The Black Crowes - CD Albums Collection (1990-2010) [10 Albums / 12 CD] Combined repost

If Tall did indeed need some reworking before it was released to the general public, it's a mystery why the band didn't release Band as is in 1997. Sonically falling halfway between the ragged Amorica and the hard-edged Three Snakes, this is a great Crowes album showcasing their skills as songwriters and as a loose yet muscular jam band. On the fringes of this album there is some country and the band does stretch out to improvise, but it never feels aimless, because there is an immediacy to the performances and because there are some terrific songs that center the album in a way that was lacking on Three Snakes. There is a hard-driving R&B and soul vibe here, ranging from the churning down-home funk of "Another Roadside Tragedy" and "Never Forget This Song" to the relaxed Faces-styled groove of "If It Ever Stops Raining," which is complemented by the few country flourishes, such as the mandolins on "Lifevest" or the high lonesome fiddles of "My Heart's Killing Me." This is the Black Crowes at their best, turning out classicist rock that flows so natural and easy it feels like these songs have always existed. It would have been great to have Band out in 1997, but having it arrive about ten years later only emphasizes how classic the Crowes sound at their peak, since it doesn't sound like a revival: it sounds like part of a tradition. And thankfully that tradition now contains these two albums, which do rank among the more interesting (Tall) and best (Band) records they've ever done.

Tracklist:

DISC 1 - The Tall Sessions:
01. A Conspiracy
02. Evil Eye
03. Cursed Diamond
04. London P.25
05. Dirty Hair Halo
06. Hi-Head Blues
07. Feathers
08. Nonfiction
09. Tied Up And Swallowed
10. Wiser Time
11. Sunday Buttermilk Waltz
12. Descending
13. Lowdown
14. Tornado
15. Songs Of The Flesh
16. Thunderstorm 6-54

DISC 2 - The Band Sessions:
01. Paint An 8
02. Another Roadside Tragedy
03. If It Ever Stops Raining
04. Wyoming And Me
05. Predictable
06. Never Forget This Song
07. Lifevest
08. Grinnin
09. My Heart's Killing Me
10. Peace Anyway



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The Black Crowes - Warpaint [Japanese pressing] (2008)
FLAC+CUE+LOG > 372 MB | Full Scans | Mp3 CBR 320 Kbps - 141 MB
Total Running Time > 57:32 mins | Label: Sony Music Japan | Cat. # SICP 1768

Looking back, it seems inevitable that the Black Crowes would suffer a rocky middle age. Young bands yearning to be old tend to stumble when the years start to pile up, once hunger and ambition start to fade into the ceaseless grind of the road, and the Crowes were no exception. After they mapped out the furthest reaches of their world on 1994's Amorica they slowly spun their tires, turning out records both respectable and tired, before internal tensions slowly tore the brothers Robinson apart, leading to a split in 2002, not long after the release of their sixth album, Lions. A few years of solo wanderings led the Crowes to a reunion in 2005, but they had to go through a few more lineup changes -- including the addition of North Mississippi Allstar Luther Dickinson as the replacement for guitarist Marc Ford -- before they buckled down to record their seventh album, 2008's Warpaint. All that turmoil and trouble are felt on Warpaint, as are the years the band spent paying dues on the jam band circuit after Amorica. Warpaint shows that the decade of hard struggle gave the Crowes soul and chops, turning them into the band they've always wanted to be. The Black Crowes haven't changed their basic sound -- ever since Shake Your Money Maker the band has always drawn deeply from the Stones and Faces, tempering that British swagger with Southern-fried blues borrowed from the Allmans, then slowly threading hippie mysticism throughout -- but the feel of the band has changed, as the Crowes have turned from reckless ruffians into seasoned veterans, with the group feeling lived-in and genuine. There's depth here, highlighted by an instrumental suppleness that slightly recalls Little Feat -- particularly on the slow-rolling "Oh Josephine" with its gently cascading choruses -- an evolution that could only be earned during those years on the road, building the band through nightly jams and a slow cycle of membership turnovers. This is a suppleness that has grit, thanks especially to Dickinson's glass slide runs that give this music some welcome grease. The Crowes also pull off a couple of sly moves here, weaving some swirling psychedelia through the chorus of "Movin' on Down the Line," turning the Reverend Charlie Jackson's "God's Got It" into a heavy, heavy backwoods stomp, then spinning the closing "Whoa Mule" into a roiling blues raga. These are the turns and tricks of veterans, who can slide these flourishes into their signature sound without calling attention to their changeups, but these numbers are enough of a departure to garner attention -- what may not get as much praise is how the Crowes write compellingly within their standard sound, as they do here, beginning with the opening gambit of the down'n'dirty "Goodbye Daughters of the Revolution" and the crawling "Walk Believer Walk." From there, Warpaint continues to gain momentum, as this album is not only their strongest set of songs since Amorica, it has a depth and presence that is rare for a digital age creation and, best of all, the album has a true narrative thrust, making it feel like a true classic rock album. What the Black Crowes have done here is what true journeymen do: they don't renounce their past, they build upon it, finding hidden depths within it, shaping tradition after their own image to make it sound fresh. They're old-fashioned, but in the best sense: they're in it for the long haul, which the superb Warpaint proves beyond a shadow of a doubt.

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