Double-disc best of from former Led Zeppelin vocalist features all the greatest tracks from his solo career including pre-Zeppelin recordings and some previously unreleased tracks. Includes two videos, a song recorded live in Timbuktu - hence the title - and what is probably his best-known song, '29 Palms'.

Oct 2003

This tremendous thirty-five track, two disc set spans the full range of Robert Plant's innovative work before and after Led Zeppelin, running the gamut from his first 1966 pre-Zep single 'You Better Run' (a Young Rascals cover) to 'Win My Train Fare Home' recorded earlier this year in Timbuktu. The first disc features sixteen songs taken from eight post-Zeppelin albums.

"The final selection was quite difficult," Robert admits. "Avoiding a 'best-of' format which generally relates to chart success was essential and I have tried to mix up 80's techno sounds with the more organic pieces that were developed from 1993 onwards."

Disc two is a collector's dream featuring a treasure chest of rarities and previously unreleased material. Highlights include two demos by The Band of Joy which also featured drummer John Bonham - covers of 'Hey Joe' and the Buffalo Springfield classic 'For What It's Worth' and 'Operator', a song written and recorded with Uk blues legend Alexis Korner.

• Rolling Stone (2/5/04, p.62) - 3 stars out of 5 - "SIXTY SIX makes a convincing case that Plant's artistry didn't end with Led Zeppelin....[T]he set finds Plant's expressive voice in fine form..."
  Q (1/04, p.142) - 3 stars out of 5 - "[I]t's on the patently Zeppelin-influenced 'Ship Of Fools' and 'Calling To You' that he really plays to his strengths."
  Mojo (12/03, p.132) - 4 stars out of 5 - "[A] crash-course in what it takes to become a golden god."

Includes previously unreleased tracks.
This is a Hyper CD, which contains regular audio tracks and also provides a link to the artist's website with the help of a web browser.
Personnel includes: Robert Plant (vocals, sitar, harmonica); Cris Levzinger (acoustic guitar); Jimmy Page, Doug Boyle, Kevin Scott MacMichael, Porl Thompson, Justin Adams, Robbie Blunt, Oliver Woods, Mark Flanagan (guitar); Rainer Ptacek (National steel guitar); Maartin Allcock (mandolin); Jools Holland (piano); Nick Lunt (baritone saxophone); Phil Johnstone (keyboards, organ); John Baggott, Jess Woodroffe, Phil Andrews, Charlie Jones (keyboards); Charlie Jones, Phil Scraggs, Paul Martinez, Paul Lockie (bass); Clive Deamer (drums, percussion); Chris Blackwell, Richie Hayward, Gilson Lavis (drums); May Clee Cadman, Ginny Clee, Kristy MacColl, Marie Pierre, Toni Halliday (background vocals).
Producers: Robert Plant, Chris Hughes, Tim Palmer, Phil Johnston, Benji Lefevre.
Compilation producers: Robert Plant.
Recorded between 1966 & 2003. Includes liner notes by Robert Plant.
This two-disc import contains digitally remastered sound and bonus videos for the songs "Darkness Darkness" and "Calling to You."
Despite Robert Plant's fame as Led Zeppelin's frontman, this Englishman has enjoyed a prolific solo career that's kept him moving forward, rather than clutching at the straws of nostalgia. SIXTY SIX TO TIMBUKTU, Plant's first solo anthology, spans nearly 40 years of his non-Zep music. Disc One features an overview of eight Plant albums (minus his debut, PICTURES AT ELEVEN). The material presented here reflects the West Midlands native's restless musical nature, which found him straying far from the heavy rock of his former band. Instead, the solo path found him delving into synth-drenched 1980s dance music (the previously unreleased "Upside Down"), atmospheric modern rock ("Big Log"), and flirtations with cut-and-paste sampling "Tall Cool One."
TIMBUKTU is also up-front about Plant's influences, ranging from Tim Hardin ("If I Were a Carpenter") and Tim Buckley ("Song to the Siren") to Phil Phillips and the Twilights ("Sea of Love"). Disc Two is even more intriguing, as it focuses on both Plant's pre-Zep work with long-forgotten outfits like Listen and Band of Joy, along with songs that appeared on tribute albums to Rainer Ptacek, Elvis Presley, and Skip Spence.

Even if Robert Plant had disappeared after the demise of Led Zeppelin, he'd still be lauded as one of rock's greatest vocalists. The fact that he had a healthy post-Zep solo career is a testament to his own artistic fortitude. Admittedly, Zeppelin fans wouldn't have been too far afield with Plant's first couple of early-'80s releases, but by 1985's SHAKEN 'N' STIRRED he had more in common with SECURITY-era Peter Gabriel than with '70s blues-rock. A detour with side project the Honeydrippers found Plant exploring his love of '50s rock & roll. By the 21st century, he was exploring roots of a different kind, effectively reinventing songs by the likes of the Youngbloods and Tim Buckley on the Grammy-nominated DREAMLAND. In 2007 he teamed up with bluegrass star, Alison Krauss, for RAISING SAND. The album--featuring covers of Gene Clark, Tom Waits, and the Everly Brothers amongst others--hit number 2 on the Billboard charts.