Partnership, humility, and deep dives into American folk, blues, and gospel are the threads that run through Robert Plant’s post-Led Zeppelin output. While humility is not the first word associated with one of the most famous and ego-driven frontmen in rock in the ‘70s, his persona with his new band, Saving Grace (also the album name), is the epitome of such.
While we can pretty much draw a straight line through Band of Joy (Buddy Miller, Patty Griffin), Plant’s two collaborations with Krauss, and, to a lesser extent, The Sensational Shape Shifters, in terms of unearthing vintage folk and blues, those collaborations were mostly with Americans and several familiar names. Here, Plant is working with fellow musicians whom he met at his home in the Welsh borderlands. They have been working together intermittently since 2019 as part of a ‘local project,’ playing in various locales in the UK, and have finally emerged from the ‘underground’ to produce this recording. The band includes Dian, who also plays accordion, Matt Worley (cuatro, banjo, acoustic guitar), Tony Kelsey (acoustic, electric guitars), Oli Jefferson (drums), and Barney Morse-Brown (cello).
The closest reference point to this music, to these ears, is the group Ollabelle, which thrived on old southern gospel, blues, and folk with a clear strength in harmony vocals. Both bands render Blind Willie Johnson’s “Soul of a Man,” for example, and it’s not a stretch to envision Ollabelle having played the traditional “Gospel Plough” and several others on the Saving Grace track list. As Plant says, “There’s nothing particularly obscure about what we present on this record; it’s just a different way of doing it.” The ‘different way’ includes the male-female lead vocals and harmonies, polyrhythmic drumming, and instrumentation that incorporates elements of Band of Joy, the Krauss collaborations, and heavy doses of drone and hypnotic grooves proffered by the electric and, at times, psychedelic Sensational Shape Shifters. In the course of these ten tracks, you will hear both steel and nylon string banjos, baritone electric guitar, cuatro, and plenty of acoustic guitar picking.
Opener “Chevrolet” will undoubtedly sound familiar as it is adapted from Donovan’s “Hey Gyp” (Dig the Slowness) (1965) and prior to that the 1930 Delta blues classic “Can I Do It for You” by Memphis Minnie and Kansas Joe McCoy. Plant and Dian trade lead vocals while Worley’s steel banjo blends with Kelsey’s acoustic guitar, Morse-Brown’s cello, and Dian’s accordion. “As I Roved Out” begins with Dian and Plant to the skittering beats of Jefferson in a traditional song that was arranged by fellow Nonesuch artist Sam Avidon. Kelsey’s baritone electric and Worley’s steel banjo are the featured instruments, creating a droning and rather dark backdrop. Moby Grape’s “It’s a Beautiful Day” follows acoustically while Worley on steel banjo takes the lead vocal with harmony support from Plant and Dian on “Soul of a Man.”
“Ticket Taker” is one of the more unusual selections, drawn from the Providence, RI, trio Low Anthem. Together with the traditional “Never Will I Marry,” they represent the best examples of Dian and Plant singing in harmony. Dian’s vocals shine on the up-tempo “Higher Rock,” from Portland singer-songwriter Martha Scanlon. Dian is the prominent voice also in “Too Far From You,” a tune from North Carolina singer-songwriter Sarah Siskind, coincidentally also covered by Alison Krauss. The blend of the baritone guitar and the cello forms a robust bottom over which the vocals soar and three-part harmony swells.
Low Anthem’s “Everybody’s Song” plays to a faster tempo with kinetic, stinging picking from the cuatro and electric guitars. The traditional “Gospel Plough,” in an inventive arrangement by the band, closes. Rather interestingly, and on par with the overall sound, Jefferson, Kelsey, and Worley are credited with ‘drone vocals.’
On a blind listen, you would more likely point to Dian rather than Plant as the prominent voice in this group effort. The textures are subtle and resonate more each time through. While the repertoire is not especially revelatory, it is superbly executed.
