The Southern Harmony and Musical Companion is the second studio album by American rock band the Black Crowes, released on May 12, 1992. It was the first album by the band to feature Marc Ford on lead guitar, replacing Jeff Cease, who was fired the year before, and the first to feature keyboardist Eddie Harsch. The album's name derives from the full name of the Southern Harmony, an influential 1835 hymnal compiled by William Walker.
Release It was a record for an album to feature four album rock number-one hits (previously set by Tom Petty in 1989, with three). The album itself reached the top spot of the Billboard 200 album chart, propelled by the success of these singles.
A box set featuring the remastered album along with previously unreleased songs and live tracks was released in late 2023.
Reception
In 2005, The Southern Harmony and Musical Companion was ranked number 477 in Rock Hard magazine's book The 500 Greatest Rock & Metal Albums of All Time.
In 2006, the album was ranked number 100 on Guitar World magazine's list of the greatest 100 guitar albums of all time.
Track listing
Personnel The Black Crowes
Chris Robinson – vocals, percussion, blues harp, guitar Rich Robinson – guitar Marc Ford – guitar Johnny Colt – bass guitar Steve Gorman – drums Eddie Harsch – keyboards
Additional musicians
Chris Trujillo – congas Barbara Mitchell and Taj Harmon (now Taj Artis) – choir
Production
Pete Angelus – personal manager The Black Crowes – producer George Drakoulias – producer Janet Levinson – art direction Brendan O'Brien – engineer, mixing Chris Robinson – art direction Mark Seliger – photography Howie Weinberg – mastering
Charts
Weekly charts Chart (1992) Peakposition Finnish Albums (The Official Finnish Charts) 14
Year-end charts Chart (1992) Position Dutch Albums (Album Top 100) 52 US Billboard 200 41 Chart (1993) Position Dutch Albums (Album Top 100) 100
Certifications
References