Shake Your Money Maker

Oh fuck no! This is a faded carbon copy of 70s Rolling Stones. The Black Crowes were a competent (but not extraordinary) bar band that had the good fortune to get spotted by George Drakoulis, who coached them with an appropriate list of band to study and emulate (Stones, Faces, Humble Pie). This record was produced by Drakoulis (who became the go-to guy for that 70s blues rock throwback sound), exquisitely recorded by Brendan O'Brien, with keyboards by Chuck Leavell (former Allman Brothers Band member and musical director for the Rolling Stones since 1982). All that would make any half-decent band sound awesome, even if the songs just really aren't there. Most of the lyrics (and all of the song titles) are a shitty pastiche of cliches inspired by Exile on Main St. The record is just imitation, and nothing makes that plainer than their first single, a cover of "Hard to Handle". This made me angry at the time and just as angry now; a bunch of white boy wannabes doing a dodgy Otis Redding impression. I'm sure it's kind of good if you've never heard Otis. But, if you are familiar with Otis, then it's a bit shit. But it got a lot of radio play and sold a zillion copies. This album is clearly only on the list because it reminds Dimery of the music he loved when he was a teenager. "Why do we need new bands? Everyone knows rock attained perfection in 1974. It’s a scientific fact." says Dimery^h^h^h^h^h^h Homer Simpson. It is a bit of a relief that, these days, the Black Crowes seem to be fading from memory and relevance. Their last reunion tour was greeted with skepticism by even their fans. The sooner that the culture forgets that the Black Crowes ever existed, the better. 1.5 stars, rounding up because it is a pointless record, but not hateful.

Fine, but not great

Solid early 90s rocker. There's a couple great songs (Hard to Handle is too corny for me tho :/). I will probably always have a soft spot for She Talks to Angels. It's a bit standard for 70's rock revival, but they sell it pretty well and their vocalist is quite good

Благодаря этому альбому ко мне вернулась вера в аудиторию сервиса 1001. Лучшая песня - She Talks to Angels.

When this album was released people were so happy to have an updated version of that southern-fried, bluesy rock sound. 34 years later, it sounds like any classic rock radio station standard, or, like another reviewer so aptly noted, shitty bar music.

Pretty decent, there’s a couple of great songs here.

I was not excited to listen to this honestly. I have so much good music to listen to lately and I didn't want "Shake Your Money Maker" to take up that time. It ended up being better than I was expecting. Some high energy blues rock with. hint of glam rock but the glam rock vocals aren't as annoying as they can be sometimes. Some fun riffs and solos but overall just exactly what you'd expect for this genre. Nothing really very unique in my opinion.

I mean.. I objectively like this kind of music. However, this feels a bit trite. I don't know how to put my finger on it. Maybe it's the Hard to Handle cover? Or maybe its just that bands like this have been popping up since the late 70s trying to recreate a sound and feeling. So maybe it's the nostalgia play that maybe makes it sound a bit cheesy? I certainly didn't dislike it, but I wasn't wowed by anything I heard today.

Apart from a couple of good tracks it is exactly what you would expect if you think of the black crowes - sadly not for me

I remember this coming out. New sound. Enjoyed it and still do.

I just couldn't get into this guy's voice

Eh, not really my style and none of the songs grabbed me.

That sweet sweet guitar!

I didn't realize Hard to Handle came out in the 90s! I could have sworn that it was like a Led Zepplin contemporary that did that song. Shows how much I know. This album, though, feels like an incredible call back to 70s rocks. Everything works so well together. The vocals and the instruments blend beautifully. I honestly had a hard time rating this, because it's honestly really simple, but so well done. It doesn't help that I've got some personal bias to this style and Hard to Handle. Favorite Song(s): Hard to Handle, She Talks to Angels

blues/southern rock

This is good bar music. I can almost feel my shoes sticking to the wooden boards as I walk across a smokey bar to get to the jukebox.

blues-based rock, can't go wrong

Meh.

bland classic rock

Hey little thing let me light your candle cause Mama I'm sure hard to handle now ______ ___. Wth is he saying? I've seen it listed as at least three things. Anywho...saw this tour when I was in college. Opened for ZZTop at the Nuthouse. Great show.

We really needed The Black Crows when they came on the scene. Music was in a weird in-between place and Shake Your Money Maker produced hit after hit and appealed to multiple genres. I’m not a fan, but I do own She Talks To Angels on cassette single and acknowledge their pop culture significance.

I kinda forgot how much I liked this album

Fun but generic rock album. I don't feel like I was blown over by any track.

feel the same as i felt about boston, it's obviously technically good but there's nothing interesting going on

Probably give this one a miss too

Generic background rock

Øv for en skefuld sydstats country klaver pjat. Endelig drænen og kedeligt!

Klassisk sydstats blues-rock Det holder ca. to sange, så bliver det kedeligt. Meget sigende, så er den bedste sang et covernummer

2/5 for first listen, will listen to it properly sometime soon.

No private session used for Spotify. It's rock, straight forward rock with a southern flare. I don't know if I will ever have this one in constant rotation, but it's good.

An absolute banger. One of the best debut albums ever. Loved it in ‘89, still love it now. A nice trip down memory Lane, remembering driving around in Harvey Tattersall’s truck listening to this.

Generic American: the album.

Thing about albums is the transition between songs is unique. On this one, between tracks 1&2 and I instantly was back in college, drinking draft beer out of a red cup in a dingy basement.

literally all of these songs sounded exactly the same to me highlights: could i’ve been so blind, hard to handle (mar 17 2026)

Is fine

Such a great debut album.

Just another rock album... nothing great. Power ballads had potential but did not have the voice to make them powerful.

Never been a fan of their hits but we’ll see what else they’ve got

Utterly forgettable.

This is a hot pile of steaming shite

70’s boomer nostalgia bait. Prima, maar ook vrij weinig aan

Great album. Always wanted to see them in concert but heard they suck. It also seems like they're kinda dicks, but - whatever - the music's great.

Competent, and also different from 1990 rock but totally meh...

Solid album that I still own. Admittedly, I have not listened in some time. Listening now there are still a few songs I like, others sound dated. Overall, it’s a 2.5…..but since that’s not allowed it’s a 2.

listened to the first half and thought it was alright, came back for the second half and decided it was amazing so i went back and listened to the whole thing again and can confirm the second half of this is better

This album went exactly how I expected it to go. I knew hard to handle before starting this album and all of the songs maintain a similar vibe throughout the project. Hard to Handle was fantastic as always and the rest of the album had great tracks with a good mix of instrumentation. Overall 7/10

Classic for me. Listened through most of high school and beyond. Got me into southern American rock.

17/9/24 Throughly enjoyed this album.

Fairly standard rock music. Starts blending together a bit by the end but there's some solid tracks. 3/5

Pretty good. Too similar to the Stones.

Lots of great songs

Not crazy about this music born in the wrong decade.

some fun 90s rock - nothing too crazy going on.

The best possible version of County Fair Music™️. And just like the county fair, I walked in thinking I was going to hate every second, but by the end, I had just enough of a buzz going to enjoy myself. I’m not saying The Black Crowes are standout musicians; they are Xerox copycats at their strongest, but they can write a modern enough throwback song without feeling more than 60% stuck in the past. Shake Your Money Maker is clean, doesn’t overstay its welcome, and listening to it made me realize that its staying power on classic rock radio surprisingly had some now-obvious influence on the Jets and Wolfmothers and Greta Van Fleets of the world when I think about it. The weakest moments here are not the products of pastiche, but the products of the time, in particular the ‘90s balladry. I’m not saying this record is special, but it’s not a drag; it exceeds expectations, though that’s probably because I placed the bar on the ground before I pressed play. Shake Your Money Maker is like funnel cake. You don’t need to try funnel cake before you die — in fact, maybe you should avoid it if possible — but in the American hellscape of constant fast food, a funnel cake once or twice a year at the county fair isn’t going to hurt you much. And it’s fun! And nostalgic! And a little nostalgia here and there is fun! Now, if you’re constantly having funnel cake outside of that, we have a problem, because how many county fairs are you going to? Do you work for a traveling fair company? Aren’t you sick of funnel cake by now? Are you sick of the county fair? God, being a carny at the fair would be miserable….but at least you’d have funnel cake…. And see, now I want funnel cake! Where was I going with this metaphor?….Oh yeah, not the worst. Whatever 🤷🏻‍♀️

move over greta van fleet this sounds like it could've been released in the 70s but for some reason it's a 1990 album good fun tho, just don't think about it too much

Pretty good. Some of the songs sound like they would’ve been on the radio in the late 2000s. I’m surprised that they chose Seeing Things and She Talks to Angels to be the two singles, I didn’t think they were the best on the album.

Pretty good but didn’t really stand out to me if that makes sense. 7/10

6/10 - It just sounded like default rock. She talks to angels was alright, so was twice as hard and could i've been so blind. The songs sounded quite similar and sort of like ACDC and other rock bands.

Boring, uninspired, unoriginal, and forgettable rock radio fodder. Just a less interesting version of blues rock that came 20 years before it. I hate this type of shit but it’s not actually bad enough to give it a 1

I can’t believe I’ve never given the Black Crowes a chance. I loved this album and will definitely be adding it to my rotation.

While its not *their* song, I think this is the definitive version of Hard To Handle. Always loved their blues rock take on the classic soul song -- didn't realize it was a cover until I came upon Grateful Dead covering it as well back in the 70s. I really ought to try the original... I've heard She Talks To Angels a thousand times and never realized it was these guys. Essential inclusion for any compilation of 90s music. It is a fine enough, bluesy pop-rock ballad. This album was fine enough, but really is only propelled by its hits. The whole thing feels distinctly 90s. At points it reminded me of Aerosmith -- at others Hootie and the Blowfish. Not bad, but rarely exciting. Low 3 for me.

This is some red firebird good ol rock. Fun album. Soft 4 stars for me

Good sound, but pretty uniform from start to finish. Liked the energy, but nothing special. Enjoyed the album on just one listen, but it doesn't have me clamoring for a re-listen or more Black Crowes. High 3

I think that every Black Crowes song that I know is on this album which going into this was 4 of them. Those songs are all great and then the new songs that I have just learned are also pretty great. Really like the variety of straight up rock and then some slower more ballad type songs. Nothing phenomenal about this album, just a straight up good time. ***Bonus points for the Black Crowes being massive Orioles fans

She Talks to Angels is a great one. Some songs got a little too hair-metalish but not terrible.

80s/90s rock, gives the vibe of long car summer car journeys with the windows down nodding you head. Stand out tracks: - Twice as hard - Jealous again - Hard to handle - She talks to angels

Great album, 4.5

How have I not heard of the Crowes!

Some very groovy bits!!

As a 90s kid I've heard the hits here a ton. I've never listened to the whole record though. It's really solid. Not enough brilliance to get to a 5, but an easy 4.

The Black Crowes were always one of those bands that were just alright to me. Nothing mindblowing. She Talks to Angels is great though.

HEARD BEFORE - YES OWNED - YES - CD WILL BUY - N/A Still my favourite Black Crowes album. First bought this in the 90s on CD and still have that copy today. Funny how much of this reminds me of Guns n Roses early stuff, but with a more 70s production style. Still not as good as the Faces or the Stones but it does its job well.

Notable tracks: Hard To Handle, She Talks To Angels, Twice As Hard, Jealous Again, Stare It Cold

Easy listening. Great bar band stylings. Riff rock. Lyrics and vocals right up front. I can't get enough.

Hard to Handle is a classic track. The rest is hard to handle.

I love this album

I'm really at a 3.5 with this, but there is undeniable brilliance on some tracks, so it gets the bump. I'm a fan of the Black Crowes, though this was never my fave in their catalog. I enjoy the albums where the band started stretching out and got a little more experimental and perhaps even contentious. But this is a solid debut, lots of swagger and confidence and they emerge as a pretty self-realized outfit. But it's a little too straight-down-the-middle to rise to the top of my charts, and IMO there's more interesting material to choose from. But, we're witness to the birth of a classic here.

File under "Meh."

American rock! And I like it!

Incredibly generic Seeing Things is good. Thick N Thin sucks so much. That sound is everything I dont like about this genre. Woefully bad Hard to Handle is a pale imitation of the original Even the good parts are quite cringey It's actually worse second time around

Good record, great live band judging by the concert at the back end of the deluxe edition. Tight band, great classic rock vocals.

Good rock

Fun album with some solid jams. I listened to this quite a bit when it came out, and it's held up well in my opinion.

3.5 maybe leaning more towards a 3 but eventually could be a 4 The first half of the album i definitely preferred. Felt very home grown band making music in a wood panel studio (mean that in best regards) First 5 tracks were stellar and really enjoy “Jealous Again” and the guitar riff on the outro and some of the slower bluesy ballads like “Sister Luck” Least favourite song is “Hard to Handle” not into this cover and “She Talks to Angels” is a great song but might be ruined for me personally by a person I know singing it at karaoke (will say it’s a nice pace changer after all the heavy blues rockers

Favourite tracks: She Talks to Angels, Hard to Handle, Stare it Cold Chris's singing is great. The hits are hits for a reason. Most other tracks are fine, if a bit forgettable. Overall good. 7/10

Not Led Zeppelin…and not Greta Van Fleet…but a secret third thing

Ganske kjipt

Really enjoyable classic rock album. Definitely got a massive Stones influence a d arguably lacks some originality but the production and tunes are really strong and it just rocks

Love the Black Crowes!!

These guys are fine. I guess they opened the door for others to borrow some pretty recognizable sounds of the 90s. Nothing really stood out to me, but I was also fully immersed in that decade as I was growing up and all of the bands kinda blended together as their sounds washed over me.

I don't know there's a couple good songs on here. And I do like that rocknroll sound. Kinda sounds like what I would expect to hear in biker bars or something. But I don't think I can give it more than 3 stars.

Loved it!

Honestly, I went into this album not wanting to enjoy it. I saw the Black Crowes live maybe around 6 years ago as a friend bought 2 tickets then broke up with his partner, so he had a free one going spare. Every song was about 20 minutes long because they extended the guitar solos by about 18 minutes, with the lead guitarist giving constant orgasm faces throughout. Thankfully, they know how to write a reasonable 8 bar solo in the studio, which made this album much more palatable than seeing them live. This is straight up blues/soul rock, and was genuinely really good. I just didn’t want it to be. Just don’t see them live.

southern tinged blues rock. stacked with radio singles. overall, an outstanding debut album, one that they should be proud of. highlights: “twice as hard” “jealous again” “hard to handle” “she talks to angels”

Forgot to rate this before. Great album.

Not bad, kind of fun even. Better songs than Lenny Kravitz, but the same generation of early 90s classic rock revival, just ripping off the Americana-era Rolling Stones and Lynyrd Skynyrd instead of Jimi Hendrix. The most famous song is an Otis Redding Cover. I guess they came on the scene as a lot of the big 1st gen classic rock bands were hitting a nadir so there was a gap in the market they happily filled and somehow became a thing, but I've never been able to see them as much more than a genre tribute act. It's country-inflected blues-based rock with big guitar and some gospel touches. A genre I like and they're good at it, but nothing new to see here folks, move it along.

While the music is well played and the record is well produced, I still don’t like this. It’s the whole calculated retro sound-a-like cash grab that is off-putting. It’s nouveau drinking music for mid-western white guys. Feels mind-numbing and ultimately, soulless. 2/5

Really liked this album!

Bien, un buen disco bien armado.

This was fine. Someone else described it as “bar music”. An apt description. Doesn’t make it bad, just not very interesting

Their two hits are nostalgic for me, but beyond that they are rather mediocre. I remember them playing on the radio when I was a kid, and I hadn't heard them in a such a long time.

Makes me want to drink whiskey and ride motorbikes. Top class 90’s bluesy rock that had me hooked from the opening riff of Twice As Hard.

Solid debut.

Such a great album from a band that pretty much was swallowed up by others at the time. These guys were like mystery men releasing many radio hits while all of the bigger artists were dominating the scene. Props to the underdog, these songs can still be heard on classic rock radio today. While I don't think the music is fantastic, there is objective proof that these songs stand the test of time and secure their spot on this list.

A generic rock album, nothing stood out to me except Hard to Handle (and even then likely only for nostalgic reasons)

Sounds rough and tumble

Too many groups doing otis Redding covers! You’re not as good as him!!

The late eighties and early nineties say a lot of sheer wankery in Rock Music, but The Black Crowes announced their arrival with this album, an album birthed from seventies back-to-basics southern boogie. So, it's not very flashy, just good solid rockin'. Alas, it does mean it's more competent than inspired, and after a couple of listens through, nothing really had stuck in my brain. Good, but not outstanding..

kind of epic but also kind of basic

generic? yes unoriginal? yes still fun? yes!!!!! twice as hard is bonkers!!!! so good!!!!! holy crap!!! the most 3.5/5 album to ever 3.5/5

Came out in the 90s, sounds like its from the 70s, still good in the 20s. Its classic rock made 20 years after classic rock stopped but they put their own twist on it, very soulful.

Not bad, but nothing special to my ears.

Solid Southern rock album. In the late 80s/early 90s, there weren't really any other significant bands making this kind of music. For them to have the success they had with this sound in that time period, it shows how good they were at their craft.

Biased. I hate this guys voice so much

Worth going back to

enjoyable listen

Here...pretty good music

It was ok

At some moments I found myself getting drawn in, mainly due to the production and guitar but overall this leaves me kinda thoughtless. Not the worst music ig.

Ok rock album

It was going to be a 3 for me but She Talks to Angels is worth an additional star.

Decent but a little generic

I can see how this would be refreshing in 1990, but it still just sounds like generic blues rock to me. It’s between The Rolling Stones and Aerosmith and it doesn’t really work for me.

Jealous Again

Nothing new to see here. Annoying drumming. Lynyrd Skynyrd, Aerosmith lite.

twice as hard- 😳. 5 or 6 jealous again- 4 sister luck- 3 or 4. could ive been so blind- 4. i hate his voice very much seeing things- 5 hard to handle- NO FUCKING WAY. jimmy chance did it better. 5. i do like this 1001 albums project because i find weird connections to songs i didnt know previously. other than the raising hope thing this song is kind of ass thick n thin- 5 or 6 she talks to angels- this songs about a goth girl whos addicted to heroin which you think id be all over but this song is incredibly boring. 5 struttin blues- 4 stare it cold- 4 or 5 very forgettable album. favorite track is think n thin

Great album. Recently featured on Rick Beato's youtube channel, so i was looking forward to this album

Ma che bello

Du pareil au même tout au long de l'album. À plusieurs reprises j'avais l'impression d'écouter la même chanson. La seule chanson que je connaissais, Hard to Handle, est au départ une pièce que je trouve tellement overrated et cliché. 4/10

good one

a collection of cleanly recorded, highly derivative Stones song-types. They can play their instruments well but they forgot to bring anything new to the table.

I never really paid much attention to this band before, only knowing the radio hits. Thinking about it I'm sure this is down to timing. This was released the same time as the grunge, alt and thrash explosion at the start of the 90's. This just didn't fit in. I can't recall anyone listening to, or even talking about this band back then. I really enjoyed this album and I will most likely revisit it in the future. My only gripe with it is that there is nothing new or innovative. This could have been released in the 70's and fit right in.

Shake Your Money Maker was quite the fun album if i do say so myself. The best part of this album to me was easily the melodies, Chris Robinson really brought them all to life with his singing as did all the music but it was mostly the vocal melodies that stole the show. The album also did not have a bad song or get boring like most other albums did. I'm honestly unsure of what else I'm supposed to say about this album so all i will say about it is that it is a great fun album that i really enjoyed the whole way through. Best Song: Could I've Been So Blind Worst Song: She Talks To Angels

not bad but nothing besides that one song really stood out, kind of blended together, didn’t feel very innovative or memorable sorry, i appreciate the sound and why people like it i guess, idk it was kind of boring kind of bland, but there were a couple moments i guess just not enough to really do it for me

Pre-listening notes: I have never known this band by name nor heard of this album. I have heard the incessantly played “Hard to Handle” which I recently found out is a cover and the original is by Otis Redding (whose version I prefer!). This is probably just gonna be generic bar rock music. Post/during listening thoughts: I think I was right in my assumptions. A whiny voice paired with harsh instrumental = the perfect music to play in a bar and have to yell over to be heard. It’s not like the worst stuff I’ve ever heard but I wouldn’t waste my time with this. It sounds like I put on 105.9 The Mountain™ at 6 in the morning. Normally I would write about individual tracks a little more but this album feels like pure filler. I can’t express how much I hate this man’s voice. She Talks to Angels might be the only standout on here sorry 4/10 DID I NEED TO HEAR THIS BEFORE I DIE: hell no Fav tracks: She Talks to Angels Least favs: Seeing Things, Thick N Thin, Stare it Cold

Looking at the album cover so thought oh a totally new band for me. First song… oh my gosh! I didn’t know this band was called the black crowes!!!

This album has committed the cardinal sin for rock projects on this list…it’s just so damn boring. Nothing innovative, nothing exemplary, and surely no anything risky.

What can be said about this album. Total classic. Nothing mind blowing. Just a damn good rock album.

Generic, boring.

I had only listened to their greatest hits before this. I was disappointed to find that nearly all of their “greatest hits” were found on this album. They hit gold with this album, but have done absolutely nothing since then. It’s odd that this album came around right before grunge. It doesn’t fit with anything else of its era. I guess we can it good, clean rock-n-roll.

Great rock album

Aerosmith + RHCP = The Black Crowes This is not a good thing.

Like the country vibe

Pretty standard rock album, I liked it. Not my favorite genre so it's not gonna get high marks, but did well enough for a 3-star rating.

Some fun rock and roll. Nothing exceptional, but enjoyable.

Mediocre and slightly annoying album, average songs, nothing spectacular. I'm not a fan of the vocalist, it's just a bit too much for me. Overall a weird poaition on this list, very forgettable.

Excellent album. Great Blues-southern rock from the 90s when there were many grunge rock bands. The Crowes were a throwback to bands like Zeppelin and the Stones. I prefer their sophomore effort, "The Southern Harmony and Musical Companion" to this, but it still rates 5 stars.

Would have been a great 80's band, similar to the groups of the 70's. Great for the time

Ugh, made me want to drink lite beer, wear a sleeveless denim jacket and hit over sized pool balls unnecessarily hard. I was going to give it a second chance but decided to listen to Counting Crows instead.

Black Crowes are cool but alot of the songs are quite samey

Not bad but feels like it was done before and better.

It’s probably great if you like this sort of thing, but how could you like this sort of thing?

This album was so unremarkable and generic that I forgot I was listening to it

Shake Your Money Maker is the debut album from the Black Crowes, and includes some of their early hits. The band makes blues-inspired rock with a Southern element to their sound. Chris Robinson's confident vocals add a swagger to their songs like "Jealous Again," and is strong enough to carry ballads like "She Talks to Angels." Robinson's brother Rich provides driving guitar solos to compliment Chris' vocals. Shake Your Money Maker is the Black Crowes' most successful album, in part for a limitation apparent on this album. This is a good collection of rocking songs, but they all sound very similar. The band writes and performs good, melodic, catchy songs - but with very little variety.

It rocks!

A bit of Aerosmith vibe here but with more grit. I was prepared to call myself too cool to enjoy this but the blues rock really does boogie. Enjoyable! Second half is a bit samey though

Pretty mid rock album. 3/5

Really solid album with a lot of enrgy and a number of real standout tracks. Close to a 4.5 for me. This one was a real surprise for me.

I feel like I could be dismissive and just call them a standard bar band, but I think there's more than that. It's Stones-y, Allman Brothers-y, with a healthy slab of the latter. I think the one thing that takes away from the experience is the super modern production. Everything on this record has a huge, huge shine to it, and I think it would do better with a little grit, especially with the, uh, dirtier tracks? It's still not bad. Didn't think I would've enjoyed it this much. Call it a 3.5. Favorite tracks: "Sister Luck", "Jealous Again"

10

This sucks. Super generic crap. This is the shit they play at sports bars while you mindlessly shovel wings down your gullet. 2/10

Hard to handle

So that's where that came from

Meh

🥴

I think it's a solid album. I will probably listen to it again since it is precisely my genre. However, it didn't touch me, and I can't pick a song that stuck out to me or followed me throughout the day. Side note: it all sounds incredibly American.

An absolute beaut of an album. Driving that southern rock hype of the 60/70s dead smack into the 90s with hit after hit after hit after hit. I don’t think one of these songs disappoints, and to make it even sweeter, it was their debut album. I’ll tell ya one thing, my money maker was shakin’ all over the shop. Extra credit for those in the know, Rick Rubin was a ghost producer until the album made it big. Twice as Hard Sister Luck Could I’ve Been so Blind Struttin’ Blues

The Black Crowes' (Atlanta, Georgia, USA) "Shake your Money Maker" is not my cup of tea to be honest. Sounds very ZZ Top to me, or like something you'd hear on the movie "Cars". Not necessarily bad things, but just not my favourite type of music. Favourite songs: Seeing Things She Talks to Angels (written by one of the band members when they were 15!) 3.3* for me.

90s sound mixed with blues-based rock roots? Yeah, there was only ever going to be one rating for me on this album. Favorite track: Stare It Cold

God-tier bar band. Rockin’, palatable. Good stuff.

Not my thing

Decent

First CD I ever bought, and it’s still great.

This is an exceptional album. All killer, no filler. It deserves 4 stars but I'm inflating it to 5 stars to protest the fact that Southern Harmony & Musical Companion - their album - was excluded from this list. And yet they include Kings of Leon? Blasphemy.

I honestly didn't realize this came out in 1990. I've heard most of the songs before but I guess I just assumed it came out in the late 90s and not at the start of the decade. I went in thinking that I would probably not like this album as much as I did back in the 90s, but I actually still did. "Seeing Things" gave me some real Joe Cocker "With A Little Help From My Friends" vibes. "Struttin Blues" was a song I hadn't heard before and I think I like it better than the albums hits. That might just be because I'm a sucker for when a band features an organ prominently on a track in just in the right way.

wasn't very memorable

Solid album.

is ok, not really impressed nor offended. its just rock n roll again. i think whoever made this list likes rock music a lot, and not even like experimental rock just straight up rock music

Mid

Some good ol rock, lots of hits on here, memorable and timeless. 3.3

Solid enough rock and roll.

A boring southern rock album with the most interesting song being a cover of an Otis Redding original. Not impressed, though it wasn't the worst I've heard on here. 2/5.

relistening to this album after a couple years which was the last time i was here and it really doesnt do anything for me - it is very dull and can see myself liking it 5 or so years ago but its not me anymore id like to give it 3 stars because thats what it deserves but i have to go 2 im going 3 actually because i have some reviews of 2 star albums that this is much better than but its a really low 3 star

There are a few really solid tracks on here. But the rest, well, just kind of fades into the background. It’s hardly offensive, but it just makes so little impression. I can appreciate the stripped-down aesthetic, especially in remembering the early ‘90s, where we all strove for a way to throw off the overly-excessive ‘80s. But one would think this pretty average even from a bar band, much less given how lauded these guys were at the time.

Probably half the 5 star ratings for this record don’t even know Otis Redding wrote “Hard To Handle.”

The fussin’ & fighting Robinson brothers carry on the tradition of Southern rock & blues born from the Allman Brothers etc. A great debut album with a shared sound & a uniquely original sound.

I’ve seen The Black Crowes twice, which is 2 more times than you’d expect for someone who really doesn’t care about The Black Crowes at all. They’re a decent enough live act, and when I listen to this album I forget that they have some pretty fun blues rock music.

so-so.

Is it pretty derivative blues rock? Yes. Is it fairly generic and predictable? Sure. Did I enjoy almost all of it for just being pure rock n fun? Well, yes I did.

Some mediocre elements surrounded by mostly crappy music

It's okay. American rock

3/5 pretty generic

Didn’t mind any of it but I wasn’t blown away by any of it.

Pretty solid, I liked it more than I thought I would.

The Black Crowes! Det var ett tag sen. Varför då? Det här är ju bra. Stark första låt. Hoppas det håller hela vägen. Jag gillar sången. Tycker det håller gillar kombon rock och blues. Bra slammer.

Svårt bra öppning. Andra låten är för bluesig. Sen är det upp och ned. Vissa är schyssta. Andra är för bluesiga.

Genomgående en riktigt bra skiva utan dåliga låtar. Möjligtvis lite för likformig, men ändå en stabil fyra.

It's ok... a couple of stand out songs and filled with songs that are good, but not great.

Classic rock vibe in the vein of the Stones and Aerosmith mixed with old school southern rock like Lynyrd Skynyrd. Solid with passionate vocals and strong musicianship, but there's nothing that special or different about it. Highlights: "Twice As Hard" (strong opener that establishes their sound), "Hard to Handle" (modern classic), "She Talks to Angels" (every rock band needs a power ballad...)

Really enjoyed this. Fantastic classic rock with a bit of a punk twist to it. But also it's a band that I had truly forgotten about until listening to this album, including Hard to Handle. Enjoyable, maybe a bit forgettable, but overall a fun album.

One of the greatest debut albums ever. The two worst things about this record are that for some reason it got lumped into the hair metal scene at the time and that it features what is likely their most well known song (so unfair)- a massively overplayed cover, even if it is great. It has never made any sense to me that this band managed to make this album and then they topped it- TWICE- and those two albums are barely known. I’ve seen the Crowes multiple times and they are one of my favorite bands. Btw- they were about 20 when they recorded this. Rich wrote the music for She Talks to Angels when he was 17 years old. Best Song: Seeing Things Worst Song: none.. Strutting Blues I guess

Solid, pretty good, but not quite my thing. Or maybe a victim of this album being overplayed back when it was released. Regardless, this album is catchy enough to get a begrudging four stars from me.

This was just so incredibly not for me. I will be honest, I only listened to about half, and I couldn’t handle the overly polished “rock.” Worse really than the Eagles. Listen, I’m writing this on June 28, 2024, today saw the release of over a half dozen new albums I was so excited to check out and they were all pretty great. So maybe skip this one and listen to Dirty Three, Mabe Fratti, Folk Implosion, GBV, or any of the others that came out today.

This was pretty bad.

Pastiche that goes down smooth is kinda an art form, I guess. Very familiar, maybe in too big a dose.

really excellent guitar work regularly ruined by the vocals, but a listenable album nonetheless

I didn't know I knew any of their songs, but I definitely knew "Hard to Handle" without knowing that that was the name of it. Pretty good!

NOW that's what i call the 90s. 2.5

Oh hey I know a couple of these songs. Another "it was fine" album from this generator, I guess. I appreciated knowing who this had been the whole time I heard their songs on the radio but I don't think I'll be like "ooh yeah let me listen to some more of The Black Crowes" later.

decent romp, not my cup of tea but in the right mood i could revisit.

I'm not much of a fan of this Southern type of rock n' roll, it all feels a bit like a caricature.

Life's too short to sit through this

8/10. It had some really nice tracks, but also some boring fillers. :)

Not my cup of tea. Knew the popular songs already. Didn’t realize how long ago it came out.

Oh hell no.

Not my type of music.

i liiiike. Kinda a soft rock version of pink floyd

Typical bar music. Not terrible but nothing making it some sort of beautiful masterpiece. Worth a listen though.

Great vibe and consistent.

Throwback with good vibes

In a pop world where rock and roll was almost exclusively soft rock or hair metal, these guys were a hurricane of fresh air. When I was a younger drummer, my little cover band wanted to play Hard to Handle. Very popular on the radio at the time. I learned a powerful lesson of playing with steady clarity. Keep the beat, lay the foundation, get out of the way so the rest of the band can do their work. There's a lot of power you can generate when you play the drums with simple clarity. The intro on Hard to Handle is on my list of great and understated licks of all time.

This was some generic rock. At least from its time period, which is honestly the most tragic when it comes to “generic” music. Anyway, this thing is very stale, aside from a few good tracks (“Seeing Things,” “Jealous Again,” “Sister Luck,” and “Hard to Handle”) and for the most part feels like a repetitive hodgepodge of why this sub-genre of rock is so damn repetitive. For what it is, the instrument playing is not bad, but those few good tracks simply can’t save an album like this from mediocrity.

Another typical good-but-uninteresting 90's rock album

I bought this CD when it came out in ‘90. I thought at the time they were a Faces and Rolling Stones rip-off, and enjoyed it probably because of that. I didn’t really follow them after this album as I moved on to other music, but sort of regret it now since it’s really great. Played a couple of these tunes that was fun to play in an old cover band I was in.

Hard to handle is fun, not sure I'm bothered about the rest

dad blues rock? soundgarden silverchair?? no thanks

tries too hard

Love this album. Fave songs, "Hard to Handle", "She Talks to Angels", and "Twice as Hard" 5/5

:)

What the Rolling Stones were trying to be! I haven't really thought about The Black Crowes for a long time. They were one of the more reputable bands you might see on "Raw Power" later called, "Noisy Mothers" - the late night rock and metal show in the nineties. I quite enjoyed this album! I don't know when I'd want to go out of my way to listen to it, but it was fun to listen to when I did.

Sounded better in 1990

1990 luvun rock iloa tässä... 2000 luvulla poppiin siirtyy tämmöiset huimaus oireita aiheuttava meno..

Ugh I might give this an extra star just for nostalgia and because I can sing all the words of like three songs haha! But listening to this now is super tedious, boring, and nothing special. I take back the extra star!!

Straight-ahead, pure rock & roll. Still works.

I can vibe with this kind of rock but this album just didn’t do it for me. I don’t know why but it felt like a bit of a slog.

Not my cup of tea 2*

Great tunes, these guys rock

Just straight forward blues rock. There are some great tunes on this album. I listened to this tape (as in cassette) extensively when it came out back in high school. Chris Robinson’s voice was just raspy enough to be interesting. It isn’t necessarily a complicated album, which is why it works. Unfortunately everything they did after was forgettable, if even noticed.

very good

Very nice

Rockers are 5 star, ballads are 2 star, raising this average up to a 4 star review because of how cool the Robinson bros always look

Exceptional southern rock, chock full of bangers. Jealous Again, She Talks to Angels, and a literally perfect cover of Hard to Handle are the obvious highlights, but it’s a great rock and roll album from beginning to end. Great playing, tight but still live sounding production, and some of the best vocal performances in southern rock are found here.

Ya okay. Sometimes “unobjectionable” is exactly what you’re after.

As pedestrian and generic as rock gets.

Overall a pretty good album. I loved the bluesy Southern rock sound this band puts out and recognized a couple songs (Hard to Handle & She Talks to Angels), which are proper tunes. This album came up at a good time, as I was in a bluesy listening mood recently. I think I would normally give this album a 4, but I'll land on 5 as I was just really in the mood for it.

Solid rock album. The songs immediately put me in a good mood. There's nothing super unique about it, but all together it's a solid album.

I haven't listened to the whole album in awhile. Actually - not a bad song on the set. It is not a 5-star in the mode of Exile on Main St., but it deserves 5 stars.

Black crowes Good band but a bit derivative sounding. Maybe not the worst thing because they do the southern rock/ blues rock thing pretty well. Can totally hear the zeppelin influence on the first tune and the stones on the other ones . I maybe enjoyed this one better than the stones. Would’ve liked it more but there’s so much guitar but nothing special would’ve been better with slash or something. Best song is she talks to angels. Weird that their biggest hit is a cover of hard to handle. They took out all the best most interesting parts of the original too and play it just like a straight rock song. Might be cool to do live but on the album it just makes me want to listen to Otis Redding. 3

Solid 3. Decent southern rock but pretty forgettable and boring. Hard to handle is so much worse than the Otis version. Talks to angels is the best song prob

His voice is annoying. I don’t understand why Hard to Handle is popular.

It was fun and fine!

Derivative and all, but like keith richards who they borrow from liberally its about the competence and the feel. Solo's aren't quite to ol keefs level, but the rhythm is slinky open chord shit, and is very tight. And they just have good songs, and even give a rendering of one that otis owned without making it feel inessential. White soul singing is competent. Pretty much all the songs I recognized (missing remedy, a tight one) are on this album as well making it a powerhouse. Hey little thing let me light your candle.

own

The Stones reborn. Supercoole Jungs mit schwarzer Paula als Klampfe und RB Wayfarer auf der Nase. Da haben die Groupies und Drogenhändler bestimmt Schlange gestanden. Ne, dann doch lieber Nickelback (just kidding).

Didn’t really care for it. 2.4

I like a lot of their stuff this album has some of that and some not so much

Enjoyable, but kinda forgettable

Great southern rock!!

When the first track started, I was 100% in. Hard guitars with some bluesy influence. Vocals with attitude and confidence with a raspy tone. Music made to be played loud. What more could I want? Five stars, easy. No need to debate. This would keep the hype train rolling after last week’s amazing run. But then, as it went on, I realized that this was too perfect. That this sound wasn’t something new. That it was a rehash, a repackaging of sounds and styles heard in the 60’s and 70’s from bands like The Rolling Stones. Then the dreaded D word came to mind. The one that can make you sound like a snobby, party pooper, Debbie downer of a music fan - derivative. Yes, at a certain point (maybe about halfway through), I went from absolutely loving this album to realizing that these guys were wearing their influences on their sleeves a little too much. There’s a fine line between being derivative and simply being influenced. The band Jet comes to mind when I think of bands with derivative sounds. I think these guys are kind of in that same vein. They’re amazing if you haven’t heard much of 70’s blues and rock. But if you have, even just a little, this isn’t anything new. The Stone Roses did do something new and creative and interesting and that’s why they got five stars. These guys didn’t. And that’s a bummer because this was going to be an easy five stars. Instead, it gets 4. It might be derivative, but it’s a blast to listen to and I’ll look forward to the tracks listed below popping up on my playlist. Four stars. Standout Tracks: Twice As Hard, Could I’ve Been So Blind, Seeing Things, Hard to Handle, Struttin’ Blues

Bangers. Why the lazy fade outs though :/

You know when you hear a song and you go "OH! So this is _______!" Yeah, that with this group. LOL A Black Crowes song every now and then is ok, but I won't be listening to another album of theirs from start to finish.

Favourite tracks: twice as hard; jealous again; she talks to angels; hard to handle; sister to luck

Arena rock. Wasn't bad but didn't excite me at all.

Animada banda. Tiene ritmo y un rollo cañero que no está mal. Si bien no es de lo que más me atraiga y en cierto punto no noto una marcada diferencia como banda propia ni entre canciones, sí que es un grupo agradable de escuchar y que tiene fuerza.

Great 90s songs. Like their sound

Now I like this album. I rerally do like this album. Its got a great cover version in 'hard to handle' and walks the line between Aerosmith and the Stones in a southern boogie fashion brilliantly. Chris Robinson has one of the most authentic voices in blues based hard rock. But is it a one in a thousand to listen to? I prefer its follow up, the Southern Harmony.

It’s bar music. It’s not ground breaking, but it’s an easy listen

Now we know what ac/dc would sound like doing southern rock.

Solid early 90's hard rock, featuring some really catchy hooks and great lyrics. A lot of fun!

”Bar Rock” indeed. Sounds mostly like inoffensive pop and lyrics to be tolerated only as bland backgrounds. Monotone. And there’s Almost no energy to this thing—it’s downright soporific for a ”rock” album. She Talks To Angels the only notable track, and the ending of stare it cold I guess.

Loved it when it came out. Love it now. Love the Crowes period.

Pretty cool album I was not familiar with.

Hard to Handle a classic. Could I've Been So Blind was the one I enjoyed the most. Good mix of music and singing, didn't feel overwhelmed like some rock.

solid album honestly fell asleep but relistend it was good

Good listen. Enjoy.

Listened to this while playing Pax Pamir solo. I lost. The Wakhan is a fickle mistress. As soon as this album started, I thought to myself "this is not at all what I thought Counting Crows sounded like." It took me til track 2 before I realized these were two different birds entirely. Oh hey...it's that song with that one part. You'll know it when you hear it. Meh.

Just solid rock

That was awesome. Loved this album. Will listen multiple times this weekend

It's okay.

I think this list suffers most often from one glaring issue. I can’t help that some of these albums are just flat out boring. Or at least not that interesting. And that isn’t going to change no matter how hard I try to like them. In the large number of blues and hard rock albums that already exist on this list, who are probably more deserving of a placement, this record is out of place. You could maybe make the argument that this represents a transitional period in rock history. As hair and glam metal got pushed out, and grunge became the new thing, this album sits right in the middle and almost goes against the musical trends of the time. But it’s really not that special. And I think there was already so much of this kind of music by 1990, that what the grunge movement gave us is far more worthwhile. I don’t mean to discredit the band. They actually sound like a very talented group of people. But this is to blues music what AC/DC was to hard rock. Just about as strait laced and basic as you can get. Total bar rock music. Every song sounds just about the same, and none of them do anything particularly cool to maintain my interest. You know that scene in Paul Blart: Mall Cop where Kevin James gets super wasted and wrecks a bar? This sounds like the music you hear in the background of that scene. There is someone out there who has some attachment to this, possibly because it represents a part of their childhood. And that’s great. But I’m putting on half a dozen other blues artists before this is even thought of. Rating: 4/10

The Black Crowes have a unique sound.

Good ole fashioned dad rock

I was deep into Led Zeppelin when I bought this album, so it was an easy crossover for me.

Every once in a while an album comes up in this thing that brings a smile to my face, like visiting with an old friend. This is one of those albums.

Stones rip off. 2

A classic that gave us something different in its time.

Totally fine. Enjoyable even. Don't see what's interesting about it though unless there's some historical context I'm missing.

Solid.

This is a prime example of dad rock. And unfortunately not in a very good way. The album starts out nice enough with two okay songs which have good choruses. Then the good choruses disappear along with the quality of the songs, and all we are left with is boredom. The singer has a good voice, the band play well, but there's nothing, aside from the two starters and the fun enough Hard to Handle, that makes me shake my money maker.

A lot of nice songs

This was fine. Considering it was 1990 it felt a bit outdated for the time. Most moving on to grunge this stuck on classic rock. Some good tunes. New to me.

Just some good ol rock nothing special

4 great songs, and a solid rest of the album. I'll always have a soft spot in my heart for the Black Crowes because they introduced a teen me to blues rock, a great love of my musical life.

A nice summery Southern Rock record that worked very well with the sunny weather this week. Enjoyable

Ok enough, I guess

Pretty good album but nothing really outstanding and on the edge of what I like.

I got into these guys fairly late in the game, but this album, and all their music, has a found a place in my regular rotation. Hope to catch them live while they’re still upright and touring… and talking to each other.

Rock and roll with poppy vocal. Ok background music

Extremely solid core blues rock.

The exact non-descript music you've heard playing faintly on the speakers of your local terrible dive bar on a Tuesday evening - nothing even remotely worth paying attention to and you're only there because the drinks are dirt cheap.