What seems to be an unlikely pairing of former Led Zeppelin vocalist Robert Plant and bluegrass superstar Alison Krauss is actually one of the most effortless-sounding duos in modern popular music.
The bridge seems to be producer T-Bone Burnett and the band assembled for this outing: drummer Jay Bellerose (who seems to be the session drummer in demand these days), upright bassist Dennis Crouch, guitarists Marc Ribot and Burnett, with Greg Leisz playing steel here and there, and a number of other guest appearances.
Krauss, a monster fiddle player, only does so on two songs here.
The proceedings are, predictably, very laid-back.
Burnett has only known one speed these last ten years, and so the material chosen by the three is mostly very subdued.
This doesn't make it boring, despite Burnett's production, which has become utterly predictable since he started working with Gillian Welch.
He has a "sound" in the same way Daniel Lanois does: it's edges are all rounded, everything is very warm, and it all sounds artificially dated.
Sam Phillips' "Sister Rosetta Goes Before Us" is a centerpiece on this set.
It has her fingerprints all over it.
This tune, with its forlorn, percussion-heavy tarantella backdrop, might have come from a Tom Waits record were it not so intricately melodic -- and Krauss' gypsy swing fiddle is a gorgeous touch.
There is an emptiness at the heart of longing particularly suited to Krauss' woodsy voice, and Plant's harmony vocal is perfect, understated yet ever-present.
It's the most organically atmospheric tune on the set -- not in terms of production, but for lyric and compositional content.
Stellar.
| Title/Composers | Performer | Listen | Time | Size | Size | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rich WomanDorothy LaBostrie | Alison Krauss, Robert Plant | Play | 04:05 | 9 MB | 24 MB |
| 2 | Killing the BluesRowland Salley | Alison Krauss, Robert Plant | Play | 04:17 | 9 MB | 22 MB |
| 3 | Sister Rosetta Goes Before UsSam Phillips | Alison Krauss, Robert Plant | Play | 03:25 | 7 MB | 18 MB |
| 4 | Polly Come HomeGene Clark | Alison Krauss, Robert Plant | Play | 05:39 | 12 MB | 28 MB |
| 5 | Gone Gone Gone (Done Moved On)Don Everly, Phil Everly | Alison Krauss, Robert Plant | Play | 03:33 | 8 MB | 20 MB |
| 6 | Through the Morning, Through the NightGene Clark | Alison Krauss, Robert Plant | Play | 04:02 | 9 MB | 20 MB |
| 7 | Please Read the LetterJimmy Page, Robert Plant | Alison Krauss, Robert Plant | Play | 05:55 | 13 MB | 34 MB |
| 8 | Trampled RoseKathleen Brennan, Tom Waits | Alison Krauss, Robert Plant | Play | 05:33 | 12 MB | 28 MB |
| 9 | Fortune TellerNaomi Neville | Alison Krauss, Robert Plant | Play | 04:31 | 10 MB | 26 MB |
| 10 | Stick with Me BabyMel Tillis | Alison Krauss, Robert Plant | Play | 02:51 | 6 MB | 14 MB |
| 11 | Nothin'Townes Van Zandt | Alison Krauss, Robert Plant | Play | 05:35 | 12 MB | 30 MB |
| 12 | Let Your Loss Be Your LessonMilton Campbell | Alison Krauss, Robert Plant | Play | 04:01 | 9 MB | 22 MB |
| 13 | Your Long JourneyA.D. Watson, Rosa Lee Watson | Alison Krauss, Robert Plant | Play | 03:55 | 9 MB | 20 MB |
| 57 mins | 131 MB | |||||
| 57 mins | 312 MB | |||||
| Artist | Job | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Paul Ackling | Guitar Technician |
| 2 | Riley Baugus | Banjo |
| 3 | Jay Bellerose | Drums |
| 4 | Norman Blake | Guitar (Acoustic) |
| 5 | Kathleen Brennan | Composer |
| 6 | T-Bone Burnett | 6-String Bass, Guitar, Guitar (Acoustic), Guitar (Electric), Producer |
| 7 | Milton Campbell | Composer |
| 8 | Gene Clark | Composer |
| 9 | Dennis Crouch | Bass, Bass (Acoustic) |
| 10 | Don Everly | Composer |
| 11 | Phil Everly | Composer |
| 12 | Kyle Ford | Assistant Engineer |
| 13 | Russ Harrington | Photography |
| 14 | Steven Jurgensmeyer | Art Direction, Design |
| 15 | Emile Kelman | Assistant Engineer |
| 16 | Alison Krauss | Fiddle, Primary Artist, Vocals |
| 17 | Dorothy LaBostrie | Composer |
| 18 | Greg Leisz | Pedal Steel |
| 19 | Gavin Lurssen | Mastering |
| 20 | Naomi Neville | Composer |
| 21 | Jimmy Page | Composer |
| 22 | Vanessa Parr | Assistant Engineer |
| 23 | Stacy Parrish | Engineer |
| 24 | Alex Pavlides | Assistant Engineer |
| 25 | Sam Phillips | Composer |
| 26 | Mike Piersante | Engineer, Mixing |
| 27 | Robert Plant | Composer, Primary Artist, Vocals |
| 28 | Marc Ribot | Banjo, Dobro, Guitar (Acoustic), Guitar (Electric) |
| 29 | Rowland Salley | Composer |
| 30 | Mike Seeger | Autoharp |
| 31 | Ivy Skoff | Production Coordination |
| 32 | Pamela Springsteen | Photography |
| 33 | Lisa Surber | Production Assistant |
| 34 | Mel Tillis | Composer |
| 35 | Townes Van Zandt | Composer |
| 36 | Tom Waits | Composer |
| 37 | Patrick Warren | Keyboards, Pump Organ, Toy Piano |
| 38 | A.D. Watson | Composer |
| 39 | Rosa Lee Watson | Composer |
| 40 | Jason Wormer | Editing, Engineer |
| Quality | Format | Encoding | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | MP3 | 320kps 44.1kHz | MP3 is an audio coding format which uses a form of lossy data compression. The highest bitrate of this format is 320kbps (kbit/s). MP3 Digital audio takes less amount of space (up to 90% reduction in size) and the quality is not as good as the original one. |