everyone to relax and set aside their troubles. I could see this song used as opening welcome to any live show.
- Album: Crash
- Notable Live Performances:
- United Center 1998
- Red Rocks 2005
- Wrigley Field 2010
- Significance: It is more of an instrumental song, carried by Leroy Moore's saxophone and some good percussion by Carter Beauford. However Dave does provide a lyrical message pertaining to a lover. He describes how perhaps he was a bit too shy around her, and wishes he could have a 2nd chance with her saying that he will be waiting for her.
- Album: Under the Table Dreaming (1994)
- Notable Live Performances:
- Red Rocks 1995
- Central Park 2003
- Citi Field 2010
- Significance: The song is one of the more popular playful songs by the band, where Dave is describing alternate realities. He also describes the ups and downs of life, and despite the dark clouds that often appear he will get thru it. It's a very playful song with great jam sessions, and Dave will often add his current location to the opening of the song at live performances.
- Album: Busted Stuff (2002)
- Significance: It's an uplifting song about dreaming and hoping for the best. Rather than wasting away we should have a positive outlook of life and make the most of every moment. It's a catchy melody by Dave and the band.
- Album: Stand Up (2005)
- Significance: It's probably one of the more main stream overplayed songs but I still like it. The song is fairly simple to comprehend about a person so deep in love it feels like he is in a dream. It's one of his many very romantic and sexual songs about love. It also has a very nice dreamlike melody to it. I can't help but remember the music video for this song with Julia Roberts.
- Album: Everyday (2001)
- Significance: One of the bands more mainstream songs I think it has a nice slow rhythm and harmony to it. I think the song is about an up-and-down relationship and the mind games that often happen. Despite all this drama however, the person accepts that he needs her more than anything because she is his angel.
- Album: Before These Crowded Streets (1998)
- Significance: This is one of Dave's more popular overplayed songs but still has to make it on this list. It has a very soothing romantic quality to it, where just as the title suggests Dave is reflecting on a lover. It has a very summer quality to it, about dancing, drinking, sleeping all day, and driving all night. The song also has some great instrumental pieces throughout it.
- Cover Song by Bob Dylan/Jimi Hendrix(1968)
- Notable Live Performances:
- Central Park 2003
- Piedmont Park 2007
- Red Rocks 1995
- Citi Field 2010
- Significance: It is a great cover by the band of the iconic Bob Dylan/Jimi Hendrix song. It begins quite slow as Dave describes the confusion and lack of relief perhaps in reference to the Vietnam War. Half way into the song, Dave delivers a long sustained note about the hour being late. At this point the real jamming and rock and roll get going. The song is loaded with shouts and cries from Dave, ideal for an outdoor concert venue.
42. Old Dirt HIll
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2. Proudest Monkey
1. The Maker
- Album: Stand Up (2005)
- Significance: Dave explains at the Radio City Hall session that this song is about wanting to return to the nostalgia of being a young boy again. It has a catchy upbeat tune in which he explains his childhood and wishing he could return to it.
- Album: Under the Table Dreaming (1994)
- Significance: It is a slower song by DMB where he contemplates a lost lover. Everyone asks him how she's doing since she went away, and Dave says he doesn't know. At that he utters the main line "You Pay for what you get". I suppose this could be in reference to his lack of judgement or action in the relationship. It has such a nice melody to it.
- Album: Under the Table Dreaming (1994)
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- Live Performances:
- Central Park 2003
- Gorge Amphitheatre 2002
- Significance: It is a feel good song by the band pertaining to unconditional love. While the title mentions granny it really has nothing to do with a grandmother, yet rather about the love that keeps us going. It's an iconic fun song by the band with a very uplifting message.
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- Album: Crash
- Notable Live Performances:
- Red Rocks 2005
- Comerica Park Detroit 2000
- Significance: It's a very beautiful song with great instrumental arrangements by the flute and percussion. The song is about having a one time fling, maybe even an affair with someone, but then parting ways and saying goodbye. The lovers agree to make the most of the night and tomorrow they can go back to being friends. Another poetic song by Dave pertaining to living in the moment.
- Album: Under the Table Dreaming
- Notable Liver Performances:
- Red Rocks 1995
- Central Park 2003
- Piedmont Park 2007
- Significance: It is one of the band's more iconic songs with it's fiery fiddling from Boyd Tinsley. The song is a reference to humanity working and living everyday like little ants marching together. I think Dave is urging us to wake up from our daily chores and routines and celebrate life more. It's yet another fun and playful song performed by the full band arrangement.
- Album: Busted Stuff (2002)
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- Notable Live Performances:
- Fenway Park 2006
- Radio City Hall 2007
- Significance: One of Dave's more melancholic songs he is reflecting on yet another heartbreak. He is talking to the bartender, asking for another drink to help take the emotional pain away. He hopes that in drinking it will wash away his misery and memories of his past love. It's a slow acoustic song, with great vocals from Dave.
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- Album: Under the Table Dreaming (1994)
- Significance: The song is mostly instrumental carried by a very nice saxophone melody by LeRoy Moore. The lyrics come later in the song where Dave is just peacefully laying back with someone else and reflecting on a good day. Once again another very positive and soothing song about enjoying life.
- Album: Some Devil (2003)
- Significance: Another dark song by Dave pertaining to death and mortality. The message is quite simple to live life to the fullest because it can end at any moment. He gives various examples of people whose life ended too soon, and appeals to the gravedigger.
- Album: Everyday (2002)
- Significance: A song that is fairly simple to comprehend about friendship and love. A love that makes you feel so alive you want to dance. It is one of Dave's many uplifting happy songs. It also has a catchy upbeat melody and ideal for the full band jam arrangement.
- Album: Under the Table Dreaming (1994)
- Significance: It's a slower reflective song, with great instrumental and vocals. The song is about society's standards and how everyone shares a common ideal of happiness. I think Dave is criticizing this conformist structure that lacks individuality. It has a unique style and was probably one of my earlier favorite songs of Dave.
- Album: Under the Table and Dreaming (1994)
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- Notable Live Performances:
- Central Park 2003
- Wrigley Field 2010
- Significance: This is one of Dave's feel good songs about getting high and enjoying life. He explains his desire to float and chill thru the good days and the bad days. It's a fun song performed by the band and also opens up for some great jamming at the live performances.
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- Album: Remember Two Things (1993)
- Notable Live Performances:
- Central Park 2003
- Fenway Park 2006
- Piedmont Park 2007
- Citi Field 2010
- Significance: It is a great live song by Dave with it's opening intro. The song is a simple celebration of the beauty and happiness of life and the world we live on. However what really makes the song special is the full band arrangement that often opens up for some great jamming. It's a feel good summertime song.
- Album: Busted Stuff (2002)
- Significance: This is a unique song by Dave with a message that the grass is not always greener on the other side. He gives various examples and stories about a fish wanting to live out of the sea, a man not wanting to breath, and a monkey wanting to escape from his tree. It's a rather simple yet quite melodic song and as per usual he finishes with some great sustained notes.
- Album: Crash
- Notable Live Performances
- Red Rocks 1995
- Gorge Amphitheatre 2002
- Radio City Hall 2007
- Significance: It's yet another morbid song where Dave questions how we can lie in our graves thinking about lost opportunities. It is yet another example of the many Dave songs that encourage people to live a life to the fullest without any regrets. What's especially great about this song is the long jam session in the middle. The version with Tim Reynolds fast picking guitar work is quite sublime.
- Notable Performances:
- Radio City Hall 2007
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- Significance: This is obviously a song about his sister (not the one that was murdered but the younger one). Dave has explained before that when they were kids they joked about swapping hearts. The song explains how Dave and his sister can feel one another's emotions. It's a powerful connection and special song to his sister. It has a very soft and peaceful melody to it.
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- Album: Everyday (2001)
- Notable Live Performances:
- Central Park 2003
- Folsom Field 2001
- Significance: Another of Dave's morbid songs he is stating that he is not afraid of death since he has found love. He states he will be laying in bed with his lover, smoking a joint, and not to worry about a thing. It's a great vocal song with a very hopeful message and several references to getting high . This seems to be a common theme by Dave, not fearing his mortality but living every day to the fullest.
- Album: Remember Two Things (1993)
- Notable Live Performances:
- Red Rocks 1995
- Citi Field 2010
- Significance: It's one of Dave's more somber songs that despite all the events and feelings we go thru we all will eventually die. We seek up emotions to distract us from this harsh reality. We also turn to material possessions to make us happy. It's no doubt a melancholic song, but still has such a powerful delivery. It's a great band arrangement and brings out some great sustained cries from Dave.
- Album: Crash (1996)
- Notable Live Performances:
- Radio City Hall 2007
- Citi Field 2010
- Wrigley Field 2010
- Significance: It is Dave's most popular song and played the most frequently but I still find it to be a very beautiful song. It refers to someone so madly in love that he feels like a kid again. Despite it's theme of feeling like a young innocent boy, the song is actually laced with some heavy sexuality. I think the term crash into me, is about the two having sex. Aside from it's romantic lyrics Dave also sings this one with great melody.
- Album: Come Tomorrow (2018)
- Significance: It's actually one of the newest songs of Dave that I enjoy. It has such a powerful melody welcoming joy. Dave annunciates every word in the song with such heartfelt passion. I think its about a new birth or perhaps a new happy chapter in one's life, maybe a marriage. Dave is also reminding us to never forget these new moments of heightened happiness. It's such a positive jubilant song.
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- Album: Remember Two Things (1993)
- Significance: The song is named after Dave's younger sister Jane. It is a very upbeat happy song about playing and having a good time with friends. This song hit a special place for me when I saw it performed live in 2012. I remember having such an incredible time with my friends dancing and singing in the lawn while this song was playing.
- Album: Some Devil (2003)
- Significance: It's a very deep and mysterious song on Dave's solo album where he is reflecting on a relationship that is at an end. He remembers the good times but also comes to terms that they must go their separate ways. The song demonstrates the perplexity of bringing an end to a powerful relationship. It has a very nice melody to it.
- Album: Under the Table and Dreaming (1994)
- Significance: The song has one of the most recognizable guitar rifts and is one of the more popular of the DMB songs. The meaning is quite vague and I've always taking it a song about an all watching eye in sky that sees everything. I think Dave is pointing out how we live in an age of technology, communication, weather forecasts, and no more privacy. I've also seen theories that the song is just a playful take on the some, "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star". Aside from it's abstract lyrics the song is very well done.
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- Cover of song by Allman Brothers (1972)
- Performed by Dave and Greg Allman at the Piedmont Park concert 2007
- Significance: The song is a beautiful melody written by the Allman Brothers with a folksy country rock style. Greg Allman opens with the first verse, but Dave comes in with a beautiful 2nd verse. As usual with Dave cover songs he stills the spotlight with his heartfelt voice.
- Album: Some Devil (2003)
- Significance: This is one of Dave's solo songs I really enjoy for it's tune and great vocals. Dave is once again in a perplexing and reflective state thinking about life in general. He gives several examples of what we think we know is often wrong. Such as the world being flat. I believe his final message is that we really don't know anything and that life is a total mystery. It's one of many engimatics song with a very nice melody.
- Album: Before these Crowded Streets (1998)
- Notable Live Performances:
- Central Park 2003
- Piedmont Park 2007
- Citi Field 2010
- Significance: It's another staple for live shows, with it's upbeat celebratory rhythm. It's another song about love, not wanting to leave your partner because every moment is so enjoyable. The band usually gets into some good jamming and it's a fun summer song that just makes you want to cut loose.
- Album: Busted Stuff (2002)
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- Notable Live Performances:
- Central Park 2003
- Fenway Park 2006
- Wrigley Field 2010
- Significance: The song is about a woman dealing with depression and loneliness, looking for a way to get out of it. Everything to her is the color grey and it breaks her heart. Its another powerful song with Dave's driving deep voice and the full ensemble of the band. It's an ideal song for live performances carried by Leroy's saxophone.
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- Album: Before these Crowded Streets (1998)
- Notable Live Performances:
- Folsom Field 2001
- Central Park 2003
- Piedmont Park 2007
- Significance: It's a jamming powerful song with great sustained notes from Dave that echo throughout the concert venues. The line of there being blood in the water, is a reference to the violent purge of Native Americans. Aside from it's somber lyrics Dave drives this song with great passion and loud cries. The band often opens with this song as was the case for the Central Park concert in 2003.
- Album: Busted Stuff (2002)
- Notable Live Performances:
- Folsom Field 2001
- Madison Square Garden 2002
- Wrigley Field 2010
- Significance: It is one of Dave's slower songs with a very nice guitar rift to it. Dave is once again in a reflective state here enjoying his peaceful dreamlike thoughts. He explains how he can bury his worries and troubles away into this ditch. There's some theories that it might be a reference to getting high and just passing the time. It certainly has the mellow feel of someone in a peaceful trance. It is one of my early favorite songs of Dave.
- Album: Away from the World (2012)
- Significance: I remember first hearing this song when I saw Dave live with my friends and it was one of my favorite songs of the show. Maybe it was the lighting or just good times with the friends but I found it to be jamming. The song is about lost love, a person reflecting on someone who got away. I think it has a very catchy melody and ideal for some great jamming.
- Cover Song of Neil Young (1975)
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- Live Performance: Dave Matthews Band and Warren Haynes (2003)
- Significance: This live cover version was performed at the Central Park concert in 2003, with the guest appearance from Warren Haynes. The song is about the Spanish conqueror Cortez and how he ruined the beautiful and peaceful life of the Incas. This performance has great vocals by Dave Matthews with incredible guitar jamming by Warren Hayes.
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- Album: Some Devil (2003)
- Significance: This is my favorite song from Dave's solo album "Some Devil". He explains it's meaning at the Radio City show with Tim Reynolds. It's about that flashing moment when you realize you are about to take on some pain, and then afterwards feel so grateful to still be alive. It's one of those songs where you count your blessings and give thanks for everything. Dave is poetically celebrating this rush of blood and how amazing it is to feel alive.
- Album: Before These Crowded Streets (1998)
- Significance: This is a beautiful yet another of Dave's more somber songs. The dreaming tree represents desire and happiness, and how we long to possess and grow this tree throughout our lives. But eventually the tree dies and we must move on. I think the song represents the harsh reality of life, in which we all must deal with hardships, loss, and grief. The song has great instrumental pieces, sustained echoes, and heavenly flutes towards it's close.
- Album: Before These Crowded Streets (1998)
- Significance: It is yet another peaceful, powerful, and very poetic songs. It has a great banjo arrangement and features Alanis Morrissette providing backup vocals and great harmony with Dave. The song is yet another Christian interpretation of Jesus reflecting on his death with his father while he's stirring his coffee. He asks God why he was hung out to dry for the sins of all humanity. He comes to terms with it all by laughing out loud. The closing outro of the song features a very uplifting response from God, welcoming his son from the cold and telling him everything will be alright. This is truly a powerful and inspirational song by Dave.
- Album: Crash (1996)
- Notable Live Versions: Virginia Beach 2010
- Significance: One of the many songs by Dave pertaining to race and discrimination. It is a reference to the apartheid of South Africa, but also pertains to the desired equality of all humanity. I think the lyrics are so poetic, and challenge us to not be naïve and ignorant. This is another great passionate melody by Dave.
- Cover Song of Jimmy Buffet (1974)
- Live Performance: Kouka Festival 2008
- Significance: This is a covered song in which Dave Matthews and Tim Reynolds join Jack Johnson on stage(another favorite musician of mine). Jack Johnson has such an iconic mellow Hawaiian style, but it's Dave's singing that really takes the song to a whole new level. It's about a smuggling pirate who comes to terms with the fun and wild life he lived but as he approaches forty he has nothing or no one to show for it. Jack and Dave harmonize great in this song, and Dave's sustainment of the word "weed" is great stuff.
- Album: Before These Crowded Streets (1998)
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- Notable Live Versions:
- Red Rocks (2005)
- Citi Field (2010)
- Significance: This is another of Dave's darker songs that finds an uplifting light towards the end. There is someone who has done something wrong and is struggling with his consciousness but seeks the support of someone else. I think the positive message here is to not walk thru life alone but to find support. Once again Dave closes with great sustained notes and heart felt deep cries, ideal for a large audience. It's a powerful song.
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- Album: Under the Dreaming Tree (1994)
- Significance: It's perhaps one of Dave's most romantic songs, a true embodiment of summer love. It poetically details two lovers kissing and laying together with each other. It's a softer song but so melodic and song beautifully by Dave especially at it's close where they are chasing each other around in circles.
- Album: Busted Stuff (2002)
- Notable Live Versions:
- Folsom Field 2001
- Red Rocks 2005
- Fenway Park 2006
- Radio City 2007
- Significance: Another of many Christian spiritual songs by Dave, this is a reference to someone who is trying to find peace with God. He longs for a glass of wine that will set him free of all his sins. Aside from it's powerful lyrics it also has incredible sustained noted by Dave at the backend of the song. He truly displays an angelic quality towards the end with a mixture of passionate shouting yet melodic pleas.
- Album: Crash (1996)
- Notable Live Versions
- Central Park 2003
- Piedmont Park 2007
- Red Rocks 1995
- Significance: Another one of the heavy rocking songs by the band and a must for the live shows. The songs is about two lovers coming together to celebrate life despite it being short. The reference of two step may be to Noah's Ark, where the animals climb onboard two by two. This could refer to the short life of the lovers, but the hopeful future of life. I think the song is a very joyful one and puts great hope in the sweetness of life as well as it's future.
- Album: Under the Table Dreaming (1994)
- Notable Live Versions:
- Central Park 2003
- Red Rocks Amphitheatre 1995
- Significance: This is usually a must for every DMB live concert and is probably one of their most rocking songs. The buildup is quite incredible with it's powerful strings provided by Boyd Tinsley. The lyrics are quite dark however as it is a reference of someone slipping away from life and into death. The warehouse represents the person's life perhaps mundane and overworked. Dave is explaining how death might not be so bad, but later comes to realize the warehouse isn't so bad after all. While it's a morbid topic, its a very fun and celebratory song.
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- Album: Crash (1996)
- Notable Live Versions:
- Red Rocks 1995
- Gorge Amphitheatre 2002
- Citi Field 2010
- Significance: Another great live song by DMB, it tells the story of a monkey who decides to escape from his jungle and take on the big city. He later realizes that the big city isn't all it's made out to be, and that his life was quite good in the jungle. This is a reference to enjoying the more simple things in life. The song has a building melody with great sustained notes from Dave. I find it to be a very fun and happy song with a great saxophone segment by Leroy.
- Cover Song written by Daniel Lanois (1989)
- Notable Live Versions:
- United Center Chicago: Dec 1998
- Radio City Music Hall: April 2007
- Significance: It has a very powerful spiritual theme to it, where the singer is searching for the divine creator. It is no doubt a reference to Christianity as it mentions John Baptist, the fields of Abraham, and the lands east of Eden. I believe it to be a song of praise and finding peace with the afterlife. Dave performs it on various live occasions with such beautiful passion.
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