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"Proudest Monkey" | |
---|---|
Song by Dave Matthews Band | |
from the album Crash | |
Released | 1995 |
Recorded | Bearsville Studios, Woodstock, New York & Green Street Recording Studios, New York City, New York |
Genre | Rock |
Length | 9:11 |
Label | RCA |
Songwriter(s) | Carter Beauford, Stefan Lessard, Dave Matthews, LeRoi Moore, Boyd Tinsley |
Producer(s) | Steve Lillywhite |
"Proudest Monkey" is a song by the Dave Matthews Band, featured on the 1996 album Crash .
"Proudest Monkey" has its roots in a soundcheck done before the audience at a concert at Williams College on December 11, 1993. The band arrived two hours late for the concert due to becoming lost on an alternate route they were forced to take when a snowstorm struck. As a result, the band jammed the music that would later become "Proudest Monkey" to test their equipment, with Matthews making up lyrics on the spot. This performance was labeled "Route 2" by tapers, after the road the band used to reach the gig.
Matthews kept that experience in mind when reworking the lyrics to the song, establishing the image of the monkey as a metaphor for the entrapment he and the band were feeling at the time (both the literal, in being trapped on a bus in the snowy mountains; and the symbolic, in being trapped in a seemingly endless cycle of repetitive performing, and thus feeling limited in their music). Matthews wrote about monkeys later in songs like "Big Eyed Fish", "Shake Me Like a Monkey" and the unreleased "Monkey Man".
After a number of teases and partial performances, "Proudest Monkey" debuted proper on December 29, 1994 during a show at the Grady Cole Center in Charlotte, North Carolina, albeit with unfinished lyrics. The song would make appearances at shows throughout 1995, gradually evolving into the extended jam form that it would take when it was recorded for Crash.
While the song was a staple of Matthews's tours with Tim Reynolds until 1999, the song remained one of the rarer tracks to appear in concert with the full band after 1995, though it did see some play during the main tours by the band until 1999 as well. After that, it was played very sparingly, except for appearances at some shows in the summer of 2002. However, the addition of Rashawn Ross as a regular guest artist to the band's tours in 2006 resulted in the return to the touring rotation of a number of songs of which brass instruments were a key component; one of which was "Proudest Monkey", and the song enjoyed its most exposure in a full band setting since 1995.
Dave Matthews Band is an American rock band formed in Charlottesville, Virginia, in 1991. The band's founding members are singer-songwriter and guitarist Dave Matthews, bassist Stefan Lessard, drummer and backing vocalist Carter Beauford, violinist and backing vocalist Boyd Tinsley, and saxophonist LeRoi Moore. As of 2024, Matthews, Lessard, and Beauford are the only remaining founding members.
David John Matthews is an American musician and the lead vocalist, songwriter, and guitarist for the Dave Matthews Band (DMB). Matthews was born in Johannesburg, and moved frequently between South Africa, the United Kingdom, and the United States while growing up. He started playing acoustic guitar at the age of nine.
Live at Red Rocks 8.15.95 is an album by the Dave Matthews Band, released on October 28, 1997. It was recorded live at Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Morrison, Colorado on August 15, 1995. The album is known on the Internet by the abbreviation L@RR. The band's performance was during the third consecutive year at which they had played at the venue. Guitarist Tim Reynolds guested with the band during the entire show. Most of the songs featured were from the band's most recent album Under the Table and Dreaming. "Ants Marching," "Satellite," "Seek Up," "Recently," and "Tripping Billies" originally appeared on the band's first album, Remember Two Things, while "Proudest Monkey," "Two Step," "Lie in Our Graves," and "Drive In Drive Out" would not appear as studio recordings until the release of Crash in 1996. "#36" was later reworked into the song "Everyday," which was included on the album of the same name in 2001. Also included is the band's cover of "All Along the Watchtower."
Tim Reynolds is an American guitarist and multi-instrumentalist known as both a solo artist and as lead guitarist for the Dave Matthews Band. AllMusic critic MacKenzie Wilson has called Reynolds "an under-rated master".
Alpine Valley Music Theatre is a 30,000-capacity amphitheater located on County Highway D in East Troy, Wisconsin. The seasonal venue was built in 1977 and it features a characteristic wooden roof, covering the 7,500-seat pavilion and a sprawling lawn. It was the largest amphitheater in the United States until 1993, when the Glen Helen Pavilion was built in California.
"JTR" is a song by Dave Matthews Band from their unreleased album, The Lillywhite Sessions. The song originated from "John the Revelator," a song written by Dave Matthews with the help from Carlos Santana. Matthews and Santana wrote "John the Revelator" as a love song about someone calling out to their unattainable lover. The "John the Revelator" lines that originally appeared in the song were suggested by Santana who got the idea from the traditional gospel song of the same name.
Dave Matthews & Friends is an American jam band that was put together for a tour to support Dave Matthews' solo debut, Some Devil. Most of the musicians participated in the album's production. The band consists of:
The Gorge is a collection of the songs played during Dave Matthews Band's three-night concert in 2002 at The Gorge Amphitheatre in George, Washington. The album was released in a three-disc set featuring 2 CDs and a DVD with live footage, advanced multi-angle features, behind the scenes clips, and a music video. The DVD was directed by Fenton Williams of Filament Productions. The DVD was authored by Neil Matthews at Ascent Media in New York City. The entire three-night concert was also released online through the band's online store as an MP3 or FLAC download, or as a six-CD box set.
Rashawn Ross is an American trumpeter and arranger. His contributions in the Dave Matthews Band, as first a touring member and now a full-time member, have gained him visibility. Ross is an accomplished session musician. Ross has worked with artists in many different genres of music ranging from funk, pop, rock, jazz, hip hop, gospel and country music. Some of the notable artists whom Ross has supported include Yerba Buena, Soulive, Lettuce, The 1975, and DJ Quik.
"Halloween" is a song by Dave Matthews Band from the 1998 album Before These Crowded Streets. The song was originally released as a live track on their Recently EP in 1994. It debuted live on Halloween of 1992 and was originally titled "The Halloween Song." It opened the show, and included Kristen Asbury on vocals. The debut was different from newer versions of Halloween, and it is also the longest version of the song (12:07) to date.
"The Stone" is a Dave Matthews Band song from the album Before These Crowded Streets. A ballad about mistakes and forgiveness, it features distinct backing by the Kronos Quartet. It contains lush orchestrations which were arranged by trumpeter John D'earth.
"Anyone Seen the Bridge?" is an instrumental by the Dave Matthews Band, usually played as segue between two songs during a concert. It is an instrumental jam played by the entire band, with scat singing by Dave Matthews. Performances of the tune today typically are heard between "So Much to Say" and "Too Much," and last around a minute and a half. The tune has been very popular during concerts since its debut, and has currently been played live over 400 times.
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"Granny" is a song by Virginia-based jam band Dave Matthews Band. Though never released on an official studio album, "Granny" was dropped from the Under the Table and Dreaming sessions. This song was originally intended to be the first single from that album.
Live at Mile High Music Festival is a live album by the Dave Matthews Band from the 2008 Mile High Music Festival outside Denver, Colorado. In its first week of sales, the album debuted at #97 on the US charts. The concert featured many old songs such as "Don't Drink the Water", "Two Step" and "#41", as well as more recent songs such as "Corn Bread" and "Eh Hee".
Big Whiskey & the GrooGrux King is the seventh studio album by the American rock band Dave Matthews Band, which was released by RCA Records on June 2, 2009.
Europe 2009 is a live album and video release by the Dave Matthews Band from several 2009 concerts in Italy and London. The concert on the three CDs was held during the Lucca Summer Festival in Lucca, Italy, on July 5, 2009. The concert featured on the DVD was at Brixton Academy in London, on June 26, 2009. Tim Reynolds, who resumed touring with the band in 2008, appears on both the audio discs and the DVD.
Live in New York City is a live album by Dave Matthews Band recorded on July 17, 2010 at Citi Field in Queens. The album was recorded on the second night of a two night stint at the venue. Released on two CDs, the show contains a mix of new surprises and older fan favorites.
Live at Wrigley Field is a live album by Dave Matthews Band recorded on September 18, 2010, at Wrigley Field in Chicago. The album was recorded on the second night of a two night stint at the venue. Most notably, this performance was the last on the band's 2010 Summer tour, and 2011 touring hiatus. It is also their final official live album to date. The album reached number 49 in the Billboard 200 chart.
"Madman's Eyes" is a song by American jam band Dave Matthews Band. It was released on January 24, 2023, as the lead single from their tenth studio album Walk Around the Moon. The song was first played live by the band in 2021.
Delancey, Morgan (2001). The Dave Matthews Band: Step Into the Light . ECW Press. ISBN 1-55022-443-3.