The Black Crowes has always been a band that marched — or should that be flew? — to the beat of its own drummer. Much has changed since brothers Chris and Rich Robinson formed the group — originally called Mr. Crowe’s Garden — in Atlanta, Ga. in 1984. Musical trends as well as bandmembers have come and gone, but the band’s independent spirit, and commitment to the creative vision of the Robinson brothers remains steadfast.
The band released Warpaint, its first studio album in seven years, in March 2008.
“Warpaint is a declaration of our soulful independence,” lead singer Chris Robinson said in a press release for the album. “The thing about the last three years has been, ‘How do we continue to be independent? How do we begin to exercise control and freedom over our own trip?’ That’s what the title is all about.”
“Every record was a great experience to get us to where we are today,” added guitarist Rich Robinson. “This is what we love to do, and we want to do it the best we can. That’s what’s in this [album].”
The band, which also includes original drummer Steve Gorman, bassist Sven Pipien, guitarist Luther Dickinson, and keyboardist Adam MacDougall — is performing a series of sold out shows at Levon Helms Barn in Woodstock, New York through March 7. The group will begin a European tour in the spring.
The long layoff between albums apparently didn’t hurt the band’s popularity. Warpaint entered the Billboard charts at No. 5, making it the group’s best debut since 1992’s The Southern Harmony and Musical Companion.
Since making its major-label debut in 1990, the Black Crowes has enjoyed both critical and commercial success, selling over 18 million albums. The band’s sound, typified by Warpaint’s lead single, “Goodbye Daughters of the Revolution,” mixes Southern-flavored, guitar-based rock, R&B, and a touch of ’60s psychedelia into a groove-heavy mix. The group's best known hits include “Jealous Again,” “Hard To Handle,” “She Talks To Angels” and “Remedy.”
The band has enjoyed its current success strictly on its own terms. Despite the long absence from the public eye, the group granted only a few press interviews to promote Warpaint, which was released on the band’s own label, Silver Arrow Records. The closed-door policy toward the press might be the result of an exchange with Maxim that started when the magazine published a lukewarm review of Warpaint in its March 2008 issue. The problem wasn’t so much the tone of the review, but the fact that the reviewer had only heard one track from the album before writing it. Maxim later admitted its blunder, and issued an apology to its readers (but not to the band).
A rocky relationship with the press is nothing new for the Crowes. In a 1995 interview for the Amorica album (infamous for its bikini bottom cover photo), Rich Robinson told me, “The things that are written about us always have to do with something other than music. People write about what we wear, what we say, what drugs we do, what drugs we don’t do, our album cover, anything other than the music.”
Music has always been the central focus for the Robinsons. They handle nearly all of the songwriting for the band, with Rich writing most of the music and Chris writing lyrics. Chris told me in a 1991 interview that having a songwriting partner that happens to be your brother has its advantages. “Musically there are a lot of unspoken things between us,” he said. “We know when something feels right and when something doesn’t. I’ve tried to write songs with other people and it’s just never felt right.”
And while the band never shunned commercial success, Chris Robinson maintains that even at the height of the band’s popularity, the Black Crowes flew its own course. “Even in our most commercially successful period,” he said, “there was nothing like us on any format. By the time grunge happened, Southern Harmony and Amorica didn’t fit into any part of popular music. We looked different, we sounded different, and we set up our culture a little different.”
Both Robinson brothers insist that their music, not commercial success, has always been their driving force.
“You could take it all away tomorrow and I’ll go back to Atlanta and start again,” Chris said. “You don’t kick the habit just like that. It’s your passion. This is the one vice I’m never going to get rid of."
Read my latest posts!
The band released Warpaint, its first studio album in seven years, in March 2008.
“Warpaint is a declaration of our soulful independence,” lead singer Chris Robinson said in a press release for the album. “The thing about the last three years has been, ‘How do we continue to be independent? How do we begin to exercise control and freedom over our own trip?’ That’s what the title is all about.”
“Every record was a great experience to get us to where we are today,” added guitarist Rich Robinson. “This is what we love to do, and we want to do it the best we can. That’s what’s in this [album].”
The band, which also includes original drummer Steve Gorman, bassist Sven Pipien, guitarist Luther Dickinson, and keyboardist Adam MacDougall — is performing a series of sold out shows at Levon Helms Barn in Woodstock, New York through March 7. The group will begin a European tour in the spring.
The long layoff between albums apparently didn’t hurt the band’s popularity. Warpaint entered the Billboard charts at No. 5, making it the group’s best debut since 1992’s The Southern Harmony and Musical Companion.
Since making its major-label debut in 1990, the Black Crowes has enjoyed both critical and commercial success, selling over 18 million albums. The band’s sound, typified by Warpaint’s lead single, “Goodbye Daughters of the Revolution,” mixes Southern-flavored, guitar-based rock, R&B, and a touch of ’60s psychedelia into a groove-heavy mix. The group's best known hits include “Jealous Again,” “Hard To Handle,” “She Talks To Angels” and “Remedy.”
The band has enjoyed its current success strictly on its own terms. Despite the long absence from the public eye, the group granted only a few press interviews to promote Warpaint, which was released on the band’s own label, Silver Arrow Records. The closed-door policy toward the press might be the result of an exchange with Maxim that started when the magazine published a lukewarm review of Warpaint in its March 2008 issue. The problem wasn’t so much the tone of the review, but the fact that the reviewer had only heard one track from the album before writing it. Maxim later admitted its blunder, and issued an apology to its readers (but not to the band).
A rocky relationship with the press is nothing new for the Crowes. In a 1995 interview for the Amorica album (infamous for its bikini bottom cover photo), Rich Robinson told me, “The things that are written about us always have to do with something other than music. People write about what we wear, what we say, what drugs we do, what drugs we don’t do, our album cover, anything other than the music.”
Music has always been the central focus for the Robinsons. They handle nearly all of the songwriting for the band, with Rich writing most of the music and Chris writing lyrics. Chris told me in a 1991 interview that having a songwriting partner that happens to be your brother has its advantages. “Musically there are a lot of unspoken things between us,” he said. “We know when something feels right and when something doesn’t. I’ve tried to write songs with other people and it’s just never felt right.”
And while the band never shunned commercial success, Chris Robinson maintains that even at the height of the band’s popularity, the Black Crowes flew its own course. “Even in our most commercially successful period,” he said, “there was nothing like us on any format. By the time grunge happened, Southern Harmony and Amorica didn’t fit into any part of popular music. We looked different, we sounded different, and we set up our culture a little different.”
Both Robinson brothers insist that their music, not commercial success, has always been their driving force.
“You could take it all away tomorrow and I’ll go back to Atlanta and start again,” Chris said. “You don’t kick the habit just like that. It’s your passion. This is the one vice I’m never going to get rid of."
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment