Album Review: Robin Trower – Shine
Provogue / Artone – September 25th, 2026
Reviewer – David Brighouse
This is the latest Album from the blues-rock legend that is Robin Trower, now into his seventh decade as a musician the 81-year-old shows no signs of slowing down (“I think you’ve either got to keep pushing – or give up”) not only providing the music but also the artwork for this his latest release.
The album gets off to a great start with ‘The Missing Piece‘, opening with his instantly recognisable guitar sound, a song about getting old and missing that exciting spark of youth. Title track ‘Shine‘ has a wonderful back-bone groove with the guitar phrases cutting in and out, a song with a positive message where the guitar playing really does ’shine’. ‘Love By Any Other Name‘ is a slow soulful track about a relationship that has gone sour and has a dark side that drags you down and hypnotises you with the guitar phrases.
In contrast lead single ‘Live Your Time‘ is much more upbeat and opens with a riff which Trower considers one of the best he’s ever come up with, a song that says live your life and get the most out of it.’ Faith‘ is more laid back with the focus not only on some excellent guitar playing but also Richard Watts’ fine vocals. ‘Driving On Through‘ has a more compact funk vibe with the rhythm really driving the song along. ‘Truth‘ is a welcome surprise as it features the singing of Jess Hayes in a smoky soulful ode to love.
Wah-wah guitar is present throughout ‘The Race‘, a song that Trower admits he had trouble getting to sound how he wanted, but the final result was worth the struggle. ‘Without You‘ is a song about losing a lover and the sensational guitar playing perfectly reflects the theme. Trower considers closing number ‘It’s Not Time‘ as “one of the prettiest songs I’ve ever written” soulful but with a positive message, the longest track on the album with the final half an instrumental showcase for Trower‘s superb guitar playing.
This is Robin Trower at his best, an album that can easily sit alongside his most successful output from the 1970’s. It is Blues but with the funk and soul that has always been present in his output, and with such great guitar playing throughout is highly recommended to all fans of the genre.
Track List:
- The Missing Piece
- Shine
- Love By Any Other Name
- Live Your Time
- Faith
- Driving On Through
- Truth
- The Race
- Without You
- It’s Not Time
Line-up:
Robin Trower – Guitar & Bass
Richard Watts – Vocals
Chris Taggard – Drums
Jess Hayes – Vocals on ‘Truth’
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