Wikipedia

Bridge of Sighs (Robin Trower album)

Bridge of Sighs is the second solo album by the English guitarist and songwriter Robin Trower. Released in 1974, it was his second album after leaving Procol Harum, and was a commercial breakthrough for Trower. Songs such as "Bridge of Sighs", "Too Rolling Stoned", "Day of the Eagle" and "Little Bit of Sympathy" became live concert staples.

Bridge of Sighs
Studio album by
Robin Trower
Released20 April 1974
Recorded1973–1974
Studio
GenreBlues rock[1]
Length37:22
LabelChrysalis/Capitol
ProducerMatthew Fisher
Robin Trower chronology
Twice Removed from Yesterday
(1973) 		Bridge of Sighs
(1974) 		For Earth Below
(1975)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic [2]

History

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The album was produced by organist Matthew Fisher, formerly Trower's bandmate in Procol Harum. Acclaimed Beatles engineer Geoff Emerick was this album's sound engineer.

In an interview with Guitar World,[3] Trower explained how the album got its title. Robin said that he had had the first line of the song for years and one day saw some sport pages which listed a racehorse called Bridge of Sighs, which he thought would be a great title. The horse likely got its name from the famous Bridge of Sighs in Venice, Italy, built in the 1600s.

Bridge of Sighs was the second Trower release to feature cover art by "Funky" Paul Olsen, the first being 1973's Twice Removed from Yesterday.

Bridge of Sighs (Chrysalis 1057) reached #7 in the United States during a chart stay of 31 weeks. It was certified Gold on 10 September 1974. Early printings of the original album cover had the front image upside-down and were more greenish in colour.

The title track was covered by Opeth for the special edition of their 2008 album, Watershed. Steve Lukather covered it for his 2021 album, I Found the Sun Again. A segment of it also appears as a hidden track on Metallica's 1998 cover album Garage Inc.

"Day of the Eagle" was covered by Billy Idol guitarist Steve Stevens on his third solo album Memory Crash (2008). Tesla also covered the song on their 2007 Real to Reel album as did Armored Saint on their Nod to the Old School record.

"Too Rolling Stoned" was covered by Drivin N Cryin with Warren Haynes for the 1995 Hempilation benefit compilation album. In 2017, UFO included the song on their covers album, The Salentino Cuts.

A four-CD expanded version was released in 2024.[4]

Track listing

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All tracks composed by Robin Trower; except where indicated

Side one

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  1. "Day of the Eagle" – 4:59
  2. "Bridge of Sighs" – 5:05
  3. "In This Place" – 4:28
  4. "The Fool and Me" (James Dewar, Robin Trower) – 3:57

Side two

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  1. "Too Rolling Stoned" – 7:29
  2. "About to Begin" – 3:43
  3. "Lady Love" (Dewar, Trower) – 3:21
  4. "Little Bit of Sympathy" – 4:20

The album was remastered and remixed in 1999 with five bonus tracks recorded for KMET radio at The Record Plant in Los Angeles, California:

  2. "Day of the Eagle" (recorded 29/5/74) – 3:48
  3. "Bridge of Sighs" (recorded 29/5/74) – 5:16
  4. "Too Rolling Stoned" (recorded 29/5/74) – 6:26
  5. "Lady Love" (recorded 29/5/74) – 3:12
  6. "Little Bit of Sympathy" (recorded 29/5/74) – 4:49

The album was remastered once again and released in 2007 with eight bonus tracks from BBC Radio 1's "John Peel Sessions":

  2. "Bridge of Sighs" (recorded 5/3/74) – 4:54
  3. "In This Place" (recorded 5/3/74) – 4:04
  4. "Alethea" (recorded 5/3/74) – 3:55
  5. "Little Bit of Sympathy" (recorded 5/3/74) – 3:52
  6. "Fine Day" (recorded 28/1/75) – 3:22
  7. "Confessin’ Midnight" (recorded 28/1/75) – 4:47
  8. "It's Only Money" (recorded 28/1/75) – 5:01
  9. "Gonna Be More Suspicious" (recorded 28/1/75) – 2:58

Personnel

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Additional personnel

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Charts

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Chart (1974) Peak
position
Australia (Kent Music Report)[5] 41
United States (Billboard 200) 7

References

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  1. ^ "The Top 30 British Blues Rock Albums Of All Time". Classic Rock. Future plc. 23 March 2007. Retrieved 1 September 2018.
  2. ^ Horowitz, Hal. Robin Trower - Bridge of Sighs (1974) album review, credits & releases at AllMusic. Retrieved 28 August 2011.
  3. ^ "Dear Guitar Hero: Robin Trower Discusses 'Bridge of Sighs,' His Vibrato, Guitars, Effects and More | Guitar World". Archived from the original on 6 February 2015. Retrieved 11 February 2015.
  4. ^ Amazon
  5. ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 313. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
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