Albums: The Black Crowes – A Pound Of Feathers

The Black Crowes – A Pound of Feathers -

Profane Prophecy: Cruel Streak; Pharmacy Chronicles; Do The Parasite!; High and Lonesome; Queen of the B Sides: It’s Like That; Blood Red Regrets; You Call This a Good Time; Eros Blues; Doomsday Doggerel

Silver Arrow Records


Can a rock band who are well into their careers have a renaissance? The answer is a resounding yes if you happen to be The Black Crowes, who have returned with one of their best albums to date.

When brothers Chris and Rich Robinson first came to prominence in the late eighties in The Black Crowes, the band was often seen as saviours of the rock genre – now forty years on, they have released an album that still embodies the spirit of rock ‘n’ roll when their peers might have appeared to lose the plot, thank goodness. The Black Crowes have still got the vibe and enthusiasm.

Nearly every track on the album opens with a guitar riff that becomes the backdrop to the song – and songs in all their glory are what we are talking about here, on an album that needs to be playing at full volume. Their template comes with a mix of The Rolling Stone around their Brown Sugar phase, Mott the Hoople and a dash of Led Zeppelin – the latter best heard on Cruel Streak.

For more rock-infused numbers, the best here are the opening track, Profane Prophecy, and the infectious It’s Like That, which comes with as much energy as a juggernaut in full flow up the motorway. The band slows down a little on Pharmacy Chronicles, but really this is a masterful, epic, and thrilling ride that the listener who appreciates rock will never tire of hearing.

The band perform with a hunger that belies their years, and whilst there is an element of nostalgia, the band are still leaders in their field. Hopefully the band will return to play some live dates where the songs contained here will excel even further in a live environment.