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What made Robert Plant's solo career so
unique was because he never tried to reclaim or imitate the sound
of Led Zeppelin. (His big single "Tall Cool One" might
be the closest to what Zep would have sounded like in the '80s).
Through the course of his solo albums, Plant has tackled hip-hop,
art rock, and world music textures. Equally ironic is the fact
that Plant's forays has been far more consistent and durable
compared to Zep's mastermind Jimmy Page. Sixty Six to Timbuktu
is a long overdue retrospective offering glimpses to Plant's
exotic eclectic adventures. Tracks such as "Big Log,"
"In the Mood," "Ship of Fools," "Tall
Cool One," and "Little By Little" have been familiar
staples on '80s AOR radio. For a guy who was in a band that was
not singles-minded, Plant scored an unlikely pop hit in the remake
of "Sea of Love" as part of the Honeydrippers, which
is also included here. It is apparent that Plant's favorite solo
album is Fate of Nations because a certain fair amount
of the album's cuts are on here (i.e. "29 Palms," and
the lovely "I Believe"), as well as a recent unreleased
track "Upside Down." But disc two is the real highlight
of this set, which consists of a trove of rarities. It contains
tracks from Plant's earlier professional bands Listen and the
Band of Joy in 1966-1967 before he joined Zeppelin ("You
Better Run," "Our Song"). The rest of the disc
collects interesting cuts he recorded for soundtracks and compilations
("Philadelphia Baby" as part of the Crawling Kingsnakes,
a surprising cover of Louie Louie from Wayne's World 2, and a
dazzling turn on Life Begins Again with Afro Celt System. Die
hard fans might quibble about some omissions (the absence of
"Hurting Kind" from Manic Nirvana or Rockin'
at Midnight from The Honeydrippers volume 1), but the
second disc of rarities should make up for any disappointment.
While most artists try in vain to recapture the former glories
of a legendary band into their solo careers, Plant does the exact
opposite with far more satisfying and bolder results.
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