Led Zeppelin were my first musical love. I still remember getting my first guitar at the tender age of ten, taking the strings off and parading around my bedroom pretending to play along with the solo from 'Dazed and Confused', only for my mother to walk in. It still makes me cringe a little.

So I went to Robert Plant for nostalgia as much as anything, along with a roomful of sixty-somethings who probably saw him first time round. I went to the gig expecting to hear some of the classics live and to begrudgingly sit through solo material that I'm unfamiliar with. When you see this kind of performer you instantly worry that the entire affair will be faintly tragic: aging musicians trying to recapture the rock n' roll fame of their youth.

This certainly wasn't the case with Robert Plant. He still feels exciting and relevant; new songs like 'Little Maggie' just as enjoyable as Led Zeppelin numbers like 'Going To Califronia'. His voice is powerful as ever and he struts around the stage with an animal magnetism that has refused to wane over the years.

Everything that made Led Zeppelin great is still there. Led Zeppelin never really created anything new. They were simply four talented musicians whose musical roots ran deep and wide. They're all too often remembered as heavy rockers, but it was their integration of genres that made their music so interesting. Plant is still working in that tradition. His latest musical escapade brings together an eclectic mix of musicians with the aim of fusing West Coast Psychedelia with North African music - something they pull off with panache. This is to the credit of his phenomenal backing band. Many of the numbers are accompanied by Juldeh Camara, a Gambian musician playing the riti. It keeps the classics fresh without rendering them totally alien. Guitarist Justin Adam knows the blues inside out but is just as comfortable exploring other styles.

Most importantly they look like they're having fun. Plant certainly isn't touring for the money: only the other week he turned down the offer to play with Led Zeppelin for yet another extraordinary amount of cash. This is a man who is not content with dragging out the material he made in the 70s; it's clear that he truly enjoys making and performing new music.