 First edition | |
| Author | Steve Gorman, Steven Hyden |
|---|---|
| Country | USA |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Memoir |
| Publisher | Da Capo Press |
Publication date | September 24, 2019 |
| Pages | 368 |
| ISBN | 9780306922015 |
Hard to Handle: The Life and Death of the Black Crowes is a memoir by drummer Steve Gorman about his time in The Black Crowes, co-written by music critic Steven Hyden. The book describes the formation and promotion of the Black Crowes from Gorman's point of view, as well as its eventual disbandment. [1]
The book covers Gorman's time performing in bands with the Robinson brothers, from 1987 to 2013. [2] Pete Angelus' management and promotion of the Crowes is a major part of the focus of the memoir, as is the rivalry between brothers Chris Robinson and Rich Robinson. [3] The book primarily deals with the history of the band, and Gorman's explanation as to why it eventually fell apart. [4]
Gorman co-wrote the book with Steven Hyden, and it was published by Da Capo Press. [5]
The book was positively received by critics. [6] [1] [7] The Black Crowes were reformed a month after the release of the book, which gave it additional publicity. [8]
The Black Crowes are an American rock band formed in Marietta, Georgia, in 1984. Their discography includes eight studio albums, four live albums and several charting singles. The band was signed to Def American Recordings in 1989 by producer George Drakoulias and released their debut album, Shake Your Money Maker, the following year. Their follow-up, The Southern Harmony and Musical Companion, reached the top of the Billboard 200 in 1992. The albums Amorica (1994), Three Snakes and One Charm (1996), By Your Side (1999), and Lions (2001) followed, with each showing moderate popularity but failing to capture the chart successes of the band's first two albums. After a hiatus from 2002 to 2005, the band regrouped and toured for several years before releasing Warpaint in 2008, which reached number 5 on the Billboard chart.
Christopher Mark Robinson is an American musician. He founded the rock band The Black Crowes with his brother Rich Robinson in 1984. Chris is the lead singer of The Black Crowes, and he and his brother are the only continuous members of the Crowes. He is the vocalist and rhythm guitarist for the Chris Robinson Brotherhood, which was formed in 2011 while the Black Crowes were on hiatus. Robinson is noted for his high tenor vocal range and bluesy vocal runs.
Amorica is the third studio album by American rock band The Black Crowes. Spawned from the band's unreleased, scrapped Tall album, Amorica was released November 1, 1994, on American Recordings and reissued in the UK in 1998 with two bonus tracks. Amorica reached gold status in the United States, shipping 500,000 copies.
Shake Your Money Maker is the debut studio album by American rock band the Black Crowes, released on February 13, 1990 on Def American Recordings. It is the only album by the band to feature guitarist Jeff Cease. The album is named after a classic blues song written by Elmore James. The Black Crowes have played the song live many times over the years, but it is not included on this album.
The Southern Harmony and Musical Companion is the second studio album by American rock band The Black Crowes, released on May 12, 1992. It was the first album by the band to feature Marc Ford on lead guitar, replacing Jeff Cease, who was fired the year before, and the first to feature keyboardist Eddie Harsch. The album's name derives from the full name of the Southern Harmony, an influential 1835 hymnal compiled by William Walker.
Three Snakes and One Charm is the fourth studio album by American rock band The Black Crowes. It was released on July 23, 1996.
Lions is the sixth studio album by American rock band The Black Crowes. It was released in 2001 as their first album on V2 Records following their departure from Columbia, and is their only studio album to feature guitarist Audley Freed. Lions was recorded in New York City in January and February of that year, and was produced by Don Was. Bass guitar duties were shared by Rich Robinson and Was, as Greg Rzab had left the band and was not replaced until the tour that followed the release of the album.
By Your Side is the fifth studio album by American rock band The Black Crowes. It was released in early 1999 on Columbia Records, following the band's move from American Recordings, after second guitarist Marc Ford and bassist Johnny Colt had left the band in 1997. Audley Freed and Sven Pipien were hired as the new guitarist and bassist, respectively, although Rich Robinson played all the guitar parts on the album. By Your Side was recorded in New York City during the second quarter of 1998 and produced by Kevin Shirley. It comprised songs written in the studio, revised songs from pre-production and re-recorded songs from the abandoned 1997 album Band.
Richard Spencer Robinson is an American musician and founding member of the rock and roll band The Black Crowes. Along with older brother Chris Robinson, Rich formed the band in 1984 while the two were attending Walton High School in Marietta, Georgia. At age 15, Rich wrote the music for "She Talks to Angels", which became one of the band's biggest hits.
The Lost Crowes is a compilation album by American rock band The Black Crowes. The two-disc compilation comprises material composed and recorded during the Tall and Band sessions in 1993 and 1997, respectively. Many of the songs on Tall were early versions of songs that later appeared the 1994 album Amorica, with one appearing on the 1996 album Three Snakes And One Charm.
Freak 'n' Roll ...Into the Fog: The Black Crowes All Join Hands, The Fillmore, San Francisco is a live concert album released on DVD, CD and Blu-ray by American southern rock band The Black Crowes in 2006. Filmed at The Fillmore in August 2005, this performance was the second of a five-night stand at the theater. The set features guests Dave Ellis and the Left Coast Horns.
Live is a live album by The Black Crowes, released on August 20, 2002. It was produced by Rich Robinson and recorded at the Orpheum in Boston, MA on October 30 & 31, 2001.
The Tour of Brotherly Love was a 2001 tour of North America featuring Oasis, The Black Crowes, and Spacehog, three rock bands featuring pairs of brothers: Noel and Liam Gallagher, Chris and Rich Robinson, Royston and Antony Langdon, respectively. The tour's title is a nod to the fact that all three pairs of brothers have been known to fight, sometimes physically, sometimes even publicly.
Steve Gorman is an American musician and sports talk radio host. Gorman is best known as the former drummer of the American rock and roll band The Black Crowes. He spent time as the drummer for British rock band Stereophonics. He also hosted his own radio show Steve Gorman Sports! on Fox Sports Radio. He is now the host of Steve Gorman Rocks! on Westwood One radio station affiliates.
Warpaint is the seventh studio album by American rock band The Black Crowes. Released on March 3, 2008, it was the band's seventh studio album and first studio album in almost seven years, and its first with new members Luther Dickinson and Adam MacDougall, as well as the first to be released on the band's own Silver Arrow Records label. Despite its predecessor, Lions, selling more copies, Warpaint debuted 15 spots higher in the United States, at number five.
Greatest Hits 1990–1999: A Tribute to a Work in Progress... is a compilation album by American rock band The Black Crowes, released June 20, 2000, by American Recordings & Columbia Records. It features material from all of their studio albums up to that point, and reached #143 on the Billboard 200.
Before the Frost...Until the Freeze is the eighth studio album by American rock band The Black Crowes. It was recorded before a live audience at Levon Helm's Woodstock, New York, studio, The Barn, in late February and early March, 2009. The album was produced by longtime band collaborator Paul Stacey and released on Silver Arrow Records. The CD itself is designed to have the appearance of a vinyl record. Originally, only the Before the Frost portion of the double album was available on CD, and the CD purchase came with a code allowing download of the Until the Freeze portion from the Black Crowes website. A vinyl version was also released, featuring all the same songs but in a different running order. Before the Frost...Until the Freeze would be the band's last album of original material to feature longtime drummer Steve Gorman, bassist Sven Pipien and keyboardist Adam MacDougall.
Hard to Handle may refer to:
Steven Hyden is an American music critic, author, and podcast host. He previously hosted the podcast Celebration Rock and is the author of the books Your Favorite Band Is Killing Me (2016), on rivalries in pop music history, and Twilight of the Gods (2018), on the history of classic rock. He also co-hosts the podcasts Indiecast and 36 From the Vault. He is a critic for Uproxx and previously served as staff writer at Grantland and an editor at The A.V. Club.