Listener Supported (CD - 1999)

Additional personnel: Butch Taylor (keyboards); Tawatha Agee, Chinah Bess, Brenda White-King (background vocals).

Recorded at Continental Airlines Arena, East Rutherford, New Jersey on September 11, 1999.

Recording information: Continental Airlines Arena, Eas (09/11/1999).

LISTENER SUPPORTED represents a full-circle return for the Dave Matthews Band. The Virginia natives turned college radio on its ear when they independently releasing a live album as their debut, helping make their newest live offering all the more apropos. Few bands are as comfortable performing live as the Dave Matthews Band. There's an organic electricity in the air that makes it seem as though anything is possible. Their fusion-meets-acoustic-rock-meets-folk-sound has been so successful due in part to their fiercely loyal fan base, a fact pointed to by this collection's title.

The secret weapon of the Dave Matthew's Band is its rhythm section, possibly the most underrated in the group's genre. Drummer Carter Beauford pours fire into the arrangements, taking the music to new heights, while musical prodigy Stefan Lessard's tight, melodic bass lines create the perfect symmetry. One listen to the outro of "Rapunzel" will surely silence the skeptics. Dave Matthews' vocals on "Crash Into Me" are as raw and honest as it gets. What makes this band so unique is that its live albums are as eagerly anticipated as its studio releases, neither of which receives significant promotion or marketing. minimize