Robert Plant Revisits Led Zeppelin Voice On "The May Queen."

Photo: Egghead06 at English Wikipedia [CC BY 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

With every new Robert Plant album released, Led Zeppelin fans are always hoping that Robert Plant will in some way or form revisit his glory days with Led Zeppelin. The reason behind that desire is simply because Robert Plant has never looked back throughout his thirty seven year solo career. Yes that’s right, Robert Plant has been a solo artist for thirty seven years. Robert Plant spent about a dozen years with Led Zeppelin yet during his thirty seven year solo career, he has had to endure the constant cry from fans and others to somehow revisit Led Zeppelin. There of course was the Live Aid reunion show with Phil Collins on drums which was somewhat of a disaster. And of course there was the very successful Led Zeppelin Celebration Day reunion shown in honor of Atlantic Records with John Bonham’s son Jason on drums which was incredible.

Robert Plant’s solo recordings have for the most part never resembled anything like the material he recorded during his Led Zeppelin days. Furthermore, the vocals style that Robert Plant has utilized on his recordings has been a far cry from the phrasings he sung on the Led Zeppelin tracks. Nonetheless, unlike some other artists who haven’t recorded any new material in thirty years and just milk fans high concert tickets prices for shows that showcase only old material, Robert Plant has constantly explored new musical avenues and performed new material.The man has never stopped working or growing as an artist. So, yes, maybe old Led Zeppelin fans, (myself including) would love to hear Robert Plant sing in that old Led Zeppelin voice again, but the fact is, he has continued to be an artist that has stayed true to the concepts of high artistic integrity and has never become an oldies act.

On Robert Plant’s new album Carry Fire, Plant continue to explore the rooted Celtic sounds that he has been working with over the past ten years. For the majority of the album, Robert Plant utilizes the lower end range of his voice with some exceptions. Like a elder statesman who still has so much left to stay, Robert Plant delivers on the promise of continued musical growth and originality. The songs on Carry Fire are deep. They are not radio friendly in this sad hip hop shallow musical modern world of commercial radio. The songs on Carry Fire require repeated listens. They don’t grab you right away on the first spin. However, play it again and again and all of a sudden you find yourself hooked in. After repeated listens, you start to understand where Robert Plant is headed and you stick your thumb out

Robert Plant opens the albums third track Season’s Song with the poignant line “Oh My Love what is there left to do.” It’s a serious question that all of us who have entered our 50’s and beyond have asked. But Plant’s sweet melody and whispering voice delivers a soothing beautiful answer to that question, as so does the rest of this brilliant album. And that brings us to this article’s title.

Carry Fires; opening track “The May Queen,” opens with a cool repeating acoustic blues guitar lick that transcends into a great strumming riff that hints right away at an old school Led zeppelin riff. And then boom Robert Plant drops a vocals line that is vintage Led Zeppelin. Upon first hearing Plant’s vocals, I almost crashed my car. Its a voice that I have not heard Robert Plant sing in since Physical Graffiti. But that’s not all, in the songs bridge Plant delivers a vocals lick that sounds like its right off Houses of the Holy. Is this intentional? The guitar riff at the end sounds like a Jimmy Page line that seems to signifies that Plant is just teasing a bit and having some good fun at it. Or can this be all just in our heads? Regardless of intentions or interpretations, one thing is for sure, I can’t stop playing it.