Pictures of Eleven is really a pretty good album; I can't believe they didn't include anything from it on the best-of. "Burning Down One Side" and "Pledge Pin" are both worthy (and I'm pretty sure they both got regular radio play back in the day).
yeah, Blount, I loved Now and Zen as well but probably haven't heard in about as long as you. "Ship of Fools" was good too! I totally hadn't listened to that Manic Nirvana thing in like a dozen years. Some unknown impulse compelled me to play it last weekend.
― Mr. Diamond (diamond), Wednesday, 5 November 2003 00:24 (twenty years ago) link
― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Wednesday, 5 November 2003 00:40 (twenty years ago) link
― Mr. Diamond (diamond), Wednesday, 5 November 2003 00:42 (twenty years ago) link
― cinniblount (James Blount), Wednesday, 5 November 2003 00:43 (twenty years ago) link
― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Wednesday, 5 November 2003 00:47 (twenty years ago) link
― gygax! (gygax!), Wednesday, 5 November 2003 00:48 (twenty years ago) link
― cinniblount (James Blount), Wednesday, 5 November 2003 00:53 (twenty years ago) link
― gygax! (gygax!), Wednesday, 5 November 2003 01:05 (twenty years ago) link
― Ned Raggett (Ned), Wednesday, 5 November 2003 01:07 (twenty years ago) link
While "FofN" does have a dreadful cover (and the last track "Network News" is an appallingly bad song), the rest of the album probably represents the best collection of songs amongst his solo albums. "Down to the Sea", "Come into my life", "Calling to you" - all good.
"Tie Dye on the Highway" from "Manic Nirvana" would rock like a behemoth if it wasn't for that godawful 80s drum sound... Elsewhere, I'd go for "I cried" and "Nirvana". "Hurting Kind" though goes straight in the bin alongside "Tall cool one".
"Now and Zen" I've never been over the moon about... I mean "Dance on my own" for heaven's sake! Oh dear. It does have "Ship of Fools" though, a solid track, and a few other decent tunes, but Phil Johnstone's influence is a little too pervasive in places. "White clean and neat" is one song I have always had a soft spot for.
"Shaken 'n Stirred"... hmmm, never really been able to get my head around this one. Plant goes new wave synth pop? The video for "Little by Little" is a bit of a trip.
"The Principle of Moments" - some good tracks, eg. "Big Log", "In the mood". Great videos for both of them also.
"Pictures at Eleven" - what? No "Slow dancer" on the new comp? They must be kidding! I have a bootleg somewhere with a cracking live version.
― steve, Wednesday, 5 November 2003 04:05 (twenty years ago) link
― steve, Wednesday, 5 November 2003 04:07 (twenty years ago) link
― calstars (calstars), Wednesday, 5 November 2003 04:12 (twenty years ago) link
Recently? It's more than ten years old now!
― Ned Raggett (Ned), Wednesday, 5 November 2003 04:15 (twenty years ago) link
― steve, Wednesday, 5 November 2003 04:18 (twenty years ago) link
I never heard that Coverdale/Page record. I bet I'll probably hear it before I die, though. Then again you never know. I've gotta believe there are at least one or two well-constructed riffs on there somewhere; it's Page, after all. About half of Outrider was actually really good.
Man, this track-listing for the Plant best-of is pretty wack. How the heck can you leave off "In the Mood"? And they should have put "Far Post" on there ("Big Log" B-side, and a good tune in its own right), instead of like 5 (?!) tracks from Fate of Nations.
Still I'm pretty curious to hear that early track recorded with Alexis Korner.
― Mr. Diamond (diamond), Wednesday, 5 November 2003 06:20 (twenty years ago) link
Completely correct, Steve. For some reason, I inexplicably deleted "iron". I'm losing my mind. In any event, it's still an abjectly crap lyric. That particular track is littered with similarly cringe-worthy couplets.
― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Wednesday, 5 November 2003 13:21 (twenty years ago) link
― cinniblount (James Blount), Wednesday, 5 November 2003 14:46 (twenty years ago) link
― Jordan (Jordan), Wednesday, 5 November 2003 14:52 (twenty years ago) link
― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Wednesday, 5 November 2003 15:22 (twenty years ago) link
OH NO! That naughty Thom Jurek is at it again! Check out that line about Lester Bangs.
― Francis Watlington (Francis Watlington), Wednesday, 5 November 2003 15:37 (twenty years ago) link
OH NOES! That naughty Thom Jurek is at it again! Check out that line about Lester Bangs.
― Francis Watlington (Francis Watlington), Wednesday, 5 November 2003 15:38 (twenty years ago) link
― d.w., Wednesday, 5 November 2003 21:00 (twenty years ago) link
― d.w., Wednesday, 5 November 2003 21:05 (twenty years ago) link
― DV (dirtyvicar), Wednesday, 5 November 2003 21:08 (twenty years ago) link
― Mr. Diamond (diamond), Wednesday, 5 November 2003 21:16 (twenty years ago) link
― J0hn Darn1elle (J0hn Darn1elle), Wednesday, 5 November 2003 21:20 (twenty years ago) link
I totally loved "Tie Dye to the Highway" at the time (Grade 6/7). I really liked "Hurting Kind" too. I also remember "Liar's Dance" being good. Some of the rest too. I remember writing a review of Manic Nirvana for a Gr 7 English assignment and saying that it was pretty good but leaves the listener wanting a little more.
I think the coolest thing about his 80s solo career was how he reinvented his persona as this button-down shirt-wearing English gentleman artiste, sort of a hippie Peter Gabriel.
"Tall Cool One" was great, WTF? Or at least I thought so then. "Ship of Fools" too. I don't remember that album as well.
Yeah, "In the Mood" is good.
― sundar subramanian (sundar), Wednesday, 5 November 2003 22:03 (twenty years ago) link
and yes, some of his solo stuff is pretty good ... i always liked "in the mood," "little by little," and "heaven knows" (though the lyrics are sorta c-grade bryan ferry [OF ALL PEOPLE FOR MR. DOES-ANYONE-REMEMBER-LAUGHTER TO TRY TO IMITATE COULD YOU SEE THE FAVOR BEING RECIPROCATED?!]). the honeydrippers "sea of love" remake is silly, but it lead me to the original version so it's all good in the end (plus the video was prime mid-eighties cheese and the chick therein looked like a high-school teacher i really crushed on big time).
― Eisbär (llamasfur), Thursday, 6 November 2003 05:20 (twenty years ago) link
― Sean (Sean), Thursday, 6 November 2003 22:23 (twenty years ago) link
― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Thursday, 6 November 2003 22:25 (twenty years ago) link
― cinniblount (James Blount), Friday, 7 November 2003 01:46 (twenty years ago) link
http://www.borntoboogie.net/Images/premiere/tv_robplant_rolan.jpg
(That's Tony Visconti and Rolan Bolan, Marc's son, on either side of him at an event for the Born to Boogie DVD.)
― Ned Raggett (Ned), Sunday, 15 May 2005 21:44 (eighteen years ago) link
― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Sunday, 15 May 2005 21:52 (eighteen years ago) link
― Al (sitcom), Monday, 16 May 2005 00:45 (eighteen years ago) link
― Ned Raggett (Ned), Monday, 16 May 2005 01:34 (eighteen years ago) link
An unmentioned song I still go back to: the beautiful synth ballad "Thru With The Two Step" from Principle of Moments. Man, I wish he'd locked into that sound/vibe and just stayed there....
― Dr. Gene Scott (shinybeast), Monday, 16 May 2005 05:56 (eighteen years ago) link
― Marcello Carlin (nostudium), Monday, 16 May 2005 06:24 (eighteen years ago) link
I like Robert Plant's first three records (the Robbie Blunt trilogy) a lot, and appreciate the effort on Plant's part to make them NOT sound like Zeppelin. Which would've been a mistake, considering how his voice has deteriorated over the years - couldn't hit the high notes anymore. His next few weren't very good at all, although sampling the Beastie Boys was a clever move. "Calling To You" and "Tie Die On The Highway" were pretty spacey. (Incidentally, what the heck was up with those ultra-arcane song titles, anyway? Were they dope-inspired? pulled at random out of a hat? i-ching toss-results? or just inside jokes? Dunno; but one of the few that made sense: "Mystery Title"!
― Myonga Von Bontee (Myonga Von Bontee), Monday, 16 May 2005 06:47 (eighteen years ago) link
― Alfred Soto (Alfred Soto), Monday, 16 May 2005 12:32 (eighteen years ago) link
He has since irritatingly renounced said efforts, alas.
― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Monday, 16 May 2005 13:33 (eighteen years ago) link
Actually I didn't even know there was one!
I have to say I kinda regret not getting The Principle of Moments back when I heard "Big Log" and "In the Mood" on the radio in upstate New York -- both reasonably big hits and spun quite a bit. I was 12 then and had I picked up the album and really gotten into it, it would have been interesting to see how I viewed Led Zep and much else in retrospect.
― Ned Raggett (Ned), Monday, 16 May 2005 13:47 (eighteen years ago) link
― Sundar (sundar), Monday, 16 May 2005 14:02 (eighteen years ago) link
― Dr. Gene Scott (shinybeast), Monday, 16 May 2005 14:43 (eighteen years ago) link
― edd s hurt (ddduncan), Monday, 16 May 2005 19:05 (eighteen years ago) link
― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Monday, 16 May 2005 19:08 (eighteen years ago) link
― Jordan (Jordan), Monday, 16 May 2005 19:11 (eighteen years ago) link
I think Zeppelin's cover art is/was unfairly derided...most of it is really good. Obv. it was Page (the former art student), who was in charge of hiring Hipgnosis.
― Dr. Gene Scott (shinybeast), Tuesday, 17 May 2005 04:04 (eighteen years ago) link
One of the Hipgnosis guys (most likely Storm Thorgerson) proposed artwork for Houses Of The Holy with a picture of a tennis match on the cover. When asked what it meant, he said "Don't you get it? Racket!" and that was the end of that.
― Deluxe (Damian), Tuesday, 17 May 2005 10:45 (eighteen years ago) link
Funny that PIL ended up doing Kashmir live
I saw them do as their opening number on the Album tour....only the band played it before Lydon took the stage (releaving him of the burden of singing it).
― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Tuesday, 17 May 2005 11:07 (eighteen years ago) link
I can't belive how many times I've heard the latest single in the last six weeks; it's not something that would make me search out this album, but the one acoustic track I did hear was surprisingly good. How many songs on the album are like that?
― Vic Funk, Tuesday, 17 May 2005 11:22 (eighteen years ago) link
― Alfred, Lord Sotosyn (Alfred Soto), Monday, 29 May 2006 19:52 (seventeen years ago) link
a shame that there was no Youtube when i originally posted in this thread, about how 80s cheesy the video for "sea of love" is. here it is, in all of its Zorba-the-Greek/Frank-Zappa-lookalike-standing-around-a-xylophone-and-wearing-a-speedo glory:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_9-026ZCKR8
― there can be only but steam that smells of shit and weaklingness (Eisbaer), Friday, 19 February 2010 05:27 (fourteen years ago) link
hey so fate of nations is actually an outstanding fucking record just fyi
― Twink Will Ferrell (J0hn D.), Friday, 2 April 2010 14:41 (fourteen years ago) link
I liked "29 Palms" at the time. There aren't many Plant solo moments I haven't enjoyed, actually.
― filling the medicare donut hole with the semen of liberal (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Friday, 2 April 2010 14:42 (fourteen years ago) link
yeah it's like even the ones that don't seem good at the time come to sound pretty awesome if you just set 'em aside to ripen
― Twink Will Ferrell (J0hn D.), Friday, 2 April 2010 14:43 (fourteen years ago) link
Back in '06, Rhino boxed all his solo stuff; I reviewed it for the Voice. (Please ignore the clumsy placement of the parenthetical about Phil Collins; yes, I know he didn't drum for Led Zeppelin.)
http://www.villagevoice.com/2006-11-28/music/whole-lotta-universal-love/
― neither good nor bad, just a kid like you (unperson), Friday, 2 April 2010 15:14 (fourteen years ago) link
a "colonalist Paul Simon way"?!
― filling the medicare donut hole with the semen of liberal (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Friday, 2 April 2010 15:32 (fourteen years ago) link
Sorry – I know this ain't the Vampire Weekend thread.
― filling the medicare donut hole with the semen of liberal (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Friday, 2 April 2010 15:33 (fourteen years ago) link
need moar talking about how amazing his videos were --
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ImpSyGTzot0
― Stormy Davis, Saturday, 10 April 2010 08:46 (fourteen years ago) link
I am so in love with that 'In the Mood' vid
― Stormy Davis, Saturday, 10 April 2010 08:49 (fourteen years ago) link
Did he ever say exactly why he dislikes those early solo records?
― Christine Green Leafy Dragon Indigo, Saturday, 10 April 2010 08:51 (fourteen years ago) link
*does* he dislike them? where did you ever get that impression?
― Stormy Davis, Saturday, 10 April 2010 08:57 (fourteen years ago) link
I may be under the spell of xhuxk's interview/review of Now & Zen, but so what: the album sounds great now.
― The Edge of Gloryhole (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Sunday, 31 July 2011 20:05 (twelve years ago) link
I remember being a kid and hearing "In the Mood" and just feeling like it was so wonderfully from outer space. Classic for all time.
― Guayaquil (eephus!), Sunday, 31 July 2011 21:37 (twelve years ago) link
Sorry, "Tall Cool One" is entirely awkward and embarassing.
― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Tuesday, November 4, 2003
as usual so wrong
― The Edge of Gloryhole (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Monday, 1 August 2011 01:02 (twelve years ago) link
I love the spooky robert plant song with the finger snapping and liquid guitar solo
― gardener by day, gatekeeper by night (blank), Monday, 1 August 2011 01:07 (twelve years ago) link
lil by lil
― mookieproof, Monday, 1 August 2011 01:09 (twelve years ago) link
Pictures At Eleven and Principle Of Moments are awesome! I particularly like Robbie Blunts watery Strat playing on POM. Big Log and In The Mood are gorgeous songs.
― Brooker T Buckingham, Wednesday, 3 August 2011 18:46 (twelve years ago) link
Gonna be smoking a phat one alfresco to this tune during those long summer evenings.
That I guarantee ;DCnutRexAnglorum 2 months ago 42
― dell (del), Wednesday, 3 August 2011 19:06 (twelve years ago) link
I actually still adore "Heaven Knows." But, again, "Tall Cool One" is just lame, lame, lame.
― Alex in NYC, Wednesday, 3 August 2011 20:31 (twelve years ago) link
he's had an admirable career i think, definitely followed his own path without really seeming to be weighed down by the legacy of zeppelin
― om nom nom nnamdi asomugha (upper mississippi sh@kedown), Wednesday, 3 August 2011 20:31 (twelve years ago) link
after Peter Gabriel no lead singer has Done His Own Thing to more rewarding effect.
― livin in my own private Biden hole (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Wednesday, 3 August 2011 20:32 (twelve years ago) link
Pictures At Eleven and Principle Of Moments are awesome! I particularly like Robbie Blunts watery Strat playing on POM. Big Log and In The Mood are gorgeous songs.― Brooker T Buckingham, Wednesday, August 3, 2011 11:46 AM (1 hour ago)
― Brooker T Buckingham, Wednesday, August 3, 2011 11:46 AM (1 hour ago)
Eeek, the tone is way too nasally and dry for my tastes.
― it's a meme i made and i like (Steve Shasta), Wednesday, 3 August 2011 20:35 (twelve years ago) link
Big Log is the biggest WTf moment of the past few weeks. Guitarist tone is so awful, his pull-offs amateur. Whole song sounds like some lounge effort. Drums and pads are almost modern sounding. "...and the coming of night time" ok
― calstars, Friday, 1 March 2013 02:42 (eleven years ago) link
http://consequenceofsound.net/2015/03/robert-plant-teams-with-pixies-for-north-american-tour/
― how's life, Monday, 16 March 2015 16:59 (nine years ago) link
I think "Lullaby and... the Ceaseless Roar" is as good of an album I would expect or want from Robert Plant on the 21st Century.
― Josh in Chicago, Friday, 7 July 2017 23:40 (six years ago) link
Yep!
― the Rain Man of nationalism. (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Saturday, 8 July 2017 00:26 (six years ago) link
solid perce
― mookieproof, Saturday, 8 July 2017 01:25 (six years ago) link
anyone listening to his podcast? it's kind of nice. He's all over the place but enjoyable to listen to.
Also learned that Richie Hayward played on Shaken n Stirred, now I have to go listen to that one
― calstars, Thursday, 11 July 2019 01:36 (four years ago) link
Robert Plant and Phil Collins backstage at Madison Square Garden, NYC during Plant's 1983 'Principle of Moments' tour pic.twitter.com/7vrEJWZ5ta— Barney Hurley (@barneyhurley1) May 2, 2021
― calstars, Monday, 3 May 2021 03:04 (three years ago) link
boss business
― Blues Guitar Solo Heatmap (Free Download) (upper mississippi sh@kedown), Monday, 3 May 2021 03:05 (three years ago) link
“The break is in 7/8”
― calstars, Monday, 3 May 2021 03:16 (three years ago) link
"Lighten up, baby, I'm in love with you!"
― So who you gonna call? The martini police (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Monday, 3 May 2021 09:33 (three years ago) link
you were pumping iron while i was pumping irony
― mookieproof, Wednesday, 21 June 2023 03:11 (ten months ago) link
Heaven knows!
― Ned Raggett, Wednesday, 21 June 2023 03:13 (ten months ago) link