Rich Robinson Goes Solo Again (Exclusive Interview)

It’s not uncommon for a musician in a popular band to record a solo record. It’s a great way for them to stir up their creative juices and explore tantalizingly fresh spheres of the musical hemisphere. Unfortunately, more often than not, these trysts into new worlds are overlooked by the mainstream and quietly lay in the hands of aficionados and #1 fans of the musician’s band. But every once in a while, a solo record will spark with originality and gusto, and it becomes something more than an individual’s passion play.

Rich Robinson, the guitar playing founder – alongside his soul singing brother Chris – of The Black Crowes has found his ignition switch and for his latest solo album, has progressed into a solid lead vocalist in his own right. With the release of The Ceaseless Sight on June 3rd, Robinson is bringing himself full strength into his creativity. Writing songs that speak to his life and soul is definitely our gain as music listeners. Featuring the lovely vocals of Levon Helm’s daughter Amy on “The Giving Key” and “One Road Hill” adds a delightful harmonic convergence on an already spiritually-tinged collection of songs. Throw in some Exile-ish licks on “I Know You” and a lot of southern laid back charm and guitar emoticons and Robinson gives you a sunny day of music.

Having already luxuriated in the spoils of fame via his southern rock ensemble The Black Crowes, who spurned out mega-hits like “Remedy” and “She Talks To Angels,” Robinson is content with his current life. When he called in recently to talk about his new album, he was fresh off a vacation with his family and enjoying some relaxation time before taking his new album out on the road.

When did you realize it was time to do another Rich Robinson record?

I went in to the studio in early 2013 before the Crowes tour cause I knew we were going to be on tour for a while and I had a month window. So I just kind of went in and did it.

Were a lot of the songs already pretty much worked out?

I went in with skeletons of some songs but for the most part, no. There were two songs I had finished that were kind of springboards for the whole record and that was “One Road Hill” and “Down The Road.” Then the rest of them I had parts but I didn’t really finalize. But it was cool to go in and make this record and not have everything kind of planned out. It was much more free and it was much more spur of the moment. Like, “Oh, I need this kind of song.” So I just kind of wrote one and it really worked out. Things like that. Basically, Joe Magistro, my drummer, and I made the record and then we had this guy, Marco Benevento, come in and play keyboards. He’s amazing. Just came in, fit totally in right away, great guy and a great player and it was really cool. So that’s kind of how we did it. Amy Helm came in and sang on two songs as well, which was fun. But we just kind of made the foundation of the record, just Joe and I.

Amy added some lovely harmonies. Why did you pick her to come in and sing with you?

Because I knew that she would understand where I was coming from in that song, in both of those songs actually. We had made a record at Levon’s place, and she is such a sweet person and we did some shows together with the Crowes and Levon’s band and it was just great. And I knew she would be perfect for it.

rich robinsonalbumSo what exactly is the Ceaseless Sight?

It was a line in the song “Down The Road.” There is a line that says, “The ceaseless sight on the horizon,” which to me is not looking backwards and just kind of keeping your eyes moving forward and looking at what’s new and what’s coming instead of trying to just live in the past and trying to always look backwards. And I liked the idea lyrically when I wrote that song. What that song kind of brought to me was that concept of going down the road and not looking back, to keep moving. So I liked the concept of the ceaseless sight on the horizon, you know what I mean. And it was something that was kind of cool across the board and that’s kind of where I got it from.

Your voice sounds a lot stronger, a lot more comfortable on this album. Do you feel more comfortable being up front and singing?

Oh yeah, I feel more comfortable singing. The first record, I wasn’t. I didn’t write the first record for myself. I wrote it with the intention of other people singing it and it didn’t turn out that way. So I sang it and I had never sung lead and never written lyrics. I always wrote music. All the Crowes music was what I did and my brother wrote the lyrics. So it was something that, well, if I’m going to do this, this is how it’s got to be done. So I just did it and it was interesting. It was a great learning process.

I really learned so much making that record and by the time Through A Crooked Sun came around I was far more comfortable being able to sing and write lyrics and I really had a much more understanding of how I wanted my vocals to be and where all that fit. But this record in particular, I was able to be more free. It was kind of like, hey, I didn’t have all these songs set and I didn’t have these things. I just went in and kind of winged it for a lot of the stuff. So to me, there is a freeness to how I’m singing and I’m definitely more comfortable. After making my solo record, touring for two years on it and then doing a whole Crowes tour, singing on that tour and coming back, I mean, it really helps, just the more you do it the more confident you get and the more you understand about it.

How conscious are you of your inspirations and your influences when you sit down to write your music? Like for example, the first song “I Know You” has a Stones vibe to it.

I don’t know. Something will spark something that will make this song kind of come. So to me if it’s the sound or if it’s a chord or if it’s the way that I feel that day, you know. Obviously, I loved the Stones growing up. I love rock & roll music, I always have, between the Stones and Zeppelin and The Beatles and Delaney & Bonnie, Derek & The Dominoes, and Joe Cocker and anything in between, Sly & The Family Stone. I mean, I draw from all those musical experiences but there are also a lot of physical experiences that we go through as human beings and psychological experiences and metaphysical experiences that we take in as we travel and live life. So all of those things are present in my filter. What I listen to goes through this filter and comes out in how I make my music, you know what I mean. So there’s not necessarily a direct correlation with my influences but I know that they’re there and definitely acknowledge them.

What can you tell us about “Trial & Faith?”

Well, to me, I love the idea of this song; that it was just this song that was based around a story, that had this musical part but that kind of told this story. I was way on a Dylan kick and I was listening to “Isis” a ton and the way he kind of wrote and created this story about Isis and how the violin would come in and there would be this part that, you know, that just kind of kept chugging along and churning and building up speed. So I really loved that idea and that concept. So I had this part but I felt like, instead of having a fiddle or whatever, let’s have this electric guitar be this pointed kind of melody that comes in between these verses. And what if we treated the whole song like this kind of sixties Beggars Banquet era. Like, what if Bob Dylan was in the Stones and made this record or this kind of song, what would it sound like; those kinds of things. So that coupled with the story, I felt really cool about it. And as we were doing it, every little bit we’d add something to it. We had this one drum kit and this acoustic guitar and that goes and then we introduce some percussion and then we introduced another drum kit and then we introduced this piano. It’s always really cool introducing these new things to this similar theme and it was a really fun song to make.

You end with “Obscure The Day.” What were you trying to say without words?

Well, with that one, I kind of wanted to lead into the EP, cause I made a four song instrumental EP as well to accompany the record. And on the vinyl, you’ll have that on the last side. Sometimes music is so deep on it’s own that I always loved the idea of sometimes just having instrumental songs. And I felt like it was a really cool way to end this record, just to have this, to also touch on something more ethereal into the future and that’s what I get out of that song. It’s definitely more of an ethereal thing.

Have you ever shocked yourself by writing a song that was so close to the emotional core, even though it’s just music without words? And did that song ever see the light of day?

No, I mean, first of all, people get what they get out of whatever we do, whatever someone who writes a song writes the song for, whatever the person who writes a novel or paints a painting has an idea, people who listen to it or look at it or read it or see it, they’re going to get whatever they get out of it in a different way, you know what I’m saying. What I get out of “Isis” is different than what Bob Dylan wrote it for because that’s my expression. It creates a feeling and that’s my relationship with that song. So everyone has a different relationship with the work that they love. So no matter what it is that I feel a strong kind of connection to, I do realize that when it goes out there people are going to get something different out of it.

blackcroweslive4

You worked with Joe again. What is the chemistry between you guys that you keep creating songs together?

He really understands me musically and I understand him and I think we’re equally big fans of one another but also I can play something and he just gets it. Like, he’ll immediately play something that not only fits in the time signature but also just fits and works. It always feels so great to be able to work with someone like that. It’s because music is a different language, a language unto itself, and to be able to communicate on that level. I’ve been fortunate to have people in my life that I’m able to communicate like that with, where it just fits in. That’s kind of how Joe and I are. We’ve been playing together since 2003 and it’s been great.

What would you say was THE song or THE album that literally changed your life?

I guess it was different albums at different times. When I was a kid, REM was a huge influence to us in Atlanta. The south was always categorized by like Lynyrd Skynyrd and southern rock. But when REM came out, for the other people that didn’t fit into that category like us, it was so liberating and amazing. So the first time I heard “Radio Free Europe” and REM, it meant that much. It really just came out and was that big of a deal. Through them we discovered bands like the dB’s and bands on the west coast like the Rain Parade and the Three O’Clock and the Long Ryders and Dream Syndicate. It took us into these different phases of music, getting into the Cramps and the Dead Kennedys and everything and anything in between. Because our dad had already given my brother and I a pretty strong background in music listening to Joe Cocker and Sly & The Family Stone and Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Stephen Stills and that music really permeated with us when we were kids. So we had that base. But the first record that really just like moved me in that really strong way was Murmur. But then later as I got older, listening to Exile On Main Street and really getting it, really moved me that much. But I would say Exile and Murmur, oddly enough. I know that’s kind of an odd combo but those are the two.

You just did some dates with the Experience Hendrix Tour. Did you feel like you had to stay on your toes playing alongside Billy Cox and some of those other guys?

No, he was great. You know, I was in a band with Jimmy Page (laughs). After that, after playing those songs, it was kind of like, hey, alright, you kind of feel like you can do anything (laughs). I mean, it was fun and everyone out there was great. Billy Cox is such a sweetheart and an amazing player and everyone on tour was cool. It was good for me to do. It’s not something I normally do. So I just had fun. My friend who is one of the bass players, Scott Nelson, was like, “You know you should come do it.” And then I played some shows with Robbie Krieger in 2012, just for fun playing some Doors songs and stuff, and he’s such a sweet guy and he told me about it and Brad Whitford told me about it. So I was like, alright, I’ll just try it. And I went out and did six shows and it was just a lot of fun. I mean, everyone shows respect but no one takes it too serious where they’re too precious about it. I do think that, you know, Jimi was never too precious about it (laughs). That’s kind of what we felt.

He just went out and played

Yeah, he just went out and did his thing

What was it like working with Jimmy Page? Was he what you thought he would be like?

We met Jimmy and one of our first tours was with Robert Plant. It was like one of our first big tours in 1990 and Robert was such a cool guy and he was so gracious and so cool with us that there really wasn’t any like head trip and it wasn’t anything like that. It was just really cool. And we didn’t really feel that Jimmy would be that way either. So it wound up being really cool. So Jimmy was great, couldn’t have been cooler and we were all, you know, comfortable with it. Also looking back, that’s a good thing to look back at cause when you’re in the middle of it, it’s like you have to do your job and not consider yourself so much (laughs) or your surroundings.

You are also a painter and have some really interesting paintings. Is the creative process that you go through basically the same as creating music because in both outlets you’re conveying feelings?

To me, music is ethereal and although you’re using your fingers to create this music, the creation is actually in the air. And painting has smells and feelings in the way that that brush touches the canvas or whatever mediums you’re working in, ink or whatever. So there’s something slightly different about it but slightly similar as well. It is different because there aren’t any band politics. It’s just you and a canvas and it’s very peaceful and you get into this zone where you’re making this piece, whatever it may be, and it brings me a lot of joy. It’s just something that makes me happy, something that I get to do. And when you unlock something in a painting and it’s some sort of application or the way that you do this, a shape or perspective or whatever it may be, it’s just a really good feeling. And that’s really why I do it.

You had a show recently

Yeah, we had a show in Malibu with my brother-in-law. His paintings are more realist. He does landscapes, these beautiful landscapes. And mine are all abstract. We thought it was a really good juxtaposition of these two works. But it was fun, it was great, we sold a decent amount of stuff and it was really successful. Over four hundred people showed up. Some galleries have contacted me about hanging my stuff in their galleries, which is always cool. So yeah, that’s really great stuff.

That must make you feel good. I assume it started off as a hobby and now people are acknowledging you for it.

Yeah, absolutely. And I’ve been doing it for about twenty-some-odd years too (laughs)

You’re about to go out on tour with Jackie Greene but are you also going to have a full tour of your own?

Yeah, I’m going to do a tour of my own. We’re going to Europe in mid-June. We wanted to put some dates around the record coming out and then go to Europe cause the record’s coming out over there as well. Then we come back and then we’ll be in the States touring through the summer and then going back to Europe and then coming back to the States. So there’s going to be a full tour of the States and we’re going to try and hit everywhere we can. I’m excited about it. I think it’s going to be real cool and I’m excited to get out there and play these songs and see how they grow as well.

crowesjackie

Speaking of Jackie, you’ve always played with another guitar player in the Crowes. Is that easy or difficult to synchronize with another player in the same band?

No, Jackie and Luther [Dickinson] are great, and Marc Ford was great too. He and I really played well together and the song is the song and it’s the job of the guitar player who is coming in to fit in with the song and how those two things are going to work together. And we’ve been fortunate. You know, Marc, Jackie and Luther were all great at that so I have no complaints. I have a second guitar player with me named Dan, who plays pedal steel and guitar, and he’s coming out on tour with me to cover some stuff so that will give me some freedom to kind of break out and do what I need to do as well. It’s always cool to play with more than one guitar player, cause when they work really well together, they really work well and it’s so much fun.

What still excites you about playing music after all these years?

When it goes well, it creates a feeling inside you that’s almost like pure joy. Like when it’s going really well, it’s like, wow, that is great. And it’s more like an internal peace or internal joy that you feel. This creation, when everything is working together and if everyone is present and we all feel it, it’s just an amazing thing to be able to see the synergy between the audience and the band, that we’re all experiencing the same thing at the same time.

 

RICH ROBINSON NORTH AMERICAN TOUR DATES

June 3rd – Philadelphia, PA @ World Cafe Live w/ Jackie Greene Band*
June 4th – New York, NY @ City Winery * SOLD OUT
June 5th – New York, NY @ Webster Hall w/ Jackie Greene Band *
June 6th – Boston, MA @ Paradise Rock Club w/ Jackie Greene Band *
June 8th  – Washington, DC @ The Hamilton w/ Jackie Greene Band*
June 10th – Cincinnati, OH @ 20th Century Theater w/ Jackie Greene Band
June 11th – Nashville, TN @ 3rd & Lindsley w/ Jackie Greene Band
June 12th – Atlanta, GA @ Vinyl
June 27th – St. Charles, IL @ Arcada Theater
June 28th – Kansas City, MO @ Crossroads w/ Robert Randolph
Jul 1st – Vail, CO @ Bud Light Hot Summer Nights
Jul 2nd – Denver, CO @ Cervantes’ Masterpiece Ballroom
Jul 15th – Portland, OR @ Doug Fir Lounge
Jul 16th – Spokane, WA @ Riverside Event Center
Jul 17th – Seattle, WA @ The Tractor
Jul 18th – Jacksonville, OR @ Pritt Pavilion w/ Tedeschi Trucks Band
Jul 20th – San Francisco, CA @ The Chapel
Jul 22nd – Salt Lake City, UT @ Red Butte Garden Amphitheatre w/ Tedeschi Trucks Band
Jul 24th – Crystal Bay, NV @ Crystal Bay Club Casino
Jul 25th – Las Vegas, NV @ Brooklyn Bowl
Jul 27th – Phoenix, AZ @ The Rhythm Room
Aug 4th – Whitesburg, KY @ Summit City
Aug 6th – Bowling Green, KY @ Warehouse at Mt Victor
Aug 7th – Charlotte, NC @ Visulite
Aug 8th – Durham, NC @ Carolina Theater
Aug 9th – Charleston, SC @ Pour House
Aug 10th – Asheville, NC @ Asheville Music Hall
Aug 12th – Columbus, OH @ Woodlands Park Street Patio
Aug 14th – New Hope, PA @ Havana
Aug 15th – Teaneck, NJ @ Mexicali Live
Aug 16 – Scranton, PA @ Peach Music Fest
Aug 19 – Portland, ME @ State Theatre w/ Jonny Lang
Aug 21 – Fall River, MA @ Narrows Center for the Arts
Aug 23 – Fairfield, CT @ Stage One
Aug 24 – Barstow, MD @ South Maryland Blues Festival
Aug 27 – Buffalo, NY @ Waiting Room
Sept 11th – Kitchener, ON Canada @ The Centre in the Square

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2 Responses

  1. Saw the DC show, went in not knowing what will happen, Rich and his band were really good. Had a great time, the songs are good rockers, the covers were excellent (Blind Faith, can”t go wrong). Would see him again.

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