Robbie Robertson has died

[drawback]

Terrible news. May he rest in peace. 
https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/robbie-robertson-who-led-canadian-american-group-band-dies-80-variety-2023-08-09/

 

 

[MathOfInsects]

Whoa. 

RIP.

[mate stubb]

RIP Robbie. That leaves Garth as the sole survivor.

[Ivan May]

RIP Robbie Robertson

[Polychrest]

The CBC bulletin I saw half an hour ago simply announced Robbie’s death and finished with “More to come.”  I dearly wish there was more to come from him.  Huge talent, huge loss.

[Docbop]

Thank you for so much great music.  RIP

[Outkaster]

Wow I loved his Storyville stuff more than the band.  I was just listening to one of his podcasts.

[PianoMan51]

Watching Robbie in The Last Waltz prejudiced me against him. After all, three top notch lead singers and he’s pretending to sing on stage.

 
But looking back now, I see a songwriter who took the whole country rock thing to its deepest possible roots. Union farm worker, defeated Confederate, pathetic drunk, an on and on.

 

I saw David Crosby live about seven years ago. He said on stage that in a hundred years the world would only remember (from his generation and mine) Joni and ‘weird’ Bob. Perhaps, but somehow when I think of music that reflects the uncomfortable soul of the US of A I think that Robbie created a deeper and truer canvas.

 

[Doerfler]

44 minutes ago, PianoMan51 said:

Watching Robbie in The Last Waltz prejudiced me against him. After all, three top notch lead singers and he’s pretending to sing on stage.

 

 He wrote the songs, it was their last gig, he was having fun, and they were stoned out of their minds on alcohol, pot, and blow. Hopefully you can give him a pass now.  RIP

 

 

[Geoff Grace]

He wrote "The Weight,” "The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down,” and “Up on Cripple Creek.” Amazing! Both Robbie and The Band left an indelible imprint on that era.

 

RIP Robbie Robertson.

 

Best,

 

Geoff

[Steve Nathan]

2 hours ago, Dave Ferris said:

saw them opening for and backing  Dylan, may have been '73 in Denver.

I saw them back Dylan in the 60s, when Dylan first went electric. Dylan did his own opening, playing acoustically and then they all came out after intermission.  I'll never forget Robbie coming up to the mike and saying it was good to be back in Buffalo. Buffalo was always like school to us.  That was because of the influence Stan Szelest had on all of them while they were Ronnie Hawkins' Hawks. 

[drawback]

I saw The Last Waltz again recently and marvelled at how good a backup band of real musicians they were. Check out Coyote with Joni.

[EscapeRocks]

Just no words 😢

He and Levon are two of my favorites of all time. 

 

[Mark Schmieder]

Such a huge influence on me, in more ways than I can count, as it goes way beyond his playing per se, such as how to be active in film, live music, and recording, all at the same time, and the whole hybridization of multiple forms into what became Americana.

[HSS]

Crap... RIP Robbie Robertson.   

[Outkaster]

Garth is the last member and almost the most reclusive.

[Al Quinn]

RIP Mr. Robertson.

 

I've been a fan for as long as I can remember and still enjoy listening to and playing the music of The Band. One of the greatest American bands ever. 

[ProfD]

I read The Last Waltz book many years ago. He had a helluva ride and career in music. Job well done. RIP Mr. Robbie Robertson.😎

[Sam Mullins]

Rewatched Last Waltz last night.  Man they cooked on "The Shape I'm In"  

 

One observation:  Yes, it's great that they had all these big names for their party...but to me most of those songs are far less interesting than the Band performances.  

 

The one thing that always stand out to me is how they sound both tight musically and maintain a nice loose, live feeling (i.e. every performance is a bit different.)  The closest contemporary equivalent  I can think of would be Wilco.  

[brenner13]

Aw man, I’ve followed and been inspired by Mr. Robertson’s artistry for decades. Sad to hear. R.I.P.

[zxcvbnm098]

On 8/10/2023 at 7:53 AM, Sam Mullins said:

Rewatched Last Waltz last night.  Man they cooked on "The Shape I'm In"  

 

One observation:  Yes, it's great that they had all these big names for their party...but to me most of those songs are far less interesting than the Band performances.  

 

The one thing that always stand out to me is how they sound both tight musically and maintain a nice loose, live feeling (i.e. every performance is a bit different.)  The closest contemporary equivalent  I can think of would be Wilco.  

I concur with all of this. They just swing! 

 

My personal fave is the opening song "Cripple Creek". Funky, swinging, just grooving like crazy.

 

 

 

[Adan]

I never cared for his guitar playing, and obviously he wasn't much of a singer. But with Robertson that's almost beside the point. The Band's music is timeless because of Robertson, his songwriting and whatever he brought to the group chemistry. Search his lyrics for a trite sentiment, none shall ye find. As a lyricist, Robertson was brilliant at doing the most difficult thing possible; conveying the universal in the specific. "Hey mister can you tell me, where a man might find a bed? He just grinned and shook my hand, no was all he said."  To me, that's up there with Shakespeare.