Robert Plant has recorded a cover of Elbow’s ‘The Blanket Of Night’ in a bid to help the Syrian refugee crisis.
The Led Zeppelin legend teamed up with the British Red Cross charity for the track which he has made for a forthcoming charity concept album titled ‘The Long Road’, which is produced by Ethan Johns, best-known for his work with songstress Laura Marling and indie rockers The Vaccines.
The song tells the tale of refugees attempting a treacherous journey to seek asylum in the UK.
Talking about the humanitarian issue which has swept across Europe this year due to the war in Syria, Plant said: "We have a worldwide international catastrophe – talking about it is one thing, doing something about it is another. The position we are in, it’s paramount we all do our best one way or another to help."
And Grammy Award-winning group Tinariwen have also created an original track for the compilation called ‘Silence’, which is inspired by the band’s founder Ibrahim Ag Alhabib, who fled Mali in West Africa after his father was executed in 1963.
Robert, 67, and Tinariwen join previously announced acts, spoken word poet Scroobius Pip, singer/songwriter Kindness and the Sierra Leone Refugee All Stars.
Many of the songs are inspired by the true story of refugees who have been helped by the British Red Cross.
Syrian refugee Ayman Hirh, who fled Syria in 2012 inspired Kindness’s track.
He commented: "I hope that my experience and the album will encourage people to think about the reasons people like me are forced to leave home."
The record will be released on 4 March 2016 and is available to pre-order now.
Visit www.thelongroad.uk for more information about the project.
Robert Plant records Elbow cover for refugee charity
