Black Crowes By Your Side CD

In the three years since their last album, the Black Crowes either lost or fired band members, got sued, switched labels and saw marriages break-up. Rather than be cowered by these obstacles, the band regrouped and put out an album bristling with energy and soaked in sturdy riffs and passionate singing. With the Crowes reduced to a quintet for the recording of BY YOUR SIDE, Rich Robinson played all lead and rhythm guitar for the first time and particularly shone on the sassy funk of "Heavy" and the slide-happy "Kicking My Heart Around." The female back-up singers, fat guitar tone and Chris Robinson's raspy singing turned the title track into the kind of solid rock & roll that Rod Stewart used to churn out effortlessly early in his career.

Although the wah-wah drenched "HorseHead" is a heavy stomper of a song, the Crowes got wistful on "Welcome To The Goodtimes" and churned out Curtis Mayfield-flavored soul with "Go Tell The Congregation." Keyboardist Eddie Harsch remained the band's unsung hero as his liberal doses of Hammond organ and electric piano seasoned songs such as the rollicking "Then She Said My Name" and the psychedelic-flavored sanctity of "Virtue And Vice."

Recorded at Avatar Studios, New York, New York.

Reissue 1999:Replaces Cbs 69361

The Black Crowes: Chris Robinson (vocals); Rich Robinson (guitar); Eddie Harsch (keyboards); Sven Pipien (bass); Steve Gorman (drums).

Additional personnel: Dirty Dozen Brass Band (horns); Zoe Thrall (flute); Curtis King, Cindy Mizelle, Tawatha Agee, Brenda White King, Vanees Thomas (background vocals).

Rolling Stone (1/21/99, p.72) - 3 (out of 5) "...BY YOUR SIDE is catchier and hits harder than the band's recent albums..."
Entertainment Weekly (1/15/99, p.62) - "...this collection...manages to radiate enough wild-eyed, amped-up brio to renew one's faith in the restorative powers of good ole Southern-fried rock & roll." - Rating: B+
Q (1/00, p.83) - Included in Q Magazine's "50 Best Albums of 1999."
CMJ (2/25/99, p.5) - "...the sibling songwriting duo of Chris and Rich Robinson has been causing a ruckus with their mix of Southern-fried rock, whiskey-soaked blues and soulful gospel....BY YOUR SIDE...is a return to the driving rock 'n' roll the Crowes championed on their early recordings..."