Black Crowes Are Officially Reuniting

The battling Robinson brothers confirmed on Monday morning (Nov. 11) that they are reforming The Black Crowes for a tour.

The news came during an appearance on Howard Stern's SiriusXM radio show, with singer Chris Robinson pointing to his struggle with depression and the dissolution of his marriage as some of the reasons for the his nearly six-year estrangement from guitarist and brother Rich Robinson.

"I needed to go into the wilderness...I needed to construct that part of my early life," Chris Robinson said about going out on his own with the Chris Robinson Brotherhood, and taking time away from the band.

"I was definitely fed up with the fighting, it was unhealthy," Rich said about forming his own side projects (The Magpie Salute) to get away from the "constant ragging" from his brother. They admitted their strife turned into such epic battles at points that on a joint tour with Oasis back in the day, they freaked the famously battling Gallagher brothers out. "I always loved what he does, and did," Rich Robinson said of his brother.

The Southern rock revivalists rose to stardom in 1990 with the release of their debut album Shake Your Money Maker, and played their last show in 2013, announcing their split in 2015, with Chris saying he and Rich had not been on speaking terms for nearly the entire time since then.

Now, the group has posted dates for the tour on Monday morning (Nov. 11), promising "$hake Your Money Maker -- played in its entirety plus all the hits." "We never even did it when it came out," Chris said of performing their debut all the way through. "I think there's magic in the music we made." The reason behind the tour was pretty simple, according to Chris. "We want to celebrate the most commercial part of our life," he said.

Later on, in the Stern appearance, the Robinsons revealed the lineup for the reunion shows, after assuring fans, "We are the original members of the Black Crowes." That led to the reveal of a brand-new roster, which includes Joel Robinow on keyboards, drummer Raj Ohja (both of the Once and Future Band), as well as Earthless guitarist Isaiah Mitchell and bassist Tim Lefebvre. The Robinsons also performed two of their breakthrough hits -- the ragged rocker "Jealous Again," "She Talks to Angels" and the raucous Otis Redding cover "Hard to Handle" -- on Stern's show to prove their chops, and announced a show at New York's Bowery Ballroom on Monday night to celebrate the reunion, as well as another intimate gig at the Troubadour in Los Angeles on Thursday (Nov. 14).

The 30th anniversary tour is slated to kick off on June 17 with a show at the Austin360 Amphitheater in Austin, Texas, with stops in Dallas, Houston, Atlanta, Tampa, Nashville, Boston, Toronto, Detroit, Minneapolis, Cincinnati and Las Vegas before winding up at The Forum in Los Angeles on Sept. 19.

In a statement announcing the tour, Rich Robinson said "First and foremost, I'm really happy to have my brother back in my life. To be able to play music again together and celebrate the first record we made as kids, is a gift. To have these songs stand up after 30 years is something I could've never fathomed."

Tickets for the tour are available through Ticketmaster. CREDITS: Billboard Magazine – Gil Kaufman


Johnny Cash Documentary: 10 Things We Learned From ‘The Gift’

YouTube Originals film ‘The Gift: The Journey of Johnny Cash’ focuses on the singer’s troubled soul and ultimate redemption.

On November 11th, YouTube Originals will begin streaming the documentary film The Gift: The Journey of Johnny Cash, a 90-minute film directed by Emmy- and Grammy-winning filmmaker Thom Zimny (Elvis Presley: The Searcher, Springsteen on Broadway) that features commentary from Bruce Springsteen, Emmylou Harris, and members of the Cash family, including daughter Rosanne Cash and son John Carter Cash. (An original score to the film, composed by Pearl Jam’s Mike McCready, mixes the guitarist’s music with some of those interviews.)

The movie’s deeply spiritual centerpieces are the lingering effects that the 1944 accidental death of Cash’s 14-year-old brother Jack had on Johnny, who was 12 at the time, and the historic 1968 Folsom Prison concert recordings that gave Cash a renewed understanding of his place and purpose in the world. Through these life-changing events, the themes of sin and salvation are connected to Cash’s experience of success, excess, and, ultimately, redemption. “You always got the feeling that my dad was trying to get away from pain,” says Rosanne Cash. “He worked out his deepest problems on the stage, with an audience.”

Here are 4 things we learned from the new film:


1. Cash’s mother inspired the film’s title.
In an audio interview in preparation for his autobiography, Cash recalls his mother’s proclamation after hearing her teenaged son sing in his newly discovered bass voice for the first time. “My mother said, ‘God has His hand on you. Don’t ever forget the gift.’ That’s the first time she called it that. Singing, writing for my voice… that’s the gift.”

2. He met his first wife, Vivian Liberto, during his early military service in Texas.
Cash enlisted in the Air Force one week before the start of the Korean War, but was eventually sent to Germany. The couple met at St. Mary’s, a San Antonio roller-skating rink, in July 1951. “We had talked about marriage,” he says. “We had practically set the wedding date. I knew that when I came home [from Germany, where he would serve much of his time in the Air Force] that I wanted to marry her. I wanted to settle down and raise a family.” Together, the couple would have four daughters: Rosanne, Kathy, Cindy, and Tara. Cash also notes that he knew he wanted to sing and to make records. “I wanted to do the best of both,” he says.

3. Cash’s job in the military was due in part to his gift for understanding language.
His job as a radio interceptor used Cash’s skills for listening and hearing the cadence in communications that were going back and forth. “He understands how words can fit together, and how lines and rhythms can fit together,” says son John Carter Cash. Unable to return home for three years, it was during his military service that Cash saw the 1951 film Inside the Walls of Folsom Prison, which inspired his 1953 composition “Folsom Prison Blues.” The 1968 live version would reach Number One on the country chart. “I’m speaking from the criminal’s mouth. As it happens there a lot of people who like to hear such lurid tales told, musically,” he says of the song’s most notorious line: “I shot a man in Reno just to watch him die.”

4. Cash left Sam Phillips’ Sun Records with a promise of creative freedom at Columbia Records.
While his time at the Sun label brought a measure of success, including the pop crossover of “I Walk the Line,” Cash was enticed to sign with Columbia Records after being assured he could make gospel records and other concept albums during his tenure there. He would go on to do both, devoting entire LPs to spiritual material and also songs that would raise awareness of the plight of Native Americans and others. Although the new deal brought major commercial success and freedom, it also caused difficulties with his marriage and exacerbated his abuse of prescription drugs, an issue that would plague him for decades. “My kids suffered, and Vivian suffered,” says Cash.

Johnny Cash Official Site: https://www.johnnycash.com/ CREDITS: Rolling Stone Magazine – Stephen L. Betts


Mick Fleetwood Assembles All-Star Lineup to Honor Fleetwood Mac's Early Days, Co-Founder

Fleetwood Mac drummer Mick Fleetwood has announced an all-star tribute to the early years of Fleetwood Mac and the band's original co-founder, Peter Green, that will take place on Feb. 25 at the London Palladium.

The show will feature a killer lineup of musicians pitching in, including ZZ Top's Billy Gibbons, Pink Floyd's David Gilmour, Jonny Lang, John Mayall, Andy Fairweather Low, Fleetwood's Mac bandmate Christine McVie, drummer Zak Starkey, Aerosmith singer Steven Tyler and former Rolling Stones bassist Bill Wyman.

“The concert is a celebration of those early blues days where we all began, and it’s important to recognize the profound impact Peter and the early Fleetwood Mac had on the world of music,” Fleetwood explained in a statement. “Peter was my greatest mentor and it gives me such joy to pay tribute to his incredible talent. I am honored to be sharing the stage with some of the many artists Peter has inspired over the years and who share my great respect for this remarkable musician.”

More guests will be announced at a later date, with producer Glyn Johns slated to serve as executive sound producer and the house band to feature Mick Fleetwood alongside Fairweather Lowe, Dave Bronze and Ricky Peterson.

The show will be filmed for later broadcast, with Martyn Atkins directing. Some of the proceeds from the event will be donated to the More guests will be announced at a later date, with producer Glyn Johns slated to serve as executive sound producer and the house band to feature Mick Fleetwood alongside Fairweather Lowe, Dave Bronze and Ricky Peterson.

The show will be filmed for later broadcast, with Martyn Atkins directing. Some of the proceeds from the event will be donated to the Teenage Cancer Trust. An exclusive pre-sale for the show will take place on Nov. 13 at 10 a.m. GMT here; general admission tickets go on sale on Friday (Nov. 15) at 10 a.m. GMT.

Green, 73, and Fleetwood co-founded Fleetwood Mac in 1967 with John McVie, Danny Kirwan and Jeremy Spencer... https://www.fleetwoodmac.com/ Billboard Magazine – Gil Kaufman