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Sealed Deluxe Official 180gr Vinyl Reissue
What seems to be an unlikely pairing in the duo of former - and future apparently - Led Zeppelin vocalist Robert Plant and bluegrass superstar Alison Krauss is actually one of the most effortless-sounding pairings in modern popular music. The bridge seems to be producer T-Bone Burnett and the band assembled for this outing: drummer Jay Bellerose (who seems to be the session drummer in demand these days), upright bassist Dennis Crouch, guitarists Marc Ribot and Burnett, with Greg Leisz playing steel here and there, and a number of other guest appearances.
Krauss, a monster fiddle player, only does so on two songs here. The proceedings are, predictably, very laid-back. Burnett has only known one speed these last ten years, and so the material chosen by the three is mostly very subdued. This doesn't make it boring, despite Burnett's production, which has become utterly predictable since he started working with Gillian Welch. He has a "sound" in the same way Daniel Lanois does: it's edges are all rounded, everything is very warm, and it all sounds artificially dated. (Anyone looking for the adventurous bravery he put into Sam Phillips' Martinis & Bikinis will be disappointed.)
Speaking of Phillips, her "Sister Rosetta Goes Before Us" is a centerpiece on this set. It has Phillips' fingerprints all over it; she recorded it herself already and has her own version on her website. This tune, with its forlorn, percussion-heavy tarantella backdrop, might have come from a Tom Waits record were it not so intricately melodic - and Krauss' gypsy swing fiddle is a gorgeous touch. There is an emptiness at the heart of longing particularly suited to Krauss' woodsy voice, and Plant's harmony vocal is perfect, understated yet ever-present. It's the most organically atmospheric tune on the set - not in terms of production, but for lyric and compositional content.
Track Listings: 1. Rich Woman 2. Killing the Blues 3. Sister Rosetta Goes Before Us 4. Polly Come Home 5. Gone Gone Gone (Done Moved On) 6. Through the Morning, Through the Night 7. Please Read the Letter 8. Trampled Rose 9. Fortune Teller 10. Stick With Me Baby 11. Nothin' 12. Let Your Loss Be Your Lesson 13. Your Long Journey"
