Now and Zen | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | 29 February 1988 | |||
Recorded | November and December 1987 | |||
Studio | Swanyard Studios and Marcus Studios (London, UK). | |||
Genre | Rock | |||
Length | 47:03 (CD) 42:19 (vinyl) | |||
Label | Es Paranza | |||
Producer |
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Robert Plant chronology | ||||
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Singles from Now and Zen | ||||
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Now and Zen is the fourth solo album by Robert Plant, released 29 February 1988 by Es Paranza Records, Plant's own label. The album made the top 10 in the US (No. 6) and UK (No. 10). It was certified triple platinum by the RIAA on 7 September 2001. The album was produced by Tim Palmer, Robert Plant, and Phil Johnstone.
With a new band and a new perspective on his music, Plant returned in late 1987 with more of the sound that had previously defined him in Led Zeppelin. Although Plant continued to utilize computerized audio technology in a similar fashion to his previous solo albums, for this album Plant integrated the blues that had all but been abandoned on his most recent album Shaken 'n' Stirred (1985). A prominent guitar sound and an exotic feel to the recordings also marked another change in direction for the artist, who now added Middle Eastern tones in songs like "Heaven Knows". This is a direction that he would eventually follow in the 1990s with Page and Plant.
The tracks "Heaven Knows" and "Tall Cool One" feature Led Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page. (On the liner notes, Page's participation on the songs is noted with a Zoso symbol.) In response[ citation needed ] to the Beastie Boys' unauthorized sampling of some Led Zeppelin songs on their 1986 album Licensed to Ill , Plant also used samples from Led Zeppelin songs ("Whole Lotta Love", "Dazed and Confused", "Black Dog", "Custard Pie", and "The Ocean") on "Tall Cool One", additionally singing words from "When the Levee Breaks".
Review scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [2] |
Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal | 9/10 [3] |
Kerrang! | [4] |
Philadelphia Inquirer | [5] |
Rolling Stone | [6] |
The Village Voice | B [7] |
The original released copies of the CD and Album version contained a wolf motif mini-flag in satin red. This is a tribute to his favorite association football team, the Wolverhampton Wanderers (Wolves by fans). This mini-flag is also a rare collector's item. "Walking Towards Paradise" was originally as a bonus track available only on CD versions of the album and as the B-side of the single "Heaven Knows". Rhino Entertainment released a remastered edition of the album, with bonus tracks, on 3 April 2007.
Now and Zen was received positively by both Plant's fans and professional music critics. [8] In a contemporary review for Rolling Stone , Kurt Loder hailed Now and Zen as "some kind of stylistic event: a seamless pop fusion of hard guitar rock, gorgeous computerization and sharp, startling songcraft." [6] Robert Christgau found it superior to his previous two attractive but forgettable solo albums, writing in The Village Voice that "at its best, it's far from forgettable. Overall effect is a cross between his former band and the Cars." [7]
In an interview he gave to Uncut magazine in 2005, Plant commented that "by the time Now and Zen came out in '88, it looked like I was big again. It was a Top 10 album on both sides of the Atlantic. But if I listen to it now, I can hear that a lot of the songs got lost in the technology of the time." [9]
All tracks are written by Robert Plant and Phil Johnstone, except where noted
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
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1. | "Heaven Knows" | Johnstone, David Barratt | 4:06 |
2. | "Dance on My Own" | Plant, Johnstone, Robert Crash | 4:30 |
3. | "Tall Cool One" | 4:40 | |
4. | "The Way I Feel" | Plant, Johnstone, Doug Boyle | 5:40 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
5. | "Helen of Troy" | 5:06 | |
6. | "Billy's Revenge" | 3:34 | |
7. | "Ship of Fools" | 5:01 | |
8. | "Why" | Plant, Crash | 4:14 |
9. | "White, Clean and Neat" | 5:28 | |
10. | "Walking Towards Paradise" (CD edition bonus track) | Jerry Lynn Williams | 4:40 |
No. | Title | Length |
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11. | "Billy's Revenge" (Live) | 6:00 |
12. | "Ship of Fools" (Live) | 10:35 |
13. | "Tall Cool One" (Live) | 5:07 |
Musicians
Additional musicians
Production
Chart (1988) | Peak position |
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Australian Albums (Australian Music Report) [10] | 11 |
Canadian RPM100 Chart [11] | 4 |
German Albums Chart [12] | 48 |
New Zealand Albums Chart [13] | 7 |
Norwegian Albums Chart [14] | 12 |
Swedish Albums Chart [15] | 18 |
UK Albums Chart | 10 |
US Billboard 200 | 6 |
Led Zeppelin II is the second studio album by the English rock band Led Zeppelin, released on 22 October 1969 in the United States and on 31 October 1969 in the United Kingdom by Atlantic Records. Recording sessions for the album took place at several locations in both the United Kingdom and North America from January to August 1969. The album's production was credited to the band's lead guitarist and songwriter Jimmy Page, and it was also Led Zeppelin's first album on which Eddie Kramer served as engineer.
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"Heaven Knows" is a rock song performed by English rock singer Robert Plant. It was the first single to be released from his 1988 album Now and Zen. It reached number 33 on the UK singles chart and number 1 on the Billboard Album Rock Tracks chart. It was Plant's third number-one rock song, following 1983's "Other Arms" and 1985's "Little by Little."
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"Ship of Fools" is a rock song performed by English rock singer Robert Plant. It was the third single released from his 1988 album Now and Zen, following "Heaven Knows" and "Tall Cool One". It reached number 76 on the UK singles chart, number 84 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number 3 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock chart. It was Plant's tenth top-10 solo hit on the Mainstream Rock chart.