They don't make albums like this anymore. The second record from the Los Angeles DIY trio called The Disparrows, Making Others Rich reminds me of the first few times I heard the Black Crowes in the early 1990s. Like Shake Your Money Maker, the overall vibe of Making Others Rich serves as a throwback to any decade since the 1970s. Of course, it doesn't hurt when your lead singer — in this case, Daniel Weber, who also plays guitar — sounds a lot like Bob Seger and a little like Eddie Vedder, as your music evokes those very same Black Crowes, which themselves evoked The Rolling Stones.
Rowdy opener "Detroit City" is the album's weakest track, despite borrowing its "Detroit rock city" chorus from KISS and its killer organ solo from REO Speedwagon. The band's tenacity and ear for classic melodies is better showcased on the tender ballad "Blackbird" (in which Weber sings about rolling over and kissing … his wife) and the good-time bouncer "I'll Take the Roses" (during which Grant Loosvelt bangs the hell of his piano and Weber unleashes a slew of barroom-sweaty guitar solos). And of course, the dark mid-tempo rocker "High Tonight" sounds like Bob Seger jamming with The Black Crowes.
Some listeners might call this blues-rock, others will label it classic rock and still others might deride it as too commercial or too wimpy or too derivative. Whatever you wanna call it, the 11 muscular songs on Making Others Rich are executed with finesse, unquenchable enthusiasm and undeniable respect for the music and the listener. What more could we ask for in this disposable era?
Track Listing:
1) Detroit City
2) All the Same
3) Cry to Me
4) Blackbird
5) I'll Take the Roses
6) Come the Morning Time
7) High Tonight
8) Drive Me Home
9) Running After You
10) Lose It All
11) A Little Bit Longer
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