History Trivia / TheBlackCrowes

* Cameo: Chris Robinson shows up in the final episode of {{Series/The Kids in the Hall}} as the angel of rock and roll, trying to talk garage band Armada into giving up on their hopeless dreams of rock stardom. The band... doesn't get it. [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SIEkFPOvpVc]]
** Relatedly, Chris would later meet his future (ex)wife {{Creator/Kate Hudson}} at a live Kids In The Hall performance during their 2000 reunion tour.

* Creator/{{MTV}}: The band appeared in the tenth episode of MTV unplugged, very early in their career (the same year their debut album was released, 1990). The show had yet to truly work out it's format, so the episode was half Black Crowes, and half {{Music/Tesla}}.
** They also performed at the 1992 Video Music Awards.

** Chris also had this to say to ''Magazine/RollingStone'': "To me it's so obvious I'm a [[Music/TheSmallFaces Steve Marriott]] rip-off that I never think about {{Music/Rod|Stewart}}. I admit it. Steve Marriott is the guy, him and [[Music/FreeBand Paul]] [[Music/BadCompany Rodgers]] and [[Music/TheAllmanBrothersBand Gregg Allman]]. The thing I do with the mike stand, I picked that up from [[Music/{{Aerosmith}} Steven Tyler]]."
** Chris was surprisingly of mixed opinion when it came to the tour and live album with Jimmy Page: he was a fan of Page, but ''not'' a fan of Robert Plant, so he didn't particularly like singing Plant's melodies and lyrics on all the Led Zeppelin covers.
* Music/RickRubin: Head of their first record company, Def American. He quickly got on the band's bad side when, during the recording of their first album he tried to get them to be "more southern." In Chris' words, Rubin wanted them to "pose on our album cover in overalls, straw hats, holding pitchforks, with a piece of straw hanging out of our mouths. He also wanted us to change the band name to the 'Kobb Kounty Krowes,' you know, so the initials would be 'KKK.' We're like, 'we're from Atlanta, man. You're really gonna try to tell us how to be southern?'" They spent the rest of the 90s trying to leave Rubin's label. By the way, Shake Your Money Maker would be Def American's first top-ten album, while The Southern Harmony and Musical Companion would be the label's first number-1 album.
* Magazine/RollingStone: In 1990, the year of their debut album, Rolling Stone readers voted the Crowes the "Best New American Band."
* SoloSideProject/Supergroup: Kinda. In 1993, between the recording of the scrapped Tall sessions, and before they were re-recorded for Amorica, Chris Robinson got a little bored living out in LA without his brother for the first time in his life. He formed a little {{Supergroup}} with Crowes guitarist Marc Ford, {{Music/Jellyfish}} drummer Andy Sturmer, and [[Music/GunsNRoses Izzy Stradlin]] and the Ju-Ju Hounds bassist Jimmy Ashurst. After a live show under the name Foamfoot (where they played covers), they changed their name to Sweet Pickle Salad and added Music/LennyKravitz's guitarist Craig Ross and keyboardist Roger Manning, also of Jellyfish. They attempted to do what Chris had wanted the Tall sessions to accomplish: be less guitar heavy, and move away from what he called, "the big Black Crowes sound." Chris said of their work, "The songs sound like a cross between [[Music/CrosbyStillsNashAndYoung CSNY]] and {{Music/Pink Floyd}}: every song is [[EpicRocking 10 minutes long]]." Ultimately, they only recorded about 4 or 5 songs, which have never been officially released (though, like everything Crowes related, they circulate as bootlegs). More can be read about it [[https://everyrecordtellsastory.com/2014/06/23/foamfoot-and-sweet-pickle-salad-the-black-crowes-bootleg-recordings/ here]].
* Creator/{{VH1}}: In 2001, before {{Network Decay}} set in, [=VH1=] ranked them number 92 on their special 100 Greatest Artists of Hard Rock, as voted on by their rock music peers (they beat Lenny Kravitz by one spot!).
** Also, they appeared on the fifth episode of [=VH1=] Storytellers in August, 1996.
** And were the subjects of a 1999 episode of Behind the Music.
* Music/ZZTop In 1991, in support of Shake Your Money Maker, they Crowes toured as the opening band for the legendarily bearded rockers. Not for long, though. The tour was sponsored by Miller Beer, and the Crowes (Chris and Rich, especially) resented the idea of corporate sponsorship. They also did not like the taste of Miller. After one-too-many anti-corporate, anti-Miller tirades onstage by Chris, they were kicked off the tour. As they happened to be fired in Atlanta, their hometown, it was front-page news on all the local papers.

* Creator/{{VH1}}: In 2001, before {{Network Decay}} set in, [=VH1=] ranked them number 92 on their special 100 Greatest Artists of Hard Rock, as voted on by their rock music peers (they beat [[Creator/LennyKravitz Lenny Kravitz]] by one spot!).

* SoloSideProject/Supergroup: Kinda. In 1993, between the recording of the scrapped Tall sessions, and before they were re-recorded for Amorica, Chris Robinson got a little bored living out in LA without his brother for the first time in his life. He formed a little {{Supergroup}} with Crowes guitarist Marc Ford, {{Music/Jellyfish}} drummer Andy Sturmer, and [[Music/GunsNRoses Izzy Stradlin]] and the Ju-Ju Hounds bassist Jimmy Ashurst. After a live show under the name Foamfoot (where they played covers), they changed their name to Sweet Pickle Salad and added Lenny Kravitz's guitarist Craig Ross and keyboardist Roger Manning, also of Jellyfish. They attempted to do what Chris had wanted the Tall sessions to accomplish: be less guitar heavy, and move away from what he called, "the big Black Crowes sound." Chris said of their work, "The songs sound like a cross between [[Music/CrosbyStillsNashAndYoung CSNY]] and {{Music/Pink Floyd}}: every song is [[EpicRocking 10 minutes long]]." Ultimately, they only recorded about 4 or 5 songs, which have never been officially released (though, like everything Crowes related, they circulate as bootlegs). More can be read about it [[https://everyrecordtellsastory.com/2014/06/23/foamfoot-and-sweet-pickle-salad-the-black-crowes-bootleg-recordings/ here]].

** Relatedly, Chris would later meet his future-wife (and future ex-wife) {{Creator/Kate Hudson}} at a live Kids In The Hall performance during their 2000 reunion tour.

** The third album by British psychedelic rockers Thee [sic] Hypnotics, titled 'The Very Crystal Speed Machine,' in 1994. Fellow Crowes Marc Ford and Eddie Harsch also appear on the album. This was during the same period where he worked with his supergroup Foamfoot and Amorica was recorded twice over. He personally persuaded American Recordings to sign Thee Hypnotics, after falling in love with the group when (according to lead singer Jim Jones) their music was played on The Crowe's tour bus while everyone tripped on acid [[https://thequietus.com/articles/24321-thee-hypnotics-interview}]]. He was apparently a real task-masker in the studio, sending people back home if they showed up drunk or high (talk about irony), but the band ended up happy with the final product. Unfortunately, right before the album's release, the label ended up in litigation with their European distributors, so all available fund were routed to handling the court case.

* Cameo: Chris Robinson shows up in the final episode of {{Kids in the Hall}} as the angel of rock and roll, trying to talk garage band Armada into giving up on their hopeless dreams of rock stardom. The band... doesn't get it. [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SIEkFPOvpVc]]
** Relatedly, Chris would later meet his future-wife (and future ex-wife) Kate Hudson at a live Kids In The Hall performance during their 2000 reunion tour.

** The third album by British psychedelic rockers Thee [sic] Hypnotics, titled 'The Very Crystal Speed Machine,' in 1994. Fellow Crowes Marc Ford and Eddie Harsch also appear on the album. This was during the same period where he worked with his supergroup Foamfoot and Amorica was recorded twice over. He personally persuaded American Recordings to sign Thee Hypnotics, after falling in love with the group when (according to lead singer Jim Jones) their music was played on The Crowe's tour bus while everyone tripped on acid { https://thequietus.com/articles/24321-thee-hypnotics-interview}. He was apparently a real task-masker in the studio, sending people back home if they showed up drunk or high (talk about irony), but the band ended up happy with the final product. Unfortunately, right before the album's release, the label ended up in litigation with their European distributors, so all available fund were routed to handling the court case.

* Creator/{{MTV}}: The band appeared in the tenth episode of MTV unplugged, very early in their career (the same year their debut album was released, 1990). The show had yet to truly work out it's format, so the episode was half Black Crowes, and half Tesla.

* SoloSideProject/Supergroup: Kinda. In 1993, between the recording of the scrapped Tall sessions, and before they were re-recorded for Amorica, Chris Robinson got a little bored living out in LA without his brother for the first time in his life. He formed a little {{Supergroup}} with Crowes guitarist Marc Ford, {{Music/Jellyfish}} drummer Andy Sturmer, and [[Music/GunsNRoses Izzy Stradlin]] and the Ju-Ju Hounds bassist Jimmy Ashurst. After a live show under the name Foamfoot (where they played covers), they changed their name to Sweet Pickle Salad and added Lenny Kravitz's guitarist Craig Ross and keyboardist Roger Manning, also of Jellyfish. They attempted to do what Chris had wanted the Tall sessions to accomplish: be less guitar heavy, and move away from what he called, "the big Black Crowes sound." Chris said of their work, "The songs sound like a cross between [[Music/CrosbyStillsNashAndYoung CSNY]] and {{Music/Pink Floyd}}: every song is [[EpicRocking 10 minutes long]]." Ultimately, they only recorded about 4 or 5 songs, which have never been officially released (though, like everything Crowes related, they circulate as bootlegs).

* SoloSideProject/Supergroup: Kinda. In 1993, between the recording of the scrapped Tall sessions, and before they were re-recorded for Amorica, Chris Robinson got a little bored living out in LA without his brother for the first time in his life. He formed a little {{Supergroup}} with Crowes guitarist Marc Ford, {{Music/Jellyfish}} drummer Andy Sturmer, and [[Music/GunsNRoses Izzy Stradlin]] and the Ju-Ju Hounds bassist Jimmy Ashurst. They later added Lenny Kravitz guitarist Craig Ross and keyboardist Roger Manning, also of Jellyfish. Calling themselves Sweet Pickle Salad, they attempted to do what Chris had wanted the Tall sessions to accomplish: be less guitar heavy, and move away from what he called, "the big Black Crowes sound." Chris said of their work, "The songs sound like a cross between [[Music/CrosbyStillsNashAndYoung CSNY]] and {{Music/Pink Floyd}}: every song is 10 minutes long."

* SoloSideProject/Supergroup: Kinda. In 1993, between the recording of the scrapped Tall sessions, and before they were re-recorded for Amorica, Chris Robinson got a little bored living out in LA without his brother for the first time in his life. He formed a little {{Supergroup}} with Crowes guitarist Marc Ford, {{Music/Jellyfish}} drummer Andy Sturmer, and [[Music/GunsNRoses Izzy Stradlin]] and the Ju-Ju Hounds bassist Jimmy Ashurst.

* SoloSideProject/Supergroup: Kinda. In 1993, between the recording of the scrapped Tall sessions, and before they were re-recorded for Amorica, Chris Robinson got a little bored living out in LA without his brother for the first time in his life.

* Creator/{{MTV}}: The band appeared in the tenth episode of MTV unplugged, very early in their career (the same year their debut album was released, 1990). The show had yet to truly work out it's format, so the episode was half Black Crowes, and half Tesla.
** They also performed at the 1992 Video Music Awards.

* AmicablyDivorced: If paparazzi photos are to be believed, Chris gets along fine with his ex-wife [[Creator/KateHudson Kate Hudson]].

* GenreKiller: The breakout success in 1990 dealt a critical blow to {{Hair Metal}}'s strangle-hold on the rock mainstream. Nirvana's Nevermind, released the next year, was just the coup de grace.

* BigNameFan: [[Music/LedZeppelin Jimmy Page]], to the extent that he toured with the band, essentially acting as a third guitar player in The Crowes. They released a live album, recorded at the Greek Theater in Los Angeles.
** [[Music/GunsNRoses Slash]] has also said of them, "The Black Crowes were one of the bands that came out around the time that Guns N Roses was [[Music/UseYourIllusion just peaking]] and there weren't too many, you know, blues bands around. Just guitars, bass drums kinda bands. They're still just one of those bands that just does what they do, and do it well. And they do it with heart. And they still have, for the most part, the same sound they had when they started out, and that was against the grain to begin with." The beginnings of what would eventually become Velvet Revolver also began when Slash was jamming with Crowes drummer Steve Gorman.
** Music/PeterFrampton applauded them for bringing a dirty, fuzzy sound back to blues rock, after the clean, synth-heavy 80s.
** Shortly after the release of {{Music/Nevermind}}, MTV News identified Chris as being a Big Name Fan of {{Music/Nirvana}}. In an interview, Chris said, "Everyone was so fascinated by Nirvana, because they sold so many records. Why couldn't you be fascinated by them because [[Music/KurtCobain that guy]] writes really good lyrics, and they rock, you know? No one really mentioned any of that."

* {{ZZ Top}}: In 1991, in support of Shake Your Money Maker, they Crowes toured as the opening band for the legendarily bearded rockers. Not for long, though. The tour was sponsored by Miller Beer, and the Crowes (Chris and Rich, especially) resented the idea of corporate sponsorship. They also did not like the taste of Miller. After one-too-many anti-corporate, anti-Miller tirades onstage by Chris, they were kicked off the tour. As they happened to be fired in Atlanta, their hometown, it was front-page news on all the local papers.

** Chris also had this to say to Rolling Stone magazine: "To me it's so obvious I'm a [[Music/TheSmallFaces Steve Marriott]] rip-off that I never think about Music/Rod|Stewart}}. I admit it. Steve Marriott is the guy, him and [[Music/{{Free}} Paul]] [[Music/BadCompany Rodgers]] and [[Music/TheAllmanBrothersBand Gregg Allman]]. The thing I do with the mike stand, I picked that up from [[Music/{{Aerosmith}} Steven Tyler]]."

* {{Magazine/Rolling Stone}}: In 1990, the year of their debut album, Rolling Stone readers voted the Crowes the "Best New American Band."

* {{ZZ Top}}: In 1991, in support of Shake Your Money Maker, they Crowes toured as the opening band for the legendarily bearded rockers. Not for long, though. The tour was sponsored by Miller Beer, and the Crowes (Chris and Rich, especially) resented the idea of corporate sponsorship. They also did not like the taste of Miller. After one-too-many anti-corporate, anti-Miller tirades onstage by Chris, they were kicked off the tour. As they happened to be fired in Atlanta, their hometown, it was front-page news on all the local papers.