Robert Plant Immortalized in Powerful Art Homage Celebrating His Legacy…..SEE MORE

In an otherwise forgettable song from early in his solo career, Robert Plant defiantly said, “I’m not a prisoner of the big parade.” Some sensed in those words a strong resistance to the pull of maximum fame, money or conventionally-defined success.

All that would have been available to him if only he consented to reunite with the surviving members of Led Zeppelin, which had broken up a few years earlier following the death of legendary drummer John Bonham.

The bandmates had at the end of 1980 agreed that Bonham could never be replaced, but all three later had second thoughts, egged on by a hopelessly nostalgic public that begged them to provide nothing more than endless oldies retrospectives.

Yet (to the consternation of many) only Plant has remained steadfast and stuck to his original position. And in response to the 10,000^th question about the possibility of a septuagenarian reunion for a band that symbolized youthful vitality, Plant last month told Esquire:

After going on his first solo concert tours, Plant refused to perform Zeppelin songs, disappointing fans terribly. Years later, he briefly reunited with Zeppelin founder and guitarist Jimmy Page–but still refused the hype and hubbub of a full-on reunion, which annoyed some fans and particularly bothered former bandmate John Paul Jones, who was left in the cold. Plant eventually grew comfortable performing Zeppelin songs on solo tours, but disappointed fans by stubbornly refusing to reunite for more than an evening with Page and Jones, despite the potential for an unprecedented billion-dollar tour. Who could walk away from not just that cash but that blast to the ego?

This has made Plant the rarest of artistic leaders (or leaders of any stripe)—one willing and determined to walk away from the highest level of power, because they suspect it will be best for their own souls and for the souls of the causes they represent. For a Cincinnatus, that involved handing back total power over the Roman republic; for a George Washington, it involved stepping away from a nascent American republic; for a John Wooden, it involved leaving college basketball; and for Plant it involved exiting the largest stages in popular music in order to navigate other, quieter trails.

By not Hoovering all the currency and adulation there on the table, and by instead touring and performing well-received new music on his own low-key terms (like his newest solo album, “Carry Fire,” which ironically received better writeups from former nemesis Rolling Stone than any Zeppelin album did in its heyday), Plant actually has enhanced the legacy and brand of his beloved old band.