MattA75's Full Review: The Southern Harmony and Musical Companion by The ...
In 1990, The Black Crowes roared onto the rock and roll scene with swagger and attitude, a true alternative to all the hair metal bands. Their sound was a mix of dirty boogie southern rock, gospel, soul, and blues. Their cover of Otis Redding's Hard to Handle became their own song, and their originals like the rollicking Jealous Again and Twice as Hard and the tender ballad She Talks to Angels had made them superstars, all helping their debut, Shake Your Money Maker, selling over 5 million copies.
After nearly 2 years of non-stop touring, the band entered the studio on a creative high. After about a week, their second album was finished. Yes, this was finished in a week. They called it The Southern Harmony and Musical Companion, and as was revealed in 1999, many of the tracks on here are first takes. "We just kind of jammed them out and at the end we said 'well, it ain't gonna get any better than that'," recalled drummer Steve Gorman for VH1's Behind the Music series.
Upon listening to this record, you can't help but feel lifted both spiritually and emotionally. It's a musical tour de force that is both ambitious and soulful, soft yet sinful.
The two standout tracks are easily Thorn in My Pride and My Morning Song. Of course, a lot of people will disagree with me. But if you ask me, these are two of those "first take" songs Gorman was talking about in his interview.
Thorn in My Pride opens with a soft acoustic intro, soon joined by an organ that seems to be singing directly into the listener's soul. As lead singer Chris Robinson begins to sing, you can hear the soul in his voice. When you get to the chorus, Robinson is in perfect harmony with his brother Rich's guitar. "Mother, cover me!" As Rich's solo begins and ends, a smooth ebb comes to the music. Gorman keeps a steady beat while keyboardist/organist Eddie Harsch begins his own magic. The ending is inspirational and true, a jam that could only be a first take. Thorn is a song that is hard to grasp at first. It's not commerical at all, but upon repeated listenings, it grows on you and soon your soul is filled with joy.
My Morning Song isn't nearly as subtle. It starts out with a racket right away and doesn't let up until the bridge. But Jesus f'ing Christ what a damned bridge it is. It's my personal belief that this is the finest, most soulful, most uplifting, most beautiful bridge ever written. The lyrics aren't so much powerful as much as they are just plain spiritual. The gospel inspired background singers give this song a decidedly church like feel, and you just can't help feeling like you're in the middle of Sunday Service with the Black Crowes as your healing preacher. I'm not religious at all and it makes ME feel that way. Believe me when I tell you that that's saying a lot.
Among the other highlights here is the Crowes' biggest hit to date, Remedy. This, along with the album opening Sting Me makes for a nice one-two punch that captures an expansion on the Crowes sound that made Money Maker such a hit. Both are high energy tracks, and both show off every member of the band's talent. Gorman, especially, outshines his bandmates on these two songs, playing with power and skill that I don't know if he's matched since.
No Speak No Slave is really the band's first really obvious Led Zeppelin influenced song. The songs on Money Maker all had a direct southern influence. This however, is just a Jimmy Page song. It starts off with a bit of a jam before crashing into the thick of the song. That's when the riff hits you. I wouldn't be surprised if it was this song alone that convinced Page to tour with the Crowes in the summer of 2000. It's just a monster riff with some nice vocals and excellent instrumentation in the background. When you come right down to it, that's all Zeppelin was most of the time.
Another one of my favorite songs from this record is without a doubt Hotel Illness. For most of this album, the swagger of the first record is not readily apparent, until you get to this song. The harmonica is a nice change, and the driving chorus has made this a longtime favorite of even the most fairweather of Crowes fans.
And then there's Sometimes Salvation. It's another rock/gospel song but it has so much SOUL in it. Robinson pours his heart into every word he sings on this track, you can almost literally feel him pulling it out of his chest and laying it all on the line. That's what a great song does, and that's what a great singer does. While I don't know if Robinson has ever really topped the performance he gives on this song, it alone should be enough to call him a great singer (I would never call him a great lyricist, although this album is his strongest by far lyrically).
If I haven't convinced you that this is an album you just cannot do without, then I don't know what else to say honestly. The songs I failed to mention (Bad Luck Blue Eyes Goodbye, a gorgeous ballad, Black Moon Creeping, my pick for weakest track, and Time Will Tell, a cover that fits the band perfectly) are nearly as good and shouldn't be forgotten.
The end all, be all of this album is that it is a tried and true rock and roll classic. Yes, it belongs up there with Sgt. Pepper and Exile on Main Street and Led Zeppelin II. It is the ultimate height of creativity for the Crowes, and even though their follow up efforts (from 1995's Amorica to this year's Lions) have ranged from subpar to extremely good, they have never matched this, and may never match this. If you don't own this record, you should go out and buy it now. That's for your own good, not anyone else's.
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