| Things are looking good for Chris Robinson. He's hitched to The Groupie
With A Heart Of Gold from Almost Famous, it appears he's put on a few
badly needed pounds, and he's just hit the road with his new solo project,
New Earth Mud. Recorded in Paris (in the spring, natch) while the gangly
scarecrow was on hiatus from the Black Crowes, NEM's homonymous debut marks
something of a departure for him. A small something. The Hotlanta hellraiser
seems to have been mellowed some by the passing of time and the growing of
beard, and his raucous rasp has given way to a mellow red-eyed soul. But even
if most of New Earth Mud finds him stroking his rolling paper more often
than shaking his money maker, Robinson retains his affinity for luminous
early-'70s production values and, of course, a sacrosanct reverence for Ronnies
Wood and Van Zant. He'll be tracking mud all over this week, starting at Lupo's
(401-831-4071) in Providence on Friday and then moving on to the State Theatre
(207-775-3331) in Portland on Saturday and Higher Ground (800-965-4827) in
Winooski, Vermont, on Wednesday. |
Free at last
