At the ripe young age of 62, Robert Plant is an artist with nothing left to prove. The same could have been said of him at 22 when you look at his former band Led Zeppelin’s output. Thankfully, Plant is a true artist driven by what he loves and the knowledge that his musical legacy continues to shine a light in the lives of millions. Luckily for his audience at the House of Blues in Boston, MA, on Tuesday, January 25th, they were rewarded a live set comprised of strong new material and tastefully re-worked Led Zeppelin favorites.
During the first couple of decades of his solo career, Plant was loath to fall back on the comfort of touring as a tribute to the band that he made his name in. The last decade or so has seen Plant make some great creative choices, recording a series of albums falling between the genres of rock, gospel, bluegrass, and roots Americana. This has cemented his reputation and given him considerable success as a solo artist. In 2010 he went back to his pre-Zeppelin incarnation by creating a new band with the same name as his first ever group, The Band of Joy.
Musical legacy was very much in evidence from the kick off in Boston as the familiar strains of the old spiritual “Nobody’s Fault But Mine” known by many from Led Zeppelin’s Presence album. Then it was straight into Los Lobos cover “Angel Dance”, one of several highlights from the Band of Joy album (QRO review). At this point it is worth noting that the members of the Band of Joy aren’t your average session hack fare. On rhythm guitar and vocals is the very talented female singer-songwriter Patti Griffin, who shrunk shyly when introduced as a former long-term resident of Cambridge, Massachusetts. Not only is she a fine replacement for Alison Krauss, with whom Plant made his previous Grammy laden million plus selling album Raising Sand, but quite a musical upgrade. Although slight in stature, Griffin has a swagger and stage presence that belies her powerful voice. The songs “Rich Woman” and “Please Read The Letter” represented Raising Sand.
The extremely versatile Buddy Miller played lead electric guitar. He is best known for collaborations with the likes of Griffin, Emmylou Harris, Steve Earle – aside from his own roots Americana-based material. Two further peak moments came from his guitar work on the mesmerizing interpretation of Low’s (QRO album review) “Silver Rider” and his killer Tom Verlaine-meets-Nels Cline (QRO photos) style solo on Richard Thompson’s “House of Cards”. Taking care of acoustic, pedal steel, banjo and mandolin was Darrell Scott, who took his turn in the spotlight to sing the traditional standard, “Satisfied Mind”. This was one of several moments that underlined the high level of musicianship and vocal harmonies of the ensemble. The percussive mastery of drummer Marco Giovino and original Band of Joy bassist Byron House on electric and upright bass hold the band line-up together.
One of the most impressive aspects of the show was the fact that someone of Plant’s musical stature had the humility to give Scott, Miller, and Griffin all their own turn on lead vocal during the set. For each of their songs he went to the back of the stage and either sang harmony or played blues harp. Plant was a man thoroughly enjoying himself and in awe of the talent of his musical cohorts. One of the more personal moments of the set came during the introduction of his Boston-born drummer Giovino. Plant announced that his mum was in the audience and had warned him, “It better be bloody good” to get her out of the house on such a night. He continued to address Mrs. Giovino occasionally throughout the set, and suggested he was hoping to get her a mention in the Boston Globe review of the show.
It must be said that for all the criticism that has been leveled at Robert Plant for no longer being able to hit the (unnaturally?) high notes of his youth, his voice is in fine shape and has a power and longevity that many younger singers and contemporaries would give plenty to have. He’s smart enough to re-arrange older songs in an octave or two lower, and his voice showed no signs of wavering in its power for the duration of the show. What notes he can’t reach in a song like “Rock & Roll”, Plant has a cast of willing imitators in the crowd who are more than ready to help out.
In the second half of the set, Led Zeppelin fans were treated to an epic extended take on “Ramble On”, a mellower arrangement of “Houses of the Holy” with hints of bluegrass, the never-anything-less-than-dramatic and rousing “Gallows Pole” and “Rock & Roll”, which involuntarily became a sing along for over two thousand people in the hall.
The night drew to a close with a vocal-only performance of “And We Bid You Goodnight” (popularized by The Grateful Dead – QRO photos), which was a very powerful and intimate way to end the musical journey that had begun a little under two hours before. If you are on the fence about a show in your area on this tour, get off it now and beg, steal, or borrow a ticket if you get the chance.
