Tiny Desk Concert : NPR

When Robert Plant first stepped behind the Tiny Desk on a blustery Halloween afternoon, he took stock of the relatively stripped-down setup. “This is just like Live Aid,” he said with a smile. “I couldn’t hear myself there either.” He was referring to the fact we don’t amplify voices or use monitors so artists can hear themselves.

But if ever there was someone up to the challenge, it’s Robert Plant. With a voice that’s only gotten better with age, Plant has deftly moved from the full-throated rock and swagger of Led Zeppelin to the more restrained and profoundly beautiful folk, blues and roots music found on more recent recordings. His latest solo album, Saving Grace, is a collection of covers that range from the traditional spiritual “Gospel Plough” to “It’s A Beautiful Day Today” by Moby Grape, a psychedelic rock band that, Plant says, still makes him “weepy.”

Plant and his band perform both songs for this set, along with a version of “Higher Rock” by the singer-songwriter Martha Scanlan and Low‘s “Everybody’s Song.” They close with a new arrangement of “Gallows Pole,” another traditional Plant first reinterpreted for the Led Zeppelin III album in 1969.

SET LIST

• “Gospel Plough”
• “Higher Rock”
• “Everybody’s Song”
• “It’s a Beautiful Day Today”
• “Gallows Pole”

MUSICIANS

• Robert Plant: vocals, harmonica
• Suzi Dian: vocals, accordion 
• Matt Worley: guitar, banjo, cuatro, background vocals 
• Tony Kelsey: guitar
• Barney Morse-Brown: cello
• Oli Jefferson: drums

TINY DESK TEAM

• Producer: Robin Hilton
• Director/Editor: Maia Stern
• Audio Technical Director: Josh Newell
• Host/Series Producer: Bobby Carter
• Videographers: Maia Stern, Joshua Bryant, Kara Frame
• Audio Engineer: Hannah Gluvna
• Production Assistants: Dora Levite, Dhanika Pineda
• Photographer: Catie Dull
• Series Editor: Lars Gotrich
• Executive Producer: Suraya Mohamed
• Executive Director: Sonali Mehta
• Series Creators: Bob Boilen, Stephen Thompson, Robin Hilton