"Most people do 10 percent, maybe 15 percent of their business sales online and the occasional band does 20," said Duritz. "Saturday Nights & Sunday Mornings did 40 percent in its first week. That's why we ended up at number three. We've been gone for ages. There's no way our record should have been anywhere near it but that online stuff pushed us to number three."

He still thinks "You Can't Count On Me" was the wrong choice for a first single, but a combination of the digital 45, a bold plan, and the resolve to fight for the plan and record have put the band back on top.

"It was a compromise," he said. "I wanted that digital 45. I wanted those free downloads. I knew that was the most important thing and it worked, too."

Duritz sees the Internet as more than a way to push album sales, though. There is still a staggering untapped potential for what can be done through the Internet.

"There's a big world out there right now that's everyone linked and connected to everyone else," he said. "There's a world out there of people who love music and because of the Internet are getting a chance to write about it and talk about it who maybe didn't get a job at someplace bigger but they can do it online. Three's a huge world out there of interconnected people who respect and are thoughtful about music.

"There's no way a machine that connects everyone in the world for free is a bad thing. That's just not how the world works. Communication does not fuck the world up."

Hear the full interview with Adam Duritz on the B-Sides Concept Album program.