#theblackcrowes

February 13, 1990: The Black Crowes released Shake Your Money Maker.

In The Studio

🎙️ https://www.inthestudio.net/online-on-demand/black-crowes-shake-your-moneymaker/ 📡

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The original CIRCUS Magazine Official Website is👇

After being delayed for well over a year following the heavily influential covid outbreak, last Saturday’s performance by the Black Crowes proved that live music is back and possibly even better than ever.  I arrived at the show more than two hours in advance and was surprised to see the main parking lot fully packed already, people happily throwing frisbees and sandbags for cornhole as the radiant sun gently settled down into the horizon on a beautiful late-summer night in Homdel, New Jersey.  Even the auxiliary parking lot was packed with most of the same tailgating affairs, this time with the sweet smell of barbecues cooking American favorites along a line in the back of the lot.  The energy was great; a fairly old crowd for a young 20-year-old to be around, but still a lot of positivity and appreciation for a show that, at one time at least, looked like it would never actually happen.

I could hear music already as I descended the stairs of the shuttle bus, which was merely a school bus with an outfitted stereo blasting classic 80’s jams, and it had that warm, saturated classic rock tone that reminded me of all the concerts from the 60’s that I’d never been able to see personally but adored watching in retrospect on YouTube.  PNC Arts Center was just getting warmed up however, and although I thought the opening act, Dirty Honey, did a great job setting the mood and getting the groove going, they were no match for the ‘Crowes, who really couldn’t be beat that night anyways.  

Dirty Honey’s setup was demarcated by a big banner proudly displaying their name, separating the stage into a smaller section with all the instruments near the front, but it was obvious that there was a lot more going on behind that screen.  I was especially interested, being a guitar player myself, at the interesting mix of amplifiers that peaked out around the sides.  Oranges, Voxes, a Magnatone stack-I’ll stop there before I geek out too much.  Dirty Honey’s guitar player had a classic Marshall stack, and I was right in the direction of his amp so I could hear all that glorious cranked up sound not just through the coloring PA monitors.  The rest of the band was tight, too, and played with a certain bravado and confidence that made them seem as if they’ve been performing effortlessly for years.  They had a very Aerosmith-meets-Guns N Roses sound, and it kept enough of the bluesy theme for the band to follow without becoming repetitive or too contrived.

The Black Crowe’s came out to an old-school, wild-west bar scene toward the back left-side of the stage.  Looking collected and totally in the zone, the band swung their prop drinks in the air and made out like they were having a grand old time.  Like old friends uniting at their favorite old bar spot after a day of motorcycling across the vast American west.  One member slinks off behind the bar and appears in the next moment with a guitar in his hand, strumming a proud opening guitar riff to the song Twice As Hard.  After a few phrases, the rest of the band appears at their positions having grabbed all their necessary tools from roadies obscured to the side of the stage, and they jump into the first track.  They immediately sound great as a band, with a tight rhythm section led primarily by the drummer’s commanding right foot, but the mix leaves something to be desired; luckily, all the sliders on the mixing board are sorted before the end of the first song, and the sound remains great throughout the rest of their performance allowing the talented musicians to really leave an individualistic impression on a classic, blues-based collage of tracks.  The band plays through the entirety of their hit album, Shake Your Money Maker, and no song goes without clapping and applause.  By the third track every band member is really in the groove, and you can tell that they were having a great time, as well, as they looked at each other during dynamics and solos in little nods of approval.  

The Black Crowe’s are led by two brothers, Chris and Rich Robinson, and as is often the case with brothers in a rock band, they’ve had their rough patches in the band’s history.  But absolutely no hint of animosity was present in the show.  In fact, Chris took a moment to celebrate his brother’s birthday which happened to be on the day of the concert, and Rich seemed like he was celebrating his birthday in his favorite fashion-rocking out and picking up good vibes from the audience.  I loved how the band managed to alter their tone throughout the show even though they played a majority of songs from only one record that has one particular sound.  The two guitarists switched amps and guitars throughout, but always managed to sound balanced and rich in texture.  Chris’s vocals sounded great, as well, and he barely relied on his two backup singers who spent a good portion of the show dancing rather than trying to fill in or take the burden off the vocal section.  Chris sounded lively and energetic, and he moved around the stage like a true classic rock singer who knows they must be as entertaining as they sound in order to convey the true spirit of a rock performance.  I would also be remiss without mentioning how great the lead guitarist, Isaiah Mitchell played all night long.  As a longtime fan of strong lead players like Mick Taylor, his sound and techniques, whether playing with a pick, using a slide or picking with his fingers celebrated the spirit of fantastic guitarists like Mick, and I felt that this was the closest I would ever get to hearing a true masterful lead player in person, something I was especially blown away by considering how little recognition Isaiah gets as a player in the guitar community.  He could’ve blown Clapton off the stage that night and trust me I would never say that about an amateur player.

Lover, cover me with your sleep Let your love light shine, let it shine Lover cover me, with a good dream Oh, let your love light.. oh let your love light shine

Sorry for the delay on the blog this week. I took my day off yesterday to go to the MN State Fair, for which we had beautiful weather. I met my family there, including both of my brothers (including one who traveled from WI with his wife to be here for it). I do want to make sure that I give my crate diggers’ something to look for over this Labor Day Weekend,so, I thought for a quick list, I’d list some bands that include brothers/sisters and include an album that shows off their skills. In a lot of cases, I’m picking artists who have notably better material than when they split and go solo, or form other bands. A few are just great bands that I feel the kinship is essential to the sound. I know there are many others that I haven’t included some for specific reasons and some just because I’m only going to put so many into today’s list. Maybe I’ll do some more volumes of this in the future. Enjoy and happy hunting!

The Allman Brothers Band- At Fillmore East (at the height of their playing, before they started losing band members)

The Black Crowes- Freak ‘N’ Roll...Into the Fog (a live show, from a run when they were just getting back together after one of their many extended break-ups)

Creedence Clearwater Revival- Live At Woodstock (a ferocious live set, you can see more on this one on my IG @djmusicallyrich. I recently wrote about it as my Album Of The Day)

North Mississippi All-Stars- Hill Country Revue (a live set from Bonnaroo that has a lot of high profile guests, but never overshadow the core band)

Neville Brothers- Authorized Bootleg: Warfield Theater, San Francisco, CA -- 2/27/89 (a killer live set recorded just before their great “Yellow Moon” album was released)

Meat Puppets- II (a couple songs that Nirvana made famous are on this early album from a great band that  has continued to put out  very good albums)

Cowboy Junkies- Long Journey Home (a live album from the one band where we have two brothers and a sister. A  mix of dusty country, blues and strung out rock is put together in a great live show.)

The Secret Sisters- Put Your Needle Down (only sisters could have voices mixing this perfectly on an album full of a wonderful collection of songs)