Strange Sensation
Encyclopedia
The Strange Sensation is Robert Plant
's backing band, formed during his nine year break from solo recording. After 1993's Fate of Nations
, Plant teamed up with former Led Zeppelin
guitar
ist Jimmy Page
to form Page and Plant
. The first album, No Quarter: Jimmy Page and Robert Plant Unledded
, explored world music
reinterpretations of Led Zeppelin songs, featuring a Moroccan string band
and Egyptian orchestra
supplementing a core group of rock and roll
musicians. The duo's next album, Walking into Clarksdale
and the subsequent tour were more traditional rock enterprises. Plant turned his attention to North Africa
n music
, in particular Tuareg rock and Mali
's desert music festivals.
In 2002, Plant returned with Dreamland
, an album of blues
and rock covers
with the original Strange Sensation lineup, but credited as a Plant solo album. The following release was 2003's Sixty Six to Timbuktu
, a compilation that included his earliest solo recordings for CBS Records
as a teenager in 1966, to his newest song, "Win My Train Fare Home (If I'm Lucky)," performed at Mali
's Festival of the Desert with Justin Adams. On 25 April 2005, the first full-length Strange Sensation album was released: Mighty ReArranger
, a blend of world and Western music influences, with mystical
, oblique and somewhat cynical references to religion
and destiny
.
On 16 September 2005, the band performed Robert Plant and Led Zeppelin songs at Soundstage Studios in Chicago
, and the performance was broadcast in the 2006–2007 season of the PBS series Soundstage
. This has also been released on DVD as Soundstage: Robert Plant and the Strange Sensation
.
Former members
Robert Plant
Robert Anthony Plant, CBE is an English singer and songwriter best known as the vocalist and lyricist of the iconic rock band Led Zeppelin. He has also had a successful solo career...
's backing band, formed during his nine year break from solo recording. After 1993's Fate of Nations
Fate of Nations
Fate of Nations is Led Zeppelin singer Robert Plant's sixth studio album. It was released in 1993 and re-released in a remastered edition on March 20, 2007. It features former Cutting Crew guitarist Kevin Scott MacMichael. The lead singer of Clannad, Máire Brennan is featured on the track "Come...
, Plant teamed up with former Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin were an English rock band, active in the late 1960s and throughout the 1970s. Formed in 1968, they consisted of guitarist Jimmy Page, singer Robert Plant, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham...
guitar
Guitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
ist Jimmy Page
Jimmy Page
James Patrick "Jimmy" Page, OBE is an English multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, and record producer. He began his career as a studio session guitarist in London and was subsequently a member of The Yardbirds from 1966 to 1968, after which he founded the English rock band Led Zeppelin.Jimmy Page...
to form Page and Plant
Page and Plant
Jimmy Page and Robert Plant, both formerly of English hard rock band Led Zeppelin, recorded and toured in the mid-1990s under the title Page and Plant. The pair re-united in 1994 and, after recording a highly successful first album, they embarked on a world tour. They then recorded a second album,...
. The first album, No Quarter: Jimmy Page and Robert Plant Unledded
No Quarter: Jimmy Page and Robert Plant Unledded
No Quarter is a live album by Page and Plant, both formerly of English rock band Led Zeppelin. It was released by Atlantic Records on 14 October 1994. The long awaited reunion between Page and Plant occurred on a 90 minute "UnLedded" MTV project, recorded in Morocco, Wales, and London, which rated...
, explored world music
World music
World music is a term with widely varying definitions, often encompassing music which is primarily identified as another genre. This is evidenced by world music definitions such as "all of the music in the world" or "somebody else's local music"...
reinterpretations of Led Zeppelin songs, featuring a Moroccan string band
Music of Morocco
The music of Morocco ranges and differs according to the various areas of the country.-Berber folk music:There are three varieties of Berber folk music: village and ritual music, and the music performed by professional musicians....
and Egyptian orchestra
Music of Egypt
The music of Egypt has been an integral part of Egyptian culture since ancient times. The ancient Egyptians credited one of their Gods Thoth with the invention of music, which Osiris in turn used as part of his effort to civilize the world...
supplementing a core group of rock and roll
Rock and roll
Rock and roll is a genre of popular music that originated and evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s, primarily from a combination of African American blues, country, jazz, and gospel music...
musicians. The duo's next album, Walking into Clarksdale
Walking into Clarksdale
Walking into Clarksdale is a studio album by Jimmy Page and Robert Plant, both formerly of English rock band Led Zeppelin. It was released by Atlantic Records on 21 April 1998. The follow-up album to No Quarter: Jimmy Page and Robert Plant Unledded, Walking into Clarksdale took 35 days to record....
and the subsequent tour were more traditional rock enterprises. Plant turned his attention to North Africa
North Africa
North Africa or Northern Africa is the northernmost region of the African continent, linked by the Sahara to Sub-Saharan Africa. Geopolitically, the United Nations definition of Northern Africa includes eight countries or territories; Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Morocco, South Sudan, Sudan, Tunisia, and...
n music
Music of North Africa
North Africa has contributed much to popular music, especially Egyptian classical and el Gil, Algerian raï and Moroccan chaabi. The broad region is sometimes called the Maghreb , and the term Maghrebian music is in use. For a variety of reasons, Tunisia and Libya do not have as extensive a...
, in particular Tuareg rock and Mali
Music of Mali
The Music of Mali is dominated by forms derived from the ancient Mande Empire. The Mande people make up most of the country's population, and their musicians, professional performers called jeliw , have produced a vibrant popular music scene alongside traditional folk music...
's desert music festivals.
In 2002, Plant returned with Dreamland
Dreamland (Robert Plant album)
Dreamland is singer Robert Plant's seventh solo album and the first with the band "Strange Sensation". The album was released in July 2002.Many of the songs are cover versions, mainly blues, but also some rock...
, an album of blues
Blues
Blues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
and rock covers
Cover version
In popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...
with the original Strange Sensation lineup, but credited as a Plant solo album. The following release was 2003's Sixty Six to Timbuktu
Sixty Six to Timbuktu
Sixty Six to Timbuktu is a greatest hits album and a history of the career of Robert Plant, from 1966 to a recording done at the Festival in the Desert in Mali. The album was released in 2003 and contains songs from Plant's eight solo albums up to the time of its release on its first disc, and...
, a compilation that included his earliest solo recordings for CBS Records
Columbia Records
Columbia Records is an American record label, owned by Japan's Sony Music Entertainment, operating under the Columbia Music Group with Aware Records. It was founded in 1888, evolving from an earlier enterprise, the American Graphophone Company — successor to the Volta Graphophone Company...
as a teenager in 1966, to his newest song, "Win My Train Fare Home (If I'm Lucky)," performed at Mali
Mali
Mali , officially the Republic of Mali , is a landlocked country in Western Africa. Mali borders Algeria on the north, Niger on the east, Burkina Faso and the Côte d'Ivoire on the south, Guinea on the south-west, and Senegal and Mauritania on the west. Its size is just over 1,240,000 km² with...
's Festival of the Desert with Justin Adams. On 25 April 2005, the first full-length Strange Sensation album was released: Mighty ReArranger
Mighty ReArranger
Mighty ReArranger is a studio album by British rock singer Robert Plant and his band the Strange Sensation. It was released internationally on 25 April 2005, on 9 May in the United Kingdom and 10 May in the United States...
, a blend of world and Western music influences, with mystical
Mysticism
Mysticism is the knowledge of, and especially the personal experience of, states of consciousness, i.e. levels of being, beyond normal human perception, including experience and even communion with a supreme being.-Classical origins:...
, oblique and somewhat cynical references to religion
Religion
Religion is a collection of cultural systems, belief systems, and worldviews that establishes symbols that relate humanity to spirituality and, sometimes, to moral values. Many religions have narratives, symbols, traditions and sacred histories that are intended to give meaning to life or to...
and destiny
Destiny
Destiny or fate refers to a predetermined course of events. It may be conceived as a predetermined future, whether in general or of an individual...
.
On 16 September 2005, the band performed Robert Plant and Led Zeppelin songs at Soundstage Studios in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, and the performance was broadcast in the 2006–2007 season of the PBS series Soundstage
Soundstage (TV program)
Soundstage is an American live concert television series produced by WTTW Chicago and HD Ready. The original series aired for 13 seasons between 1974 and 1985; a new series of seasons began in 2003, with the latest running through summer 2009, each presented in high definition with surround...
. This has also been released on DVD as Soundstage: Robert Plant and the Strange Sensation
Soundstage: Robert Plant and the Strange Sensation
Soundstage: Robert Plant and the Strange Sensation is the first live DVD by Robert Plant and the Strange Sensation, featuring a performance filmed for the Soundstage television series in Chicago on September 16, 2005, in addition to bonus features from prior to the founding of the Strange Sensation...
.
Lineup
- Justin Adams – bassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
, bendirBendirThe bendir is a frame drum used as a traditional instrument throughout North Africa. Unlike the tambourine, it has no jingles but most often has a snare stretched across its head, which when the drum is struck with the fingers or palm gives the tone a buzzing quality.The bendir is a frame drum...
, lap steel guitarLap steel guitarThe lap steel guitar is a type of steel guitar, an instrument derived from and similar to the guitar. The player changes pitch by pressing a metal or glass bar against the strings instead of by pressing strings against the fingerboard....
, mandolinMandolinA mandolin is a musical instrument in the lute family . It descends from the mandore, a soprano member of the lute family. The mandolin soundboard comes in many shapes—but generally round or teardrop-shaped, sometimes with scrolls or other projections. A mandolin may have f-holes, or a single...
, tehardant; Wayward Sheiks member and former collaborater with Jah WobbleJah WobbleJah Wobble is an English bass guitarist, singer, poet and composer. He became known to a wider audience as the original bass player in Public Image Ltd in the late 1970s and early 1980s, but left the band after two albums...
, TinariwenTinariwenTinariwen is a band of Tuareg-Berber musicians from the Sahara Desert region of northern Mali. The band was formed around 1979 in refugee camps in Libya but returned to Mali after a cease-fire in the 1990s...
and Brian Eno - John Baggott – keyboardsKeyboard instrumentA keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...
and synthesizerSynthesizerA synthesizer is an electronic instrument capable of producing sounds by generating electrical signals of different frequencies. These electrical signals are played through a loudspeaker or set of headphones...
; jazzJazzJazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
and trip hopTrip hopTrip hop is a music genre consisting of downtempo electronic music which originated in the early 1990s in England, especially Bristol. Deriving from "post"-acid house, the term was first used by the British music media and press as a way to describe the more experimental variant of breakbeat which...
artist, also a member of Portishead's live band - Clive Deamer – bendir and drumDrumThe drum is a member of the percussion group of musical instruments, which is technically classified as the membranophones. Drums consist of at least one membrane, called a drumhead or drum skin, that is stretched over a shell and struck, either directly with the player's hands, or with a...
s; a jazz-influenced player who has appeared on trip hop albums and is also a member of Portishead's live band - Billy Fuller – electric and stand-up bassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
; formerly of Fuzz Against Junk and is currently a member of BEAK> (which includes Geoff Barrow of Portishead), The Moles and Malakai. He has also contributed bass to the new Massive Attack album, "Heligoland". - Robert PlantRobert PlantRobert Anthony Plant, CBE is an English singer and songwriter best known as the vocalist and lyricist of the iconic rock band Led Zeppelin. He has also had a successful solo career...
– vocals - Skin TysonLiam TysonLiam "Skin" Tyson is an English guitarist, best known as the lead guitarist for Liverpool band Cast.Prior to joining Cast, Tyson played in the band 'Pyramid Dream' who played around Liverpool in the late 80's and early 90's...
– bass, acoustic, electricElectric guitarAn electric guitar is a guitar that uses the principle of direct electromagnetic induction to convert vibrations of its metal strings into electric audio signals. The signal generated by an electric guitar is too weak to drive a loudspeaker, so it is amplified before sending it to a loudspeaker...
and lap steel guitars; BritpopBritpopBritpop is a subgenre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom. Britpop emerged from the British independent music scene of the early 1990s and was characterised by bands influenced by British guitar pop music of the 1960s and 1970s...
musician with CastCast (band)Cast are an English rock band from Liverpool, formed in 1992 by John Power and Peter Wilkinson after Power left The La's and Wilkinson's former band Shack had split...
and Men from Mars
Former members
- Charlie JonesCharlie Jones (musician)Charlie Jones is a British bassist, songwriter and record producer. He has toured and recorded with Robert Plant, Page and Plant, The Strange Sensation, Goldfrapp and many others. He was married to Robert Plant's daughter Carmen Plant, they divorced in 2010....
– bassist for Page and Plant - Michael LeeMichael Lee (musician)Michael Lee was an English drummer who toured and recorded with former Led Zeppelin musicians Robert Plant and Jimmy Page....
– drummer for Page and Plant - Porl ThompsonPorl ThompsonPorl Thompson is an English musician best known for his work with The Cure.-Life and work:Thompson is the oldest of four children; he has two brothers and one sister...
– multi-instrumentalist for Page and Plant, current member of The CureThe CureThe Cure are an English rock band formed in Crawley, West Sussex in 1976. The band has experienced several line-up changes, with frontman, vocalist, guitarist and principal songwriter Robert Smith being the only constant member...