ROBERT PLANT AND ALISON KRAUSS - Raising Sand

Understatement has never been Robert Plant's strong suit. In Led Zeppelin's heyday, that was a good thing. As he's grown older, however, his lack of restraint has been a real Achilles' heel. So, hearing him sing with such gentle touch on Raising Sand is quite mesmerizing. No doubt matching voices with the exceptional Krauss forced him to keep things in check, and the spooky guidance of T-Bone Burnett was likely a huge factor. Still, this record's bloody gorgeous. Saying that Raising Sand is Plant's best work since John Bonham was alive could be taken as faint praise; it's meant as anything but.