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Very little has been heard of Robin Trower since ‘Back it up’, his last elpee for Chrysalis Records in 1981, and the
occasional recordings he made with pal Jack Bruce.
Just like many other unsung heroes the Southend virtuoso and one time Procol Harum member seemed destined to vanish from the scene. We know that for
eighteen months he moved lock, stock and barrel, complete with family and guitar collection to sun kissed California simply because ‘the States has always been my market’ but inevitably homesickness struck and
without hesitation he returned to Blighty.
Then the good news seeped in. Reports varied. What is definite is that slowly but surely he recruited a new band of excellent musicians and as a result Robin has
now signed a major deal with Atlantic Records.
His debut for the label, ‘Take What You Need’ sees him return with a vengeance to the familiar profile we have always known him in. When I met Robin at his
record company’s London office he bubbled with enthusiasm.
‘Up until 1980 I was constantly touring America for anything up to six months a year and I was in the studio for perhaps another two months.
Suddenly it dawned on me how much time I was spending away from my children.’
‘ There and then I made some decisions. I felt it was important to spend time with them otherwise they would have known me
in name only. As it happened I wasn’t enjoying playing the arenas anyway so I decided to come off the road. I wanted to concentrate on trying to teach myself how to write songs and to look very closely at my own
playing style and really think about I had done.’
Its sad to hear of a guitar hero parking his Strat on a shelf and subsequently lose interest in the instrument that made him famous.
‘Ah but I
can’t stop playing,’ he calmly interrupted. ‘I just started to get an itch I couldn’t scratch. I was playing guitar at home and was writing all the time. Then I started working with different people just
trying to get as much outside influence into what I was doing as possible I went through a batch of demos and I just kept trying things until I was really certain of what I wanted to do.’
‘In the end it
took a lot longer than I thought it would to actually get it together again. After breaking it down to square one it took me a couple of years to really get to grips with the song writing side of things and finding
the right musicians was the most time consuming.’
Is this because of the wealth of experience of having played with top-notch musicians for err hmm 25 years in this business and as such won’t tolerate any
flaws or fakes?
‘That too! Well the whole point about the band I got now is that not only are they great players but they are very sympathetic to what I am trying to do and will take direction to achieve
that. It’s very hard to find that in really good players, they usually want to go their own way so it is a whole band who believe in the one ideal which is what a band really should be.’
Without any
further ado Robin felt he had to give the road another crack. He trekked Stateside to play clubs and theatres. Then luck struck. Crescendo Records boss and fan Neil Norman saw and liked the band, signed them and
eventually produced Robin’s first vinyl for years.
‘Passion’ was the result and it hit the streets sometime last year. It was a good album but the machinery of a small label failed to provide the stir
Robin was undoubtedly looking for. However, with ‘Passion’ behind him Robin completed four tours of the US. The Atlantic Records, not failing to recognise his undying talents, moved in and since then he hasn’t
looked back.
The same line-up recorded ‘Take What You Need’, a record Robin is very proud of. Also featured on it are Pete Thompson on drums, Dave Pattison on dynamic vocals and one Dave Bronze on bass
who also co-wrote the majority of the noo toones. Gone are the lengthy musical pieces, the never-ending Hendrix styled solos to be replaced by good solid songs and new guitar techniques.
‘When I went solo
in the early 70s I wanted to do the stuff that existed as a piece of music without having the accepted establishment form, in other words they didn’t have specific passages like choruses or bridges or middle
eights. I was much more in to a kind of freer ethereal approach to music. I was more interested in the mood you were creating than the actual structure of the piece although ‘Bridge Of Sighs’ has its definite
structures but that came about more by accident than design.’
But my recollection of Trower & Co at Hammersmith Odeon in the days of flares told me that he seemed very happy doing that at the time.
‘Sure, sure. I felt free. I think it was probably a negative reaction to being in Procol Harum. That was a very structured very organised thing. But these days I feel different. Now I feel I am coming up with
some fresh ideas.‘
‘I am doing things on a guitar I have not done before within a song although the sound of the guitar would be familiar to those who know my material. The track ‘Take What You Need’
I feel it’s one of the best things I’ve ever written. It has a slight touch of uniqueness about it, which obviously you are always striving for.’
While on the subject of guitars and uniqueness, what does he think of Eddie, you know the Halen guy?
‘I admire him. I think Van Halen’s technique is blinding but I never really liked his music. I have
been interested in deeper stuff. All the people I admire are soul or blues players like Albert King, Howlin’ Wolf and Muddy Waters.’
The opportunities of being on a major label are endless. The one that
holds prime importance in his fans’ eyes is the possibility of playing this side of the big pond, something he hasn’t done for years.
‘Precisely,’ confirmed Robin. ‘We will be touring America for
sure but with a bit of help from the record we will be able to come to play in Europe this year nearer to Christmas time I hope.’
Ray Bonici and Jo Bailey, Metal Hammer
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