Beth Hart will channel the voice of Robert Plant on A Tribute to Led Zeppelin, out Feb. 25 via Provogue/Mascot Label Group.
You can hear the first single from the record, a cover of “Good Times Bad Times,” below.
The L.A.-based singer-songwriter says Led Zeppelin has had a big impact on her career. “It’s so beautifully done; it’s timeless. It will go on forever,” Hart said in a news release. “Sometimes people come along, and they’re from another planet, and they make these pieces of art which will forever be.”
Still, she resisted the idea of an LP of all-Zeppelin covers, even after memorably launching into an impromptu version of “Whole Lotta Love” in 2019 while working on her ninth studio project, War in My Mind.
“To do Zeppelin,” Hart argues, “you’ve got to be pissed off to hit that right. I can’t go there; I’ve worked years to put my rage away. Then the pandemic, and all the things around it hit. So now I’m pissed off.”
Plant and fellow Zeppelin members Jimmy Page and John Paul Jones are familiar with her work. They were among those who gave Hart a standing ovation after her soulful tribute to Buddy Guy at the annual Kennedy Center Honors in 2012.
She appeared that night with Jeff Beck, Page’s former bandmate in the Yardbirds. Hart and Beck became friends after Alan Callan, a former executive of Led Zeppelin’s Swan Song label, recommended that they work together.
A Tribute to Led Zeppelin fittingly begins with “Whole Lotta Love,” then Hart works her way through “Kashmir,” “Black Dog” and “Stairway to Heaven,” plus several others. The entire track listing is also below.
“This Zeppelin album allowed me to get all my rage out,” Hart added, “and for that, I’m really grateful.”
Hart’s biggest hit came in 1999 with “L.A. Song,” which reached the top five on the U.S. Adult Contemporary chart. She was nominated for a Grammy in 2014 for her collaboration with Joe Bonamassa on Seesaw.
Beth Hart, ‘A Tribute to Led Zeppelin’ Track Listing
“Whole Lotta Love”
“Kashmir”
“Stairway to Heaven”
“The Crunge”
“Dancing Days / When the Levee Breaks (Medley)”
“Black Dog”
“No Quarter / Babe I’m Gonna Leave You (Medley)”
“Good Times Bad Times”
“The Rain Song”
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