Over the last forty odd years Robin Trower has shown himself to be a guitarist of impeccable taste and artistry, first with Procol Harum and since 1973 as a solo artist. In the seventies particularly in America Robin and his band were one of the big live draws and his albums also did incredibly well.
By the time of this album 20th Century Blues (1994) the 20th century was almost over however the music contained on this album could just as well been titled 21st Century Blues.
As ever Robin Trower produced an album that showed his skill as a great guitarist without being over showy. Ably supported by drummer Mayuyu and bassist/vocalist Livingstone Brown Robin who favoured the trio format really shines throughout this album particularly on the title track and songs like Extermination Blues and the longest track on the album Step Into The Dark.
Unlikely to convert anyone 20th Century Blues certainly found favour with the hard core and it has to be said still sizeable Robin Trower fan base. This reissue adds nothing in terms of extra tracks but really there is no need to over egg the pudding with bonus tracks that weren’t perhaps good enough to find a place on the original release. You do however have the advantage of having the album re mastered which really comes into its own when listening on headphones. Respected journalist Chris Welch also adds extensive sleeve notes to add to the attraction.
20th Century Blues for me at least is one of Trower’s best albums in the last thirty years and one that I return to time and time again and that is not something that you can say about many albums from the nineties
Jon Kirkman
You can request Robin Trower tracks on Classic Rock radio here :
http://www.classicrockradio.eu/playlist/playlistA.html
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