Chris Robinson Celebrates New Black Crowes Album

With the upcoming release of the Black Crowes‘ latest studio album, Chris Robinson has plenty to be excited about this year.

“It sounds cliche to say it’s a love letter to rock and roll, but it truly is,” Robinson told Chuck Armstrong on Loudwire Nights Tuesday (Jan. 23). “Put me and Rich [Robinson] together, you know we’re going to write songs. That’s how this whole thing starts.”

The new Crowes record is Happiness Bastards and it will be out on March 15. It features the band’s first new material since 2009’s Before the Frost…Until the Freeze, and as Robinson explained, it was one of the easiest albums he’s ever made.

“We made this record in two and a half weeks … It melded together perfectly.”

So far, the only single the band has released from Happiness Bastards is “Wanting and Waiting,” and Robinson is ecstatic with how it’s been received.

“The world is completely different almost 35 years later,” he said, comparing “Wanting and Waiting” to the music of the band’s debut album, Shake Your Money Maker.

“I remember when ‘Jealous Again’ came out and people were like, ‘Wow, we haven’t heard this in a long time,’ and that’s the kind of reactions I’m getting from people. My peers and people in bands, texting me and saying how much they like [the song]. We couldn’t have asked for more.”

Chris Robinson Remembers Touring With Metallica in the ’90s

As is inevitable in any conversation with Chuck, he and Robinson eventually landed on the topic of Metallica. The last time Robinson saw them live was when the Black Crowes toured with them in 1991 (which included the massive and historic Monsters of Rock show at Tushino Airfield in Moscow).

That is, until he and his wife went to the Power Trip festival in 2023.

“After the show, I was backstage and I told Kirk [Hammett] and Lars [Ulrich], ‘That was a master class.’ I just sat there like, ‘What the fuck?’ This is so epic … I haven’t seen them since I was scared to death when the ‘Black’ album came out, smoking a joint in Germany somewhere in front of 90,000 people. I was terrified.”

READ MORE: Geezer Butler Says Metallica’s ‘Black Album’ Restored His Faith in Rock and Roll

While Robinson loved seeing the other bands at Power Trip — this marked his first time seeing Guns N’ Roses live and he and Rich have long been fans and friends with AC/DC — he said the weekend really boiled down to the experience that Metallica created.

“Metallica’s presentation was just so incredible. I was so pumped afterward. I called everyone, like, ‘Dude, you know what? This is the shit.’ These guys give it every second of the show. They’re just giving and giving and giving … We want people to have that. I want people to feel that way at a Black Crowes show, the way I felt at Metallica.”

What Else Did Chris Robinson Discuss on Loudwire Nights?

• What it was like inviting Lainey Wilson onto one of the Black Crowes’ new songs, marking the first time they’ve ever had a special guest on a studio track
• Why he gets annoyed at the press for how they describe the band’s break-up or hiatus
• Why it was so special playing Shake Your Money Maker on the band’s recent reunion tour
• What makes the album artwork for Happiness Bastards so special

Listen to the Full Interview in the Podcast Player Below

Chris Robinson joined Loudwire Nights on Tuesday, Jan. 23; the show replays online here, and you can tune in live every weeknight at 7PM ET or on the Loudwire app; you can also see if the show is available on your local radio station and listen to interviews on-demand. Stream “Wanting and Waiting” at this location and check out the Black Crowes’ full tour schedule.