Robert Plant was in Nashville briefly over the weekend, sources have confirmed. One LedZeppelinNews.com reader tipped me off to the singer's whereabouts on Saturday. Plant witnessed the banjo-plucking debut of comedian Steve Martin on the stage of the Grand Ole Opry. The informant said he was in and out of town rather quickly.
That account has been bolstered now by WKRN MusicCityTV's report on Plant's Friday night whereabouts -- wearing bright red shoes while dancing with Alison Krauss at a Presbyterian church -- and his quick exit from town Monday morning.
In January, Plant and Krauss were in pre-production for a second album together, although plans to complete the project have been sidetracked for the time being. In July, Krauss will be recording a new album with Union Station, a spokesperson for her record label, Rounder Records, confirmed today. The spokesperson added there are no plans for Union Station to tour this year, which means a tour in 2010 in support of the album would be likely.
On one hand, that could leave time for Krauss to work with Plant and finish work on their sophomore release; however, my source indicates that "Alison has declared a moratorium on all work for 12-18 months with Robert because she wants to do an album and extended tour with Union Station." In the meantime, the source says, this situation has left Plant "frustrated" because he "wants to finish the thing off and be done with it."
As for what this portends for Led Zeppelin fans hoping to see the surviving members reunited once again, perhaps there is still yet hope. One observer has theorized, "By the time [Alison] works [Robert] over, he will crawl back to Jimmy Page." True, you can almost always predict how Page would react if Plant suddenly said he was in favor of some further Led Zeppelin activity.
Finally, portions of a Levon Helm concert from last September, which saw Plant and Krauss perform as special guests onstage at the Ryman Audiotorium in Nashville, are set to air June 14 on Nashville Public Television.
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The fact that Alison Krauss has been planning to spend most of 2009working with Union Station has been a well-known fact in Nashville circles for at least a year. I am sure Plant was aware of her plans. Sounds to me like Plant is getting restless. This may bode well for alternative projects for him if he gets bored enough.
ReplyDeleteFrom what robert said in september I thought the second album was ready to be recorded in January (more or less).
ReplyDeleteNow from what you (that is alison) said, nothing has been done, maybe they haven't yet chosen the songs...
Really he (robert) has a lot of time to do something in the meanwhile, if not with Jimmy (I don't hope so much), maybe with Justin.
I liked their performance at Womad...and I liked Strange Sensation.
From what robert said in september I thought the second album was ready to be
ReplyDeleterecorded in January (more or less).
Now from what you (that is alison) said, nothing has been done, maybe they
haven't yet chosen the songs...
Really he (robert) has a lot of time to do something in the meanwhile, if not
with Jimmy (I don't hope so much), maybe with Justin.
I liked their performance at Womad...and I liked Strange Sensation.
Thanks for posting the additional info beyond the Music City blog blurb! If we've learned anything in the last 30 years, it's that Robert Plant seems loathe to stay in one musical place too long. Having to wait around for ages to record the follow-up on someone else's schedule could start feeling like a chore. I'm pretty sure he will end up doing exactly what he wants to do regardless, so good for him!
ReplyDelete