HE IS rock royalty...the frontman of one of the biggest bands of the seventies and eighties.

But Robert Plant's Led Zeppelin days are behind him and now the singer is turning his attention to a number of different projects.

Saving Grace, the latest band Plant is a member of, are coming to Rhythmtree as headliners on Saturday, July 13, in a major coup for the boutique festival.

Performing music inspired by the dreamscape of the Welsh Marches this will be their first appearance at a festival in the UK and is sure to be highly anticipated by music lovers far and wide.

Saving Grace is a co-operative including Plant and Suzi Dian (vocals), Tony Kelsey (mandolin, baritone and acoustic guitars), Matt Worley (banjo, acoustic and baritone guitars and cuatro) and Oli Jefferson (percussion).

"Rhythmtree’s deserved reputation as a very friendly and relaxed musical weekend where everyone is welcome and comfortable has now spread beyond the Island and as a result we’re now able to attract acts of the calibre of Saving Grace” said Dan Burgess from the Rhythmtree team.

“It’s to the enormous credit of everyone from the Island who have given their time and effort to our weekend over the years and to our audience who create such a friendly and enjoyable atmosphere”.

Saving Grace’s eclectic musical mix has been described in excited online reviews as being “a synthesis of two of Plant’s more successful post-Zeppelin ventures: 2007’s Grammy-winning Raising Sand and 2010’s Grammy-nominated Band of Joy.

The former was a melodic dip into country; the latter a more hard-hitting strain of folk-rock

Saving Grace's sets so far have included Nat King Cole’s Nature Boy, the Donovan classic Seasons of the Witch, that delightfully morphs into Buffalo Springfield's For What it’s Worth and a haunting version of a Plant favourite, the spiritual Satan, Your Kingdom Must Come Down.

Reviewers have been especially taken with the rapport between Robert Plant and Saving Grace’s co-vocalist, the wonderful Suzi Dian.

Saving Grace join a fantastic weekend programme that includes the classic British rock band The Zombies and fellow headliners Alabama 3, The Orb, Cast, Misty in Roots, Tankus the Henge and Mark Chadwick lead singer with The Levellers.

They’ll appear alongside many musical stars from across the globe including The Spooky Men’s Chorale (Australia), Los De Abajo (Mexico), The Sambroso All Stars (Cuba) who’ll perform the whole of the legendary Buena Vista Social Club album, Roosevelt Collier (USA), Kel Assouf (Niger), Namvula (Zambia) and The Bollywood Brass Band.

2019 will be the ninth consecutive Rhythmtree amidst the oak trees on our beautiful home at Three Gates Farm and with five live stages across the site this year we’ll have more artists appearing than ever before.

In addition to the 120-plus musical acts on offer, including the best of the Island’s own talent, there’ll be a full programme of spoken word, circus acts, comedy, DJs, a silent disco and a grand carnival procession on Sunday afternoon.

Rhythmtree has an enviable reputation as a very relaxed, easily accessible, fairly priced and family friendly event and this year we have an even greater range of activities and entertainment for kids throughout the site.