Pictures at Eleven

Pictures at Eleven is the debut solo studio album by former Led Zeppelin singer Robert Plant, released on 25 June 1982 in the US and on 2 July in the UK. Genesis drummer Phil Collins played drums for five of the album's eight songs. Ex-Rainbow drummer Cozy Powell handled drums on "Slow Dancer" and "Like I've Never Been Gone." On the song "Fat Lip", guitarist Robbie Blunt played a Roland TR-808 drum machine. The title was an often-heard phrase in US television news that would follow a brief announcement of a story of interest to be shown later during a station's 11 PM news program. Pictures at Eleven is the only one of Plant's solo albums to appear on Led Zeppelin's record label Swan Song. By the time of Plant's next release, 1983's The Principle of Moments, Swan Song had ceased to function, and Plant had started his own label named Es Paranza, which would also be distributed by Atlantic Records. Rhino Entertainment released a remastered edition of the album, with bonus tracks, on 20 March 2007.

Critical reception
In a contemporary review for Rolling Stone, Kurt Loder wrote, "even though there's nothing new going on in these grooves, the sheer formal thrill of hearing someone who knows exactly what he's doing makes Pictures at Eleven something of an event almost in spite of its modest ambitions." Robert Christgau from The Village Voice was impressed by Plant's ability to recreate Led Zeppelin's aural sensibilities with duller musicians and catchier undertones, but ultimately found the music somewhat insignificant.

Personnel

 * Robert Plant – vocals
 * Robbie Blunt – guitars, Roland TR-808 on track 6
 * Jezz Woodroffe – keyboards, synthesizers,
 * Phil Collins – drums on tracks 1–3, 5, 8, all bonus tracks
 * Cozy Powell – drums on tracks 4 and 7
 * Paul Martinez – bass guitar
 * Raphael Ravenscroft – saxophone on track 3