Rock ’n’ roll pioneers that are always ready for aparty, The Black Crowes opened Saturday’s performance with a promise from leadsinger Chris Robinson to take the crowd “on a rock ’n’ roll ride.” The veteranrockers brought his party-ready mentality to a packed and excited audience atthe Riverside Theater.
With a diverse set mixing up ’90s hits such as“Sting Me,” Twice as Hard” and “Make Glad” with new material, The Black Crowesfired up the crowd with the easygoing and fun-loving spirit that pumped throughtheir songs.
The band certainly feed off the crowd’s enthusiasmin return. Robinson, wailing in hisunmistakable, high-pitched voice, raised the microphone in triumph severaltimes and did a little rock ’n’ roll dance as the band gelled.
The band hit its stride in when it began stretchingits sound, touching on the Americana, gospel and roots-accented sounds of theirrecent albums, like when Steve Gorman joined his band mates up front for apowerful performance of “Whoa Mule” (from last year’s excellent Warpaint.)
The show made it clear that The Black Crowes can jamwith the best of them. Their rock ’n’ roll jams can rattle to a zenith orwander around in a somewhat moody, psychedelic state, often echoing themagnificent jams from classic rockers like The Allman Brothers. The crowd wasinto every moment, shaking along with the band.
Openers Truth and Salvage Co. opened the night withtheir own crowd-pleasing Americana-seasoned rock ’n’ roll tunes.
Photo: Chris Robinson, by Cj Foeckler
