Today, legendary rock band The Black Crowes release their hugely anticipated 10th studio album, Happiness Bastards, via the band’s own Silver Arrow Records. Serving as a salute to their past and a celebration of the present and future, the new album, which is their first original release in 15 years, includes 10 new tracks, with a very special feature from GRAMMY-winning country superstar Lainey Wilson on “Wilted Rose.”
LISTEN TO HAPPINESS BASTARDS HERE
Produced by GRAMMY Award-Winning producer Jay Joyce, the project emphasizes The Black Crowes’ influence as one of the most vital rock bands of this generation. Following decades marked by sex, drugs, fights, breakups, and divorce, Happiness Bastards finds the brothers leaving their bullshit behind and leaning into their creative common ground to deliver their most compelling work to date.
“These guys came to town like a freight train. Ready to lay it down, no bullshit. Old school real, live and raw. They brought the OG magic of their early albums along with some young punk spirit. I was honored to have captured it,” noted producer Jay Joyce.
First singles “Wanting and Waiting” and “Cross Your Fingers'' previewed the band’s “love letter to rock ‘n’ roll” - a dynamic body of work that is both fresh, yet quintessential rock n’ roll; the perfect balance of soulful and gritty. Opening track “Bedside Manners” starts the album off with the immediate energy one can expect of a band reintroducing themselves - complete with an urgent, complex guitar riff and exhilarating keyboard, Chris Robinson sings of the unforgiving music industry's ruthless game. “Rats And Clowns” explodes the Crowes into the world of AC/DC with aggressive distortion for an attitude-riddled anthem about taking the rock n’ roll lifestyle by the horns. Slowing it down with “Wilted Rose,” the band dips their toes into sweet country melancholy. Bringing Lainey Wilson along for the ride, hauntingly beautiful harmonies and nostalgia-seeped acoustic guitar takes listeners through the journey of a man who has not only lost love, but has lost his way.
“It’s an honor to wail on this record with these legendary, pioneering rockstars,” said Lainey Wilson. “Welcome back boys! You’ve been missed.”
With a fiery guitar lick and funk-infused bridge in response to Wilted Rose, “Dirty Cold Sun” bites back against a toxic relationship with the confidence of someone thriving even when faced with the frost of a former flame. “Bleed It Dry” unleashes the unapologetic spirit of the blues with thrilling harmonica and dazzling keys in a finger-pointing spit back at those who have done you wrong. Transporting listeners back to the realm of 80s punk rock, “Flesh Wound” is a punchy, full-throttle rebound from a breakup, shaking off the shards of heartbreak with an adrenaline-fueled chorus perfect for the live stage. Gritty with the seductive blend of crunchy riffs and a slide guitar, “Follow The Moon” tells the story of one’s often detrimental love affair with the indulgences of the rock ‘n’ roll lifestyle. Closing out the record on a wistful yet hopeful note, “Kindred Friend” serves as an olive branch rekindling a broken relationship. A piano-tinged ballad about making the most of the present and moving on from the past, it seeks closure in shared memories. As much as it is a retrospective on the Robinson Brothers’ complicated history, it is also a love letter to the fans who have supported them along the years.
In celebration of their first original album release in 15 years, the band will hit 35 cities in North America and Europe this Spring with the Happiness Bastards Tour. The tour kicks off at the Grand Ole Opry House in Nashville on April 2, with stops in major markets including Atlanta, Los Angeles, Seattle, Vancouver, Chicago, New York, and Boston, before ending the North American run in Philadelphia on May 7 at The Met Philadelphia. The Happiness Bastards Tour international run will begin May 14 in Manchester, UK, at the O2 Apollo, making stops in London, Brussels, Amsterdam, Paris, Milan, Berlin, and more before wrapping up the expansive tour on June 9 in Mérida at the STONE & MUSIC Festival. Tickets for the Happiness Bastards Tour are on sale now at theblackcrowes.com.
HAPPINESS BASTARDS 2024 EUROPEAN TOUR DATES:
- May 21, 2024 Brussels, BE Ancienne Belgique
- May 22, 2024 Amsterdam, NL AFAS Live
- May 24, 2024 Paris, FR L'Olympia
- May 27, 2024 Milan, IT Teatro Arcimboldi Milano
- May 29, 2024 Frankfurt, DE Alte Oper
- May 30, 2024 Stuttgart, DE Liederhalle
- June 1, 2024 Berlin, DE Verti Music Hall
- June 4, 2024 Copenhagen, DK Falkonersalen
- June 5-8, 2024 Sôlvesborg, SE Sweden Rock Festival**
- June 9, 2024 Mérida, ES STONE & MUSIC Festival**
**Festival Date
About The Black Crowes
The Black Crowes are leaving the bullshit in the past. 15 years after their last album of original music, the Robinson Brothers present Happiness Bastards - their 10th studio album. Some may say the project has been several tumultuous years in the making, but we argue it's arriving at just the right time. Call it brotherly love or music destiny that brought them back together, the highly anticipated record consecrating the reunion of this legendary band just may be the thing that saves rock & roll. In a time where the art form is buried beneath the corporate sheen of its successors, The Black Crowes are biting back with the angst of words left unsaid penned on paper and electrified by guitar strings, revealing stripped, bare-boned rock & roll. No gloss, no glitter, just rhythm and blues at its very best - gritty, loud, and in your face.
Since The Black Crowes reunited in 2019, they've made a triumphant return to form with over 150 shows spanning 20 countries worldwide, celebrating the 30th anniversary of Shake Your Money Maker, the album that put them on the map. Upon their return from the road, they knew they needed something new to show for their lost time. The Robinson Brothers and longtime bassist Sven Pipien headed to the studio with producer Jay Joyce in early 2023 and the experiences of years past transcribed themself through the music as the band found their way back to their roots. And it's finally here - Happiness Bastards is out now.