Black Crowes Reveal Neo-Country Side

The Black Crowes crash-landed onto the rock scene six years ago with an anachronistic brew of honky-tonk raunch and boogie-blues, a groove the Rolling Stones worked really hard two decades before.

But guitarist Rich Robinson added his own punch to the Stones-ish flourishes and brother Chris Robinson--a singer with Rod Stewart’s voice and Mick Jagger’s quicksilver hips--gave the Crowes style and a face. At least for a while.

Saturday at the Glen Helen Blockbuster Pavilion, the Crowes headlined Independence Daze--a free festival with Son Volt, Seven Mary Three, BR5-49 and Three Pound Thrill--and previewed their upcoming album, “Three Snakes and One Charm.”

The Crowes’ last collection, “Amorica,” veered into jam-oriented psychedelia, diluting their raw roots significantly and leaving them a much less interesting outfit.

Yet the record has gained them a heavy Deadhead contingent. Waves of tie-dye in the crowd (estimated at more than 50,000) and Chris Robinson’s own beard-and-mutton-chops look whispered of Haight-Ashbury, but with the exception of Seven Mary Three, a derivative grunge-blues band, the other outfits on the roster derive more from Nashville than San Francisco. Even the Crowes’ new penchant is for neo-country, a craze that opener Son Volt has helped revive.

The Crowes’ country bent unrolled subtly during this show: “Nebekanezer,” from the new album, was played with shades of Neil Young’s heroin post-mortem, “Needle and the Damage Done.” The slow-paced break-up ballad “Good Friday,” also from the new collection, was fleshed-out with smoky harmonica and electric guitar that practically twanged. But the gospel-tinged tunes and old bluesy swagger of the past is where the band’s true heart--and appeal--remains.