Robert Plant

It is a credit to Robert Plant's solo career that the worst thing he's ever done post-Led Zeppelin was hooking back up with guitarist Jimmy Page for a nostalgia tour of duty in the mid-'90s. While the Page and Plant albums came closer to capturing the spirit of their old band than anyone had a right to expect, the whole endeavor was a giant step backward for Plant after more than a decade of forward motion. Sure, Now and Zen nodded to the past with its Zeppelin quotes and crisp Page solo on "Tall Cool One" -- but it was a nod and a wink, rather than a full-on embrace. Ditto Manic Nirvana's cheeky "Big Love," in which Plant hits on a stewardess with the pickup line, "I slept in the same room with Jimmy Page!" After years in which Plant seemingly went out of his way to explore everything but classic hard rock, his return to the form with those two albums was heralded as a return to his Zeppelin roots; the problem with that theory is, exactly when in the Zep days did Plant ever sound like he was having this much fun?

All of which is not to say that Zeppelin fans need steer clear, as they'll find much to feast on even on the early-'80s albums. Pictures at 11 boasts two cavernous crushers; on "Burning Down One Side" and "Worse Than Detroit," guitarist Robbie Blunt pierces Plant's molten lava cries with peals of thunder. The Principle of Moments spawned two hits in 1983; the floating art rock of "Big Log" and the warm R&B nostalgia of "In the Mood" neatly represent Plant's diverse interests. Shaken 'n' Stirred was even more eclectic, with Plant mixing strong doses of hip-hop beats and world rhythms into tracks like "Hip to Hoo" and "Too Loud"; even the familiar-sounding rockers ("Little by Little," "Easily Lead") benefit from the judicious addition of synthesizers to the guitar-led strut. The Honeydrippers' Volume One is a one-off EP of vintage soul and R&B covers; excessive orchestrations distract from Plant's restrained interpretations, while the guest hotshots (Jimmy Page, Jeff Beck, Nile Rodgers) are underutilized.

Distinguished by sharp material and an equally focused band, both Now and Zen and Manic Nirvana hold up much better than most hard rock albums released in their era. Indeed, after hair metal, grunge, rap metal, and every other trend since Now and Zen, the taut snap and swagger of "Tall Cool One" -- once vaunted/criticized as a throwback -- make it sound fresher today than it did way back in 1988. Manic Nirvana (released a year before Nevermind) delivers on the heady promise of its title with a vengeance, confidently skipping from jumpin' boogie ("Hurting Kind [I've Got My Eyes on You]") to brutal funk metal ("Nirvana") to sardonic psychedelia ("Tie Die on the Highway") to gale-force blooze wailing ("Your Ma Said You Cried in Your Sleep Last Night"). The much mellower Fate of Nations suffers from a muddled second half (and one of the worst album covers in rock history), but its strengths are considerable -- notably the gorgeous "29 Palms" and "I Believe," Plant's moving memorial to his deceased son. His fine cover of folkie Tim Hardin's "If I Were a Carpenter," meanwhile, hinted at the direction he would take years later on Dreamland. Comprised of four originals and six covers, Dreamland, like the Honeydrippers, finds Plant paying respect to his early influences -- this time focusing on psychedelia and folk with strikingly fresh passes at Bob Dylan ("One More Cup of Coffee"), Tim Buckley ("Song to the Siren"), Skip Spence ("Skip's Song"), and the obscure Tim Rose, via "Morning Dew" and a menacing, seven-minute "Hey Joe" that also points to Arthur Lee and Love. In sharp contrast to those Page and Plant efforts, this look backward seems to stem from true inspiration, not the lack of it.

The same goes for the excellent double-disc an-thology, Sixty Six to Timbuktu. The first disc covers high points from the solo albums (although "In the Mood" is conspicuously missing); the second is a treasure trove of hit-and-miss rarities, ranging from his pre-Zep days (including two Band of Joy tracks with drummer John Bonham) to soundtrack and tribute album contributions and the "Kashmir"-colored "Win My Train Fare Home," recorded live at the 2003 Festival in the Desert in Timbuktu. (MARK COLEMAN/RICHARD SKANSE)

From the 2004 The New Rolling Stone Album Guide