The critical album on this release is "Live." Anyone curious to hear how good an electric guitar can possibly sound should purchase this CD. Trower deals in both overdriven and clean sounds with his Fender Strat, and his use of effects like the wah-wah pedal and the Uni-Vibe, while sometimes drawing unfair and shallow comparisons to Hendrix, is unparallelled in grace and style. When Trower unleashes a sustained feedback note (i.e. near the end of "Daydream"), I want it to last thirty minutes. But he's also capable of dramatic bursts and flurries of notes, punctuated by bends and whammy bar workouts ... as Robert Fripp himself noted, Robin Trower has mastered the "bends and wobbles."
During the last solo of "Lady Love," Trower plays a pinch harmonic that is THE sweetest single note I ever heard, anywhere.
Jimmy Dewar lays down a great bass groove throughout - and his voice is quite powerful. He has a rich, soulful vibrato that compliments the music nicely.
Bill Lordan is a good, jazzy drummer, although occasionally his cymbals do clutter the sound, especially on the live album. But let's face it, the reason we are all listening to this is to hear what Robin is gonna play next :)
Link: h!!p://www.megaupload.com/?d=43WF8R57
1 comment:
I really want to thank you for your words in due praise of 'Live'. I am a big Hendrix collector and there's a lot of people in those circles who bought that damaging 'Hendrix comparison' bullshit and who consequently never really brought any kind of heart or ear to what Trower was actually playing. More than 30 years on this album still stands up amongst what i would say are the top 5 live albums of the rock 'era'. Trower is so 'in the zone' it still makes the old hairs stand up after hundreds of listenings. Worth the downloading to get a 'best you can get' version of this.
Many thanks for taking the trouble and having the appreciation.
Paul in the 'hole (Bradford UK)x
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