I haven't done a review like this before but I think this should work just fine. This is actually going to be a review of Rich Robinson's recent show in Seattle, as well as a review of his new album, “The Ceaseless Sight”. Because all of this stuff is just too good not to write about.
My brother and I went to see Mr. Robinson at the beautiful Tractor Tavern in Seattle. My brother actually shelled out some extra funds for a meet and greet prior to the show. I wasn't hoping for much, as I've done this before, but this one was awesome. We got to listen to soundcheck, then after that Rich came over and spent about 20 minutes with us. It was just the two of us plus two other guys, and we spent that time in just very normal conversation. Rich is a cool, funny guy. The highlight for me came when we discovered that one of the other guys there for the meet and greet works for a biotech firm in Seattle working on a treatment for MS. My brother has MS. So Rich Robinson, rock star guitarist, spent part of the meet and greet making sure we exchanged information. I thought that was pretty cool.
The show itself was great. He always has a top notch band. We got 90 minutes or so of choice covers, tunes from his newest album, and most of my favorite tunes from his previous releases. It was a great balance of tunes, the show was well paced, never got too fast or too slow. No lengthy jams, everything was just as it should be. I really couldn't imagine the show being much better. I believe he's still out on the road so catch him if you get the chance.
The album is a pretty damn good release. If you have followed his solo career the album is a very logical extension of what he has done in the past. With the Black Crowes mostly on hiatus these days there hasn't been the 7 year gap between albums as there was last time, and it is easier to hear the growth in his songwriting. These songs seem to be especially suited more to his voice and his style as a solo artist. On his previous solo albums there were songs that, when you listened to them, made you think they might have been leftovers from a Black Crowes album. This group of songs sounds like they are Rich Robinson songs.
There are 12 songs in all on the CD. There is a vinyl release of this album that has 4 additional songs, but I haven't tracked that one down yet. There isn't a bad song in the bunch, there are no head scratchers to make you wonder what, perhaps, ol' Rich was thinking when he wrote that one. A couple that stand out for me are “The Giving Key”, one of my favorite songs from any of his solo stuff, and “In You”. But they are all really solid, well written tunes.
If you are a fan of the Black Crowes but haven't ventured into the solo albums, you are really missing out on some very tasty music. Check out this new release from Rich Robinson and start getting yourself up to speed.
- ODIN
