Black Stone Cherry

[Chris]

Black Stone Cherry – Saturday, July 17

Chris Robertson – Lead vocals, guitars
Ben Wells – guitar, background vocals
Jon Lawhon – Bass guitar, background vocals
John Fred Young – Drums, background vocals

Black Stone Cherry formed in 2001 in Edmonton, Kentucky and first rehearsed in the house used by the Kentucky Headhunters when they formed in 1968. The band consisted of teenage friends Chris Robertson, Ben Wells, Jon Lawhon, and John Fred Young, the son of Kentucky Headhunter’s Richard Young. The band signed with Roadrunner Records and released their self-titled debut album in 2006. Three songs from the album made the Mainstream Rock Chart Top 30, led by “Rain Wizard” at #14. The album reached #90 on the album chart and the band hit the concert trail with Buckcherry and Black Label Society. An EP titled Hell & High Water was released at the end of 2006 that introduced the song “Big City Lights.” Another EP titled Rain Wizard was released later in 2007. Each EP was only released digitally on iTunes. A limited edition live album titled Live at the Astoria was released on October 31, 2007. The album was recorded at their final concert of their 2007 tour. In August 2008, their 2nd full length album, Folklore and Superstition, was released. Three songs from the album have made the Mainstream Rock Chart, the highest being “Blind Man” at #19. The album reached #23 in the US and was #1 on the UK Rock Chart. The band has toured with Nickelback as well as on the Def Leppard/Whitesnake tour from 2009. The band will be making their first appearance at Moondance Jam.

Mainstream Rock Hits
2006 Lonely Train #19
2006 Hell & High Water #30
2007 Rain Wizard #29
2008 Blind Man #19
2008 Please Come In #24
2009 Soul Creek #33

Setlist – December 9, 2009 in England
1. Rain Wizard
2. Backwoods Gold
3. Shooting Star
4. Cowboys
5. Blind Man
6. Hell & High Water
7. Please Come In
8. Soulcreek
9. Drum Solo
10. Peace is Free
11. Sweet Home Alabama (Lynyrd Skynyrd cover)
12. Just Got Paid (ZZ Top cover)
13. Maybe Someday
14. Lonely Train
15. Things My Father Said
16. We Are The Kings
17. Voodoo Child (Slight Return) (Jimi Hendrix cover)

Did You Know?
The band members range in age from only 20 to 23.
John Fred Young is the son of Kentucky Headhunters’ rhythm guitarist Richard Young.
His uncle is also a founding member of Kentucky Headhunters.
Black Stone Cherry’s hometown, Edmonton, KY, is located in a dry county.
The band will be playing on VH1’s Best Cruise Ever in April along with 3 Doors Down, Shinedown, and Lifehouse.
The song “Please Come In” has been featured on Monday Night Football telecasts.
Their Live at the Astoria album was limited to 1000 copies.
Black Stone Cherry played at the Download Festival at Donnington Park, England in both 2008 and 2009.

My Take
At first, I have to admit I knew very little about Black Stone Cherry. I had heard of them through our local rock radio station 98.9. Truth be told, I rarely listen to that station as they lean toward newer rock that, for one reason or another, I don’t listen too much anymore. Like many rock fans my age, I haven’t kept up with rock music’s current direction. However, lately I have been listening to more new music, in part because of the newer bands at this year’s jam. After my recent trip to Minneapolis and listening a lot to 93X, I am going to try to listen to more new music. There is a lot of good music out there, and Black Stone Cherry is one of the bands that deserve our attention. Their admitted influences are the rock bands I grew up loving. To top it off, they don’t sound as young (early 20’s) as they actually are. I especially like “Rain Wizard,” “Hell & High Water,” and “Lonely Train” from their debut album. From their latest release I really enjoy “Blind Man,” and “Things My Father Said.” Their second album is not as heavy as their debut and it shows a wider range of musical influences. While they have been classified as Southern rock, to me, only “Things My Father Said” has the Southern classic rock sound. The rest of their music is much heavier but still very listenable. They are not nearly as southern to me as Blackberry Smoke, who will play right before them. Now they are southern classic rock. While I think Black Stone Cherry might be a better fit on Thursday, I think people will be pleasantly surprised with their set. If they keep with similar set lists from 2009, we will also get to hear a cover song or two, as they regularly cover “Sweet Home Alabama,” ZZ Top’s “Just Got Paid,” and Jimi Hendrix’s “Voodoo Child (Slight Return).” Some people may even decide to make the jump like I have and start listening to newer bands that have a classic rock sound.

Videos
Blind Man - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zO1_cpIIzXI
Lonely Train - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=omo-fwok ... re=related
Hell & High Water - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ch-4Iu9h ... re=related
Things My Father Said (live acoustic) - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DH6DQe4X ... re=related
Things My Father Said (video) - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o7WYLPb8 ... re=related
Please Come In - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2cVxyKw8 ... re=channel
Rain Wizard - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ezgbKwxLs-0
Soul Creek - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8lc2jzH12mU

[tom_tuttle]

Good job Chris, i see you have made the jump also, Im still listening to their second album Foklore and Superstitution absolutely fabulous.

[pink flamingo]

Alright Chris, I am going to read all your band write-ups and watch the videos. When you have even just a little knowledge of the band, I think it makes them more fun to listen to and some of these bands I know nothing about. Thank you for taking the time to research and share the information! Today is Black Stone Cherry day for me!

Wow... "Things My Father Said" is a pretty cool video... made me cry!

My Take: good rockers, they like to whip their hair around! Seriously, I like them. I think SOMETIMES ("Please Come In") the lead singer's voice sounds a bit like Darius Rucker from Hootie & the Blowfish (but might just be me).