The Black Crowes’ Rich Robinson Announces Benefit Shows Marking 40th Anniversary Of R.E.M.’s ‘Chronic Town’
The Planned Parenthood benefit shows are set for December 14 and 15 in Athens and Atlanta, Georgia.
Rich Robinson, founder of the Black Crowes, has announced an all-star event for a pair of concerts celebrating 40 years of R.E.M.’s debut EP Chronic Town.
Shop the best of R.E.M.’s discography on vinyl and more.
The two-night spectacular, set to go down across Georgia on December 14 and 15, will double as a benefit show with proceeds going towards Planned Parenthood. The concert will spend its first night at the 40 Watt Club in Athens and its second at the Coca-Cola Roxy in Atlanta.
“Growing up in Atlanta in the 1980s, R.E.M. was the preeminent band of that era,” Robinson said in a statement. “Their music was a huge influence not only on the Atlanta music scene but also on my brother and me. I’m so happy to be able to put together this celebration for a band that meant so much to us and music, and Chronic Town is what started it all.”
According to Rolling Stone, “Each night, Robinson will round out the house band that also includes the Black Crowes bassist Sven Pipien and drummer Barrett Martin, who first began collaborating with R.E.M. in the late 90s. Both nights of the celebration concert will be hosted by comedian David Cross.
“The setlist for the anniversary show consists of the full five-track EP performed by Robinson alongside special guests. The lineup currently features Rich and Chris Robinson, Darius Rucker, John Cameron Mitchell, Fred Armisen, Kevin Kinney, Lenny Kaye, Mitch Easter, Steve Wynn, David Ryan Harris, Elf Power, Pylon Reenactment Society, and more. The Dec. 14 show will see additional appearances from the Indigo Girls and John Driskell Hopkins of Zac Brown Band.”
Tickets for the December 15 show at the Coca-Cola Roxy go on sale October 7 at 10a.m. EST, with tickets for the 40 Watt Club going on sale on October 11 at the same time.
The August 1982 release of the Chronic Town EP marked an important milestone in R.E.M.’s history. It wasn’t the band’s first vinyl outing, but it proved to be the first of many legend-building releases they would issue through Miles Copeland and Jay Boberg’s I.R.S. imprint over the next five years.
