CONCERT REVIEW : Black Crowes’ fans fly with sassy, frenzied beat
Posted on Saturday, August 16, 2008
FAYETTEVILLE — The Black Crowes’ songs are fun to listen to on the radio. But, in concert, the group is a solid rock ’n’ roll band whose jams easily best their studio recordings.
The band performed Thursday night at the Arkansas Music Pavilion to a crowd of about 3, 000 — the largest for a paid show at the outdoor venue, in its fourth season. Cool breezes after sunset made for a pleasant night, and the crowd — in reserved seats and scattered across the parking lot and grassy area — remained enthusiastic throughout the twohour show.
The six-member band, including brothers Chris and Rich Robinson, was joined by two female backup singers. With shoulderlength hair and wearing a Tshirt and blue jeans, lead singer Chris Robinson had the looks of a grunge musician but the frenetic rock star moves of Rolling Stones frontman Mick Jagger. The group’s music is clearly influenced by the Stones and Little Feat, among others.
The stage was decorated with two American flags that featured a big white peace symbol on a blue background in place of the field of stars. Throughout the show, Chris Robinson also played acoustic guitar, harmonica, tambourine and maracas.
Early on, the band played “Another Roadside Tragedy,” a song with a great groove from The Lost Crowes, a band session album.
They played several tunes from this year’s Warpaint, their first studio album in seven years. “Walk Believer Walk” was a slow, bluesy number. Robinson’s vocals were raw and clear on “Wee Who See the Deep.” As good as they were on rocking jams, they put equal fervor into slow songs like “There’s Gold In Them Hills” and “Whoa Mule,” both from Warpaint.
Robinson’s raspy voice shone on “Thorn in My Pride,” a tune from their second album, which had a nice groove and ended with an impressive drum solo.
One of the band’s best songs was “Jealous Again,” from their 1990 debut studio album, Shake Your Money Maker. Performed toward the end of the show, the tune’s sassy beat really brought the crowd to life, as they sang along and danced where they stood. Robinson clapped his approval to the crowd and took a bow.
They followed that with “Wounded Bird,” a song from Warpaint that had a dreamy feel and hip-shaking groove. Another new one, “Movin’ On Down the Line” started out slow and worked itself into a very groovy beat.
It was great to hear the new music, evidence that the band still is writing songs with solid lyrics and tunes. But it would have been nice to hear just one little song that’s infectious and can only be done by them: “She Talks to Angels.” But, that’s what the iPods and CDs are for.
As for this show and the band’s performance, it really couldn’t have been a better night.
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