Review: Robert Plant and the Band of Joy

There are certain phrases that I am always uncomfortable using in a piece. They signify I am about to write something that may be controversial. One of those phrases is “of course,” as in of course not all coke drinkers are obese, but...".  Another phrase is “at the outset,” as in, “at the outset, I’d like to make it clear that my testifying before the committee here in no way indicates …”

At the outset, I’d like to make a few things clear. I am no fan of what Robert Plant has done the last number of years. Moreover, I have not been impressed with the direction he has taken his music the last number of albums.

His last album, Raising Sand with Alison Krauss, was my emperor has no clothes moment with Plant. I’d been buying in (and buying) for years, convincing myself I liked what he was doing. I didn’t, and haven’t listened to any solo CD he’s released since 1988 in years, unless it was within six months of release.

Of course, it’s not all awful. And of course, bad Robert Plant beats good Dr. Dre. And of course, at least he’s doing something, following his muse, unlike Dr. Page who has talked a better game than he’s played for too many years now. On the other hand, John Paul Jones got busy with Them Crooked Vultures and it was great. Jason Bonham’s Black Country Communion sounds like it’s going to be good, and the one song they’ve released, One Last Soul, is better than anything Plant has released in I don’t know how long.

So it was with trepidation that I heard he was continuing the same old path. Oh, this was different I heard: Allison Krauss was gone, and Buddy Miller was the musical director on this project, and he was only on from the previous touring band, but had no responsibility for the music itself. The music, I heard, was newer, edgier. The songs all from the last ten years. The first single, Angel Dance, was released and my hopes rose. While he still sang like he didn’t want to strain himself, it was the best thing he had done in a number of years. So yes, there was trepidation, but also a spark of hope. Maybe, just maybe.

Maybe not.

There is good news, and bad news actually. The good news is, some of the songs are good, very good. And it is, at times edgier, grittier. The bad news is, not often enough, and that Plant is still singing with caution, not a rock and rollers exuberance. And while some of the songs have life to them, there’s not enough there to sustain fourty-five minutes of interest.

The album mixes rock and country with some blues, some rockabilly, a little Beatles, a little Sea of Love, and always with an eclectic instrument mix.

It opens with Angel Dance, the above noted single. Weeks after first listen, it still sounds good. This one falls lovely into Plant’s singing style, and he hit’s the chorus with a bit of emotion, shows some of the old Robert Plant impeccable sense of timing. It also tells us something about what‘s to come. While it is a pretty grinding mid-tempo rocker, there’s a mandolin coming out in the mix. A really good song and also, a bit sadly, the class of the album.

House of Cards adds the backing vocals of Patty Griffin. This adds that Alison Krauss feel, but again, with dirtier kick-ass guitars. Vocally, this could be on Raising Sand, but musically it’s a gem.

Central Two-O-Nine is ‘old timey,’ mandolin and resonator guitar based up-tempo dirge. Did they have distortion in the depression? If they did, this is what it would have sounded like.

Silver Rider is the first fail on the album. Slow and weighty, Silver Rider sounds like Dreamland at 16 RPM. All that I haven’t liked in the past number of albums, slowed down.

You Can’t Buy My Love is an Early Beatles-esgue rockabilly. Chorus is all Beatles, as is the guitar solo. And is that a Rickenbacker bass? But after a very Hendrix like introduction it steps into Plant singing over a rockin’ drum beat and little else. It’ll remind you of John, Paul George and Ringo, and then just when you think you have the influence nailed, they pull it away.

You Can’t Buy My Love could have been the best song on The Honeydrippers.

I'm Falling in Love Again: speaking of the Honeydrippers, here’s my initial note on this song: Sea of Love meets Sea of Love. It’s that tempo, it’s that groove and it’s that feel. A solid 50’s croon and there’s nothing wrong with that.

The Only Sound That Matters is mundane with far too much steel guitar. Plant sounds like he’s mailing it in and letting his country buddies run the show. The feeling is that this could be a really good song, but not here, not like this.

Monkey sees us right back to Raising Sand. Boring nothing over an un-interesting backdrop. Psychedelia on Quaaludes and the Quaaludes win. Wake me up when he has something interesting to sing.

Cindy I’ll Marry You Someday is Gallows Pole with a happy ending. Another old timey gem, this would be near perfect if they replaced the pedal steel guitar with a mandolin. But that’s nit-picking on a good arrangement of the song. However, if your looking for how Plant is singing different as he enters his senior discount years, compare this with Gallows Pole. Plant never, ever reaches for a note that might fail, never brings the voice out of his comfortable range.

Harm’s Swift Way: this album is starting to sound tired. Reminiscent of old Steve Earle - think Guitar Town - it’s the same tempo, the same vocal range as too many songs on this collection.

Satan, Your Kingdom Must Come Down: if In My Time Of Dying had been played on a banjo, it would be Satan, Your Kingdom Must Come Down. But whereas In My Time of Dying gets away with being eleven minutes long, Satan, Your Kingdom Must Come Down is saved by being only 4:16.

Even This Shall Pass Away sounds like an outtake of Poor Tom recorded on a boat. As Poor Tom was itself an outtake, that could be a bad thing. But there’s nothing wrong with Even This Shall Pass Away. Mostly vocals over drums, it has a rockabilly tempo and feel, but harder. And what’s with the foghorn?




Robert Plant and the Band if Joy comes in at a nice 45 minutes. It’s not one of those overlong discs that have become the norm the past 20 years. This is a plus, as much of the disc is in too restricted a vocal and tempo range. It is, however, the best thing Plant has done in a number of years. It has it’s weak moments, but far more strong ones.

Bottom line, if you have liked the direction Robert Plant has been moving in his music, you’re probably going to love this. If your like me and have found Plant disappointing in recent years, give Band of Joy a listen, you might be pleasantly surprised.