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Adam Duritz

Here are some interesting facts about Adam Duritz, better known as the lead singer of the rock band "Counting Crows".


(Photo: Fanart.TV)


= Adam Fredric Duritz was born on August 1, 1964, in Baltimore, Maryland.


= He is of Jewish descent.


= He co-founded "Counting Crows" in San Francisco, Bay Area, California, in 1991 with producer/guitarist David Bryson.


= The same year he released the first demo tape with "Counting Crows".


= In 1992 the band signed a lucrative deal with "Geffen Records" after a bidding war between nine different record labels.


= In 1993 "Counting Crows" released their debut album, "August and Everything After," which featured the hit singles "Mr. Jones", "Round Here", "Rain King", "A Murder of One" and more. Duritz wrote most of the songs on the album.




= In 1994 "August and Everything After" reached multi-platinum status, boosting the band's popularity, selling more than 7 million copies in the United States alone.


= After the overnight multi-platinum success of the debut album, Adam decided to find a real job to help keep his head clear after the suicide of Kurt Cobain. He bartended at The "Viper Room" in Hollywood, which was still owned by Johnny Depp at the time.


= In 1996 he released the second "Counting Crows" album, "Recovering the Satellites." Again Duritz was the main writer of the songs, including "A Long December", which he wrote after his friend was hit by a motorist and injured.



= In 1997 he co-founded the record label "E Pluribus Unum" and had signed Joe 90, "Gigolo Aunts", and Neilson Hubbard.


= In 1988 the band released "Across a Wire: Live in New York City" - a double-live album, featuring songs from their first two albums, and a previously unreleased hidden track, "Chelsea".


= In 1999 he released "This Desert Life," the third studio album with "Counting Crows". The song "Colorblind" was in the soundtrack of "Cruel Intentions" and the non-album track "Baby, I'm a Big Star Now" was in the soundtrack of the movie "Rounders".


= In 2002 "Counting Crows" released "Hard Candy," featuring the hit "Big Yellow Taxi" with Vanessa Carlton.




= In 2004 Duritz co-wrote and performed the song "Accidentally in Love" for the Shrek 2 soundtrack, earning an Academy Award nomination and a BMI Award.


= Known for their live performance and unique live versions for their songs "Counting Crows" released their second live album "New Amsterdam - Live at Heineken Music Hall" in 2006.


= In 2007 Adam launched the record label "Tyrannosaurus Records".


= In 2008 "Counting Crows" released "Saturday Nights & Sunday Mornings," their fifth studio album. The album was divided into two sides: the rock music of Saturday Nights and the more country-influenced Sunday Mornings.


= In 2012 Duritz released "Underwater Sunshine (Or What We Did on Our Summer Vacation)," a cover album with "Counting Crows".


= In 2013 the band released their third live album "Echoes of the Outlaw Roadshow", It was available for purchase in pre-orders for tickets to their co-headlining tour with "The Wallflowers".


= In 2014 he released "Somewhere Under Wonderland," the seventh studio album with "Counting Crows" - the band's first album of original material in six years.


= In 2018 he co-founded the "Underwater Sunshine" Music Festival.


= The same year "Counting Crows" toured to celebrate the 25th anniversary of their debut album.



= In 2021 he released the EP "Butter Miracle, Suite One" with "Counting Crows".


= Duritz briefly dated actress Jennifer Aniston in 1995.


= This wouldn't be the only "Friends" actor that Duritz dated. In 1997, he was in a brief relationship with Courteney Cox after she starred in the "Counting Crows'" "A Long December" music video.


= He has a sister named Nicole, who is mentioned in his song "Children in Bloom."


= He has had a long-time close friendship with actress Mary-Louise Parker. Their birthdays are a day apart: she was born on August 2, 1964.


= Adam Duritz has been open about his struggles with mental health and is a mental health advocate. He has dissociative mental health issues, disclosed publicly in 2008.


= Adam Duritz has collaborated with "The Wallflowers" on the album "Bringing Down the Horse" on the track "6th Avenue Heartache".


= He also collaborated with "Live" on their album "V" singing backing vocals on "Flow".


(Photo: Fanart.TV)


= Duritz collaborated with other various artist like Ryan Adams, Peter Stuart, "Dashboard Confessional", Maria Taylor, and Nanci Griffith.


= He has a keen interest in wine and launched his own wine label called "Elyseum". In 2018, Duritz became an investor in three wineries based in Napa Valley.


= Duritz was an executive producer for the film "The Locusts" and produced the ensemble comedy film "Freeloaders." He also appeared in the 2007 mockumentary film "Farce of the Penguins."


= In August 2019, he traveled to London and shave his dreadlocks, which he had worn since the formation of "Counting Crows".


= Since its founding in 1991, "Counting Crows" has sold over 20 million records.


= Dutitz released seven studio albums with them that have been certified gold or platinum.


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