Crash (Dave Matthews Band album)

Crash is the second studio album by the American rock band Dave Matthews Band, released on April 30, 1996 by RCA Records.

By March 16, 2000, the album had sold seven million copies, and was certified septuple platinum by the RIAA. Crash is currently Dave Matthews Band's best-selling album.

Recording
Recording of the album began in October 1995, and ended in January 1996. There were only four known songs from the Crash sessions that "didn't make it to the final cut." However, none of the titles are known.

Critical reception
Q described Crash as "equal parts originality and willful complication", and stated, "Although the band's determinedly jammy methods do lead them away from their songs at times, almost every track of Crash is at least 'good in parts'". Entertainment Weekly's Tom Sinclair praised the band's technical abilities, concluding that "one of the nicest things about DMB's music is that its distinctive complexity serves as a virtual assurance against a flood of lame imitator bands."

Jim DeRogatis of Rolling Stone was less favorable and deemed Matthews' vocals "too much like Sting's at times" and his lyrics "typically banal", while remarking that the album's musical eclecticism "gives Matthews a slight edge over his peers, but that's sort of like saying you prefer vanilla ice cream to vanilla frozen yogurt." Robert Christgau of The Village Voice evaluated Crash as a "dud".

Personnel
Dave Matthews Band
 * Carter Beauford – drums, percussion, backing vocals (1, 7, 10, 11, 12)
 * Stefan Lessard – bass, tack piano
 * Dave Matthews – vocals, acoustic guitar, design assistant
 * LeRoi Moore – saxophones, flute, whistles
 * Boyd Tinsley – electric and acoustic violins

Additional musicians
 * Tim Reynolds – acoustic and electric guitars

Technical personnel
 * Steve Lillywhite – production, mixing engineer (3, 5, 6, 8, 10, 12)
 * John Siket – engineer
 * Chris Laidlaw – 1st assistant engineer
 * Scott Gormley – 1st assistant engineer
 * Paul Higgins – 2nd assistant engineer
 * Phil Painson – additional recording assistant
 * Tom Lord-Alge – mixing engineer (1, 2, 4, 7, 9, 11)
 * Alex Case – mixing assistant (1, 2, 4, 7, 9, 11)
 * John Alagía – additional preproduction
 * Ted Jensen – mastering engineer
 * Thane Kerner – art direction, design, illustrations
 * Jane Matthews – design assistant
 * C. Taylor Crothers – Band photography