![\"\"](\"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/trower_for_earth_below.jpg\")
<\/p>\nListeners who thrilled to Procol Harum\u2019s \u201cA Whiter Shade of Pale\u201d may have fallen in love with the tune and its J.S. Bach-inspired melody. But that song represented the creatively rich group just getting started: it was recorded before the band\u2019s new lead guitarist, Robin Trower, joined the band. And even once Trower was on board, his playing on the group\u2019s early albums \u2013 fiery as it could be \u2013 only hinted at the power and expressiveness of his six-string artistry.<\/p>\n
Trower\u2019s tour de force guitar work with Procol Harum reached its peak on the group\u2019s fifth studio LP, 1971\u2019s Broken Barricades<\/i>. Gary Brooker\u2019s \u201cSimple Sister\u201d opened that album, and the song \u2013 one of the group\u2019s best \u2013 showcased searing, gloriously distorted lead guitar from Trower. But Broken Barricades<\/i> also signaled the end of the guitarist\u2019s time with the band. Keen to express himself in a different format, Trower left to launch a trio called Jude. That band would stay together only briefly, playing dates in London but never recording.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Soon enough, Trower and Jude bassist\/vocalist James Dewar recruited drummer Reg Isidore, forming the Robin Trower Band. Drawing inspiration from earlier power trios like Cream \u2013 and displaying Trower\u2019s deep appreciation of Jimi Hendrix \u2013 the group debuted on record with 1973\u2019s Twice Removed From Yesterday<\/i>. That album sold modestly and did not chart. But 1974\u2019s Bridge of Sighs<\/i> was a breakout success, reaching #7 on the U.S. album charts and earning the band a Gold record. Isidore left the group shortly thereafter, replaced by Bill Lordan. And it was with Lordan that the band made its third LP, 1975\u2019s For Earth Below<\/i>. On the 50th<\/sup> anniversary of its release, that record \u2013 the first Trower LP to chart in four countries (the U.S., UK, Canada and Australia) \u2013 is now receiving a deluxe reissue.<\/p>\n The Wah-Wah pedal was brought to market in 1966; it soon entered into wide use among electric guitarists. Jimi Hendrix made extensive and inspired use of the effect on his 1967 album Axis: Bold As Love<\/i>. Countless other musicians followed his example, but by the early \u201870s its peak as a signature sound had passed. But in the hands (under the foot, actually) of Robin Trower, the Wah-Wah pedal found new life. Across the eight songs on For Earth Below<\/i>, Trower employs the guitar effect with skill and nuance.<\/p>\n The specter of Hendrix is omnipresent throughout Trower\u2019s 1970s work, but thanks to Trower\u2019s original songwriting and Dewar\u2019s distinctive soulful vocals, the results rises far above mere imitation. With a blues-based format, the songs on For Earth Below<\/i> showcase the trio\u2019s tight, controlled (never jammy or meandering) character, with the rock-solid rhythm section of Dewar and Lordan providing support for Trower\u2019s guitar work.<\/p>\n Unlike guitarists who switch between nominally \u201clead\u201d and \u201crhythm\u201d parts in a song, Trower\u2019s approach is almost always set to lead, while always providing the necessary rhythmic textures. In the studio, he often overdubs two or more guitar parts, adding to the depth of the arrangements.<\/p>\n Even while remaining within the blues-rock idiom, For Earth Below<\/i> displays variety. \u201cIt\u2019s Only Money\u201d is a heavy yet meditative slow blues; \u201cConfessin\u2019 Midnight\u201d is a close cousin to Hendrix\u2019s \u201cVoodoo Child (Slight Return).\u201d \u201cAlethea\u201d gives Jeff Beck a run for his money. The surprising use of a Rhythm Ace drum machine (alongside Lordan\u2019s real percussion) adds fascinating depth to \u201cA Tale Untold.\u201d And with its echoes of Stevie Wonder\u2019s \u201cSuperstition,\u201d Trower\u2019s \u201cGonna Be More Suspicious\u201d takes a kitchen sink approach to Wah-Wah pedal work. The dreamy and impressionistic title track closes the album on an appropriately saturnine note.<\/p>\n The new 4CD set is packed with goodies. CD One reproduces the standard album. The second disc features a new mix of the album that allows the music to breathe more than the original mix. Previously unheard guitar overdubs add interest.<\/p>\n The third disc opens with alternate takes of five album tracks; they\u2019re interesting enough to merit inclusion. But the remainder of the disc is essential, as it features a Top of the Pops<\/i> appearance. For some reason, host Brian Mathew persists in calling Trower\u2019s recent album Fire Earth Below<\/i>, but he\u2019s an otherwise keen interviewer. Three BBC Live in Concert<\/i> tracks display the trio\u2019s onstage virtues. An 18-minute instrumental jam is as meandering and tedious as its length would suggest. It\u2019s good for at least one listen, though, especially when Trower spars with the (oddly uncredited) Hammond organist.<\/p>\n The fourth disc in the expanded 50th<\/sup> anniversary edition of For Earth Below<\/i> is a true bonus. Listeners curious as to how Trower\u2019s multi-guitar-overdub approach might be reconciled onstage need only to listen to this set, captured at Los Angeles\u2019 Shrine Auditorium just weeks after the album\u2019s release. The splendidly-recorded concert features selections from Trower\u2019s then three-album catalog. Only three For Earth Below<\/i> tracks are in the set, but the trio is on fire throughout.<\/p>\n Hard rock enthusiasts of a certain age may already have a well-worn vinyl copy of For Earth Below<\/i> in their collection, but the bonus tracks (and David Sinclair\u2019s superb liner notes) included in this expanded edition make it a worthwhile purchase.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Listeners who thrilled to Procol Harum\u2019s \u201cA Whiter Shade of Pale\u201d may have fallen in love with the tune and its J.S. Bach-inspired melody. 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