Robin Trower Rocks The Fillmore
The pre-concert chatter was thick outside The Fillmore on Sunday night. Hardcore Robin Trower fans reminisced about seeing the guitar god back in the 1970s at Bay Area festival concerts like Day On The Green, and later at more intimate shows at Slim’s and the former New George’s in San Rafael.
An energetic aging hipster shouted, “He’s Hendrix Reincarnated!” to a young man wearing a Jimi Hendrix T-shirt. I guess there was a Hendrix resurrection here at the Fillmore, since Trower played on the same stage where a young Jimi Hendrix performed back in 1965, when the wild guitarist tried to outshine Little Richard at every turn.
In interviews, Trower says he drew a lot of inspiration from Hendrix, especially the Band of Gypsys era, and that was clear tonight. Trower wailed nonstop for a solid 90 minutes, often taking himself and the crowd to other dimensions through his mind-blowing solos.
His set was a diverse mix of tunes that spanned from his first post-Procol Harum solo LP to his latest album, Something’s About To Change (V12 Records). The real crowd favorites were tracks from 1974’s Bridge of Sighs. Songs like “Too Rolling Stoned,” “Little Bit of Sympathy,” and the jaw-dropping medley “Day of the Eagle/Bridge Of Sighs” hit like a category 5 hurricane and left the audience breathless.
The stage setup is simple for Trower. It’s just a few Marshall amps and one Fender Strat that he plays all night. There are a few pedals and effects he has at his disposal, but the focus is on his signature tone and solid playing. When I interviewed Robin a few weeks ago, he explained, “I usually just play a Strat through Full Tone stuff… Full Tone is all the pedals I use, and they’re made in California. It’s my signature model Strat run through a Marshall amp.”
Robin Trower. Photo: Steve Roby
Trower’s power trio includes two familiar members, bassist-singer Richard Watts and drummer Christopher Taggart. Both are from the UK, have played with the guitarist over the years, and offer a strong foundation for Trower to showcase his skills.
Opening for Trower was Strange Vine, a rock and blues duo from Fresno, California. Ian Blesse plays drums and Rhodes piano simultaneously, while Toby Cordova enriches the songs with a rotating collection of guitars, including one made from a cigar box. They kicked off the Hendrix vibe early with a wonderful rendition of “May This Be Love.” Blesse captured Mitch Mitchell’s rolling fills using a set of mallets on the tom-toms and cymbals for a waterfall effect. I swear he must have a third arm to play keyboards at the same time.
Set List: Somebody Calling | Rise Up Like The Sun | See My Life | Daydream | Lady Love | Something's About To Change | Day Of The Eagle/Bridge Of Sighs | Confessin' Midnight | The Turning | Not Inside - Outside | Little Bit Of Sympathy
Encore: Too Rolling Stoned | For Earth Below
Event: Robin Trower w/ Strange Vine
Date: June 21, 2015
Venue: The Fillmore
Location: San Francisco, California
To keep up with the constantly moving Robin Trower, visit TrowerPower.com for more information.
