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Rating: "Three Snakes and One Charm" is the least fortunate and appreciated work among the nine published so far by this otherwise fantastic band from Atlanta, Georgia, dedicated, for those who don't know, to a late yet creative southern rock, full of all the moods that have made the genre great: country, rhythm and blues, British blues, rock 'n' roll, Beatles, Stones, Zeppelin, 60s psychedelia, and who knows what else.
The mid-90s proved to be quite turbulent for the Black Crowes, a contentious and moody band. The two Robinson brothers (the very hippy singer Chris and the solid rhythm guitarist Rich) were at each other's throats over everything... they couldn't find a lead guitarist that met their expectations, resulting in entering the studio, preparing an album, and then deciding not to release it, unsatisfied with its outcome. It was difficult to stay on course and continue their career under these conditions; their issues would eventually catch up with them... however, later, after the 2000s, with the dissolution (fortunately later resolved) of their partnership. Meanwhile, the band managed to release this sufficiently varied and intense work deserving of an honorable mention, though not quite a solemn commendation.
Placed in the band's discography between the very different, but both successful works "Amorica" (1994, experimental and adventurous) and "By Your Side" (1999, a true lava flow of hard rock blues in a Rolling Stones style that the Stones themselves never have, and never will, be able to play), this fourth work dating back to 1996 has in store good, varied and entertaining songs.
The album starts with a couple of tracks with a very Stones-like flavor, the best of which is the second, "Good Friday," full of tension thanks to the solemn blues harmonica (blown and drawn by the frontman Chris), tension that then dissipates in the subsequent raucous Jagger-style chorus.
The following track "Nebakanezer" (who? A king of Babylon, apparently) is hard and edgy, with Rich Robinson's typical moderately distorted but terribly aggressive guitar, a sound achieved by saturating the power tubes of the amp while keeping the preamp tubes calm... all, of course, necessarily pounding the strings like blacksmiths.
"One Mirror Too Many" is rather limp... in my opinion, it should have been resolved with a much faster tempo. It's one of those somewhat contemplative and psychedelic episodes the Crowes (or rather their singer) often indulge in. This laziness from cannabis smokers, let's say, would be completely swept away on their next album "By Your Side", lively and adrenaline-fueled, only to return in their more recent works.
The following single "Blackberry" is very effective: continuous stops and stop&go of the instruments, quirky string plucks, full and empty sounds on which Robinson's penetrating, drawling, invaluable blues voice operates, one of the best singers the USA has given to the rock cause.
"Girl From A Pawnshop" is the first ballad, country and languid in the verses, blues and heated in the choruses, retro as it's supposed to be and reminiscent of a thousand other American tunes from forty or fifty years ago. The more than sincere approach and passion make it appreciated, but "Halfway to Anywhere" is much better, with a very Crowes-like descending harmonic progression, also heard in the previous work "Amorica". The Crowes excel in these mid-tempos saturated with electricity and intensity.
In "Bring On, Bring On" the vocalist delivers the usual "a'la Rod Stewart" performance, better than the original, while "How Much For Your Wings?" takes pleasure in that weighty acoustic form invented by Led Zeppelin, reinforcing this inspiration with the use of tight chords in the Eastern style, characteristic of several masterpieces from the Zeppelin.
The white album of the Crowes then moves forward with an upbeat mid-tempo titled "Let Me Share The Tide", followed by one last semi-acoustic ballad "Better When You're Not Alone" and ending with the reckless "Evil Eye," a mix of 60s-style Byrds resonances, Zappa-like intricate harmonies, a hammering guitar, and the other (lead guitarist Marc Ford) as smoky and psychedelic as it can get.
Unique and brilliant in mixing and recirculating, in their own way and with sublime freedom and musicality, a great variety of rock, blues, country, and pop standards, the Black Crowes are an important and invaluable reality. Their greatness can be recognized even in "minor" albums like this one, therefore long live them.Tracklist and Lyrics
01 Under a Mountain (04:11)
Never a heaven an age old question
Written from a cold place
I feel sour I need a shower
Or just a slap in the face
Circumstance has left romance
And a puzzle in front of me
Who knows the ending, if the truth need
bending, A lie is the tool that you'll need
chorus
So I'm under a mountain
Stuck to this mattress
Perfume and valium
What makes a Sunday different from Monday
Could be a look in her eyes
In need of flattery she changes batteries
So that her light will shine
The words she utters either so flows or
stutters
They're either silly or wise
Anger with concern
But never to yearn
Only to be by your side
Lay down with number 13
Its a cold gray shame
05 Blackberry (03:26)
Hey Blackberry, How you taste so sweet
Hey Blackberry, tell me what you see
tell me is it interesting
Hey Blackberry pay some attention to me
Hey Blueberry look at my bumblebee
Hey Blueberry you know we never sting
And he only hums for me
Chorus
I need some L-O-V-E-N to make me happy
You got to be L-U-C-K-Y to git
with a girl like Blackberry
Hey my cherry,coming up my street
Hey my cherry, you make it hard to breath
look what you've done to me
Hey my cherry, be sure to keep your nose clean
Chorus 4x
09 How Much for Your Wings? (03:28)
How much for your wings?
How much for your wings?
Well it comes and it goes
How much for your wings?
And it's high and low
How much for your wings?
I can name a price
How much for your wings?
Many forget their pride
If I were you and and you were me
we'd know
And could it be what you perceive
is wrong?
And what I mean what wrong could be
I don't know
I'm not naive but I believe
So I may grow
How much for your wings?
The soul you kiss good-bye
How much for your wings?
Watch the stars collide
If I were you and and you were me
we'd know
And could it be what you perceive
is wrong?
And what I mean what wrong could be
I don't know
I'm not naive but I believe
So I may grow
How does it feel
When you're the only one?
If I were you and and you were me
we'd know
And could it be what you perceive
is wrong?
And what I mean what wrong could be
I don't know
I'm not naive but I believe
So I may grow
How much for your wings?
How much for your wings?
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