Leave a sigh for the flash guitarist, whose season in the sun is as fleeting as a mayfly's. The fans of these whiz kids are usually males from the ages of sixteen to twenty whose sexual anxieties are such that they go gaga over anyone who seems to have mastered the ins and outs of a phallic Fender, Stratocaster or whatever. As soon as this audience reaches self-assured manhood, however, its adulation sickens and dies. A new generation of unself-confident near-adults arises–and with it, a new guitar idol.

Robin Trower's halcyon days stretched from 1972 to 1975, when the former lead guitarist for Procol Harum was persistently accused by nonadmirers (including every rock critic you could shake a stick at) of robbing Jimi Hendrix' grave. It was a bad rap because, though Hendrix was Trower's initial inspiration, the latter carved out a cool, sculptural style that was diametrically opposed to the former's incandescence. While Hendrix was an arsonist who burned the house down, Trower was an architect of stately mansions, and his early ballads (especially "Daydream") are imposing edifices even today.

But as Trower's guitar cult inevitably dwindled, so did his enthusiasm for flaunting his virtuosity. On recent albums, he's concentrated on songwriting rather than solos, and replaced James Dewar with Rustee Allen on bass so that Dewar can devote all his attention to his burly lead vocals. On paper, both decisions would seem wise. But on the turntable, Caravan to Midnight merely nods out.

It's a peculiar caravan, indeed, because none of Trower and Dewar's songs goes anywhere. Their writing lacks any sense of dramatic development and leaves one waiting for a climax or extended solo that, like Godot, never comes. Robin Trower is still an adroit musician–a wizard of the wah-wah and reverb, adept at deep, darkling chords and keen treble runs–but he's so self-effacing here that he sparks less excitement with three overdubbed guitars than he has in the past with one. Better a flash in the pan than a fizzle like this. (RS 281)

KEN EMERSON