Gig review: ROBIN TROWER- Shepherds Bush Empire, London, 5 September 2026

September 13th, 2026 by andynathan

At 81 years old guitar hero Robin Trower is enjoying an Indian summer, recording prolifically. Live sightings of him in the UK in the eighties and nineties were quite rare, but he’s been a regular visitor since. The last time I saw him at Islington Assembly in 2024 the gig had a valedictory feel to it, but after recovering from illness, this was the second time in as many years he played the Shepherds Bush Empire.

Support came from a familiar figure on the circuit in Jack J Hutchinson who is beginning to get some of the higher profile supports he deserves. This was an unplugged effort, the drum kit on the stage property of the headliner, leaving just him and bassist Greg Smith. That meant the focus had to be on his underrated songwriting on the likes of ‘Bullets’ and ‘Road to Hell’, though I was sure the latter included a cheeky snatch of ‘Kashmir’.

He even played a couple of new songs in ‘Shine A Light’ and ‘Burn’, everything accompanied by his self deprecating good humour and in the case of the tribute to his dad ‘I Will Follow You’ a bold invitation for the crowd to sing along. He ended with a couple of other quality numbers in ‘Call Of the Wild’ and recently playlisted single ‘Soul Believer’. I think I still prefer him in electric format but this was still a very nice amuse-bouche for the main event.

Robin Trower came on stage in quite sprightly fashion, and opened with one of the signature classics from ‘Bridge of Sighs’ in ‘Too Rolling Stoned’, with great use of the wah-wah pedal in the fast first part, then going into a slower and more considered mode, a recurring theme on more than one song. Nothing was allowed to distract from the music of his power trio: there was a simple stage set, the bare minimum of between song chat, and no audience participation or dragging songs out. In many ways it had more of the vibe of a jazz or classical recital.

My only regret is that while doing a decent job on the vocals, the older numbers suffer from the fact bassist Richard Watts lacks the gruff bluesiness of predecessors of James Dewar and Davey Pattison. He sounded perfectly at home though on ‘Live your Time’ and ‘Its Not Time’, both bringing things right up to date being from forthcoming album ‘Shine’, either side of ‘Distant Places Of the Heart’ from one of Robin’s collaborations with the late Jack Bruce.

On the likes of ‘Somebody Calling’, with its long instrumental intro and funk inflections, and another contemporary number in ‘One Go Round’, Robin’s tone on his trusty Stratocaster was immaculate, his face its usual study of trance-like concentration and his playing a case study in economy with superb technique and every note intended to mean something.

Midway through the set came the other songs from ‘Bridge of Sighs’ that complete his holy trinity, wah-wah to the fore on the big riff of ‘Day of the Eagle’ (a suitable song for me as I’d come straight from nearby Fulham FC watching my beloved Crystal Palace win), followed by the epic, smouldering title track.

The intro of ‘No More Words to Conquer’ reminded me a little of ‘Hey Joe’ by his great inspiration Jimi Hendrix, then over ten minutes the laid back soundscapes of ‘Daydream’ were the musical equivalent of lying in a warm bath. By way of contrast some feedback-strewn chords heralded ‘A Little Bit of Sympathy’- or would have done except an amp blew at that moment! The band had to leave the stage for a few minutes but returned to play the song with some very impressive interplay between the three musicians.

A couple of rather briefer- and again recent- encores in ‘The Razor’s Edge’ and ‘Birdsong’ continued to show off Robin’s precision and complete mastery, the only grumble that as usual the set was on the short side at an hour and a quarter. It was nevertheless once again an honour to watch such an exemplary guitarist playing as well, if not better, than ever.

Review and Photos by Andy Nathan

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