Cracker: Why Radio Stations Didn't Want to Play 'Low', But David Lowery Saved The Day
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- Опубликовано: 8 янв 2023
- Why radio stations didn't want to play Cracker's 'Low'
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#cracker #teenangst #campervanbeethoven
I cite my sources and they may differ than other people's accounts, so I don't guarantee the actual accuracy of my videos.
Cracker would be formed in the early 90’s and be born out of the ashes of another band Camper Van Beethoven who had a cult following, had a record deal with Virgin and even opened for REM, but musical differences led to the band dissolving in 1989. It was following the dissolution of the band frontman David Lowery would reconnect with an old friend named Johnny Hickman and the two began work on some new music and with Lowery still under contract with Virgin they soon took the songs to the label and got a recording deal. The band would release self titled debut record in 1992 and while it sold a respectable ¼ of a million copies thanks to the single teen angst which topped the modern rock charts. But it would be the band’s follow up album Kerosene Hat that would be the band’s commercial peak thanks to the song Low. However the song almost never made it onto radio stations because of it’s lyrical content. Today let’s talk about the history of the song Low.
A musical salad of ska, polka, folk, 60’s psychadliec rock with flavours of middle eastern music, the band Camper van Beethoven music would in sharp contrast to Cracker which was more straigh forward rock n’ roll.
Despite some calling Lowery a sell out for abandoning his indie roots to write more commercial It would be his longtime hidden musical tastes that served as inspiration for Lowery and Hickman’s new project telling LA Times
“For years I was in this semi-famous ‘alternative rock’ band,” “And people would go, ‘What are your influences?’ So I’d usually start at about the punk-rock era . . . and edit out a lot of things. You don’t tell people, ‘Secretly, I listen to the first four Tom Petty records over and over again.’
“You don’t tell people that (ZZ Top’s) ‘Tres Hombres’ is a great record. I remember talking about Led Zeppelin a few times in the earlier Camper days, and the reaction was always, ‘God, you like this horrible ‘70s bombastic thing?
The single Low would be borne out a soundcheck at a with Hickman telling Spin
We were soundchecking in Portland, all a little bit hungover, and I was just making noise. I started looping that riff over and over, and David and Davy got up and started playing it, too. We kept playing until we had four chords and David asked the front-of-the-house guy to record it. I probably would have forgotten that riff if it had not been recorded.? By the band’s own admission they never thought it would ever be a single but the record label pushed for the band to release it.
The song would peak at number 3 on the modern rock charts and 64 on the pop charts.The music vidoe show in black and white was mostly memorable because of Lowery’s boxing match with actress and comedian Sandra Bernard. Lowery would tell the buffalo news "I didn't want it to look like a Blind Melon video," "I'm a different person than those people, I grew up in a different era, in a different place. To me, the video represents the song really well . . . it's a song about an obsession with a woman, comparing it to an addiction."
The idea to feature the actress and comedian would come from the director of the video who interviewed lowery ahead of the shoot with him recalling to SPin “Carlos Grasso, the director, is half-Italian and half-Mexican and he just can’t help getting really abstract and theoretical. He interviewed me about “Low,” and finally decided it was a battle between my masculine and feminine side. He asked who would be my feminine other and I said, “I dunno, Sandra Bernhard?” Someone really sarcastic, snarky, gangly. He’s like, “Great, we’ll call her up and see if she wants to box you.”?
Initially Bernhard said she would only do the shoot if she liked the song and she ended up loving it and agreed to do it.
But the song also landed the band in some hot water. Due to numerous drug references the head of the band’s label forced David Lowery to write a letter to radio stations denying the song had anything to do with drugs with the frontman telling Spin Michael Plen, the label’s head of rock radio and a longtime Camper and Cracker supporter, made me write a letter about that to pass out to radio stations. It was practically an affidavit, swearing that the phrase was actually “being stone” - not “stoned.” 
Видеоклипы
"Low" is one of the greatest 90s songs. I still love it.
Oh, me too. The song is fucking awesome.😊
For me,as soon as the singing starts in 'Low' you realize what the 90's was about.🤟
Yes along with Possum kingdom
@Sub if you are against antifa and BLM I started out as an 80s fan, but the 90s grabbed me at the time being homesick to Seattle (my parents had moved to to FL). So I really embraced the music scene at the time.
@@subifyouareagainstantifaan3928 I could probably find 1,000 people who think your favorite band is "not music." All blanket statements are immature and stupid.
Nice to meet the face behind the voice, I adore your music content!
Dude looks credible.
Yo I was so confused when I realized this was the narrator lol
I came to say something. But you have it covered nicely
Yeah, it’s cool that he has come out showing himself
This song is one of the staples of my 90s.
I'm 68 years old and absolutely love Cracker. The sextet they've been touring as is fantastic. I go to see them whenever they hit Upstate NY. I had no idea who they were but there was a catchy, bouncy bass line that CBS used to use as background when they were announcing the upcoming NCAA Men's Basketball tournament. It was only a few seconds long but it grabbed me I would attempt to vocally reproduce to my younger friends in hopes that they could tell me who it was. I drew blanks. Then while driving through the mountains of Central Pennsylvania Euro-Trash Girl came on the radio. The radio kept coming and going and I never found out who performed it. Then on a whim I purchased Kerosene Hat and Take Me down to the Infirmary latched on so I had to get some more. On my first listen to their 1st album there it was. Get Off This provided the bass run which I had been searching for. Good thing that my younger friends are more useful in other pursuits. " Get off this
And get on with it
If you wanna change the world
Shut your mouth and start to spin it
Get off this
Get on with it
If you wanna change the world
Shut your mouth, shut your mouth, yeah"
Yessir!! Thanks for sharing!
I always thought it said:
If you want to change the world, shut your mouth and start this minute
Either way, love the song and the band
Edit: apparently both lyrics are contained in the song ( I just looked it up. You are correct in that part that you quoted.
I think that I was just so impressed with the ‘ start this minute ‘ lyric that I never guessed that there was a different phrasing in other parts of the song. Love it
Here’s the history of Cracker video I did today ruclips.net/video/B3OpNAhFRUQ/видео.html
Here’s a new format I’m experimenting with. ALSO I have already recorded a full whatever happened to cracker episode so that is coming in the near future
I did not envision you looking like this. My imagination has been crushed lol
I enjoyed the new layout. Having a face to go along with the voice adds to the experience a bit. Still great quality video because you didn’t hang on yourself for too long. You only used your face in spots it felt appropriate. I’ve been a subscriber for 3-4 maybe 5 years now. Since GNR Central 1. Gotta say I love how far this has all come!!! You’re doing superb!
Well done!
Thanks for covering a Great Song in LOW by Cracker, and a top 100 song in my personal playlist and on my small non - monetized music account here on this platform.
If you could, please, many a request to cover the The Cars and Benjamin Orr. The bassist, Solo Gold Record with Stay The Night single, the lead vocals ( split with Ric ), songwriter, heart of the band. Ladies man...
Oh and Of course the eclectic frontman Ric Ocasek and his quirky songwriting lead them to fame when Ric was 30 as it took them that long to make it.
And alongside School trained, left handed legend Elliot Easton on lead guitar, no other like Elliot could bring that band alive. His solos and crying guitar licks, especially off Candy O ( 2nd LP to follow blockbuster debut LP The Cars ) were mesmerizing. Producer Roy Thomas Baker took em to England to record that 1st masterpiece. RTB through Elektra Records, Recorded - produced all 4 albums until 1984. Robert John “ Mutt “ Lange did the smash hit LP Heartbreak City, with #1 hit Drive, sang by Orr.
The always stoic, but tight pocket time keeper David Robinson on skins, a great drummer period.
Greg Hawkes on Keys ( who toured with Martin Mull the Comedian-Actor as his musician on tour before Ric found him) who played many instruments and was a self confessed studio geek with Ric and why in my opinion, The Cars played 90 minute shows ( I saw em 3xs ) and always one encore, they couldn’t duplicate that studio tightness into a 2.5 hour show , or 2 hour woulda been suffice & ok with me in concert .
So ya, if you could consider my request and chime in on my post I’d be interested to hear your feedback on the 80s super group, changed pop rock culture after 3 straight excellent albums that won multiple mtv vid awards AFTER selling out ( like they all do ) with Shake It Up, then the heavy hit Video off Heartbeat City in Drive / Hello Again/ Magic / You Might Think/ hit after hit releasing smash singles along the way ( You are the Girl) ( Tonight She Comes ) also playing many award shows live .
Thank you and there’s my pitch .
@@popeye089 yep, I can't unsee him! 😳 He should have just let our imaginations of himself be just that!
Such an iconic video from the band that instantly hooked me with my first hearing of "Teen Angst". Thanks for the tribute to an all time classic video from the days when MTV ruled by playing nothing but music videos.
Do you know what it's nice to finally put a face to the voice.
Nah, I wish youtubers would stick with their original format.
Next he'll be doing his "live stream" chat.
He'll get a bunch of cash donations, score a few thousand new fans.
Then it usually burns out.
@@Been.Here.Since.2007 agree, I like a classic format
He looks absolutely nothing like I was expecting lol
I prefer the voice
@@kristasweetleaf5695 Salty Cracker is a good example.
I've seen Cracker over a hundred times. If you get a chance to see them live, don't pass it up. Smart, rockin', tight... Johnny Hickman is one hell of a guitarist and gets to stretch out on several selections, like their cover of the Deads' "Loser"
Somehow, I never knew that Cracker came from the ashes of Camper Van Beethoven. What a trip!
They tour together sometimes, with most of the same members in each band.
A nice footnote is that Camper Van Beethoven reunited for several records and tours. In fact, they toured with Cracker several times too
Some of CVB later efforts are fantastic too. New Roman Times is one of my favorites.
love this guys voice . i was so mad with the robot voice . great vid !
David Lowery was my professor for a music business class at UGA. Cool dude
Cracker and Counting Crows, that was actually my very first concert back in the mid-nineties.
Awesome...it was TMBG and Soul Coughing for me...
I saw that show in Charlottesville. Cracker counting crows
Nice line up!
Just saw ‘em in October with my daughter. It was my 4th concert of theirs, they sound just as good as when I saw them for the first time in ‘00!
Definitely a song that grappled your attention, and a perfect example of the alt rock scene of the 90s, so varied and with an enthusiastic youth just creating great music even just for a brief, golden time.
Btw. Great to see your face finally!
WHOA..! finally a face to go along with the cool voice⚡THNX! as always man
Great band Great Album Great Song
Recall the first time I heard Low. Was walking onto the club level at Coors Field, end of June '96. Dodgers were taking pre-game bp, Piazza was hitting lasers 10-15 rows up in left center. Meanwhile, Low was playing on the PA! Loved the song, as well as the band ever since!
Just saw them again in richmond last month. Great live band.
The song was included on MTV’s buzz bin music vol. 1 compilation CD, which is where I discovered it after a friend gifted me the CD. It’s a great song and it still brings me back to high school and good memories when I hear it, even though it’s about being “Low”
To this day certain songs I can't listen to without thinking of that Tape. I wore it out 2x because it was a great collection of songs
Like the nee style of vids! Keep em coming. Nice to see you sir! Happy new years!
What the world needs now- 🤯
Love the new format!
Great content as always.
I know it’s been said but it’s cool to put a face to the voice! Great channel man, pretty much my fav ✌️❤️🤘
I like this format dude! Your stories are really personal and I think it adds to that aesthetic to see you talk a little bit. Great job! I am just starting to make content and messing around with free video editing software, making thumbnails, and just talking about stuff that I love like movies and bands. Love the channel dude, this format works really well for the kind of content you make
Thanks man! That’s how I got started. I had no idea what I was doing and how to edit, let alone record audio but keep at it.
@@rnrtruestories thank you dude. It's so much fun. Channels like yours have helped me to show how telling a story can be really powerful.
Love Cracker, with "Low" being my favorite!
Good to see you in front of the camera. Love the videos.
Finally a face to match the voice to! Been listening to ur rock stories a while now and was always curious as to what you may look like. The style is spot on what I imagined fashion wise but I always tried not think I'd really be able correctly picture you by simply hearing your voice. Surprisingly though you look pretty close to what mind subconsciously imagined. In any event though I just wanted say I appreciate your channel and the way you deliver the stories on so much of the music I grew up on listening to with my friends on the radio and even MTV B4 it decided to stop letting music get in the way of disgustingly stupid shows that had absolutely nothing to do with music. Lastly I also wanted to say that your stories somewhat remind me of a more down to earth 'behind the music' from VH1. Your take on it seems more factual and relatable where as behind the music always had to over dramatize everything, as if the music scene needs any additional dramatization. I appreciate the way u deliver everything more matter of fact w/o coming off as biased one way or the other.
-I had to edit my comment after I noticed some type-o's but I think it automatically dropped the like you gave it. Either way I appreciate your response! =)
Nice seeing ya brother. Great vid. Long time subber👍
Thanks
Oh hey, nice to see you!
Another great episode
Love the fanfareless face reveal, I like the mix between yourself and archival footage. Switches things up a bit.
When I was a kid, I thought it was Tom Petty who sang "Low".
Kerosene Hat is such a great album
It's good to see you in front of the camera! Hope you had a great holiday.
thanks same to you.
Great song, great band, need more!!
More coming soon…
The great part of the 90's was independent labels the writing and songs where not so popi corporate but had a feal people could relate to better
Boy, times have changed. We went from drug references being banned to selling weed in the store. From Doctors saying weed is evil to it's the greatest thing since sliced bread.
Exactly. People piss and moan about the completely nonexistent cancel culture or woke mob when, in reality, you can get away with 10 times as much stuff today. In fact grifters make millions pandering to the "muh freedom" crowd .
Cracker is phenomenal!! David also famously took on streaming services and the token payments they trickle down to the artists. I believe it was something like he made $6 off a million streams of "Low". Maybe it was $60, but ridiculous either way.
Haha yes we talk about that in our upcoming cracker video
Poppies and heroin sure make for some good songs.
Sometimes..
A million poppies gonna make me sleep...
The fruit is rusting on the vine.
If David makes music, I buy it. There's not a handful of artists I can say that about.
Great video.
Love that video and song when it came out in 120 minutes. Didn't hear it on the radio station, til today, they fkn still play classic rock and glam!!! Still waiting for the Grunge /90s metal to be the playlist today!
Woah I had to focus when I saw you talking. Your voice does not match your face, but it's nice to meet the face behind the voice. Great videos. Love your knowledge.
Nice to see you.
Oh hello!!! First comment for me because I was so surprised to see your face!!!
I recently saw Roger Clyne & the Peacemakers (formerly known as the Refreshments) perform a terrific cover version of this song. The crowd responded in a frenzy of nostalgia and excitement. I'd like to see a video about The Refreshments and their radio hit "Banditos". Their album "Fizzy Fuzzy Big & Buzzy" is an alternative rock masterpiece, but you all probably know them as the band that wrote the "King of the Hill" theme song. To anyone reading this, have a most excellent day : )
Both albums by The Refreshments are great. Timeless rock and roll that never gets old to me. Wish they never split up but after seeing the documentary I guess I see why they did. The Peacemakers are good but don’t think they’ve ever matched the magic on those Refreshments records.
Both albums by The Refreshments are great. Timeless rock and roll that never gets old to me. Wish they never split up but after seeing the documentary I guess I see why they did. The Peacemakers are good but don’t think they’ve ever matched the magic on those Refreshments records.
Both albums by The Refreshments are great. Timeless rock and roll that never gets old to me. Wish they never split up but after seeing the documentary I guess I see why they did. The Peacemakers are good but don’t think they’ve ever matched the magic on those Refreshments records.
Both albums by The Refreshments are great. Timeless rock and roll that never gets old to me. Wish they never split up but after seeing the documentary I guess I see why they did. The Peacemakers are good but don’t think they’ve ever matched the magic on those Refreshments records.
Both albums by The Refreshments are great. Timeless rock and roll that never gets old to me. Wish they never split up but after seeing the documentary I guess I see why they did. The Peacemakers are good but don’t think they’ve ever matched the magic on those Refreshments records.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY JIMMY PAGE
"Low" definitely sounds 90s, but it's awesome. I never get sick of hearing it. I always thought it was about being depressed.
I always thought it was about sex
Its on my "90's Heroin playlist" lol....
Centuries from now, aliens will find a desolate planet solely occupied by a monolith that constantly plays Low.
3:36 the subtitles on the video say stoned though, and they're not automatic
First time I've seen your face, completely not what I expected you to look like. Love your channel
Thanks
great video
Yeah I Like the face cam! It’s nice to put a face to a voice I’ve been listening to for so long.
Short answer: payola
Long answer: payola to the DJ and station
cool song. nice to see the face with the announcers voice.
FYI - the band just reposted your video on FB. CRUMBS FOREVER!
Haha thanks for letting me know. I just checked it out
Damn, this was one of my favorite songs of the 90s
I forgot what this song even sounded like so I went back for a listen.
I've played it in a few cover bands turns out😂. It's got a cool bass chord in it somewhere. I may dust off my TRB 6 Yamaha and see if I can still play.
As a fellow Canadian, I'd love to see you do a video on Big Wreck and Ian Thornley. Not sure if you already have, and I may have missed it.
Yes!! Big Wreck, The Tea Party, Headstones, The Hip should all hopefully be covered here some day. This channel could give the good Canadian bands so much more exposure
That's wild. I'm a massive fan and I've never heard that.
You know those radio programmers knew that was bull haha
Camper Van Beethoven is one of the best bands ever. I feel like they don't get the love they deserve
I love the face cam!!! the disembodied voice did have its own mystique, though....
Holy shit! When did you do a face reveal?! I must be out of the loop!
Their album with Leftover Salmon, 'O, Cracker, Where Art Thou' is one of my favorite records. It's a shame so many people haven't heard it. It's crazy how the banjo part in "Low" feels like it belonged there/was written for since the beginning.
A million poppies gonna make me sleep.
LOL
Timeless song
I heard a riff from Low, A short one and it took my brain two hours to remember the name
00:53 Crazy to put a face on a person. Btw, not at all what I pictured you looking like.
Please keep up the great content!
A 90s classic!
That seems to be the case with so many hits…it’s just a throw away banged out quickly, or a last minute addition to an album, etc. The moral is don’t over think it!
Love the to camera.
The face behind the voice!
The best part of that song is the opening drum and cymbal hit.
When they hit Eurotrash Girl at the shows, that's when the crowd would go wild.
Matchstick Men was a catchy Camper Von Beethoven song, got some airplay in Philly
It's a Status Quo song-Camper didn't write it-geat version though.
Keith Richards and Peter Tosh is a great story.
A face to a voice! Lookin good!
Thanks
This song was on a taco bell CD, and was actually the first CD i ever owned
That letter never made it to our station. It was our third most played song of the year.
I always said that song was only popular because it said "stoned" in the chorus. The record label should know anything like that is a big moneymaker.
Camper Van Beethoven is still putting out great music.
Do a video on the Why-Store.
YES! I won their CD at a bar in Savannah, GA when I was there to see Zakk Wylde do an unplugged show for his first solo album in 1996 or 97. The radio DJ who was hosting the gig was giving away CDs and schwag if you could answer trivia questions. After listening to it I became an instant fan. You and one my Army buddies, I met in Germany, are the only people that I have ever heard mention them.
I only discovered this song on RUclips a few years ago. It had completely passed me by in the nineties, maybe because I'm in the UK. Then recently I heard it being played over the car park speakers at a retail park which normally just plays current pop music. Utterly bizarre.
I liked that track
hey wassup wendigoon's older brother
Big fan of cracker
I didn't think that lyric was a big deal. The video was overplayed on MTV with the alternative craze of slow melody and loud chorus songs.
your content is cool... lol!
Cracker are a great band. CVB are even better. If you don’t know Camper and you like Cracker, definitely check them out
Wow your face bro, didn't expect that lol
Low is still a great radio song. Eurotrash Girl should've been their second hit, tho.
FINALLY GOT THE FACE REVEAL LET'S GO
Oh, I see! It's all about YOU now.
I always thought this was Tom Petty when I was a kid.
Whoa …..the man behind the curtain ……
I wish no one ever played anything from that second album.