Thirty-four years ago, Robert Plant was living in Birmingham and oscillating between two careers: trainee accountant and aspiring psychedelic rocker in a Love-infatuated local band called Hobbstweedle. One day in 1968, Jimmy Page turned up on his doorstep and spirited him away to Valhalla. Led Zeppelin were formed, and the rest is very heavy history.
'Dreamland', however, gives a glimpse of how things might've worked out differently for Plant. Not, obviously, as a tribute to the shamanic mysteries of chartered accountancy, but as a singer intent on following the lead of Californian hippy-folk magicians like Arthur Lee, Tim Buckley and Skip Spence. The one surprise on this album, predominantly consisting of covers as it does, is that Plant doesn't have a crack at a Love song, especially given that he's been playing a couple in recent live shows.
Instead, 'Dreamland' finds Plant moving with unlikely dignity through the likes of 'Hey Joe', Moby Grape's awesome 'Skip's Song', Dylan's 'One More Cup Of Coffee' (a bit ropey, this one, in truth) and, with a certain inevitabilty, a few Delta blues standards.
Two stand out: Tim Rose's 'Morning Dew', given added historical poignancy since John Bonham played in Rose's band just before he joined Led Zep; and, especially, Tim Buckley's 'Song To The Siren'. A tune covered more often by fools and optimists than those who can do its evanescent qualities justice, Plant opts for muted acoustics and broiling strings, and sings it quite beautifully. Considering Jeff Buckley's obsession with and huge debt to Zeppelin, it feels like a circle's been completed.
Admittedly, some of the original songs are a bit threadbare. But Plant's fallen in with a more tasteful crowd than usual (a collective called Strange Sensation, sessioners connected with Portishead, Massive Attack, Sinead O'Connor and, well, The Cure), and his attempts to forge a cosmic blues out of English folk, Middle Eastern scales, Indian drones and San Franciscan bad vibes are far more successful than most would've dared to hope.
Not quite 'Led Zeppelin II', of course, but still, it's hard to remember a better solo record this semi-retired God amongst men has ever made.
