Live Review: Robin Trower at Copernicus Center • Chicago
Robin Trower
Copernicus Center
Chicago
Friday, July 11, 2025
Review by Jeff Elbel. Photo by Stacey Katsis.
Rock and roll survivor Robin Trower may look his age, but he certainly doesn’t behave or play like he’s past his prime. Fit and wiry at 80 years, the guitarist appeared on Friday with his trio at the Copernicus Center in Chicago to offer a matching 80 minutes of masterful technique and musicality.
The set list leaned heavily into 2022’s No More Worlds to Conquer and landmark 1974 album Bridge of Sighs, providing glimpses of the high quality of material at either end of Trower’s lengthy catalog.
The show began under red light as bassist Richard Watts delivered the husky vocal to “The Razor’s Edge” from No More Worlds to Conquer while Trower played languid wah-wah leads on his red Stratocaster. The guitarist, followed by scratching the percussive intro to “Too Rolling Stoned” from Bridge of Sighs, joined by drummer Chris Taggart’s funky groove.
The loping blues of “Wither on the Vine” helped cement the impression of Trower as a kindred spirit to leading lights of British blues-rock, including Jimi Hendrix and Cream, and a guiding presence for later artists, including Albert King acolyte Stevie Ray Vaughan.
“We’d like to do something off the new album,” said Trower when introducing “One Go Round” from this year’s Come and Find Me. “Hope you like it!” Beginning as a taut funk-swing driven by Taggart, the song was characterized by coiled energy with echoes of Hendrix’s “Purple Haze.” “You only get one go ‘round,” sang Watts, expressing a positive message about making the most of life.
With the attention given to the album’s 50th anniversary and special reissue packages this year, it was somewhat surprising that the set omitted songs such as “Fine Day,” “Confessin’ Midnight,” and “Gonna Be More Suspicious” from 1975’s Billboard #5 album For Earth Below. “Distant Places of the Heart” and the bluesy “It’s Too Late” were welcome additions from Trower’s work alongside Cream veteran Jack Bruce.
A blistering “Day of the Eagle” and soulful “Bridge of Sighs” were performed back-to-back, earning a surge of recognition as fan favorites and marking the emotional high point of the main set.
The tightly paced show included scarcely a misstep for any rock guitar disciple to quibble about, although there was little denying that Watt’s strong vocal performance was underrepresented in the mix in favor of Trower’s towering guitar during songs like the spellbinding psychedelia of “Daydream” from 1973 solo debut Twice Removed from Yesterday and “Rise Up Like the Sun” from 1994 album 20th Century Blues. With the band’s lean power trio format, it seemed like there should have been ample room for all sonic elements.
Trower kept his greetings and banter brief, letting his guitar do most of the talking. There was no question that the performance presented a master musician at work. The guitarist proved adept at making subtle changes with the speed of thought. He often coaxed subtle shifts in touch and tone while switching seamlessly between bristling rhythm playing and lyrical lead phrases on songs like the rocking “Little Bit of Sympathy” and soothing show-closer “Birdsong.” While getting down to business, however, there were plenty of smiles shared between Trower, his bandmates, and the rapt audience.
Category: Featured, Live Reviews, Weekly
