Album: August And Everything After (1993)

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Songfacts®:

• Lead singer Adam Duritz wrote this song about denial. It's about when you're in a relationship with someone and you keep denying it's anything but a fling, then you wise up and realize that all along while you were denying it, you were growing closer together.
• There is a real Anna - she's a girl from Australia that Duritz met on vacation in Greece in 1989, and she broke his heart. Duritz was far from famous at the time - he saved up money doing landscaping work to afford the trip. At the end of the trip, he and Anna agreed that there was no way for their relationship to continue, and they went their separate ways. "The characters keep saying 'I'm not ready for this sort of thing' until at the end when they find out what they really aren't ready for is the loss, but then it's too late," Duritz explained.
  
  Adam says that they remained friends and occasionally spoke on the phone, even after Anna got married. She is a big fan of the song. >>

  Suggestion credit:
  Beth - Charleston, SC, for above 2
• Duritz says that while Anna is real, the song is really about him, and in this context she is a character.
• Adam Duritz often uses real - or slightly varied - names in the songs he writes. "Proper names matter to me, and so I use them," he said in a 2013 Songfacts interview. "I think that comes across to other people, even if it's not the name they're thinking of. People ask me questions like that all the time, like, 'Who's Anna?' She's Anna. You don't know her. She's in Australia. But she's every girl you ever felt that way about, too."
• "Anna Begins" is part of the debut Counting Crows album, August And Everything After, produced by T Bone Burnett. It wasn't released as a single but became a fan favorite, played at most of their live shows.

Comments: 17

• Shaqeel from DubaiAnna begins have always fascinated me as a 17 year old ,the profound emotion and the deep meaning came to light now that I'm 35.. Every time she sneezes I think it's love.. she's talking in sleep it's keeping me awake ..it's so beautiful..
• Geoff from CanadaI first heard this song when the album was released 30 years ago and I was 13 years old. There are many incredible songs and hit singles on the album, but this song spoke to me in a way I couldn't understand as an inexperienced boy, yet I intuited Adam's emotion because it is so vividly expressed. I would listen to it on repeat without ever getting tired of it, and deep down I knew that this is the kind of love worth having.
  
  Over the years I would come back to it, and its beauty grew on me as I made more realizations about love and loss and connected my experiences to the words. I still get incredibly emotional when I hear it. It fills me with sorrow and happiness in such a profound way, because I can relate to so many of the themes and because its so familiar as a song I grew up loving.
  
  As a lover of music, I can honestly say that this song hits different, and in my opinion it is one of the greatest songs ever written and might be my favourite. The funky beat, the subtlety in the melody, the ranginess of adam's voice, and the expression of love combine in a way that is simple but so beautiful. I am very partial to the original, and I am not a fan of how Adam changes his renditions in live performances, but its his art to do what he wishes. I'm back in 2024 to listen on repeat, and I've met a girl I like...you wouldn't believe her name.
• Chris from Seattle, WaI met an “Anna” in Greece and we continued a long distance relationship for 2 years until she finally broke my heart and split up with me. Maybe it is best to end a vacation romance when the vacation ends.
• Ben from UsaI was starting college the year this album came out. Like others have said this song spoke to them in ways they couldn't explain. Everytime I hear this song I enjoy it even if it seems depressing. I finally looked it up and can really appreciate it more now. Thank you Counting Crows for such a meaningful song.
• Jay T from OkThis song has always touched me....I never knew why (and I still don't, really). When they released the LP, I listend to this song over and over, not really knowing why.....10, 20 years later I still listen...now it brings tears, still no idea why. Finally in 2023 I listen (multiple times), sang the song with the lyrics, researched the "why" of this song and I "think" I finally get it. God I love this song and what I "think" it represents. The fact that they (Counting Crows) can build a song that makes people think (or me, anyway) about this feeling is awesome. Thank you....
• Reek V from Nv Thanks to my buuuudy Squatch, I’ve grown to really appreciate this band!!
• Phil from England Absolutely love this song. One of my favourite Counting Crows tracks with great vocals, melody and lyrics.
  Always brings me down rather than lifts me up though, as it reminds me of my experience with a girl from University in my last year who I still regret not telling her how I feel.
  We got on great in classes, but I wasn't brave enough to take it further and really wasn't ready for that sort of thing.
  I still vividly remember the last time I saw her, walking up the street ahead of me after an exam. I thought I'd see her at least once more to try and build up the courage to ask her to keep in touch. But it turns out I didn't, that was the last time I ever saw her, and I was literally watching her walk out of my life. That still really hurts. It's the biggest regret of my life.
  Love the song, but it brings me to tears at times thinking of Leanne.
• Steven from UsaThis is my favorite song of all time. Every time I hear. I am filled with emotion, it’s undeniable. It’s one of the finest songs ever written. Every time she sneezes I believe it’s love..... Doesn’t come around too hard.
• Michigan Chet from MichiganAnd every word was nonsense
  But I understood
  And like the song says, I wasn’t ready for that sort of thing
• Michigan Chet from MichiganThis song affects me deeply. Because I knew what it was about the first time i heard it. Because I had a very similar experience to What Adam had; my Anna was in Korea. And after she disappeared, the denial about how much I loved her broke down and a part of me misses her to this day
• Natalie from Los Angeles, CaThis is my favorite song of all time. The lyrics of this song make me cry everytime I hear them. This song is very special to me and reminds me of how my relationship with my boyfriend was for the first few years we were together. Thanks Adam for such a beautiful song.
• Hare from Cambridge, England"She's talking in her sleep, it's keeping me awake. And Anna begins to toss and turn. And every word is nonsense, but I understand." Are some of the most...understanding and beautiful words I've ever heard in a song.
• Millerman from Dacusville, ScHere's something I've noticed about this incredibile song: Adam's vocal is delivered almost entirely without breaks or pauses between verse, chorus, and bridge. Once he starts singing he never really stops til after the last note is played. Awesome. There were no fade outs on their first album and most ended with Adam's voice being the last thing heard.
• Taufuboy from Burke, Vaamazing song. about a person who isnt ready for a commitment and isnt ready to settle down. The singer doesnt knwo why or something. not sure. awsome song
• Izzie from Lala, Hii love this song. my favorite line is "everytime she sneezes i believe its love," i dont know i just love it. this song is awesome
• Luke from Manchester, EnglandThis song is one of the finest songs ever written
• Spence from Houston, Txthis song is about a girl named Anna Belle The Third starting her new life as a prostitute, and Adam Duritz happened to be the first guy for her.

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