Monday\u2019s concert also reaffirmed that \u2014 unlike too many other graying Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductees \u2014 Plant, 78, has no desire to rest on his formidable laurels. He has even less desire to wallow in nostalgia by doing rote, note-for-note renditions of songs that have been synonymous with his name for more than 50 years, no matter how lucrative it might be to do so.<\/p>\n
Accordingly, the 15-song concert included only three Led Zeppelin numbers \u2014 \u201cRamble On,\u201d \u201cFriends\u201d and \u201cThe Rain Song\u201d \u2014 and each was given a completely fresh arrangement that made them sound almost brand new. Ditto the ingeniously retooled version of \u201cBabe, I\u2019m Gonna Leave You,\u201d the blues-drenched Anne Bredon-penned lament that was popularized in the early 1960s by Joan Baez and was featured in revved-up form on Led Zeppelin\u2019s self-titled 1969 debut album.<\/p>\n
Where Zeppelin\u2019s version of \u201cBabe\u201d was filled with big flourishes, repeated vocal wails and multiple sonic climaxes, Plant and Saving Grace imbued the song with a wealth of nuances and a much lighter touch. As a result, even when the song rose up to a crescendo \u2014 as it did several times \u2014 the focus was on intimacy and nimble understatement.<\/p>\n
Those qualities were hallmarks throughout the 96-minute concert, which followed Flores and her band\u2019s wonderfully spirited opening set. Each song she performed earned more cheers than the one that preceded it, and her set-closing version of Wanda Jackson\u2019s \u201cLet\u2019s Have a Party\u201d was an invitation she delivered on with especially impressive results.<\/p>\n
Plant opened with the gently surging \u201cDown to the Sea\u201d from his 1993 solo album, \u201cFate of Nations,\u201d and concluded with a finely wrought version of \u201cEverybody\u2019s Song,\u201d a 2005 gem by the Minnesota slowcore band Low.<\/p>\n
In each instance, he sang with warmth, taste and deep commitment. Whether performing his own songs, Zeppelin favorites or a lovingly rendered version of Neil Young\u2019s \u201cFor The Turnstiles\u201d \u2014 on which Plant happily sang harmony vocals while the luminous Dian took the lead \u2014 he sounded like he had something to prove.<\/p>\n
Drawing from folk, blues, country, gospel, Celtic, flamenco, Indian and an array of West African music traditions, Plant and Saving Grace performed with impressive finesse and expertly calibrated precision throughout. They also rocked authoritatively on the boogie-fueled \u201cLet The Four Winds Blow,\u201d brought suitable degree of spiritual vigor to the biblically inspired Martha Scanlan song, \u201cHigher Rock,\u201d and suggested a Welsh hoedown during \u201cThe Cuckoo.\u201d<\/p>\n
At the conclusion of \u201cThe Cuckoo,\u201d Plant quipped: \u201cThat\u2019s a very old song, pre-Yardbirds!\u201d It was a sly reference to guitarist Jimmy Page\u2019s pre-Led Zeppelin band. Plant also joked that another song predated \u201cthe 70s.\u201d After pausing for a perfectly timed beat, he added: \u201cThe 1770s.\u201d<\/p>\n
![\"Robert](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/SUT-L-MUSIC-PLANT-01_cc177a.jpeg\")
Robert Plant and Suzi Dian made for inspired vocal foils Monday night at Humphreys Concerts by the Bay. (Alan Hess \/ Courtesy Humphreys Concerts by the Bay)<\/p>\n
In Dian, who doubled on accordion and electric bass, Plant has a vocal foil every bit as talented as Alison Krauss, the Illinois-born bluegrass queen with whom he has made two Grammy Award-winning albums. When Dian and Plant\u2019s voices intertwined in blissful harmony \u2014 which was often \u2014 they sounded like a brother and sister who have been singing together all their lives. In fact, Plant only teamed up with Dian and Saving Grace in 2019 and did not release a joint album until late last year.\n<\/p>\n