Charlotte's Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre is the 43rd stop on the Goo Goo Dolls, Counting Crows 51 stop tour. In each city the band plays, it isn't just the fans who benefit from hearing their favorite music.
Front man Adam Duritz said "the crows " pride themselves in giving back where they play.

To call Counting Crows and the Goo Goo Dolls seasoned wouldn't be a stretch, though "seasoned" tends to be a euphemism for "old" and a polite expression for "past their prime." The popularity of these erstwhile rock giants may have peaked a decade ago and each has a middle-aged frontman: Adam Duritz, 42, and Johnny Rzeznik, 40. Moms and dads are more likely to know the words than their teenage kids.

But both demographics came out on Thursday night to pack Sound Advice Amphitheatre, west of West Palm Beach, to near-capacity. Duritz and Rzeznik did more than just remind those in attendance how they've made it this far: They offered the promise of even better days to come.

COUNTING CROWS According to public opinion, Counting Crows were '90s-specific, hit-friendly alt-rockers who, with their three-year creative peak between "Mr. Jones" and "A Long December," single-handedly eased radio out of the grunge era. Since then? Nada, save that annoyingly peppy song from Shrek. True, in the 10 years since Recovering the Satellites, the Bay Area septet have released only two studio albums and a greatest hits collection, all while touring alongside Live, John Mayer and this summer's humanoid jukeboxes, Goo Goo Dolls.

The Counting Crows' last studio CD was 2002's "Hard Candy." The band hasn't been on tour since early 2003 and has basically been on sabbatical ever since. And "Hard Candy," for that matter, wasn't a blockbuster hit. It peaked at No. 5 on the "Billboard" album chart two weeks after its release, and its big single was a cover of Joni Mitchell's "Big Yellow Taxi," which reached No. 5 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart.

What's the surest way to shut up a doubting critic? Play your heart out on stage.
Let me explain.
Two Fridays ago, in my Pop Life column, I wondered if the endlessly touring, slow-to-record Counting Crows were out of gas. It has been four years, I pointed out, since the band issued a proper new album, biding its time instead with cash cows like a retrospective and a recently released live disc.

ADAM DURITZ has to make a decision.
The Counting Crows vocalist is simply juggling too many things as he navigates the busy streets of Greenwich Village. He's got his iPod plugged into one ear and he's cranking Chris Bell's "I Am the Cosmos," which is a decidedly hip answer to the very 21st-century question, "What's on your iPod?" With his other ear, the former East Bay resident is listening through his cell phone as a music journalist -- namely, yours truly -- brings up a variety of vastly important topics, including favorite Marvel comic book characters and best Berkeley pizza joints. (Just to get you caught up with the conversation: Duritz digs both the Defenders and Fat Slice.)