If you have followed me on social media or seen any posts I’ve made on Reddit, you may know that I’m a bit of a big Dave Matthews Band fan. I know DMB may not be for everyone – they certainly have their detractors – but even if you are in the camp that dislikes the band I hope you’ll find something here to make this an enjoyable read! So, without further ado, I present: Dave Matthews Band – Under the Table and Dreaming – 2014 Mispressing
Rhyme & Reason, and Origins:
Sometimes an artist or group takes a few albums to find their groove. They utilize studio sessions to craft their signature sound, find a “uniqueness”, a vibe that will separate them from the rest of the jumble of mainstream and alternative music alike. Maybe they strike gold with their 3rd album and finally make it big. We’ve all seen that play out before.
But that story isn’t this one.
By time Dave Matthews Band entered the studio for their first full length album, 1994’s Under the Table and Dreaming, the Charlottesville, VA natives were a hugely populat act with an intense grass roots following. The band had played over 400 shows between 1991-1994, prior laying down tracks for UTTAD (as it is regularly abbreviated by fans). Helping word spread, the band allowed fans at these early shows to tape, and occassionally plug directly into the sound boards, and trade these live shows freely – a tradition that continues more than 25 years after their first performance. This practice also ensured that an extremely large majority of the band’s early shows were well documented. The DMBAlmanac remains the hub for cataloging DMB’s shows.
Contrary to most new albums, nearly every song on UTTAD had been road tested over the course of those early performing years. Some of the songs had even originated as solo tunes Matthews had written while he was still just a bartender at Miller’s in C’Ville. Here he would recruit drummer Carter Beauford and LeRoi Moore – both frequented the stage at Miller’s – and eventually violinist Boyd Tinsley and high school bassist Stefan Lessard. Keyboardist Peter Greisar would also join the band, but left shortly after in 1993. Tinsley, who recently departed from the band after…er, some legal issues…was the last to join and helped define the group’s bluegrass-ish sound with his fiddle; harmonizing at times with Moore’s jazzy saxophone. The group of 5 would hit the studio, along with guitar virtuoso Tim Reynolds, and producer Steve Lillywhite would work his magic.
When they entered the studio, the band’s catalog consisted of roughly 50 songs, so not every tune made the cut. Early favorites like the jam-heavy Seek Up and the crowd favorite Granny were absent. But there was little to complain about when the finished product finally hit. From the opening snare hits of The Best of What’s Around, to the iconic Ants Marching, to the melodic (hidden track) #34; the album was absolute perfection to the fanbase that DMB had attracted. It didnt play too bad with critics either, and it eventually went 6x platinum with over 6M copies sold.
The album remains a staple of live shows, more than 20 years later. While some tracks have stuck around in constant rotation, others have become rarities with fans “hunting” them across multiple shows. After 30ish shows, I finally got my first Lover Lay Down at The Gorge Amphitheater (known as “Heaven’s Amphitheater”, and for good reason!) last summer – I’d be lying if I said I didn’t shed a tear of joy at the absolute beauty of the song’s sax solo. Even more rare, #34 was played the following weekend in honor of what would have been Roi Moore’s 56 birthday. That song has just 25 plays in total.
DMB on Vinyl, a Brief History:
It should be noted that DMB’s vinyl releases have been all over the place. The first full-length vinyl release from the band was 1998’s Before These Crowded Streets, an album pressed during the “dark era” of vinyl where in all likelihood the mastering used for the CD was taken to cut the lacquers. While it is a bit of a holy grail-type item due to the low press count and the decades spent out of press, the upcoming (rumored) remaster will almost certainly blow it out of the water.
From 1999 to 2008, DMB had a grand total of exactly zero full-album vinyl releases. That changed with 2009’s Big Whiskey and the GrooGrux King. While the return to the format was welcomed, the execution was poor; to be kind. Most copies have the wrong sides pressed with incorrect labels (the side labeled as side 2 plays the songs that should be on side 3, etc), and at least half were pressed off center. It didnt get better with 2012’s Away From the World – pressed on clear vinyl with serious surface noise issues. Neither of these albums received vinyl specific masters
In between, the Live Trax series was launched on vinyl, to much more positive reception. To date, the first 5 albums of the series have received box set releases, with each having a color and standard black variant. All have been mastered specifically for vinyl from hi-res digital files of the multi-track soundboard recordings and mixes; cut by Scott Hull. The early Record Store Day copies of these sets can fetch some astronomically high values.
Eventually, the band’s management embarked on 20th anniversary releases of previous albums. They started with Remember Two Things and have continued through with the Recently EP, UTTAD, Crash, Red Rocks ’95, and Luther College. Some of these were absolute home runs, like the all analog (AAA) Crash, while others had some issues….
Under the Table & Spinning:
After months of waiting between pre-orders and shipments, copies of the newly pressed debut album were starting to be sent out in the early parts of November 2014. A lot of questions remained about things like mastering engineers and pressing plant location, so fans were eager to get their hands on it to get answers to these gaps in knowledge. Following some of the uneveness of prior DMB vinyl releases, there were concerns that management would drop the ball somehow. Unfortunately, those fears weren’t totally far off.
Upon receiving the album, it was noted that Ted Jensen had mastered the album, and rather than keep an all analog chain they went the hi-res digital route. Jensen’s involvement alone upset some, due to his perceived role in the loudness wars, but to not utilize the master tapes to their fullest and cut all analog seemed like a waste. However, upon first listen of the first disc, things sounded more than fine. Perhaps not an audiophile release, but there were some noticeable improvements over the original CD. Beauford’s drums were clear and present, Tinsley’s violin swooned in and out of songs, both Matthews’ and Reynolds’ guitars intertwined beautifully, while LeRoi Moore’s saxophone stole the show. Everything was great – Finally! A good DMB studio album on vinyl!…only once reaching Side C did things take a bit of an odd turn.
At the end of the song Jimi Thing, there’s a great little sax part that leads the way through the outro of the song. In live settings, it opens the gateway to prolonged jam, and it is essential to the tune. The only problem was that on the vinyl release, that saxophone was gone in the outro. There was nothing in its place besides a drumbeat and some light acoustic strumming. Alas, the wrong masters had been used! This caused an immediate uproar in the fanbase, and the release was immediately recalled from distribution.
It’s unclear how many copies actually made it out of warehouses, but a majority of pre-orders were not filled. Nearly 3 months later, a second (correct) pressing was released to all pre-order holders, and those who received the mispressing were sent a replacement disc 2 that contained the correct version of the song. It was just another footnote in the long and confusing history of DMB vinyl records. One that was a headache to deal with, a bit of a let down, but ultimately an enjoyable release when the dust finally settled. Hopefully it was a lesson to be learned from, and if the AAA release of Crash is any indication; they have. Now we just play the waiting game until Before These Crowded Streets gets its turn in the remaster-spotlight!
The Vinyl Farm 
