red letter days
released: november 5, 2002

recording the album

• The album was mostly recorded at Jackson Browne's studio between October 2001-April 2002. Jakob plays lead guitar on much of the album. Mike McCready (Pearl Jam) and Val McCallum (Sheryl Crow, Jack Shit) also added their guitar talents to some tracks. Tom Lord-Alge mixed the album in May 2002. Greg reports that, "Tom did an incredible job as usual."
  
• The first song recorded during the RLD sessions was "I'm Looking Through You" for the I Am Sam Soundtrack. Greg reports, "We warmed up in the studio with that song. It was our first moments working with Bill and Tobi. It was a really fun start to a great recording experience. (The I Am Sam Soundtrack was released in January 2002).
  
• The "Closer To You" vocal and piano demo tracks were used on the album. The demo was recorded backstage in Interlochen, Michigan, before a concert there in August 2001. The performance couldn't be beat in the studio, so they kept the demo tracks for the album. 
  
• "Everything I Need," "Everybody Out of the Water," "Feels Like Summer Again," and "If You Never Got Sick" were written during the recording of the album.  
  
• "Feels Like Summer Again" and "If You Never Got Sick" were the last songs recorded for the album. 
  
• In August 2002, the band went back in to the studio to record "Empire In My Mind," the theme song for The Guardian. The electric and acoustic versions of "(What's So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love, and Understanding" were recorded at the same time. They recorded those songs at Henson Studios, formerly A&M Studios. 

the songs

• The first single, "When You're On Top"  was premiered on San Francisco's Radio Alice in mid-August 2002. It was #1 on the AAA charts for much of November 2002. It stayed in the Top Ten on AAA radio for 3 months.
  
• The second single, "How Good It  Can Get," peaked at #3 on AAA radio in Spring 2003. It is currently being played on some Hot AC stations as well.
  
• The fourth track on the album, "Everybody Out of the Water," was featured on an episode of CBS' CSI: Crime Scene Investigation. The band played the song during the opening sequence of the show. The show was filmed in Las Vegas in August 2002.

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