Now 26 studio albums into his long and illustrious career, 76 year old British blues rock guitar legend Robin Trower releases No More Worlds to Conquer, another fine record that sees him team up with drummer Chris Taggart once again, and enlisting vocalist Richard Watts. The addition of Watts is a fine choice, as it allows Trower to step away from the microphone for the first time in a few albums, something that probably should have been done earlier. Now, with a bona fide singer on board, Robin is free to concentrate on getting back to business with his guitar, and he also covers all the bass on this release as well. "Ball of Fire" kicks off the album in fine fashion, and we instantly know we are in for a wild ride, as Watts soars over some fiery guitar licks from Trower...the song rocks, and rocks hard with a smoldering blues edge. The title track is a throwback to some of his early '80s material, a mid-paced bluesy number filled with delicious Fender Stratocaster guitar licks through a wah-wah pedal and a Marshall amp, which is trademark Robin Trower. "Deadly Kiss" is slow blues meets funk, and contains a lengthy guitar solo, "Losing You" has more of a rock edge and some killer tone on Robin's guitar, while "Wither on the Vine" contains some of the most sublime soloing on the album...what this guys says with three notes takes many players whole careers to get across. There's also the catchy upbeat blues rock number "Cloud Across the Sun", the emotional "Fire to Ashes", the screaming guitar licks on the Jimi Hendrix inspired "The Razor's Edge", and the poignant, haunting "I Will Always Be Your Shelter".
Let's be honest here, the music and guitar playing of Robin Trower has given me great joy for 45 years, and much of what is on display here on No More Worlds to Conquer is like an old friend once again coming to visit. It's not a perfect record; there are perhaps a couple too many slow blues numbers, and while Watts is very good here (he's a drastic improvement over Trowers vocals) he's no Jimmy Dewar or Davey Pattison, but that's a minor quibble. Overall, an enjoyable collection of songs from the legend Trower, and man, can he still play that Strat.
Track Listing
1 Ball of Fire
2 No More Worlds to Conquer
3 Deadly Kiss
4 Birdsong
5 Losing You
6 Waiting for the Rain to Fall
7 Wither on the Vine
8 Cloud Across the Sun
9 Fire to Ashes
10 The Razor's Edge
11 I Will Always Be Your Shelter
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