Ages ago, Plant was an emerging icon and Krauss a bluegrass prodigy. Now with decades of savvy, they brought an accomplished band and two albums worth of material (2007's Raising Sand and 2021's Raise the Roof) to town with something even more special: the way they sing together. Whether harmonizing or trading vocal lines, their blend was seamless Americana in the best sense: blues, country, folk, rock and pop touches, as ancient as Geeshie Wiley's 1930 "Last Kind Words Blues" or as recent as Calexico's 2003 "Quattro (World Drifts In)."
The duo filled the open air park with abounding humor while the musicians managed to balance sonic elegance with a brooding, almost Bo Diddley-ish attack. Standup electric bassist Dennis Crouch and drummer Jay Bellerose were so in sync with their deep, punchy tones that it was often impossible to tell which one was bringing the firepower. Meanwhile, Alison's brother Viktor Krauss played a variety of instruments, as did Stuart Duncan, whose most amazing moments were on violin. Guitarist JD McPherson (whose group opened the show, ripping through a spirited, rootsy '80s rock blend that included a cover of Iggy Pop's 1977 "Lust for Life") kept the whole ensemble grounded.
The Plant-Krauss set excelled with Allen Toussaint's "Trouble with My Lover" and "Fortune Teller," the chestnut he penned for Benny Spellman (and covered by the Stones). The duo continued to mine the Everly Brothers catalog with "Gone Gone Gone" from Raising Sand and "The Price of Love" from Raise the Roof. The former would be hard for anyone to mess up, as its built-in beat is already exciting; their restraint on "Price" was extraordinary. I've always felt that the Everlys never brought out the song's true potential but in this arrangement, the slower, more haunting tone revealed Plant and Krauss to be interpreters of the highest order. Likewise, they added "Leave My Woman Alone" (not yet appearing on an album) with Plant referencing Don and Phil's 1957 cover of the 1956 Ray Charles track.
Plant's stage rapport was quite funny; he talked about the late Scottish guitarist Bert Jansch before "It Don't Bother Me," mentioning Jansch's work in the '60s and '70s band Pentangle. When a few fans in the crowd recognized Pentangle, Plant laughed, "ah, three of you." He also said he loves the Northwest, but Plant's Northwest turned out to be English cities instead: "Manchester...Carlisle..." When Plant countered lusty shouts from the audience with, "that was long ago," you knew he was only being half-serious.
An occasional Robert Plant time-tested vocal swoop cued the audience about what was coming...yes, three Led Zeppelin classics, all from the fourth album. "Rock and Roll" was fun yet not especially fiery; near the end of the show came "The Battle of Evermore" and "When the Levee Breaks." Drenched in Duncan's mandolin, "Evermore" used band and vocal dynamics to brilliant effect and Krauss sang Sandy Denny's 51 year old part superbly, though without as many blue notes. It was stunning.
"When the Levee Breaks" was perhaps even more accomplished, beginning with a standalone, virtuoso fiddle performance from Duncan and then Krauss adding her eerie violin part that evoked Memphis Minnie's desolate original. Bellerose's percussion--more varied than what Zep's John Bonham played--was arguably just as powerful. It was the climax of a night that brimmed over with skill and emotion. I will remember this show for a long time.