AMG Review of Seven Moons Live

Hal Horowitz
All Music Guide

As its title dryly states, this live performance, recorded on February 28, 2009, in Holland, catches bassist Jack Bruce, guitarist Robin Trower, and drummer Gary Husband reproducing the trio's recently released Seven Moons project on-stage. Like the album's moniker, this is a frills-free affair as the trio weaves between prog, power, and blues-rock aided by Bruce's classic vocals. Cream comparisons are unavoidable, especially because the band includes hefty, if not definitive, versions of "Sunshine of Your Love," "White Room," and "Politician." In fact, those three songs comprise just under a third of this disc's generous 77-minute playing time. The other ten tracks originate from Seven Moons, with one, "Carmen," going back to Bruce-Trower's original 1981 pairing on B.L.T. The sequence also mirrors the Seven Moons studio set that was officially released just two weeks prior to this concert. The material naturally feels more liberated in the live arena, but in general, these versions don't differ substantially from the studio takes. Bruce, who had been ill, sounds in strong voice, yet it's his elastic jazz-rock-oriented basslines that are most impressive. They ground the material, leaving room for Trower's trademark fluid guitars to float and sting. Husband's drumming is adequate but doesn't match the virtuosity of the two stars. Besides the Cream nuggets, there aren't many surprises here for those who already own Seven Moons, but there aren't any disappointments, either. Perhaps more than one selection from the two previous Bruce-Trower collaborations would have been welcome, especially because some of the Moons material is similar in style and tone. Still, the Trower and Bruce instrumental interactions will be of interest to fans of both, and the Cream material is good enough to entice fans of that band to this recording. While it's far from an essential release, even for Bruce and Trower diehards, there is plenty to enjoy in hearing two musical friends feed off each other's energy on-stage.