The Black Crowes were a band for whom the stars almost aligned. Arriving on the music scene seemingly fully formed with their Faces / Rolling Stones / Humble Pie blues rocking coupled to a type of hard rock that exposed the hair metal hoards as being an exercise in style over substance.
Fronted by brothers Rich and Chris Robinson, The Black Crowes’ unleashed their debut album in 1990. Shake Your Money Maker was a slow burn success for the quintet, but it established them as an act very much on the rise and seemed to promise that they’d be one of the key acts of the 90s. The Black Crowes’ retro rock sound and their sheer credibility ensured that they managed to survive the grunge explosion that had rendered so many other established rock bands obsolete. At the height of grunge’s popularity they released The Southern Harmony and Musical Companion, a sophomore album that expanded on the glorious riff and chorus heavy retro rock sound of their debut and added a few more bluesy jams. Both the grungers and the traditional rock fans loved it. The Black Crowes were now firmly established as a key rock act for the 90s and there was no way that they were going to be anything other than one of the definitive bands of the decade.
A tremendous amount of effort was put into recording Tall, The Southern Harmony and Musical Companion’s much anticipated follow up, however band disharmony led to the album being shelved and instead Amorica was recorded and released to some fanfare. With it’s infamous album cover and optimism fuelled by two of the best rock albums of the last five years, Amorica was well received, though it relatively race artwork was controversial. Follow up, Three Snakes and One Charm is perhaps the most misunderstood album of the The Black Crowes’ career, being a distinct move away from the accessible retro rocking of the first three albums towards something considerably more challenging.
All of The Black Crowes first four albums are poised for re-release on weighty 180gm vinyl by original record label American on 4th December. For Three Snakes and One Charm it will be the first time it has seen a full 12 inch vinyl release, as previously it was only available on vinyl as a box of 7 inch singles.
