Additional personnel: Lili Haydn (violin); John Nau (piano, Hammond B-3 organ); David Crosby (background vocals).

Recorded at N.R.G. Recording Services, North Hollywood, California.

Hootie & The Blowfish won the 1996 Grammy Award for Best New Artist, and "Let Her Cry" won the Grammy for Best Pop Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocal.

Hootie & the Blowfish's debut album, Cracked Rear View, was the success story of 1994/1995, selling over 12 million copies. It's a startling, large number, especially for a new band, but in some ways, the success of the record isn't that surprising. Although Hootie & the Blowfish aren't innovative, they deliver the goods, turning out an album of solid, rootsy folk-rock songs that have simple, powerful hooks. "Hold My Hand" has a singalong chorus that epitomizes the band's good-times vibes. None of the tracks transcend their generic status, but they are strong songs for their genre, with crisp chords and bright melodies. Still, the songs wouldn't be convincing without the emotive vocals of Darius Rucker, whose gruff baritone has more grit than the actual songs. At their core, Hootie & the Blowfish are a bar band, but they managed to convince millions of listeners that they were the local bar band, and that's why Cracked Rear View was a major success. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Hootie & The Blowfish are a powerhouse regional band exploding upon the charts with a musical point of view born of the "New South" stylings originally pioneered musically (and socially) by the Allman Brothers. Comprised of four University of South Carolina graduates, Hootie & The Blowfish began as a classic rock/R.E.M. cover band, but polished an original sound through persistent East Coast tours, and developed a fanatical regional following with their 1993 indy release KOOCHYPOP.

Hootie & The Blowfish draw upon a wide range of themes and styles on CRACKED REAR VIEW. "Drowning" is a fervent tale of forbidden romance, colored by the pressures of ignorance and racism. "Time" begins with a simple folkish dignity and Byrds-like guitar harmonies, before revving up to full poetic ambivalence ("Time, you ain't no friend of mine...Time, why do you punish me"). The opening cuts "Hannah Jane," "Hold My Hand" and "Let Her Cry" are hook-happy AOR fare; poignant, tender love songs with an edgy, lyric undercurrent of loneliness and longing, driven forward by Darius Rucker's soulful, preaching vocals. With CRACKED REAR VIEW, Hootie & The Blowfish have distilled their unique brand of Southern rock & soul into a driving pop sound, marked by an insistent rhythm groove, shimmering, soaring guitar work, and sweet country/R&B-styled vocal harmonies.

Hootie & The Blowfish exploded upon the charts with their first major-label release CRACKED REAR VIEW. Comprised of four University of South Carolina graduates, Hootie & The Blowfish began as a classic rock/R.E.M. cover band, but polished an original sound through persistent East Coast tours, and developed a fanatical regional following with their 1993 indie release KOOCHYPOP.

Hootie & The Blowfish draw upon a wide range of themes and styles on CRACKED REAR VIEW. "Drowning" is a fervent tale of forbidden romance, colored by the pressures of ignorance and racism. "Time" begins with a simple folkish dignity and Byrds-like guitar harmonies, before revving up to full poetic speed ("Time, you ain't no friend of mine...Time, why do you punish me"). "Hannah Jane," "Hold My Hand," and "Let Her Cry" are hook-happy, poignant, tender love songs with an edgy, lyric undercurrent of loneliness and longing, driven forward by Darius Rucker's soulful, preaching vocals. With CRACKED REAR VIEW, Hootie & The Blowfish have distilled their unique brand of Southern rock & soul into a driving pop sound, marked by an insistent groove, shimmering, soaring guitar work, and sweet country/R&B-styled vocal harmonies.