Review

Written by Jan Vranken

Disclaimer: This is not an objective review. It cannot be, and I don’t want it to be. I’ve known Rob Lamothe for over thirty years and have collaborated with him. What follows is therefore colored by friendship, shared history, and genuine respect for an artist I consider one of the most underrated voices in contemporary music.

It’s 1994. The Hard Rock Cafe in Amsterdam. At the time, I’m playing in the Dutch band Garp, and through a confluence of circumstances I can no longer recall, I suddenly find myself sitting at a table next to Rob Lamothe and the rest of Riverdogs. They’re in the Netherlands promoting ‘Bone’, their third album. We drink, we talk, we laugh. It turns into a pleasant evening. What I don’t know at that moment is that this marks the beginning of a friendship that would span more than three decades.

That’s who Rob Lamothe is: an amiable, friendly, and above all authentic human being. Someone who immediately puts you at ease. And it’s precisely that authenticity you hear in every note he sings, in every string he strikes. There’s no filter between Rob the person and Rob the artist. They are one and the same.

Now, late 2025, ‘Live at St Pancras Old Church’ lies before me. Recorded on July 12, 2024, in a thousand-year-old church in London, during what would become the final show of his European tour. A tour I unfortunately had to miss – the concert I was supposed to attend was cancelled because Rob had to make an unexpected hospital visit for eye surgery. All the more reason to be grateful that this evening was captured for posterity.

A Man, His Guitar, His Voice

This album shows Rob as he truly is. Stripped of all spandex trousers, embellishments, and rock god theatrics. Just a man, his guitar, and that God-given voice. Because let’s pause there for a moment: Rob Lamothe possesses the most wondrous voice I know. Not because he can hit the highest notes or produce the longest sustained phrases, but because every note he sings is drenched in emotion. Real emotion. No theatrical affectation, but raw, undiluted humanity.

The twelve tracks on this album span an arc through his career. From the opening ‘Between’ to the closing ‘Long Way Home’, you get Rob in his purest form. ‘Circus Song’, originally from his 1998 solo album ‘Being Human’, takes on a new dimension here. Without the studio production, only the essence remains: lyrics about vulnerability, performed by someone who knows what vulnerability means.

Goosebumps, Every Single Time

I’ve seen Rob perform live many times over the years. And every single time, it’s goosebumps. Every single time, he touches something in me that other artists fail to reach. That’s because his voice sits so close to the emotion. There’s no distance, no protection, no mask. When Rob sings about pain, you feel that pain. When he sings about hope, you feel that hope.

On ‘Live at St Pancras Old Church’, you hear this clearly in ‘Little Hurricane’ and ‘Pull Me Under’. These aren’t songs you listen to passively. They pull you in, whether you want them to or not. The acoustics of that ancient church do the rest – you hear the space, you hear the silence between the notes, you hear the audience collectively holding its breath.

A special moment is the presence of Rose Lamothe, Rob’s daughter, on two tracks. ‘Carolina In My Mind’ – yes, the James Taylor classic – becomes an intimate family portrait. But it’s ‘While I Await The Dawn’ that truly moves. Father and daughter, together on stage, their voices intertwined. It reminds me of our own collaboration.

Mother’s Song

Because yes, I have collaborated with Rob. In 2020, I asked him to provide lead vocals for ‘Mother’s Song’, a track from my project Bridging the Divide. Rob thought it was a beautiful song and agreed. Working remotely – he in Hamilton, Canada, me in Limburg, the Netherlands – we crafted the track together. Rob sang, played guitar, and Rose contributed backing vocals.

The song was intended to raise money for cancer research. Commercially, it didn’t do much, but we did get airplay on Dutch national radio. And I remain ruthlessly proud of it. Not because it became a hit, but because it was a collaboration with someone whose talent I’ve admired for thirty years.

There’s more in the vault, by the way. In 2024, we worked together on Moondawgs, a project that was meant to become a full rock album. Rob recorded vocals for several tracks, and they’re masterfully good. Unfortunately, we haven’t been able to find a label for it yet. But who knows, someday…

The Power to Be Himself

This album doesn’t so much fit Rob’s oeuvre – it fits him. And that’s a crucial distinction. Whether you’re listening to the bombastic work with Riverdogs, the introspective ‘Gravity’, or this stripped-down live album: it’s all unmistakably Rob. He has the rare gift of making any song big or small, depending on what it demands. But above all, he has the power to be himself. Something very few people can do.

Rob Lamothe was made to play live. In a studio, he can create brilliant things, but on stage is where he truly comes alive. This recording captures that moment when an artist and his audience merge into something greater than the sum of its parts.

For those seeking a reference point: if Jeff Buckley’s intimate performances at Sin-é moved you, if Chris Whitley’s raw emotional honesty resonated with your soul, Rob Lamothe belongs in that same sacred space. He’s the best-kept secret that deserves to be shouted from rooftops.

Conclusion

Is this an objective review? No. Can I be objective about someone I’ve known for thirty years, with whom I’ve collaborated, and whose music moves me to tears time and again? No. And that’s fine.

What I can say is this: if you want to know who Rob Lamothe truly is, listen to this album. No production tricks, no band members to hide behind, no studio perfection. Just a sixty-year-old man with a voice that seems crafted by higher powers, an acoustic guitar, and an audience hanging on his every word.

For fans of singer-songwriters like Jeff Buckley, Chris Whitley, or Bruce Cockburn, this is essential listening. For those who don’t know Rob yet: this is the perfect introduction. And for me personally? This is proof that some friendships, and some voices, only grow more beautiful with time.

Listen to ‘I Want To Swim In The Big Dipper’ and try not to be moved. I dare you.

ROB LAMOTHE – Live at St Pancras Old Church

Released: December 5, 2025 Label: Border Town Sound Tracks: 12 Running time: approximately 52 minutes

Rating: 8.5/10

Jan Vranken has been writing about music for forty years. He is an editor at Maxazine and runs his own blog Writerz Block.