Search - Robert Plant and Alison Krauss, Robert Plant, Alison Krauss :: Raising Sand

Peggy H. from JACKSONVILLE, FL
Reviewed on 9/14/2009...

It is an awsome cd..Two very talented artists.

0 of 1 member(s) found this review helpful.

Jimmie D. (Starbuck) from FORT WORTH, TX
Reviewed on 9/10/2009...

Despite a few weak cuts, some really strong material make this album worthwhile even for the non fans of these two artists. Fans will need no encouragement.

0 of 1 member(s) found this review helpful.

Noel R. (calvarnson) from SHERWOOD, OR
Reviewed on 5/29/2009...

Robert Plant amazes me in how he continues to reinvent himself nearly 30 years post Zeppelin. I found this album to be really enjoyable and gave me a whole new respect for a man that isn't satisfied with simply repeating past glories. Hats off to Robert Plant!

3 of 5 member(s) found this review helpful.

Kendra M. (KendraM) from NASHVILLE, TN
Reviewed on 1/31/2008...

I downloaded this album within the first hour it became available-- that's how much I had been looking forward to this. I couldn't wait for it to come out. I have been a fan of Robert Plant since grade school and a fan of Alison Krauss for the past several years. When I first heard of this collaborative effort, I was very excited.

That said, this album just isn't groundbreaking and isn't innovative and isn't as remarkable as it truly could have been. It misses the mark. It's good and it is enjoyable, but it isn't wonderful.

The first couple of times I listened, I was busy doing other things and I was left with the impression that it was an Alison Krauss record in which Robert Plant sung back-up. That's how un-new it is. Obviously, I felt obliged to listen again, and I realized that Plant did more on here than I originally thought, but, still-- this is all Alison Krauss' STYLE. Robert Plant is doing country and Americana music and much of his music from Led Zeppelin through his solo efforts have integrated much of this before. He's bringing nothing new to this table. And, when he tries to bring his authentic Plant vocalizations-- improvising a bit at the end of a couple of songs, it just doesn't work too well. His voice is as strong as it ever was, but when he does that Zeppelin-esque improvisation, it seems to be sorely out of place.

Additionally, the strong Plant stuff here is very reminiscent of the Honeydrippers.

Robert Plant sounds great on every song here (save for aforementioned Zeppelin-esque vocalizations that would have sounded wonderful elsewhere) as does Krauss. However, Krauss is doing her thing here. . . this is her element. I don't hear anything NEW here, that she hasn't done before-- you won't find her "rocking" here and you won't find anything as perfect as _Battle of Evermore_-- which would have been great with Alison Krauss singing along-- imagine her doing Sandy Denny's part!

That's actually what I was hoping from this album. I was hoping we'd see some unbelievable duets here. Something like Battle of Evermore. And, it could have been that good, but it's just not. Their straight duets are Alison Krauss with Robert Plant singing harmony/backup. On those songs, one wouldn't even KNOW it's Robert Plant. . . his participation doesn't shine through. They're GOOD songs, but they are definitely songs that cause Krauss to shine, not Plant.

On Plant's efforts where he sings lead or solo, I don't even really hear Krauss at all. His songs are good, too, but they are not phenomenal.

On a side note, here's one more thing that bothered me (not too much, just a little). Some of these songs are written from a man's point of view and Alison sings lead. I always find that a bit disconcerting. Why can't she change the lyric to "her" instead of "him" or "he" instead of "she"? It's not that big a deal, and it's definitely more common to hear this in country artists, but I wonder what the motivation is when one makes that choice?

I wanted to add this: I also purchased Mark Knopfler and Emmylou Harris' CD, All the Roadrunning, when that first came out. And, although many of you might absolutely LOVE Emmylou Harris, I never did. I never really liked her voice. I have heard people singing her praises for years and years, but I never liked it as much as the other folk singers of her generation. However, that's a wonderful CD! The collaborative efforts of Knopfler and Harris ARE what this CD should have been. That CD IS much more innovative than this CD. I have always loved Dire Straits and Mark Knopfler's solo work, but I have LOVED Robert Plant's voice and style sine the fifth grade! I think Alison Krauss' voice is gorgeous and much better than Emmylou Harris' voice which grates on me after a while. That said, Raising Sand misses the mark and Mark Knopfler and Emmylou Harris' CD hits it.

I downloaded this album within the first hour it became available-- that's how much I had been looking forward to this. I couldn't wait for it to come out. I have been a fan of Robert Plant since grade school and a fan of Alison Krauss for the past several years. When I first heard of this collaborative effort, I was very excited.

That said, this album just isn't groundbreaking and isn't innovative and isn't as remarkable as it truly could have been. It misses the mark. It's good and it is enjoyable, but it isn't wonderful.

The first couple of times I listened, I was busy doing other things and I was left with the impression that it was an Alison Krauss record in which Robert Plant sung back-up. That's how un-new it is. Obviously, I felt obliged to listen again, and I realized that Plant did more on here than I originally thought, but, still-- this is all Alison Krauss' STYLE. Robert Plant is doing country and Americana music and much of his music from Led Zeppelin through his solo efforts have integrated much of this before. He's bringing nothing new to this table. And, when he tries to bring his authentic Plant vocalizations-- improvising a bit at the end of a couple of songs, it just doesn't work too well. His voice is as strong as it ever was, but when he does that Zeppelin-esque improvisation, it seems to be sorely out of place.

Additionally, the strong Plant stuff here is very reminiscent of the Honeydrippers.

Robert Plant sounds great on every song here (save for aforementioned Zeppelin-esque vocalizations that would have sounded wonderful elsewhere) as does Krauss. However, Krauss is doing her thing here. . . this is her element. I don't hear anything NEW here, that she hasn't done before-- you won't find her "rocking" here and you won't find anything as perfect as _Battle of Evermore_-- which would have been great with Alison Krauss singing along-- imagine her doing Sandy Denny's part!

That's actually what I was hoping from this album. I was hoping we'd see some unbelievable duets here. Something like Battle of Evermore. And, it could have been that good, but it's just not. Their straight duets are Alison Krauss with Robert Plant singing harmony/backup. On those songs, one wouldn't even KNOW it's Robert Plant. . . his participation doesn't shine through. They're GOOD songs, but they are definitely songs that cause Krauss to shine, not Plant.

On Plant's efforts where he sings lead or solo, I don't even really hear Krauss at all. His songs are good, too, but they are not phenomenal.

On a side note, here's one more thing that bothered me (not too much, just a little). Some of these songs are written from a man's point of view and Alison sings lead. I always find that a bit disconcerting. Why can't she change the lyric to "her" instead of "him" or "he" instead of "she"? It's not that big a deal, and it's definitely more common to hear this in country artists, but I wonder what the motivation is when one makes that choice?

I wanted to add this: I also purchased Mark Knopfler and Emmylou Harris' CD, All the Roadrunning, when that first came out. And, although many of you might absolutely LOVE Emmylou Harris, I never did. I never really liked her voice. I have heard people singing her praises for years and years, but I never liked it as much as the other folk singers of her generation. However, that's a wonderful CD! The collaborative efforts of Knopfler and Harris ARE what this CD should have been. That CD IS much more innovative than this CD. I have always loved Dire Straits and Mark Knopfler's solo work, but I have LOVED Robert Plant's voice and style sine the fifth grade! I think Alison Krauss' voice is gorgeous and much better than Emmylou Harris' voice which grates on me after a while. That said, Raising Sand misses the mark and Mark Knopfler and Emmylou Harris' CD hits it.

1 of 2 member(s) found this review helpful.