Greetings again from the darkness. The next entry in the HBO Music Box documentary series comes from director Amy Scott and provides a textbook example of what can happen when a band hits it big ‘overnight’. It’s not always pretty, and sometimes it’s downright uncomfortable. Counting Crows’ popularity exploded with the release of their 1993 debut album, “August and Everything After”. The hit single, “Mr Jones” was all over the radio, only to be followed by an even better song, “Round Here”. The band and their music were ubiquitous.
Director Scott allows band leader, lead singer, and songwriter Adam Duritz to spend a good amount of time explaining what happened after the band’s follow-up album, “Recovering the Satellites” hit big … but not as big as the first album. Adoration was met with vitriol. Duritz admits to his struggles with mental illness and the delay in a proper diagnosis. We also hear from band members, as well as musicians Cindi Lauper and Chris Martin (Coldplay) on the impact of the music, as well as the strain of celebrity and pressure on artists. At times, we feel we are in a Duritz therapy session, although the music reminds us otherwise.
Additionally, NBA coach Steve Kerr, actor Mary-Louise Parker (once romantically involved with Duritz), and comedian Jeffrey Ross also contribute to the insight of celebrity. Their input helps us understand why success and criticism were both so tough on Duritz. There are some fascinating bits to the Counting Crows story. This little band from Berkeley put together a demo tape that spurred a bidding war by record labels and led to the great T-Bone Burnett producing their first album. The importance of MTV is discussed, and a spectacular clip of the band performing on “Saturday Night Live” is included – along with the story of why there never invited back.
Despite the backlash and internal battles, the band continued to make music. Duritz was ultimately properly diagnosed, and his current partner, Zoe Mintz, offers insight into the man. This is certainly not one of those fairy tale stories, as it seems the band endured as much pain as success … but for a guy who spent some time bartending at the Viper Room, Adam Duritz has delivered some beautiful songs and vocals.
Debuts on HBO on December 18, 2025
Posted by David Ferguson 
Greetings again from the darkness. There may be no more effective way to change the outside world’s perspective of a culture or country than through music. That’s the path Wizkid is taking to re-introduce the world to his home country of Nigeria and transform the image. Documentarian Karam Gill continues his focus on those in the music industry who have loftier goals than just hit records.
Greetings again from the darkness. The Music Box series at HBO brings us this documentary from Amy Berg (Oscar nominated for DELIVER US FROM EVIL, 2006), who profiles the tragic tale of the immensely talented Jeff Buckley. When he died in 1997 at age 30, Buckley had only released one album, “Grace”. Many musicians and critics call it one of the best albums ever. This film tells us how he reached that level.
Greetings again from the darkness. “The needle in the arm.” That’s how Paul Anka describes the will and the need to carry on after all of these years. How many years, you ask … well, he’s the only singer/songwriter to have a Billboard charting song in seven consecutive decades. Paul Anka is now 84 years old and documentarian John Maggio shows us that Anka is still going strong, still touring, still writing songs, and still loving what he does.
Greetings again from the darkness. “Celebration” is the best description and an apt title for this film from Michael John Warren. It’s not a profile of the great songwriter, John Prine; however, it’s most certainly a celebration of his immense and unique talent. And who better to celebrate and pay tribute than some of the musicians and songwriters who have been so influenced by his work?
Greetings again from the darkness. Which pro football team had a hit song that reached number 41 on the pop charts and was awarded a gold record? Well, if you were around in 1985, you probably know it was the Chicago Bears and their song, “The Super Bowl Shuffle”. Director Jeff Cameron (“Hard Knocks”) in partnership with NFL Films proceeds to tell us more than we ever cared to know about the team, the song, and the video.
Greetings again from the darkness. This sounds less like a music trivia question and more like a trick question: Who played with The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, The Who, The Kinks, Jefferson Airplane, Harry Nilsson, Joe Cocker, Jeff Beck, Badfinger, Art Garfunkel, Graham Parker, and on solo albums by all four Beatles? Of course, if you are a fan of music from the 1960’s and 1970’s, you likely know it’s not a trick and the answer is the amazing and talented keyboardist, Nicky Hopkins.
Greetings again from the darkness. Why do 95% of schools have lockdown drills? Why are active shooter defense products a $3 billion industry? Why do thirty states allow teachers to carry firearms? Well, the answer is pretty simple and is clearly stated by one of the students interviewed: because more of us care more about our gun rights than the safety of children. That’s one of the heartbreaking points that comes from this documentary by co-directors Zackary Canepari and Jessica Dimmock.
Greetings again from the darkness. The thing I love about documentaries is that so many tell stories that might otherwise not be told. Quite often, we don’t even realize there is a story to be told, which is the case with this latest from Celia Aniskovich about selling Christmas trees. If you’ve ever strolled the streets of Manhattan in December, then you know there’s no place like NYC at Christmas. Maneuvering through the mass of people becomes more challenging thanks to the street vendors lining the sidewalks selling Christmas trees. And there’s the story.
Greetings again from the darkness. Historians record events for future generations. We tend to think of history as what we read on the page in books, yet it’s the photographers who often bring those words to life – delivering visuals that hit home and make the past so memorable. Few photographers have done it better or for a longer period of time or across a more diverse cross-section than photojournalist Steve Schapiro.
Movie Reviews from the Dark 