In my circles, a popular bar conversation has always been, “If you could see one band, living or dead, who would it be?”
Currently my answer is The Band. Yup. It’s not The Beatles, Led Zeppelin or even Wicked Lester.
“But Colin, I didn’t know you were a huge fan of The Band.”
I am, but it’s complicated. I tried to love Music From Big Pink the way I knew I was supposed to, but it always left me a little unsatisfied. I suspect I was born a little too late to appreciate what an impact that record had on folks who heard it in 1968. Don’t get me wrong, I liked it, and I listen to The Band a lot, but once I saw The Georgia Satellites play “Long Black Veil” it kinda ruined the other versions for me.
However, I’m obsessed with the story of The Band. I’ll read any book about them, watch any movie, and I’ve spent many nights going down the YouTube rabbit hole on a Band bender. Many nights. For Christ sakes, they were there when Dylan went electric. Bob changed all the rules for all time but the electric part of “Dylan goes electric” was The Band.
And depending on my mood, each member could be my favorite at the moment. That’s why they would be the band I want to see. I imagine myself in a 1,500 seat hall, standing on a beer-sticky floor turning my head from Richard to Garth to Rick to Levon to Robbie.
Five amazing musicians and more importantly, friends, contributing equally to the sound.
At the center of all this was Robbie Robertson. Completely underrated as a guitar player, rated properly as an amazing songwriter, and completely overrated as an egomaniac.
I hate to break this to everyone invested in the Levon vs Robbie “feud,” but no Robbie Robertson, no Dylan tour, no original tunes, no Big Pink, no Basement Tapes, no Last Waltz, no legacy. Levon Helm is one of the all-time greats but he would be a footnote in rock history without Robbie Robertson doing the heavy lifting, both writing songs and with his business sense. And it should be noted, Dylan wanted only Robbie but he insisted it was Levon & him or no deal. Eventually the entire “band” came on board. Still, Levon left Dylan mid-tour. It wasn’t his thing. Once The Band established themselves at Big Pink in Woodstock, Robbie tracked Helm down and got him back in the fold. Levon never had a better friend than Robbie. No matter how it ended, they were always brothers from another mother.
And sure, it’s easy to look like an asshole when you are the only band member who sees the big picture while everyone else just parties in the pool house (see: Mick Jagger, Paul McCartney) but Robbie Robertson led The Band while still being a member of The Band and that is no easy trick. He had the vision for The Last Waltz, convinced his pal Martin Scorsese to direct it, and then he stuck to his guns by never playing with The Band again. It may have left a bitter taste for some, but every city in America has still some sort of Last Waltz tribute every Thanksgiving weekend.
But don’t take my word for it. Listen to any Robbie interview or read his autobiography. It’s right there. He is truly a storyteller; both musically and in words. History will be very kind to him. - Colin Gawel
Below: Robbie took a bus from Toronto, Canada to Arkansas when he was just 16 years old to join Ronnie Hawkins & The Hawks. The Hawks eventually became The Band. Here they all are reunited at The Last Waltz. So much love.