Crowes and Lions

The Black Crowes were among the first artists in the nineties to embrace the retro sound and looks without hesitation. They simply looked like, let’s say, Led Zeppelin. They even sounded a bit like them, so no wonder they were recruited by Jimmy Page at the end of the decade. Well, the evil tongues of the critics exaggerated that fact when they threw their “sticks and stones” at the band’s sixth studio album “Lions.” Although the record starts with the unimpressive (but still a good song) “Midnight from the Inside Out," it bursts with power already with the second song called “Lickin’,” a powerful riff that will make you keep banging your head from start to finish. The album is not only rocking and screaming - it contains two beautiful ballads, the Zeppelin-esque "Soul Singing" and the churning "Losing My Mind." Yet, although the album wasn’t a commercial disaster, for many of their fans, it was a creative shipwreck. I wouldn’t agree with the critics totally, but it is definitely an album which would find its way on the bottom of my favorite Crowes albums. 

The new decade was supposed to bring a sense of newness and revitalization for the group. After being dropped by Columbia, which executives requested a Shake Your Money Maker-sounding record, Chris and Rich Robinson signed on with V2 Records, a smaller label who promised “total creative control” to the band. Promises were made that the upcoming album, “Lions,” would be a creative comeback that would be the best Black Crowes record in years. Chris Robinson’s relationship with Katie Holmes promised a new flare of inspiration in his life, so the whole stage was set for redemption and a huge comeback. Unfortunately for their fans, the result was a record that sent the band into hiatus for seven years. “Lions” is Crowes’ only studio album to feature guitarist Audley Freed. It was recorded in New York City in January and February of 2001, and was produced by Don Was. Bass guitar duties were shared by Rich Robinson and Was, as Greg Rzab had left the band and was not replaced until the tour that followed the release of the album. The album debuted on the Billboard 200 at its peak position of 20, selling more than 53,000 copies in its first week. Chris Robinson granted that the experience of playing Led Zeppelin songs with Jimmy Page influenced Lions, but not on a song-by-song basis. "Led Zeppelin's music is very dramatic and very dynamic. That's something we've attempted to do with our style also. I think it definitely affected how we make our music." Funk and R&B were bigger influences than on past albums, and "Miracle to Me" was influenced by Nick Drake. Chris claimed Kate Hudson's influence on his lyrics was subtle: "More so than a literal reference to her, it's the vantage point from where I'm writing. It's the reasons that I'm singing and it's the feeling. That is an influence far greater than the literal influence." He did grant, however, that "Soul Singing" and "Miracle to Me" were written with Hudson in mind, and explained that the album's track order roughly follows a path from confusion to clarity that mirrored his own.