The battling Robinson brothers confirmed on Monday morning (Nov. 11) that they are reforming The Black Crowes for a tour.
The news came during an appearance on Howard Stern's SiriusXM radio show, with singer Chris Robinson pointing to his struggle with depression and the dissolution of his marriage as some of the reasons for the his nearly six-year estrangement from guitarist and brother Rich Robinson.
"I needed to go into the wilderness...I needed to construct that part of my early life," Chris Robinson said about going out on his own with the Chris Robinson Brotherhood, and taking time away from the band.
"I was definitely fed up with the fighting, it was unhealthy," Rich said about forming his own side projects (The Magpie Salute) to get away from the "constant ragging" from his brother. They admitted their strife turned into such epic battles at points that on a joint tour with Oasis back in the day, they freaked the famously battling Gallagher brothers out. "I always loved what he does, and did," Rich Robinson said of his brother.
The Southern rock revivalists rose to stardom in 1990 with the release of their debut album Shake Your Money Maker, and played their last show in 2013, announcing their split in 2015, with Chris saying he and Rich had not been on speaking terms for nearly the entire time since then.
Now, the group has posted dates for the tour on Monday morning (Nov. 11), promising "$hake Your Money Maker -- played in its entirety plus all the hits."
"We never even did it when it came out," Chris said of performing their debut all the way through. "I think there's magic in the music we made." The reason behind the tour was pretty simple, according to Chris. "We want to celebrate the most commercial part of our life," he said.
Later on in the Stern appearance, the Robinsons revealed the lineup for the reunion shows, after assuring fans, "We are the original members of the Black Crowes." That led to the reveal of a brand new roster, which includes Joel Robinow on keyboards, drummer Raj Ohja (both of the Once and Future Band), as well as Earthless guitarist Isaiah Mitchell and bassist Tim Lefebvre. The Robinsons also performed two of their breakthrough hits -- the ragged rocker "Jealous Again," "She Talks to Angels" and the raucous Otis Redding cover "Hard to Handle" -- on Stern's show to prove their chops, and announced a show at New York's Bowery Ballroom on Monday night to celebrate the reunion, as well as another intimate gig at the Troubadour in Los Angeles on Thursday (Nov. 14).
The 30th anniversary tour is slated to kick off on June 17 with a show at the Austin360 Amphitheater in Austin, Texas, with stops in Dallas, Houston, Atlanta, Tampa, Nashville, Boston, Toronto, Detroit, Minneapolis, Cincinnati and Las Vegas before winding up at The Forum in Los Angeles on Sept. 19.
In a statement announcing the tour, Rich Robinson said "First and foremost, I'm really happy to have my brother back in my life. To be able to play music again together and celebrate the first record we made as kids, is a gift. To have these songs stand up after 30 years is something I could've never fathomed."
Tickets for the tour will go on sale this morning through Ticketmaster. During their initial run, the Crowes released eight studio albums and four live albums. Check out some clips from the Stern appearance below, including the Robinsons freaking the Gallaghers out and the time they watched Bob Dylan flip off the Rolling Stones.
Black Crowes Tour Dates:
June 17 -- Austin, TX @ Austin360 Amphitheater
June 19 -- Dallas, TX @ Dos Equis Pavilion
June 20 -- Houston, TX @ Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion Presented by Huntsman
June 23 -- Tulsa, OK @ BOK Center
June 24 -- Rogers, AR @ Walmart AMP
June 26 -- Birmingham, AL @ Oak Mountain Amphitheater
June 27 -- Atlanta, GA @ Cellairis Amphitheatre at Lakewood
June 30 -- West Palm Beach, FL @ Coral Sky Amphitheatre
July 1 -- Tampa, FL @ MIDFLORIDA Credit Union Amphitheatre
July 3 -- Charlotte, NC @ PNC Music Pavilion
July 4 -- Raleigh, NC @ Coastal Credit Union Music Park at Walnut Creek
July 7 -- Nashville, TN @ Ascend Amphitheatre
July 8 -- Nashville, TN @ Ascend Amphitheatre
July 10 -- Virginia Beach, VA @ Veteran Unite Home Loans Amphitheater
July 11 -- Washington, DC @ Jiffy Lube Live
July 14 -- Camden, NJ @ BB&T Pavilion
July 15 -- Bethel, NY @ Bethel Woods Center for the Arts
July 17 -- Holmdel, NJ @ PNC Bank Arts Center
July 18 -- Wantagh, NY @ Northwell Health at Jones Beach Theater
July 21 -- Gilford, NH @ Bank of New Hampshire Pavilion
July 22 -- Boston, MA @ Xfinity Center
July 24 -- Hartford, CT @ XFINITY Theatre
July 25 -- Saratoga Springs, NY @ Saratoga Performing Arts Center
July 28 -- Toronto, ON @ Budweiser Stage
July 29 -- Detroit, MI @ DTE Energy Music Theatre
July 31 -- Buffalo, NY @ Darien Lake Amphitheatre
Aug. 1 -- Pittsburgh, PA @ KeyBank Pavilion
Aug. 13 -- Minneapolis, MN @ Xcel Energy Center
Aug. 15 -- Chicago, IL @ Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre
Aug. 16 -- Indianapolis, IN @ Ruoff Home Mortgage Music Center
Aug. 18 -- Cleveland, OH @ Blossom Music Center
Aug. 20 -- Cincinnati, OH @ Riverbend Music Center
Aug. 23 -- St. Louis, MO @ Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre
Aug. 26 -- Kansas City, MO @ Providence Medical Center Amphitheater
Aug. 28 -- Omaha, NE @ CHI Health Center
Aug. 30 -- Denver, CO @ Red Rocks Amphitheatre
Sept. 1 -- Salt Lake City, UT @ USANA Amphitheatre
Sept. 4 -- Seattle, WA @ White River Amphitheatre
Sept. 5 -- Portland, OR @ Sunlight Supply Amphitheater
Sept. 8 -- Concord, CA @ Concord Pavilion
Sept. 9 -- Mountain View, CA @ Shoreline Amphitheatre
Sept. 11 -- Las Vegas, NV @ MGM Grand Garden Arena
Sept. 12 -- Phoenix, AZ @ Ak-Chin Pavilion
Sept. 18 -- San Diego, CA @ North Island Credit Union Amphitheatre
Sept. 19 -- Los Angeles, CA @ The Forum
