UK record store chain Fopp, part of HMV, has edited its review of Robert Plant’s new album Saving Grace to remove references to two songs that weren’t actually included on the album.
Tight But Loose editor Dave Lewis found that printed copies of Fopp’s 2025 report, which reviews the year’s best albums according to the chain, falsely claimed that the songs “Cuckoo” and “Let The Four Winds Blow” were included on the album.
LedZepNews also found that the review included a phrase that appears elsewhere online to refer to other musicians, a possible indication that it was created using artificial intelligence or simply copy and pasted into Fopp’s review.
Here’s the original text of the review as it appeared in the printed 2025 report booklet:
In September, Robert Plant’s Saving Grace released their debut album Saving Grace, which he describes as a ‘song book of the lost and found.’ Joined by vocalist Suzi Dian and a circle of accomplished musicians, Plant explores a rich blend of folk, blues, and spiritual Americana. The record moves with quiet confidence, its arrangements spacious yet deeply expressive. Dian’s harmonies intertwine beautifully with Plant’s weathered voice, creating an atmosphere both intimate and timeless. Songs like Cuckoo and Let the Four Winds Blow showcase the group’s ability to balance reverence for tradition with subtle innovation. Critics have praised the album’s warmth and authenticity, hailing it as one of Plant’s most soulful and grounded projects in years. Saving Grace feels like a gathering of old souls rediscovering the beauty of simplicity.
Neither “Cuckoo” or “Let the Four Winds Blow” appear on Saving Grace, but they have been performed by the band during their live shows.
And the seemingly unique phrase “balance reverence for tradition with subtle innovation” has appeared elswhere to refer to other musical artists. It is used in this Grokipedia article about jazz pianist Bill Charlap, for example, as well as in a removed Bandcamp listing for an album by the Patagonia 4.
After LedZepNews contacted HMV, Fopp’s parent company, the online review of Saving Grace was edited to remove the mentions of the two songs and the phrase that appears elsewhere online.
A spokesperson for Fopp said:
HMV and Fopp acknowledge that the tracks referenced in the review of Robert Plant’s album Saving Grace were taken from the live set list rather than the album itself. We create hundreds of pieces of copy each year, drawing on a range of sources such as sales notes and third-party materials. We can confirm that HMV and Fopp do not use AI to generate their copy. However, in rare cases, given the volume of guides produced, individual source information can be misinterpreted.
Although the printed booklets cannot be amended at this stage, The Best Albums of 2025 guide on the Fopp website has been updated to reflect the correct information for the review of Saving Grace.
I can understand the use of Ai because all these complimentary reviews with flowery words are equal to horse manure regardless of the source being human or artificial . Just ask for non offensive flattery and viola…. you have a modern day review with zero criticism.