Benjamin Schultz reimagines Led Zeppelin's The Rain Song with Bekka Bramlett

By AI, Created 4:44 PM UTC, May 18, 2026, /AGP/ – Benjamin Schultz has released a new cinematic cover of Led Zeppelin’s “The Rain Song” featuring Bekka Bramlett. The track pairs Schultz’s decades of studio experience with Bramlett’s rock-and-soul vocal pedigree, and is out now on streaming platforms.

Why it matters: - Benjamin Schultz is using a high-profile Led Zeppelin song to reintroduce his long studio career to a wider audience. - The release pairs two musicians with deep rock pedigrees and reframes a classic as a darker, more cinematic track. - The single also sets up a second collaboration, signaling more new material from Schultz and Bramlett.

What happened: - Benjamin Schultz released a new version of Led Zeppelin’s “The Rain Song” featuring Bekka Bramlett. - The track is available now on all streaming platforms. - Schultz describes the recording as a cinematic reinterpretation rather than a replica of the original. - Bramlett also appears on a forthcoming single, “It Hurts Me Too,” slated for release next month.

The details: - Schultz handles guitars, bass, production, engineering, mixing, mastering, live drum editing and programming on the recording. - Patrick Caccia plays live drums, giving the track an organic rhythmic base. - Bramlett provides lead vocals and vocal production. - Schultz says he approached the song as the follow-up he always imagined to “Stairway to Heaven.” - Schultz says Bramlett’s background vocals pushed the song into a layered, darker emotional space. - Schultz says he sent Bramlett the track with no direction and received the lead vocal performance three days later. - The release includes a listen link in the source text, but no usable URL was provided. - Schultz’s career spans more than five decades and includes work with Robert Plant, Belinda Carlisle, George Harrison, Ric Ocasek, Stephen Stills, Rod Stewart, Johnny Winter and B.B. King. - Bramlett is the daughter of Delaney and Bonnie Bramlett and grew up around artists including George Harrison and Eric Clapton. - Bramlett has performed with Robert Plant, Billy Joel, Vince Gill, Faith Hill, Buddy Guy and Dwight Yoakam. - Bramlett was a member of Fleetwood Mac from 1993 to 1995 during Stevie Nicks’ departure. - Schultz was born in New York City and raised in St. Petersburg, Florida. - Schultz began experimenting with rhythm before age 3, took up trumpet at 5, guitar at 7 and held a union card by 13. - At 17, B.B. King handed Schultz his guitar Lucille during a live performance. - Schultz studied at Berklee College of Music and the New England Conservatory under George Russell. - Schultz later worked at the 3rd Street Record Plant in Los Angeles and became known as a studio polymath. - Schultz produced, engineered, composed and performed extensively on Buddy Miles’ mid-1970s albums “More Miles Per Gallon” and “Bicentennial Gathering of the Tribes.” - In the mid-1990s, Schultz played with Barefoot Servants and scored a Top 5 single with “Box of Miracles.” - Barefoot Servants completed a 69-city U.S. tour in 90 days. - Schultz’s earlier band, The Original Wizard, opened for Iron Butterfly, Chicago, Mountain, Rod Stewart and The Allman Brothers Band. - The Original Wizard also performed at the Goose Lake Pop Festival before an estimated crowd of more than 600,000 people.

Between the lines: - The collaboration leans on legacy and familiarity, but the release is positioned as a fresh reworking rather than nostalgia. - Schultz’s emphasis on full-spectrum production suggests the track is meant to showcase craft as much as performance. - Bramlett’s role as the vocal center gives the cover a stronger emotional identity than a straightforward tribute version.

What’s next: - Schultz and Bramlett are set to follow this release with “It Hurts Me Too” next month. - The new single may help establish whether this collaboration becomes a larger project or remains a one-off pairing.

The bottom line: - Schultz’s version of “The Rain Song” turns a classic rock touchstone into a new showcase for two veteran artists with overlapping musical histories.