By Your Side

Performer: The Black Crowes
Artist: Dirty Dozen Brass Band; Cindy Mizelle
Engineer: Kevin Shirley; Rich Alvy...
Producer: Kevin Shirley...
Distributor: Sony Music Distribution (

Notes: 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). Recorded at Avatar Studios, New York, New York. The Black Crowes: Chris Robinson, Steve Gorman, Sven Pipien, Eddie Harsch, Rich Robinson. Additional personnel: Zoe Thrall (flute); Dirty Dozen (horns); Cindy Mizelle, Brenda White-King, Vanees Thomas, Curtis King, Tawatha Agee (background vocals). 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."

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..."

Led by brothers Chris and Rich Robinson, The Black Crowes put blues and raunch back into rock at a time when the genre was nearly blues-less. Taking their cue from the Faces and the early-'70s Rolling Stones, the Crowes fought, partied and rocked through the 1990s, achieving big success with their retro-rock sound and look.

Shipping or Dimension weight in pounds: 0.3

Shipping Options and Policies