Band of Joy

Band of Joy (sometimes known as Robert Plant and the Band of Joy) are a rock band from England. Various line-ups of the group performed from 1965 to 1968 and from 1977 to 1983. Robert Plant revived the band's name in 2010 for a concert tour of North America and Europe.

The band is notable for including two musicians, Robert Plant and John Bonham, who went on to join Led Zeppelin; and, to a lesser degree, because the band's one-time roadie was Noddy Holder, who later went on to front the band Slade.

1966 – 1968

Band of Joy was originally formed in 1966 in West Bromwich, near Birmingham, England by Chris Brown (keyboards), Vernon Pereira (guitar), and singer Robert Plant. Conflicts with the band's management led to Plant leaving the group after a few months. He quickly tried to form his own Band of Joy, but it soon folded. A third incarnation of the band, including Plant's friend John Bonham (they had met only two years earlier in late 1965 when John joined The Crawling King Snakes), lasted from 1967 to mid-1968. This line-up included Kevyn Gammond on guitar and Paul Lockey on bass. Their brand of soul and blues was popular with Birmingham mods. This line-up recorded a number of demo recordings in early 1968, but broke up in May 1968 when a recording contract failed to materialise.

Band of Joy (album)

Band of Joy is English rock singer Robert Plant's ninth solo album and the first with his new band, the Band of Joy. It was released on 13 September 2010 in the UK and 14 September in the USA.

In addition to the song "Satan, Your Kingdom Must Come Down", which is the opening theme for the now-concluded Starz television series Boss, the credits of BBC 1's Luther for an episode aired on 16 July 2013 and the season two finale of the Syfy series Defiance, the album is particularly notable for the song "Monkey", originally of the band Low, which is slowed-down to a grinding, spooky Gothic Rock tempo and mood that is vastly different from Low's version. It is arguably the least similar to other tracks on the album (except for Satan), which for the most part carry folk rock or progressive rock moods. This version of "Monkey" also may be the first Gothic Rock track Robert Plant has ever recorded, and although it is not a staple at Plant's live performances, there have been instances where he has performed it.