The Last Waltz
LaserWolf
Portland Oregon 11,517 Posts
Saw this over the weekend. Saw it in the theater back in the day. Remembered not liking it, but people told me to see it again. Funny, one of the few things I remember was Neil Diamond singing Coming To America and a giant US flag unfurling behind him. Never happened, not in the movie anyway. Stupid memory. The guests were all serious artists with individual voices. That was a plus. I thought that Robbie was going to come off as an egotistical ass. But he didn't.Levon was great. The one true singer in the bunch. I expected to see that these guys went on to do a lot of studio work. But a little web research shows none of them did much before or after the break up. Yeah, they all did some and they played with Hawkins on a stack of 45s and Dylan on 2 of his most forgettable lps + the Basement Tapes. My favorite Band related item is Muddy Waters in Woodstock with Helm and Hudson. In the end (to me) they are a glorified jam band without much finesse and about 5 great songs. But I liked the movie.
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I dig the Band, especially Big Pink. Garth's keys on there are top notch. Some of those cool roland ep-30 sounding pianos. They had some great songs(Tears of Rage) and some silly ones(chest fever)
Seriously. The Band are pretty f*cking amazing for Big Pink/Basement Tapes/The Band/Stage Fright/Rock of Ages run of LPs, not to mention great musicians and great singers. While I agree that Levon has my favorite voice overall, very few singers in any genre have recorded songs with as much emotional depth as Richard Manuel manages in 'Tears of Rage' from Big Pink. Even late outings have great songs like Danko's great vocal on "It Makes No Difference". Few rock bands have ever had the depth of vocal talent that The Band boasted. And way more than 5 songs. WAY more.
Fave moment of 'The Last Waltz' is Robbie taking the guitar solo when Clapton's strap falls off his guitar, without missing a beat. That and the punk rock take on Dylan's "Baby Let Me Follow You Down".
I loved the contrast of Joni's Coyote, wordy, sophisticated...
To Dylan's BLMFYD.
What about solo lps?
I always liked RCO All Stars.
Seems like they all have 2 or 3 solo lps.
Any winners?
Levon's cd from a year or two back is supposed to be the bees knees, but I am more interested in 70s, 80s lps.
They had the Staples Singers, Neil Young, Muddy Waters, and Neil Diamond lining up to play with them. Not to mention Bob Dylan.
They were a unique group of musicians, with a wide variety of influences, and UNBELIEVABLE songwriting skills.
Jam bands don't write songs; they JAM them. The Band wrote songs.
Just because a lot of shitty bands feel the need to cite/cover them, don't get that stink on The Band. Plenty of awful rappers cite Jay-Z or Biggie, but they're still great rappers.
I actually think Mitchell had more natural ability than most of the heavy hitters on that stage. I am still not a big fan, but the ease with which she sings amazingly complex arrangements, and the skill to write that stuff is pretty mind-bending.
I think Rick Danko's 70 solo LP 'Danko' was pretty high grade, but truthfully none of their solo stuff moved me much. If
I only have the s/t second album (w/"Up On Cripple Creek"), Bob Dylan's Basement Tapes, plus a reissue 45 of "The Weight"/"I Shall Be Released"...there's more than a few good songs between these records.
I gotta see Last Waltz at some point...
listen to the intro from "Up On Cripple Creek," it's real obvious
I guess I knew that song as one of those "huh?" sample tracks like the James Taylor Knockin' Around the Zoo that you think of as an anomaly in their catalogue. But hearing those other songs stripped down to the rhythms and then hearing the band talk about the Staples Singers and other soul influences I realised that a lot of the strength in their sound came from incorporating soul music into their songs. The instrumental textures they use with mandolins and tubas and folk rock-type instruments tend to camouflage the soulful pulse that is underneath.
One of the truly great albums of the time. Rock, R&B, pop, psychedelia and country all whipped together and spread over brilliant songs. 'Tears of Rage', 'In a Station', 'The Weight', 'Chest Fever' (which when I was a kid I was convinced was a Traffic song).
They may have looked like a bunch of dirt farmers but they had it going on.
And for anyone surprised by their R&B credentials, as Ronnie Hawkins backing band the Hawks, The Band cut their teeth on every circuit around in the 60s from the Canadian far north to the deep south of the US. You don't survive shitkicker bars in Ontario or Georgia without having your chops up. Like Holmes said, Barney Hoskyns'(probably my favorite living music writer) bio of the Band is a great read, and is especially illuminating of their early years.
the part of last waltz where robertson is retelling the story of how ronny hired them is classic; "well boys, you won't get paid much but you will get lots of pussy!"
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My favorite is the live studio stuff with the Staples. Mavis is clearly enjoying herself.
Robbie Robertson's guitar solo on Ronnie Hawkins' "Who Do You Love"...greatest of all time, x10!!!
Truth.
They optically took out Young's big coke booger (confirmed in Shakey).
I always read that Robertson's mic wasn't even on for the whole show.
The whole subtext that Robertson was the only one who wanted to end the band is great. In retrospect it certainly seems like they went out at a good time. He went on to do a lot of soundtrack work for Scorsese after too.
b/w
I'd like to reserve a table at the next Night Owl right now please.
I apologize for calling them a jam band.
I will try to be more clear.
Because of the impressive line up of who they have worked with, I am hoping - expecting - to hear more finesse.
I am comparing them to groups such as the Dixie Fliers and all those other southern studio groups we love so much.
And I find them to fall short.
I find their sound to be muddy and cluttered, not the economical sound that Robertson was talking about.
Perhaps this is a mixing problem, I don't know.
Except for the Staples (and maybe Ron Wood), The Band, or members, had recorded with everyone in the movie including Ringo.
But for some reason, there is no great lp with the full band as back up.
Individuals, yes. Songs, yes. But no full lp.
I don't know why, perhaps drugs, perhaps madness, perhaps business.
Perhaps because while they are great at picking up ideas and jamming, they lack the finesse to tighten up and deliver a finished product.
The problem I have with their songwriting is the majority of their songs lack hooks and memorable melodies. That is not to say The Weight, Cripple Creek and others are not among the best songs, I am talking about the majority that don't add up.
I still enjoyed the music and the movie. I will listen to them more today. I am also planning to listen to a lot of Joni this week. Her Mingus lp is cued up.
I saw them twice in the 80s when they toured with the Cate Brothers. Robertson's absence had no effect on the sound of the music* whatsoever.
*Of course he wasn't there to write anymore...
Was this before Richard Manuel killed himself, I presume?
Besides the scene in the movie did she ever record or tour with them?
I thought one reason they did the Weight with the Staples in the movie was to acknowledge that Aretha had the hit.
Waaaayyy before...
The Staple Singers themselves recorded "The Weight" on one of their Stax albums.