Black Crowes' ex-drummer Steve Gorman replaces Tom Barnard on KQRS morning show

Steve Gorman, former drummer for the Black Crowes, will be taking over for Tom Barnard on the "KQ Morning Show."

The veteran musician, who starts his new gig Monday, is no stranger to KQRS listeners. Since 2019, he has been hosting the syndicated music program "Steve Gorman Rocks," which airs on the FM station from 10 p.m. to 3 a.m. weeknights.

Best known for his years with the Crowes, he played on the band's first nine albums, which spawned such hits as "Hard to Handle," "Remedy" and "She Talks to Angels."

Gorman was not part of the band's 2020 reunion tour. A year earlier, he shared an insider's story of the group in his memoir, "Hard to Handle: The Life and Death of the Black Crowes." This past fall, he settled a lawsuit with the band's founding brothers, Rich and Chris Robinson, over unpaid royalties.

In an interview with the Star Tribune on Friday, Gorman, 57, said he would never again be a full-time member of that group but is open to getting onstage again with the Robinsons for a charity concert or special event.

Gorman said he fell in love with the Twin Cities in the early 1990s, when the Crowes first started playing here.

"We were in the area six or seven times, and every time I felt there was something special about it," he said between meetings at KQ studios in Golden Valley. "The Jayhawks toured with us for a couple months, and I kept asking them, 'What is going on out there?' "

He stays in touch with Gary Louris, one of the founding members of the Minneapolis-based band, and says he would love to sit in with his all-star group, Golden Smog.

"I'd put anyone in a headlock to play with those guys," he said.

It's likely you'll see Gorman on local stages more with his current band, Trigger Hippy, a group that once included Grammy nominee Joan Osborne. Two of Hippy's members, bassist Nick Govrik and singer Amber Woodhouse, have Minnesota roots.

Gorman also played drums on Bob Dylan's 1994 song "Dignity."

For the past decade, Gorman's main focus has been radio. He previously worked at Fox Sports Radio and has been doing his syndicated rock show for more than three years.

Shelly Malecha Wilkes, Gorman's new boss, said it has not yet been determined if the station will continue to air the rock show, a mix of classic songs, interviews and stories. But she's thrilled that he's joining Brian Zepp, Tony Lee and Candice Wheeler on the KQRS morning team, which broadcasts live from 5:40 to 10 a.m. weekdays.

"Steve is intelligent, authentic, funny — everything we were looking for and more," said Wilkes, vice president/market manager for Cumulus Minneapolis, which operates the station. "I am very much looking forward to our next chapter."

Gorman knows he's following a local legend. Barnard, who left the station in December, was once one of the most powerful radio voices in the country and is a member of the Radio Hall of Fame.

"The challenge is best not thought about," said Gorman, who met Barnard through a mutual friend, comedian Jeff Cesario; they played golf together in 2010. "I'm not ignoring what this opportunity is, and what the hurdles are. But that's part of the excitement, too."

Gorman is in the process of relocating from Nashville with his wife and plans to initially rent a place.

He still fondly remembers the time he saw Prince perform at Paisley Park during the NBA All-Star Game weekend in 1994, watching alongside fellow fans like Magic Johnson and Isiah Thomas.

"It was the first time I saw Michael Bland play in person. He's one of my favorite drummers," he said. "It's the greatest concert I've ever seen."

Recently he has discovered a new local passion: Kramarczuk's deli in Northeast Minneapolis.

"I've been there three times this week," he said. "Give me a Reuben and a bowl of soup and I'm in heaven."