Hard Candy
by Counting Crows
  • Record Label: Geffen
  • Release Date: Jul 9, 2002
User Score
7.8

Generally favorable reviews- based on 28 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 22 out of 28
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 28
  3. Negative: 3 out of 28

Review this album

  1. Your Score
    0 out of 10
    Rate this:
    • 10
    • 9
    • 8
    • 7
    • 6
    • 5
    • 4
    • 3
    • 2
    • 1
    • 0
    • 0
  1. Submit
  2. Check Spelling
view
per page
  1. PeterJ.
    Aug 6, 2002
    5
    Very disappointing. I find listening to this album a very tiring experience. This kind of radio rock is a far cry from their magnificent debut album.
  2. bhartman36
    Sep 9, 2014
    4
    This is my least favorite Counting Crows album. Here, the band sinks into a pop morass, and they only rarely come up for air.

    First, the good: "Holiday In Spain" has become one of the band's classics in concert. It's a beautiful, well-written song. Similarly, "Up All Night" is the kind of song the band should be writing. Just beautiful. Even "Hard Candy" is a solid song. But    This is my least favorite Counting Crows album. Here, the band sinks into a pop morass, and they only rarely come up for air.

    First, the good:

    "Holiday In Spain" has become one of the band's classics in concert. It's a beautiful, well-written song. Similarly, "Up All Night" is the kind of song the band should be writing. Just beautiful. Even "Hard Candy" is a solid song.

    But then you have the rest of the album.

    "American Girls" is a peppy little song, but it's mostly a paint-by-numbers affair. And the title strikes of an odd pandering to patriotism (for Americans, obviously). Not a bad song, necessarily, but not their best.

    The rest of the album is forgettable. Except for "New Frontier", an exercise in electronica that is absolutely execrable. I try my best to forget that Counting Crows ever produced that song.

    Buy "Up All Night" and "Holiday in Spain" separately, and don't swallow this Hard Candy.    … Expand

Awards & Rankings

61
#61 Most Discussed Album of 2002

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
69

Generally favorable reviews - based on 13 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 7 out of 13
  2. Mixed: 6 out of 13
  3. Negative: 0 out of 13
  1. CDNow
    80
    Few bands can both rock and pine as well as Duritz and company.
    Read full review
  2. Splendid
    50
    Mid-tempo rocker follows mid-tempo rocker without any change of pace to keep things interesting.
    Read full review
  3. Launch.com
    70
    Duritz isn't the soul singer he'd like to be.
    Read full review
See all critic reviews »