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cracked rear view

Artist: Hootie & the Blowfish
Genre: Alternative
Year: 1994
Rating: 9.5 / 10

Years after it's initial release, Hootie & the Blowfish's debut album, cracked rear view, still ranks as one of my all-time favorites. New groups arrive on the music landscape every day, and new singles top the charts each week. Yet seldom does one band so dominate the music scene the way Hootie & the Blowfish did back in 1994 and 1995. Bursting on to the music scene from the Deep South, Hootie & the Blowfish arrived with a blend of southern rock and catchy pop tunes, delivering countless #1 songs. As part of the Music Box's on-going Music Classics series, we are putting cracked rear view under the microscope, probing deep inside one of the best albums from the 1990s.

When "Hold My Hand" first hit airwaves back in 1994, fans immediately started clamoring for information about the new group from South Carolina. Yet it was not until the ballad "Let Her Cry" arrived that Hootie & the Blowfish started to achieve major success. That second single brought renewed interest in the initial single, and helped propel cracked rear view to a debut record thirteen million albums sold! As "Only Wanna Be With You," "Drowning," "Hannah Jane," and others arrived, fans began to wonder just how many exceptional songs one album could have. The answer, I would venture to guess, is approximately twelve, which happens to be the number of tracks on cracked rear view.

Critics have been at Hootie & the Blowfish since the band first started to attain some measure of stardom. The group has been called "too pop," "cheesy," "sellout," and countless other invectives, yet the fans let their voices be heard in the end. No amount of critical bashing could slow down the Hootie & the Blowfish machine, as songs from the album dotted radio stations of all varieties: pop, rock, easy listening, alternative. Everywhere a radio listener turned, he would find a different Hootie & the Blowfish song, and with good reason. Some fans felt that "Hold My Hand," with its catchy chorus and strumming guitar, was the band's quintessential success, while others felt that slower numbers like "Time" and "Let Her Cry" best exemplified that group's true magic. Whatever the case, none could deny the stranglehold the band had on the American music-loving public.

What differentiates this album, though, from another passing fad? Bands have turned out albums littered with hits before, right? While all twelve tracks on cracked rear view are unmistakably "Hootie," each seems to have its own feel to it. Some complex issues of love, family, and racism are touched upon during the album, lending the album a credibility that often eludes other "pop" albums. The staying power of the album's lead singles allows it to live on, affording buried gems the chance to shine. "Look Away" and "Not Even the Trees" are prime examples of songs which never achieved the mainstream success of the album's other offerings, yet still manage to captivate the listener each and every time they are heard. That is the true gift of this album - every song is a quality song. Knowing that, cracked rear view will be a staple in my CD collection for years to come.

Submitted 7/1/99.