Robert Plant in Toronto: Not Your Grandpa’s Led Zeppelin

A Robert Plant concert seems like a good chance to wear a Led Zeppelin shirt: maybe that old leather Swan Song jacket; throw on that Ahmet Ertegun Tribute Concert t-shirt that‘s too rare to wear everyday. You can wear what you chose, but before dropping half a days pay to see Robert Plant, understand this: there’s one person who won’t be wearing Led Zeppelin - Robert Plant.

Not everybody seems to understand this going in, and on Saturday Night in Toronto, there were reports of fans being disappointed in Plant’s show at the Sony Centre. While it’s understandable that fans want a piece of Led Zeppelin, Plant has spent much of the last three years distancing himself from his Zeppelin legacy, and he wasn’t about to don a Zoso t-shirt on this night. Or, as the singer put it himself from the stage of the former O'Keefe Centre, where Led Zeppelin played in 1969, Saturday night:

Nov 2 1969 - twice... there was somebody here that I knew.

While second hand reports of disappointed fans have emerged, all first hand accounts seen here have been positive. If you know what to expect from Robert Plant circa 2011, you will see a great performer with an excellent band behind him.

With Plant looking casual in Jeans and female singer Patty Griffin sexy in thigh length skirt and knee high boots, The Band of Joy performed a 21 song set, including stripped down arrangements of Houses of the Holy, Tall Cool One, Ramble On and Rock and Roll. Otherwise, the set was predominantly from his Band of Joy album with a couple of songs from 2007’s Grammy Award winning album with Alison Krauss, Raising Sand.

Tangerine and Gallows Pole fared best as being both from the Zeppelin canon and suitable to the assembled band. But the rest of the Zeppelin material seems out of place and on the whole bears very little resemblance to the original. They are throw-ins for the fans: Plant would rather, no doubt, add a couple of songs from the selection of 86,000 songs on guitarist Buddy Miller’s laptop.

While fans can be forgiven for thinking they are seeing Robert Plant, the singer himself considers that you are seeing The Band of Joy, of which he is but a member. This is shown in the fact that Miller, Griffin and guitarist Darrell Scott all get songs of their own to sing. Other members of the Band of Joy are drummer/percussionist Marco Giovino and bassist Byron House.

The Band of Joy ended the show, as they have other shows on this tour, with an acapella version of The Incredible String Band’s A Very Cellular Song, sometimes called Goodnight, The Goodnight Song or We Bid You Goodnight. It is appropriate as Plant is clearly saying goodbye to Led Zeppelin. Know that going in, leave the Tour Over America ’77 hoodie at home and you’ll enjoy the show.

Reviews:
Toronto Sun
Eye Weekly
Suite 101
Henne Music (with videos)
Chart Attack
Globe and Mail




Robert Plant
Sony Centre - Toronto, ON – Saturday January 22, 2011

• Cindy, I’ll Marry You Someday


• Angel Dance


• Down To The Sea


• Rich Woman


• House of Cards


• Love Throw A Line (vocals: Patty Griffin)


• Please Read The Letter


• A Satisfied Mind (vocals: Darrell Scott)


• Satan Your Kingdom Must Come Down


• Take Me Where Trouble Don’t Go (vocals: Buddy Miller)


• Tangerine


• Twelve Gates To The City (with excerpts from Wade in the Water and In My Time of Dying)


• Houses Of The Holy


• You Can’t Buy My Love


• Tall Cool One


• Ramble On


• Gallow’s Pole

Encore:

• Silver Rider


• Rock and Roll


• A Very Cellular Song (We Bid You Goodnight)

Sunday January 23, 2011

• Cindy, I’ll Marry You Someday


• Angel Dance


• Down To The Sea


• House of Cards


• Rich Woman


• Love Throw A Line (vocals: Patty Griffin)


• Misty Mountain Hop


• A Satisfied Mind (vocals: Darrell Scott)


• Satan Your Kingdom Must Come Down


• Take Me Where Trouble Don’t Go (vocals: Buddy Miller)


• Tangerine


• Twelve Gates To The City (with excerpts from Wade in the Water and In My Time of Dying)


• Houses Of The Holy


• Tall Cool One


• Ramble On


• Gallow’s Pole

Encore:

• Monkey


• Rock and Roll


• A Very Cellular Song (We Bid You Goodnight)