With the recent induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, one thing is clear: the music of Dave Matthews Band will live on for a long, long time. That’s what the HOF does, it brings a band to a new level—one of timeless, eternal status.
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But which songs, in particular, will last forever when it comes to the Charlottesville, Virginia-born group? Here below, we wanted to dive into a trio of tunes, a list of three songs from the jam band that will do just that. Indeed, these are three eternal Dave Matthews Band songs.
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“Crash into Me” from Crash (1996)
The title song for the band’s star-making 1996 album Crash, this track is about a person lusting after another from far away. It’s a bit of an odd topic for such a smash hit. Nevertheless, the sweet sounding tune has become a fan favorite among both men and women (see the movie Lady Bird). The song also earned DMB a Grammy nomination for Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals. On the jangly offering, lead singer Dave Matthews sings,
You’ve got your ball
You’ve got your chain
Tied to me tight, tie me up again
Who’s got their claws
In you my friend
Into your heart I’ll beat again
Sweet like candy to my soul
Sweet you rock
And sweet you roll
Lost for you I’m so lost for you
You come crash, into me
And I come into you
And I come into you
“Ants Marching” from Under the Table and Dreaming (1994)
From the band’s breakthrough 1994 album Under the Table and Dreaming, which was also its debut studio record, this song is about the mundanity of daily life for so many. Get up, brush your teeth, have breakfast, head off to work, wash and repeat. People can be like, well, ants marching along. And that was the point Matthews sang about in this important early single for the band. On the track, Matthews sings with his elastic voice,
He wakes up in the morning
Does his teeth bite to eat and he’s rolling
Never changes a thing
The week ends the week begins
She thinks, we look at each other
Wondering what the other is thinking
But we never say a thing
These crimes between us grow deeper
Take these chances
Place them in a box until a quiter time
Lights down, you up and die
“Satellite” from Under the Table and Dreaming (1994)
This song, which also comes from the band’s 1994 album Under the Table and Dreaming, features a rather unique rhythmic guitar line. But even more than that, the subject of the song, a satellite hanging up in the universe, makes for a unique centerpiece. Is this a love song for a piece of technology? It would seem so. That’s what makes it so memorable, along with its central riff. But while this was on the band’s 1994 studio LP, it also appeared on the group’s debut live record Remember Two Things, released earlier in 1993. However one heard it, Matthews sang,
Satellite in my eyes
Like a diamond in the sky
How I wonder
Satellite strung from the moon
And the world your balloon
Peeping Tom for the mother station
Winter’s cold spring erases
And the calm away by the storm is chasin’
Everything good needs replacing
Look up, look down, all around, hey satellite
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Photo by Rich Polk/Getty Images On Location
