V2
2001
Lions
About This Album
If the Black Crowes are anything, they are survivors (and, reportedly, if Chris Robinson had his way, he'd be a genuine survivor, appearing on CBS' genius television show with his wife Kate Hudson), weathering years of popularity and disdain, before emerging at the end of the '90s as a rarity -- a real, road-weathered rock & roll band, in the classic sense. And it wasn't just that they played classic rock -- they stayed out on the road constantly, bashing out albums when they weren't fighting record labels. By the dawn of the new millennium, there weren't many bands like that out on the market, and it was a mixed blessing -- it meant that they had an ugly breakup with their longtime label, American, but it also meant that there really wasn't anybody else for Jimmy Page to turn to when he wanted to tour in 1999. These two events inform Lions, their first album for V2 records, and their most idiosyncratic album since 1994's neglected gem, Amorica. Like that album, this record is instantly familiar, recalling many common and forgotten platters from the early '70s, yet twisted through a surprisingly individual voice from the Crowes. And, like that record, this is more about the music and the texture than the songs, which is disconcerting for anybody looking for the knockout songwriting of their first two records, or even "Stop Kicking My Heart Around.
Track List (try tracks 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8 and 9)

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