The Black Crowes Thread

[liebzz]

The Southern Harmony and Musical Companion - ...comes another perfect rock n roll record! What struck me getting into this second album is just how much the Black Crowes’ music is completely ingrained into my psyche. I can’t recall the last time or if I ever specifically set out to listen to this album start to finish, but I know these songs and these songs are me. I mean, Sting Me, Remedy, Thorn in My Pride, and Bad Luck Blue Eyes Goodbye are all classics to my ears. Add to that No Speak No Slave (which just f*in’ rocks - I can’t recall when I first heard this but it just tweaks the right nerve every time), My Morning Song - which I might have audibly screamed “YES!!” when it came on despite immediately following No Speak No Slave, Sometimes Salvation, and Hotel Illness just all examples of how great this band started out album wise. The Bob Marley cover to close out is perfection for this record. To my ears, this ups the ante from the first album - a band secretly on the rise and getting even stronger (uncanny parallels here to Pearl Jam for the folks who didn’t check out after the first album or sat back waiting for an encore). Man, this band was awesome!

Black crowes are summer to me. Grilling, cold beers, laughing with friends, poolside, hiking, causing trouble.

Yea, i fucking love this band.

I think what gets me is for the Black Crowes I will listen to their live albums before the albums more often which makes me less familiar with the track listing on the album but for that reason I still know the songs. I kind of made the decision to hit them up next last weekend when I spent an afternoon with the Freak n roll live album and was just ready for a long ride in that vibe.

[wease]

I know some of you have read Gorman’s book. If you haven’t yet, do so. I read it a couple weeks back and it’s fantastic.

[liebzz]

Amorica - this is the third in the core set of albums that really make up what I think was the popular heyday of this band from a commercial standpoint. Once again, this band delivered a basically perfect album filled with songs that just seem to be the touchstone of what my Black Crowes experience has been. Gone, A Conspiracy, and Wiser Time (in 2013, at Terminal 5 was just an amassing live version of this song it basically shot to the top of my favorite songs from them - I am pretty sure my brain exploded over those 10-15 minutes) are bona fide essential classics. However, in this listen I was particularly struck by the three song sequence High Head Blues, Cursed Diamond, and Nonfiction. Just a tremendous sequence of groove. I loved the jam in She Gave Good Sunflower. Basically the whole album is amazing once again. This band essentially flawless through the first three records, but there’s plenty of greatness still to come...

[Superblood Wolfmoon]

I know some of you have read Gorman’s book. If you haven’t yet, do so. I read it a couple weeks back and it’s fantastic.

I can’t lie, I’m still buthurt over Steve’s book...or maybe just the light it shone on the music for me. I dearly loved this band, saw them live religiously for decades, and after the book and reunion, I’ve struggled to enjoy the music both as frequently and passionately as I did for so long. It’s stained for me now, not unlike Soundgarden since Chris Cornell died.

That said, I feel like this is just a part of life, and I’ve let too many things like this really get into my headspace over the last few years, and it’s time to move on. I am going to take this journey with you if that’s OK, and document my feelings on a band that’s definitely part of who I am through and through.

[Superblood Wolfmoon]

Amorica - this is the third in the core set of albums that really make up what I think was the popular heyday of this band from a commercial standpoint. Once again, this band delivered a basically perfect album filled with songs that just seem to be the touchstone of what my Black Crowes experience has been. Gone, A Conspiracy, and Wiser Time (in 2013, at Terminal 5 was just an amassing live version of this song it basically shot to the top of my favorite songs from them - I am pretty sure my brain exploded over those 10-15 minutes) are bona fide essential classics. However, in this listen I was particularly struck by the three song sequence High Head Blues, Cursed Diamond, and Nonfiction. Just a tremendous sequence of groove. I loved the jam in She Gave Good Sunflower. Basically the whole album is amazing once again. This band essentially flawless through the first three records, but there’s plenty of greatness still to come...

Are you listening to the expanded versions?

[verb_to_trust]

I played Amorica today after reading your post Leibzz. For my money, their grooves were never better.

[liebzz]

Three Snakes and One Charm - after three near perfect albums, I think the Black Crowes come a little bit down to earth here, but they are still on one incredible run. The guitars here come off much meatier, which results in a different albeit still very satisfying groove. This is a rawk record. Under A Mountain, Neberkenezer, Blackberry, Only Halfway to Everywhere are damn fine examples of them just laying down some heavy riffs and letting them take them to some cool and fun places. Let Me Share the Ride is perfect Crowes. There’s still some mid tempo groovy stuff here like Bring On Bring On and Good Friday, and it’s still quite good but may not reach the highs of the first three. An A whereas the others were A+. Pretty amazing for their first four records.

[liebzz]

Amorica - this is the third in the core set of albums that really make up what I think was the popular heyday of this band from a commercial standpoint. Once again, this band delivered a basically perfect album filled with songs that just seem to be the touchstone of what my Black Crowes experience has been. Gone, A Conspiracy, and Wiser Time (in 2013, at Terminal 5 was just an amassing live version of this song it basically shot to the top of my favorite songs from them - I am pretty sure my brain exploded over those 10-15 minutes) are bona fide essential classics. However, in this listen I was particularly struck by the three song sequence High Head Blues, Cursed Diamond, and Nonfiction. Just a tremendous sequence of groove. I loved the jam in She Gave Good Sunflower. Basically the whole album is amazing once again. This band essentially flawless through the first three records, but there’s plenty of greatness still to come...

Are you listening to the expanded versions?

So I think for the Black Crowes, my intention is to try to hit the studio albums as released and take interludes with the live albums, which is where it’s always been at for me.

[Strat]

Three Snakes and One Charm - after three near perfect albums, I think the Black Crowes come a little bit down to earth here, but they are still on one incredible run. The guitars here come off much meatier, which results in a different albeit still very satisfying groove. This is a rawk record. Under A Mountain, Neberkenezer, Blackberry, Only Halfway to Everywhere are damn fine examples of them just laying down some heavy riffs and letting them take them to some cool and fun places. Let Me Share the Ride is perfect Crowes. There’s still some mid tempo groovy stuff here like Bring On Bring On and Good Friday, and it’s still quite good but may not reach the highs of the first three. An A whereas the others were A+. Pretty amazing for their first four records.

p.s all my love

[surfndestroy]

Three Snakes and One Charm - after three near perfect albums, I think the Black Crowes come a little bit down to earth here, but they are still on one incredible run. The guitars here come off much meatier, which results in a different albeit still very satisfying groove. This is a rawk record. Under A Mountain, Neberkenezer, Blackberry, Only Halfway to Everywhere are damn fine examples of them just laying down some heavy riffs and letting them take them to some cool and fun places. Let Me Share the Ride is perfect Crowes. There’s still some mid tempo groovy stuff here like Bring On Bring On and Good Friday, and it’s still quite good but may not reach the highs of the first three. An A whereas the others were A+. Pretty amazing for their first four records.

p.s all my love

I love this album but it has a thicker tone and bit harder listen than the predecessors. It is probably my most spun Black Crowes vinyl. In smaller, bite sized chunks it is so good.

[liebzz]

I am pretty much saying the same thing. Thicker tone, still really great (it is also the album I am most familiar with other than some live stuff), it maybe not reaching what the first three did.

[Strat]

It's their no code maybe

[liebzz]

I could see that. I mean they did play around a bit and it sort of goes up and down so I am in on that analogy, especially since the first three were so authentically them and their sound.

[surfndestroy]

I just listened to it on a drive and my updated take is the songwriting is B but the band is smoking at A+. The performance and arrangements are great and tight, maybe a little too tight. Would like to have the solos a little louder in the mix and a little longer. I’d love to hear live recordings from this tour, to see if the songs breathed a little more or jammed out.

[Strat]

I really need to get this one on Vinyl. Shit.

[liebzz]

Yes and I will get to it soon but they then went too far in that direction on the next one.

[liebzz]

By Your Side - if the Black Crowes has a PRAMG, this would probably be it. The songs are tightly focused musically for the most part but they don’t ready tread too much new ground or really add to the conversation. Basically, looking back at the first four albums you could easily find better and more adventurous versions of all of these songs. Is it cathartic and fun to see them bang out Go Faster, Kicking My Heart Around, and Horsehead? Sure. But for each of those there’s a Heavy which completely misses the mark for me. Only a Fool and Welcome to the Goodtimes are both pretty good but again I think I have heard them do it better in the last four albums. After that, the last few songs on this album for me are hard to get through. They just do nothing for me, except Virtue and Vice which actually annoyed me because it really felt like overreaching for a Led Zeppelin vibe that seemed overproduced. All that said, I am glad they followed this with the tour with Jimmy Page, which I thought at least was invigorating. I am going to listen to Live at the Greek next...

[liebzz]

Live at the Greek - it’s been quite a few years since I listened to this. Despite the fact that Chris Robinson claims he wasn’t crazy about the performances...holy crap! There’s points on this live album where you can’t tell it’s not Zeppelin, but there’s really on their game when putting their spin on those tracks and also when they play the non-Zeppelin songs. In My Time of Dying is epic. So is Sloppy Drunk, Custard Pie, Woke Up This Morning, Ten Years Gone, Your Time is Gonna Come, Nobody’s Fault But Mine, Hey Hey What Can I Do, Mellow Down Easy, Shake Your Money Maker, Out on the Tiles, Heartbreaker...I mean the whole thing is phenomenal especially because of Gorman who is every bit Bonham on this. Such a great live album.

[bada]

By Your Side is where they lost me for a while there. Wasn't till Warpaint that I was fully back on board. I do like Horsehead even though its a goofy title. I dismissed the title track as an inferior rewrite of Jealous Again but I've come around to loving it.

[liebzz]

Lions - this album really went somewhere very different from their prior albums. If the first four were sort of variation on this theme of modernizing classic rock for the 90s with a bit of their own signature, By Your aside a seeming dive into a very mainstream and streamlined sound, Lions is the Black Crowes experimenting and playing around a bit with their sound. A lot of the time it works. Midnight From the Inside Out, Come On, No Use Lying, Ozone Mama, Greasy Grass River, Young Man Old Man, and Cosmic Friend are all examples of them kicking things around and working - at least to my ears. Soul Singing, Cypress Tree, and Lay It All On Me have a bit more of their traditional sound and it’s welcome among what is at times almost wildness for them on record. The only song that really didn’t work for me was Lickin’. So I am calling this out as a very underrated record worth repeat listens.