Robert Plant named Record Store Legend
Record Store Day on April 18 will spotlight Robert Plant as this year’s “Record Store Legend,” an honor that links him to past recipients like Elton John (2017) and Johnny Marr (2025) and brings extra attention to limited releases and in‑store events. ( ) Plant is also tied to a new four‑track EP, Saving Grace: All That Glitters, listed alongside Saving Grace and Suzi Dian as contributors, and he visited Spillers Records as part of the celebration, which underscores the retail and collector angle of this year’s program. ( )
Robert Plant is getting a new kind of rock-star tribute on April 18: not a hall of fame slot, but Record Store Day’s “Record Store Legend” plaque, tied to the annual rush for exclusive vinyl at independent shops. (recordstoreday.com) That award is not handed out every year to just anyone. Record Store Day says Elton John got it in 2017 for the event’s 10th birthday, and Johnny Marr received it in 2025 before Plant became the 2026 honoree. (recordstoreday.co.uk) Record Store Day itself is the machine behind the moment. The 2026 event lands on Saturday, April 18, and organizers say thousands of independent record stores worldwide will mark it with limited releases, in-store performances, and special events. (goldminemag.com) Plant’s part in this year’s program is not just ceremonial. Record Store Day’s official release list includes a 12-inch vinyl extended play record called *Saving Grace: All That Glitters… with Suzi Dian*, set for April 18 as an exclusive release with 3,500 copies. (recordstoreday.com) That record connects directly to Plant’s current band, Saving Grace, rather than just his Led Zeppelin past. Nonesuch says the four-track extended play follows his recent *Saving Grace* album and features singer Suzi Dian plus musicians from the English countryside Plant has been working with. (nonesuch.com) The songs also show what kind of project this is. Record Store Day’s United Kingdom listing says the four tracks are “The Blackest Crow,” “Two Coats,” “Orphan Girl,” and “Poison,” built from traditional material plus songs associated with Gillian Welch and Bert Jansch. (recordstoreday.co.uk) The shop chosen for the public celebration says a lot too. Plant visited Spillers Records in Cardiff, which Billboard described as the world’s oldest record store, to mark the award and unveil the plaque in person. (billboard.com) That makes this less like a generic lifetime-achievement announcement and more like a record-shop ritual. Record Store Day framed the honor as a joint award from its United States and United Kingdom arms, aimed at artists with a real connection to stores, collectors, and the habit of browsing bins instead of just streaming songs. (gratefulweb.com) So the practical effect of Plant’s name on the poster is simple: one of classic rock’s biggest figures is being used to pull attention toward small retailers on a single day when scarce vinyl, live appearances, and fan traffic all hit at once. On April 18, the plaque, the Spillers visit, and the 3,500-copy extended play all point to the same thing: get people into the shop while the records are still there. (recordstoreday.com, recordstoreday.com)
