In a statement released today, guitarist Rich Robinson has officially announced the breakup of his former band, the beloved Black Crowes. Rich and his brother Chris Robinson founded the band back in 1989. The statement:
It is with great disappointment and regret that after having the privilege of writing and performing the music of The Black Crowes over the last 24 years, I find myself in the position of saying that the band has broken up.
I hold my time with the Black Crowes with the utmost respect and sincerest appreciation. It is a huge swath of my life’s body of work. I couldn’t be more proud of what we accomplished and deeply moved by the relationships people created and maintained with my music. That alone is the greatest honor of being a musician. I love my brother and respect his talent but his present demand that I must give up my equal share of the band and that our drummer for 28 years and original partner, Steve Gorman, relinquish 100% of his share, reducing him to a salaried employee, is not something I could agree to.
There are so many people who have helped and supported us along the way. I want to give a heartfelt thank you to all of our fans, our friends behind the scenes, and to everyone who was a part of The Black Crowes.
The band has been on hiatus since 2010, though performed sporadically throughout 2013. They did not perform at all in 2014, as both Chris and Rich Robinson have been working and touring with their own solo bands.