Brand New from Led Zep’s Robert Plant

NPR writes up Robert Plant’s personal journey in music after departing Led Zeppelin. Plant is right where he wants to be. Read the full article here.

Since the glory days of Led Zeppelin, Robert Plant has covered a lot of ground. He has restlessly pursued interests in world music, blues, and country. In 2009 he won five Grammys for Raising Sand, an Americana album with the bluegrass singer Alison Krauss. But there was one tune the English singer tried and couldn’t nail: an oldStanely Brothers number called “Little Maggie.”

“I think we actually murdered it, to be honest,” Plant says. “I was trying to work out how to work the vocals, being British. It’s a sense of humor that you need to even get anywhere near that stuff, so we couldn’t make it work. But then, I thought: The song is great, and like the sentiment. Little Maggie’s always off with some no-good, sorry man. I mean, that’s what we all are, really.”

On his new album, Lullaby and… The Ceaseless Roar, Plant gives the song another shot — with a new band. Plant’s group is an eclectic bunch, ranging from a West African fiddle player to a British keyboardist known for heavy electronic music.