Welcome to My Music Mondays. Each week I will be delving into my music collection and looking at a new artist going somewhat randomly currently but eventually from A to Z. I’ll examine why I first started listening to them, my favorite album and my top 10 songs for the artist. As my music collection is pretty extensive and I have a lot of one offs, I have set a qualification to be featured here. That is that I have to have at least two albums of the artist’s music before they can be considered. This week I look at 3 Doors Down.

In August 2000 I had tickets to the two sold out Creed shows at the Blockbuster E-Center in Camden, NJ. 3 Doors Down was one of the two opening acts in support of Creed those nights, the other being American Pearl. Today the only band out of those three that is still together is 3 Doors Down. Not only are they still together but they have quietly become one of the most successful rock artists of this decade, netting a pair of #1 albums and a handful of #1 singles.

I actually started listening to the band in early 2000 and was not surprised in the least by the ascension of their song “Kryptonite” to the top of the Billboard Mainstream Rock and Modern Rock charts. And by the time the concerts in August came along, their song “Loser” was in the midst of its record 21 week run at the top of the Mainstream Rock charts. Anyway I’ve been a fan since the beginning but the funny part about it all is that I can’t name you a single member of the band without having to look it up. They just keep a low profile, stay out of trouble, and play their music. It’s kind of refreshing actually.

Despite being a fan and getting their new releases when they came out, I hadn’t seen them live since those two concerts in 2000. That is until this past Saturday, where they headlined a show at the House of Blues in Atlantic City. The band still has a great live energy, although they now feel more comfortable commanding the stage. They play a super tight set and they showed me something that has seemingly been absent from many public figures over the past decade, a love for the United States of America. They had no political message other than an overwhelming indication that they were proud to be Americans. They ended their show with the song they wrote honoring the US Military forces, “When I’m Gone” and as it ended, red, whit and blue confetti covered the crowd. It was like being at a USO show or something. I was waiting for a USA chant to overtake the audience as they left the venue to head back down to the Showboat floor. As I said before, It was kind of refreshing.

Favorite Album: The Better Life

I was hard pressed in determining which album was my favorite (picking ten songs was even harder), however despite my two favorite songs being from their latest album, when I thought about it more I had to go with their first album, “The Better Life”. It has “Kryptonite”, “Loser”, “Duck and Run” and “Be Like That”, the four songs that hooked me to the band in the first place.

10 Favorite Songs

10. Loser
9. The Road I’m On
8. Kryptonite
7. Duck and Run
6. Let Me Be Myself
5. When I’m Gone
4. Be Like That
3. Let Me Go
2. It’s Not My Time
1. It’s the Only One You’ve Got

So what do you think of 3 Doors Down?