On Deaf Ears

If you have been living under a rock and did not notice the release back in October of last year of Raising Sand, a collaborative project between Alison Krauss and Robert Plant, please drop what you are doing and immediately go out and by this record.

Raising Sand is an unlikely pairing of the two icons in their respective genres, and each of them steps well outside of their comfort zones to create a beautiful album full of surprisingly gorgeous, mostly quiet songs.  The artists trip across several genres, such as early rock ‘n’ roll (“Gone Gone Gone”), gypsy folk (“Sister Rosetta Goes Before Us”), blues (“Fortune Teller”), hymnal bluegrass (“Through the Morning, Through the Night” and “Your Long Journey”), and country-infused R&B (“Let Your Loss Be Your Lesson”), among others. 

The standout tracks on the record would have to be the steel guitar-driven stunner “Killing The Blues,”  the aforementioned Everly Brothers cover “Gone, Gone, Gone (Done Moved On),” and the below song, the Page/Plant penned “Please Read The Letter,” performed live here.  Shame on you if you still don’t own this record.