177-629: Mark Lavon " Levon " Helm (May 26, 1940 – April 19, 2012) was an American musician who achieved fame as the drummer and one of the three lead vocalists for The Band , for which he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994. Helm was known for his deeply soulful, country -accented voice, multi-instrumental ability, and creative drumming style, highlighted on many of the Band's recordings, such as " The Weight ", " Up on Cripple Creek ", and " The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down ". Helm also had
354-417: A distorted electric guitar solo with warm overtones created by his small valve amplifier . However, the use of distortion was predated by electric blues guitarists such as Joe Hill Louis , Guitar Slim , Willie Johnson of Howlin' Wolf 's band, and Pat Hare ; the latter two also made use of distorted power chords in the early 1950s. Also in 1955, Bo Diddley introduced the " Bo Diddley beat " and
531-682: A laryngectomy , he instead underwent an arduous regimen of radiation treatments at Memorial Sloan–Kettering Cancer Center in New York City. The tumor was then successfully removed, but Helm's vocal cords were damaged, and his clear, powerful tenor voice was replaced by a quiet rasp. Initially Helm only played drums and relied on guest vocalists at the Rambles, but eventually his singing voice grew stronger. On January 10, 2004, he sang again at his Ramble sessions. In 2007, during production of Dirt Farmer , Helm estimated that his singing voice
708-516: A slipped disk in his back; his final performances took place in Tarrytown, New York at Tarrytown Music Hall on March 24, and a final Midnight Ramble (with Los Lobos as the opening act) in Woodstock on March 31. On April 17, 2012, Helm's wife Sandy and daughter Amy revealed that he had end-stage throat cancer. They posted the following message on Helm's website: Dear Friends, Levon is in
885-592: A "farewell concert" known as The Last Waltz . Following an October 30 appearance on Saturday Night Live , the event, including turkey dinner for the audience of 5,000, was held on November 25 ( Thanksgiving Day ) of 1976 at the Winterland Ballroom in San Francisco , California , and featured a horn section with arrangements by Allen Toussaint and an all-star lineup of guests, including Canadian artists Joni Mitchell and Neil Young . Two of
1062-576: A back-up band, Music Express called the 1989 Juno appearance a symbolic "passing of the torch" from The Band to Blue Rodeo. In 1990, Capitol Records began to re-release the records from the 1970s. The remaining three members continued to tour and record albums with a succession of musicians filling Manuel's and Robertson's roles. The Band appeared at Bob Dylan's 30th anniversary concert in New York City in October 1992, where they performed their version of Dylan's " When I Paint My Masterpiece ". In 1993,
1239-675: A band called Levon Helm and the RCO Allstars. He also began an acting career with his role as Loretta Lynn 's father in Coal Miner's Daughter . Helm received praise for his narration and supporting role opposite Sam Shepard in 1983's The Right Stuff . In 1997, a CD by Levon Helm and the Crowmatix, Souvenir , was released. Beginning sometime in the 1990s, Helm regularly performed Midnight Ramble concerts at his home and studio in Woodstock, New York, and toured. In 2007 Helm released
1416-458: A blues number), " Baby Let's Play House ", " Lawdy Miss Clawdy ", and " Hound Dog ". The racial lines, however, are rather more clouded by the fact that some of these R&B songs originally recorded by black artists had been written by white songwriters, such as the team of Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller . Songwriting credits were often unreliable; many publishers, record executives, and even managers (both white and black) would insert their name as
1593-715: A break from touring, Dylan was injured in a motorcycle accident that precipitated his retreat into semi-seclusion in Woodstock , New York . For a while, the Hawks returned to the bar and roadhouse touring circuit, sometimes backing other singers, including a brief stint with Tiny Tim . Dylan invited the Hawks to join him in Woodstock in February 1967, and Danko, Hudson, and Manuel rented a large pink house, which they named " Big Pink ", in nearby West Saugerties, New York . The next month (initially without Helm) they commenced recording
1770-409: A composer in order to collect royalty checks. Covers were customary in the music industry at the time; it was made particularly easy by the compulsory license provision of United States copyright law (still in effect). One of the first relevant successful covers was Wynonie Harris 's transformation of Roy Brown 's 1947 original jump blues hit " Good Rocking Tonight " into a more showy rocker and
1947-623: A couple of tracks for Jorma Kaukonen 's February 2009 album River of Time , recorded at the Levon Helm Studios. Helm released the album Electric Dirt on his own label on June 30, 2009. Like Dirt Farmer , an aim of Electric Dirt was to capture of feel of Helm's Midnight Rambles. The album won a best album Grammy for the newly created Americana category in 2010. Helm performed on the CBS television program Late Show with David Letterman on July 9, 2009. He also toured that same year in
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#17327976385282124-500: A defiant teen dates a rock and roll-loving boy but drops him for one who likes traditional adult music—to her parents' relief. In Britain, where postwar prosperity was more limited, rock and roll culture became attached to the pre-existing Teddy Boy movement, largely working class in origin, and eventually to the rockers . "On the white side of the deeply segregated music market", rock and roll became marketed for teenagers, as in Dion and
2301-477: A different take in a 1986 interview: "I made my big statement. I did the movie, I made a three-record album about it—and if this is only my statement, not theirs, I'll accept that. They're saying, 'Well, that was really his trip, not our trip.' Well, fine. I'll take the best music film that's ever been made, and make it my statement. I don't have any problems with that. None at all." The original quintet would perform together one last time: on March 1, 1978 after
2478-615: A drunken jam session with Jerry Garcia , Bob Weir , John Dawson , and Joplin while singing "Ain't No More Cane". At about this time, Robertson began exerting greater control over The Band, a point of contention between him and Helm. Helm charges Robertson with authoritarianism and greed, while Robertson suggests his increased efforts in guiding the group were largely because Danko, Helm, and Manuel were becoming more unreliable due to their heroin usage. Robertson insists he did his best to coax Manuel into writing more songs, only to see him descend into addiction. Despite mounting problems among
2655-458: A few hits. Helm reported in his autobiography that fellow Hawks band members had difficulty pronouncing "Lavon" correctly and started calling him "Levon" ( / ˈ l iː v ɒ n / LEE -von ) because it was easier to pronounce. In 1961, Helm with bassist Rick Danko backed jazz guitarist Lenny Breau on several tracks recorded at Hallmark Studios in Toronto. These tracks are included on
2832-553: A few times. A lot of the rock and roll duck walks and moves came from that." Artists who performed at the Rambles include Helm's former bandmate Garth Hudson , Elvis Costello , Emmylou Harris , Dr. John , Mavis Staples , Chris Robinson , Allen Toussaint , Donald Fagen and Jon Herington of Steely Dan , Jimmy Vivino (of the house band on Late Night with Conan O'Brien ), the Max Weinberg 7 , My Morning Jacket , Billy Bob Thornton , Alexis P. Suter , Sean Costello ,
3009-580: A little more than one month and sat out the rest of that year's concerts, as well as the world tour in 1966. Helm spent much of this period working on an oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico. During and between tours, Dylan and the Hawks attempted several recording sessions, but with less than satisfying results. Sessions in October and November yielded just one usable single (" Can You Please Crawl Out Your Window? "), and two days of recording in January 1966 for what
3186-512: A major influence on British Invasion acts and particularly on the song writing of the Beatles and through them on the nature of later rock music. Many of the earliest white rock and roll hits were covers or partial re-writes of earlier black rhythm and blues or blues songs. Through the late 1940s and early 1950s, R&B music had been gaining a stronger beat and a wilder style, with artists such as Fats Domino and Johnny Otis speeding up
3363-405: A major influence on their musical direction in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Clapton later revealed that he wanted to join the group. While he never did join, he recruited all of the members of The Band as well as other roots rock performers for his 1976 album No Reason to Cry . Following their second album, The Band embarked on their first tour as a lead act. The anxiety of fame was clear, as
3540-460: A motorcycle accident in July 1966. These recordings were widely bootlegged and were partially released officially in 1975 as The Basement Tapes . The songs and themes developed during this period played a crucial role in the group's future direction and style. The Hawks also began writing their own songs, with Danko and Manuel also sharing writing credits with Dylan on a few songs. Helm returned to
3717-520: A much-bootlegged and influential series of demos, initially at Dylan's house in Woodstock and later at Big Pink, which were released partially on LP as The Basement Tapes in 1975 and in full in 2014 . A track-by-track review of the bootleg was detailed by Jann Wenner in Rolling Stone , in which the band members were explicitly named and given the collective name "the Crackers". While Helm
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#17327976385283894-419: A music studio for the group. By 1975, the studio, Shangri-La , was completed. That year, The Band recorded and released Northern Lights – Southern Cross , their first album of new material since 1971. All eight songs were written solely by Robertson. Despite comparatively poor record sales, the album is favored by critics and fans. Levon Helm regards this album highly in his book, This Wheel's on Fire : "It
4071-533: A nearby oil platform ). In the autumn of 1967, after what would later be called "the Summer of Love ", he returned to the group. After the Hawks toured Europe with Dylan, they followed him back to the U.S., remaining under salary, and settled near Dylan's home in Woodstock, New York . The Hawks recorded a large number of demos and practice tapes in nearby West Saugerties, New York , playing almost daily with Dylan, who had completely withdrawn from public life following
4248-561: A new album, an homage to his southern roots called Dirt Farmer , which was awarded a Grammy Award for Best Traditional Folk Album on February 9, 2008. Electric Dirt followed in 2009 and won the inaugural Grammy Award for Best Americana Album . His 2011 live album Ramble at the Ryman won in the same category. After he left The Band, Robbie Robertson became a music producer and wrote film soundtracks (including acting as music supervisor for several of Scorsese's films) before beginning
4425-580: A perkier vocal more appropriate for an audience unfamiliar with the song to which James's song was an answer , Hank Ballard 's "Work With Me, Annie". Presley's rock and roll version of "Hound Dog", taken mainly from a version recorded by the pop band Freddie Bell and the Bellboys , was very different from the blues shouter that Big Mama Thornton had recorded four years earlier. Other white artists who recorded cover versions of rhythm and blues songs included Gale Storm (Smiley Lewis' "I Hear You Knockin ' "),
4602-563: A planned Last Waltz film and album could be released on the Warner Bros. label. Islands contained a mix of originals and covers, and was the last with The Band's original lineup. That same year, the group recorded soundstage performances with country singer Emmylou Harris ("Evangeline") and gospel-soul group the Staple Singers ("The Weight"); Scorsese combined these new performances—as well as interviews he had conducted with
4779-486: A popular bar and club act in the South and Canada where rockabilly acts were very successful. Helm's mother insisted that he graduate from high school before touring with Hawkins, but he was able to play with the Hawks locally on weekends. After his graduation in 1958, Helm joined the Hawks as a full-time member and they moved to Toronto where they signed with Roulette Records in 1959 and released several singles, including
4956-670: A possible tour with Bob Dylan. By late 1973, Danko, Helm, Hudson and Manuel had joined them, and the first order of business was backing Dylan on his album Planet Waves . The album was released concurrently with their joint 1974 tour, in which they played 40 shows in North America during January and February 1974. Later that year, the tour was documented on the live album Before the Flood ,. During this time, The Band brought in Planet Waves producer Rob Fraboni to help design
5133-667: A preacher (October 1957), the departure of Presley for service in the United States Army (March 1958), the scandal surrounding Jerry Lee Lewis ' marriage to his thirteen-year-old cousin (May 1958), riots caused by Bill Haley 's ill-fated tour of Europe (October 1958), the deaths of Buddy Holly , The Big Bopper and Ritchie Valens in a plane crash (February 1959), the breaking of the Payola scandal implicating major figures, including Alan Freed , in bribery and corruption in promoting individual acts or songs (November 1959),
5310-415: A result heard each other's music and even began to emulate each other's fashions. Radio stations that made white and black forms of music available to both groups, the development and spread of the gramophone record , and African-American musical styles such as jazz and swing which were taken up by white musicians, aided this process of "cultural collision". The immediate roots of rock and roll lay in
5487-610: A rock and roll standard. As interest in rock and roll was beginning to subside in America in the late 1950s and early 1960s, it was taken up by groups in British cities like Liverpool , Manchester , Birmingham , and London . About the same time, a British blues scene developed, initially led by purist blues followers such as Alexis Korner and Cyril Davies who were inspired by American musicians such as Robert Johnson , Muddy Waters and Howlin' Wolf . Many groups moved towards
Levon Helm - Misplaced Pages Continue
5664-719: A solo career and as a Hollywood music producer. As a result of their diminished popularity, they performed in theaters and clubs as headliners and took support slots in larger venues for onetime peers such as the Grateful Dead and Crosby, Stills and Nash . After a performance in Winter Park, Florida , on March 4, 1986, Manuel hanged himself , aged 42, in his motel room. He had suffered for many years from alcoholism and drug addiction and had been clean and sober for several years beginning in 1978 but had begun drinking and using drugs again by 1984. Manuel's position as pianist
5841-718: A solo career with his Daniel Lanois -produced eponymous album in 1987. Robertson continued mostly scoring films until his death in 2023. Rock and roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll , rock-n-roll , rock 'n' roll , rock n' roll , Rock n' Roll or proto-rock ) is a genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It originated from African American music such as jazz , rhythm and blues , boogie-woogie , electric blues , gospel , and jump blues , as well as country music . While rock and roll's formative elements can be heard in blues records from
6018-787: A successful career as a film actor, appearing as Loretta Lynn 's father in Coal Miner's Daughter (1980), as Chuck Yeager 's friend and colleague Captain Jack Ridley in The Right Stuff (1983), as a Tennessee firearms expert in Shooter (2007), and as General John Bell Hood in In the Electric Mist (2009). In 1998, Helm was diagnosed with throat cancer which caused him to lose his singing voice. After treatment, his cancer eventually went into remission, and he gradually regained
6195-747: A supporting role with the band Black Crowes . A documentary on Helm's day-to-day life, entitled Ain't in It for My Health: A Film About Levon Helm was released in March 2010. Directed by Jacob Hatley, it made its debut at the South by Southwest film festival in Austin, Texas , and went on to be screened at the Los Angeles Film Festival in June 2010. The film had a limited release in select theaters in
6372-476: A time of considerable technological change, soon after the development of the electric guitar, amplifier , 45 rpm record and modern condenser microphones . There were also changes in the record industry, with the rise of independent labels like Atlantic , Sun and Chess servicing niche audiences and a similar rise of radio stations that played their music. It was the realization that relatively affluent white teenagers were listening to this music that led to
6549-506: A unique electric guitar style, influenced by African and Afro-Cuban music and in turn influencing many later artists. Rock and roll was strongly influenced by R&B, according to many sources, including an article in The Wall Street Journal in 1985, titled, "Rock! It's Still Rhythm and Blues". In fact, the author stated that the "two terms were used interchangeably", until about 1957. The other sources quoted in
6726-432: A white market, or a new hybrid of black and white forms. In the 1930s, jazz , and particularly swing , both in urban-based dance bands and blues-influenced country swing ( Jimmie Rodgers , Moon Mullican and other similar singers), were among the first music to present African-American sounds for a predominantly white audience. One particularly noteworthy example of a jazz song with recognizably rock and roll elements
6903-514: A wider scale than any other single performer and by 1956, he had emerged as the singing sensation of the nation. Bill Flagg who is a Connecticut resident, began referring to his mix of hillbilly and rock 'n' roll music as rockabilly around 1953. In July 1954, Presley recorded the regional hit " That's All Right " at Sam Phillips' Sun Studio in Memphis. Three months earlier, on April 12, 1954, Bill Haley & His Comets recorded "Rock Around
7080-417: A young age. He saw Bill Monroe and His Blue Grass Boys at the age of six and decided to become a musician. Helm began playing the guitar at the age of eight and also played drums. Arkansas in the 1940s and '50s stood at the confluence of a variety of musical styles, including traditional Delta blues , electric blues , country (including old-time music ) and the incipient genre of rhythm and blues . Helm
7257-519: Is Big Joe Turner with pianist Pete Johnson 's 1938 single " Roll 'Em Pete ", which is regarded as an important precursor of rock and roll. The 1940s saw the increased use of blaring horns (including saxophones), shouted lyrics and boogie-woogie beats in jazz-based music. During and immediately after World War II , with shortages of fuel and limitations on audiences and available personnel, large jazz bands were less economical and tended to be replaced by smaller combos, using guitars, bass and drums. In
Levon Helm - Misplaced Pages Continue
7434-509: Is a view that jazz is 'evil' because it comes from evil people, but actually the greatest priests on 52nd Street, and on the streets of New York City were the musicians. They were doing the greatest healing work. And they knew how to punch through music which would cure and make people feel good. —Garth Hudson in The Last Waltz With Hawkins, they recorded a few singles in this period and became well known as
7611-414: Is defined as such in some dictionaries. The phrase "rocking and rolling" originally described the movement of a ship on the ocean, but by the early 20th century was used both to describe the spiritual fervor of black church rituals and as a sexual analogy. A retired Welsh seaman named William Fender can be heard singing the phrase "rock and roll" when describing a sexual encounter in his performance of
7788-692: Is general agreement that it arose in the Southern United States – a region that would produce most of the major early rock and roll acts – through the meeting of various influences that embodied a merging of the African musical tradition with European instrumentation. The migration of many former slaves and their descendants to major urban centers such as St. Louis , Memphis , New York City , Detroit , Chicago , Cleveland , and Buffalo meant that black and white residents were living in close proximity in larger numbers than ever before, and as
7965-429: Is not because I have lost perspective, it is precisely because I have found it, within music, yes, that was made five years ago. But it is there and unignorable." When the concert finally saw an official release as The Bootleg Series Vol. 4: Bob Dylan Live 1966, The "Royal Albert Hall" Concert in 1998, critic Richie Unterberger declared the record "an important document of rock history." On July 29, 1966, while on
8142-466: Is often identified with the emergence of teen culture among the first baby boomer generation, who had greater relative affluence and leisure time and adopted rock and roll as part of a distinct subculture. This involved not just music, absorbed via radio, record buying, jukeboxes and TV programs like American Bandstand , but also extended to film, clothes, hair, cars and motorcycles, and distinctive language. The youth culture exemplified by rock and roll
8319-719: Is rock 'n' roll. I think that 'Rocket 88' is R&B, but I think 'Rocket 88' is the cause of rock and roll existing". In terms of its wide cultural impact across society in the US and elsewhere, Bill Haley 's " Rock Around the Clock ", recorded in April 1954 but not a commercial success until the following year, is generally recognized as an important milestone, but it was preceded by many recordings from earlier decades in which elements of rock and roll can be clearly discerned. Journalist Alexis Petridis argued that neither Haley's "Rock Around
8496-528: Is the last living original member of the group. In 1977, Rick Danko released his eponymous debut solo album , which featured the other four members of The Band on various tracks. In 1984, Danko joined members of the Byrds , the Flying Burrito Brothers, and others in the touring company that made up "The Byrds Twenty-Year Celebration". Several members of the tour performed solo songs to start
8673-430: Is usually played with one or more electric guitars (one lead , one rhythm ) and a double bass (string bass). After the mid-1950s, electric bass guitars ("Fender bass") and drum kits became popular in classic rock. Rock and roll had a profound influence on contemporary American lifestyles, fashion, attitudes, and language, and is often portrayed in movies, fan magazines, and on television. Some people believe that
8850-656: The King Biscuit Time radio show on KFFA in Helena and performed regularly in Marvell with blues guitarist Robert Lockwood, Jr. In his 1993 autobiography, This Wheel's on Fire: Levon Helm and the Story of the Band , Helm describes watching Williamson's drummer, James "Peck" Curtis, intently during a live performance in the early 1950s and later imitating this R&B drumming style. Helm established his first band,
9027-485: The British Invasion would become the superseding forms of rock music during the mid-1960s, a few American artists were nonetheless able to achieve chart successes with rock and roll recordings during this time. The most notable of these was Johnny Rivers , who with hits such as "Memphis" (1964), popularized a " Go-go " style of club-oriented, danceable rock and roll that enjoyed significant success in spite of
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#17327976385289204-483: The Civil War ), uses the phrase "rock my soul" frequently in a religious sense; this song was later recorded by musicians from various genres, including various gospel musicians and groups (including The Jordanaires ), Louis Armstrong (jazz/swing), Lonnie Donegan ( skiffle ), and Elvis Presley (rock and roll/pop/country). Blues singer Trixie Smith recorded "My [Man] Rocks Me with One Steady Roll" in 1922. It
9381-538: The Grammy Award for Best Americana Album . Some of his last sessions recorded in 2011 with Mavis Staples would be released in 2022 as Carry Me Home . In April 2012, during the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremonies in Cleveland, Robbie Robertson sent "love and prayers" to Helm, fueling speculation about Helm's health. Helm had previously cancelled a number of performances, citing health issues or
9558-869: The Santa Cruz Civic Auditorium , the Long Island Arena and the Champlain Valley Expo in Essex Junction, Vermont ), culminating in an opening slot for the ascendant ZZ Top at the Nashville Fairgrounds in September. In early September, Richard Manuel suffered a severe neck injury in a boating accident in Texas, prompting Robertson to urge The Band to retire from live performances after staging
9735-457: The U.S. Supreme Court ruling that abolished the policy of " separate but equal " in 1954, but leaving a policy which would be extremely difficult to enforce in parts of the United States. The coming together of white youth audiences and black music in rock and roll inevitably provoked strong white racist reactions within the US, with many whites condemning its breaking down of barriers based on color. Many observers saw rock and roll as heralding
9912-657: The US pop charts – topped the British charts later that year and again in 1956 and helped identify rock and roll with teenage delinquency. The initial response of the British music industry was to attempt to produce copies of American records, recorded with session musicians and often fronted by teen idols. More grass roots British rock and rollers soon began to appear, including Wee Willie Harris and Tommy Steele . During this period American Rock and Roll remained dominant but in 1958 Britain produced its first "authentic" rock and roll song and star, when Cliff Richard reached number 2 in
10089-608: The beat music of rock and roll and rhythm and blues from skiffle, like the Quarrymen who became the Beatles , producing a form of rock and roll revivalism that carried them and many other groups to national success from about 1963 and to international success from 1964, known in America as the British Invasion. Groups that followed the Beatles included the beat-influenced Freddie and the Dreamers , Wayne Fontana and
10266-536: The concert film The Last Waltz , directed by Martin Scorsese . It would be the last performance of the original five members. After five years apart, Danko, Hudson, Helm, and Manuel reunited in 1983 for a reunion tour without Robertson, as he had taken up a new career as a producer and composer for film soundtracks. Manuel died in 1986, but the remaining three members would continue to tour and occasionally release new albums of studio material until 1999, when, upon
10443-428: The rhythm and blues , then called " race music ", in combination with either boogie-woogie and shouting gospel or with country music of the 1940s and 1950s. Particularly significant influences were jazz, blues , gospel , country, and folk . Commentators differ in their views of which of these forms were most important and the degree to which the new music was a re-branding of African-American rhythm and blues for
10620-415: The tempos and increasing the backbeat to great popularity on the juke joint circuit. Before the efforts of Freed and others, black music was taboo on many white-owned radio outlets, but artists and producers quickly recognized the potential of rock and roll. Some of Presley's early recordings were covers of black rhythm and blues or blues songs, such as " That's All Right " (a countrified arrangement of
10797-730: The " 500 Greatest Songs of All Time ". In 2008, the group received the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award . In 2014, they were inducted into Canada's Walk of Fame . The future members of The Band first played together as the Hawks, the backing group for Toronto -based rockabilly singer Ronnie Hawkins . Levon Helm began playing with the group in 1957, then became their fulltime drummer after graduating from high school in 1958. Helm journeyed with Hawkins from Arkansas to Ontario, where they were joined by Robbie Robertson , Rick Danko , Richard Manuel , and finally Garth Hudson . Latter-day Band member Stan Szelest
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#173279763852810974-418: The "second-most influential record in the history of rock and roll", and music journalist Al Aronowitz called it "country soul ... a sound never heard before". Their most popular songs included " The Weight " (1968), " The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down " (1969), and " Up on Cripple Creek " (1969). The Band performed their farewell concert on November 25, 1976. Footage from the event was released in 1978 as
11151-463: The 12-string guitar backdrop to "Daniel and the Sacred Harp". Helm remained with the Band until their farewell performance on Thanksgiving Day, November 25, 1976, which was the subject of the documentary film The Last Waltz , directed by Martin Scorsese . Helm repudiated his involvement with The Last Waltz shortly after the completion of its final scenes. In his autobiography Helm criticized
11328-439: The 1920s and in country records of the 1930s, the genre did not acquire its name until 1954. According to the journalist Greg Kot , "rock and roll" refers to a style of popular music originating in the United States in the 1950s. By the mid-1960s, rock and roll had developed into "the more encompassing international style known as rock music , though the latter also continued to be known in many circles as rock and roll." For
11505-481: The 1950s, by leading white and black kids to listen to the same music, put the radio personality 'at the vanguard' and made him 'a really important figure ' ". After Freed was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame , the organization's Web site offered this comment: "He became internationally known for promoting African-American rhythm and blues music on the radio in the United States and Europe under
11682-412: The 1966 tour, the group moved with help from Dylan and his manager, Albert Grossman , to Saugerties, New York , where they made the informal 1967 recordings that became The Basement Tapes , the basis for their 1968 debut album, Music from Big Pink . Because they were always referred to simply as "the band" to various frontmen and the locals in Woodstock, Helm said the name "The Band" worked well when
11859-493: The 2003 release The Hallmark Sessions . By the early 1960s, Helm and Hawkins had recruited an all-Canadian lineup of musicians: guitarist Robbie Robertson , bassist Rick Danko , pianist Richard Manuel , and organist Garth Hudson , all of whom were multi-instrumentalists. In 1963, the band parted ways with Hawkins and started touring as Levon and the Hawks and later as the Canadian Squires, before changing back to
12036-518: The 2005 film The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada and appeared as Gen. John Bell Hood in the 2009 film In the Electric Mist . He also had a brief cameo as a weapons expert in the film Shooter with Mark Wahlberg . In 1983, the Band reunited without Robbie Robertson, at first playing with an expanded lineup that included the entire Cate Brothers Band, but in 1985 paring down and adding Jim Weider on guitar. In 1986, while on tour Manuel committed suicide. Helm, Danko, and Hudson continued in
12213-764: The Band , as well as having their own four-page spread in Harvey Kubernik and Ken Kubernik's “The Story of the Band: From Big Pink to The Last Waltz ” (Sterling Publishing, 2018). A critical and commercial triumph, The Band , along with works by the Byrds and the Flying Burrito Brothers , established a musical template (dubbed country rock ) that paved the way to the Eagles . Both Big Pink and The Band also influenced their musical contemporaries. Eric Clapton and George Harrison cited The Band as
12390-531: The Band for the second time since the original group broke up. The occasion was the induction of The Band into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame . Helm, who had been at odds with Robertson for years over accusations of stolen songwriting credits, did not attend. In February 1996, The Band with the Crickets recorded " Not Fade Away ", released on the tribute album Not Fade Away (Remembering Buddy Holly) . The Band released two more albums after Jericho : High on
12567-465: The Band to release recordings on other labels if the work was done in support of Dylan. Thus the Band was able to play on Dylan's Planet Waves album and to release The Last Waltz , both on other labels. The Band also recorded their own album Music from Big Pink (1968), which catapulted them into stardom. Helm was the Band's only American member. On Music from Big Pink , Manuel was the most prominent vocalist and Helm sang backup and harmony, with
12744-628: The Band, adding pianist Richard Bell and drummer/vocalist Randy Ciarlante and releasing the album Jericho in 1993 and High on the Hog in 1996. The final album from the Band was the 30th anniversary album, Jubilation released in 1998. In 1989, Helm and Danko toured with drummer Ringo Starr as part of his All-Starr Band . Other musicians in the band included singer and guitarist Joe Walsh , singer and pianist Dr. John , singer and guitarist Nils Lofgren , singer Billy Preston , saxophonist Clarence Clemons , and drummer Jim Keltner . Garth Hudson
12921-561: The Belmonts ' " A Teenager in Love " (1959). From its early 1950s beginnings through the early 1960s, rock and roll spawned new dance crazes including the twist . Teenagers found the syncopated backbeat rhythm especially suited to reviving Big Band-era jitterbug dancing. Sock hops , school and church gym dances, and home basement dance parties became the rage, and American teens watched Dick Clark 's American Bandstand to keep up on
13098-547: The Clock" nor Presley's version of "That's Alright Mama" heralded a new genre: "They were simply the first white artists' interpretations of a sound already well-established by black musicians almost a decade before. It was a raucous, driving, unnamed variant of rhythm and blues that came complete with lyrics that talked about rocking". Other artists with early rock and roll hits included Chuck Berry , Bo Diddley , Little Richard , Jerry Lee Lewis , and Gene Vincent . Chuck Berry's 1955 classic " Maybellene " in particular features
13275-466: The Clock". Although only a minor hit when first released, when used in the opening sequence of the movie Blackboard Jungle a year later, it set the rock and roll boom in motion. The song became one of the biggest hits in history, and frenzied teens flocked to see Haley and the Comets perform it, causing riots in some cities. "Rock Around the Clock" was a breakthrough success for the group; traditionally,
13452-780: The Diamonds (The Gladiolas' "Little Darlin ' " and Frankie Lymon & the Teenagers' "Why Do Fools Fall in Love?"), the Crew Cuts (the Chords' "Sh-Boom" and Nappy Brown's "Don't Be Angry"), the Fountain Sisters (The Jewels' "Hearts of Stone") and the Maguire Sisters (The Moonglows' "Sincerely"). Some commentators have suggested a decline of rock and roll starting in 1958. The retirement of Little Richard to become
13629-717: The Grateful Dead , Eric Clapton and Wilco . Between 1958 and 1963, the group was known as the Hawks, a backing band for rockabilly singer Ronnie Hawkins . In the mid-1960s, they gained recognition for being the backing group for Bob Dylan , with his 1966 concert tour being notable as Dylan's first with an electric band. After leaving Dylan and changing their name to The Band, they released several records to critical and popular acclaim, most notably their 1968 debut, Music from Big Pink and its succeeding album, 1969's The Band . According to AllMusic , Music from Big Pink 's influence on several generations of musicians has been substantial: Pink Floyd member Roger Waters deemed it
13806-421: The Hawks for a recording session for Atco later that year. Also in 1965, Helm and the band met blues singer and harmonica player Sonny Boy Williamson . They wanted to record with him, offering to become his backing band, but Williamson died not long after their meeting. Later in 1965, American musician Bob Dylan hired the group as his backing band for his U.S. tour in 1965 and world tour in 1966 . Following
13983-401: The Hawks if they brought their girlfriends to the clubs (fearing it might reduce the numbers of "available" girls who came to performances) or if they smoked marijuana . Robertson later said, "Eventually, [Hawkins] built us up to the point where we outgrew his music and had to leave. He shot himself in the foot, really, by sharpening us into such a crackerjack band that we had to go on out into
14160-408: The Hawks played a series of concerts from September 1965 through May 1966, billed as "Bob Dylan and the Band". The tours were marked by Dylan's reportedly copious use of amphetamines . Some, though not all, of the Hawks joined in the excesses. Most of the concerts were met with heckling and disapproval from folk music purists. Helm was so affected by the negative reception that he left the tour after
14337-540: The Hawks played at the Free Trade Hall in Manchester on May 17, 1966. The gig became legendary when, near the end of Dylan's electric set, an audience member shouted " Judas !" After a pause, Dylan replied, "I don't believe you. You're a liar!" He then turned to the Hawks and said, "Play it fucking loud!" With that, they launched into an acidic version of " Like a Rolling Stone ". The Manchester performance
14514-427: The Hawks. Dylan accepted and invited Levon and the Hawks to tour with him. The group was receptive to the offer, knowing it could give them the wider exposure they craved. They thought of themselves as a tightly rehearsed rock and rhythm and blues group and knew Dylan mostly from his early acoustic folk and protest music. Furthermore, they had little inkling of how internationally popular Dylan had become. With Dylan,
14691-619: The Hawks. They recorded two singles but remained mostly a popular touring bar band in Texas , Arkansas , Canada, and on the East Coast of the United States where they found regular summer club gigs on the New Jersey shore. By the mid-1960s, songwriter and musician Bob Dylan was interested in performing electric rock music and asked the Hawks to be his backing band . Disheartened by fans' negative response to Dylan's new sound, Helm left
14868-419: The Hog (1996) and Jubilation (1998), the latter of which included guest appearances by Eric Clapton and John Hiatt . Helm was diagnosed with throat cancer in 1998 and was unable to sing for several years but he eventually regained the use of his voice. In 1998, the group revealed they were working on a follow-up album to Jubilation that has not been released. The final song the group recorded together
15045-451: The Joint " (1949) (later covered by Bill Haley & His Comets in 1952), " Rocket 88 " by Jackie Brenston and his Delta Cats ( Ike Turner and his band The Kings of Rhythm and sung by Brenston), was recorded by Sam Phillips in March 1951. This is often cited as the first rock n' roll record. In an interview however, Ike Turner offered this comment: "I don't think that 'Rocket 88'
15222-542: The Jungle Bush Beaters, while in high school. Helm also witnessed some of the earliest performances by early rock and roll and rockabilly artists, including Elvis Presley , Conway Twitty , Bo Diddley and fellow Arkansan Ronnie Hawkins . At age 17, Helm began playing in clubs and bars around Helena. While he was still in high school, Helm was invited to join Ronnie Hawkins ' band, the Hawks,
15399-479: The Louis Prima rocker "Oh Babe" in 1950, as well as Amos Milburn 's cover of what may have been the first white rock and roll record, Hardrock Gunter 's "Birmingham Bounce" in 1949. The most notable trend, however, was white pop covers of black R&B numbers. The more familiar sound of these covers may have been more palatable to white audiences, there may have been an element of prejudice, but labels aimed at
15576-716: The Mindbenders , Herman's Hermits and the Dave Clark Five . Early British rhythm and blues groups with more blues influences include the Animals , the Rolling Stones , and the Yardbirds . Rock and roll influenced lifestyles, fashion, attitudes, and language. In addition, rock and roll may have contributed to the civil rights movement because both African-American and European-American teens enjoyed
15753-707: The Muddy Waters Tribute Band, Pinetop Perkins , Hubert Sumlin , Carolyn Wonderland , Kris Kristofferson , Gillian Welch , David Rawlings , Justin Townes Earle , Bow Thayer , Luther "Guitar Junior" Johnson , Rickie Lee Jones , Kate Taylor , Ollabelle , the Holmes Brothers , Catherine Russell, Norah Jones , Arlen Roth , Elvis Perkins in Dearland , Phil Lesh , Grahame Lesh , Brian Lesh , Hot Tuna ( Jorma Kaukonen introduced
15930-587: The Ryman won the Grammy in the same category. In 2016, Rolling Stone magazine ranked him No. 22 in its list of 100 Greatest Drummers of All Time. Born Mark Lavon Helm in Elaine, Arkansas , Helm grew up in Turkey Scratch , a hamlet of Marvell, Arkansas . His parents, Nell and Diamond Helm, were cotton farmers who shared a strong affinity for music. They encouraged their children to play and sing at
16107-533: The Story of the Band . Helm's performance career in the 2000s revolved mainly around the Midnight Ramble at his home and studio, "The Barn," in Woodstock, New York . These concerts, featuring Helm and various musical guests, allowed him to raise money for his medical bills and to resume performing after a bout with cancer that nearly ended his career. In the late 1990s, Helm was diagnosed with throat cancer after suffering hoarseness . Advised to undergo
16284-571: The Traditional Folk Album category for 2007. Also in 2007, Helm recorded "Toolin' Around Woodstock", an album with Arlen Roth on which Levon played drums and sang " Sweet Little 16 " and "Crying Time." This album also featured Levon's daughter Amy, and Roth's daughter Lexie, along with Sonny Landreth and Bill Kirchen. Helm declined to attend the Grammy Awards ceremony, instead holding a "Midnight Gramble" and celebrating
16461-530: The UK Isle of Wight Festival (several songs from which were subsequently included on Dylan's Self Portrait album). That same year, they left for Los Angeles to record their follow-up, The Band (1969). From their rustic appearance on the cover to the songs and arrangements within, the album stood in contrast to other popular music of the day. Several other artists had already made similar stylistic moves, notably Dylan, on John Wesley Harding (1967), which
16638-538: The United States in the spring of 2013 and was released on DVD and Blu-ray later that year. On May 11, 2011, Helm released Ramble at the Ryman , a live album recorded during his performance of September 17, 2008, at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville . The album features Helm's band playing six songs by the Band and other cover material, including some songs from previous Helm solo releases. The album won
16815-439: The arrest of Chuck Berry (December 1959), and the death of Eddie Cochran in a car crash (April 1960) gave a sense that the initial phase of rock and roll had come to an end. During the late 1950s and early 1960s, the rawer sounds of Presley, Gene Vincent , Jerry Lee Lewis and Buddy Holly were commercially superseded by a more polished, commercial style of rock and roll influenced pop music. Marketing frequently emphasized
16992-570: The article said that rock and roll combined R&B with pop and country music. Fats Domino was one of the biggest stars of rock and roll in the early 1950s and he was not convinced that this was a new genre. In 1957, he said: "What they call rock 'n' roll now is rhythm and blues. I've been playing it for 15 years in New Orleans". According to Rolling Stone , "this is a valid statement ... all Fifties rockers, black and white, country born and city-bred, were fundamentally influenced by R&B,
17169-557: The award on behalf of their father. To conclude the televised special, Rick Danko, Garth Hudson, and Robbie Robertson performed "The Weight" with Blue Rodeo . Helm performed with Danko and Hudson as the Band in 1990 at Roger Waters 's epic The Wall – Live in Berlin Concert in Germany to an estimated 300,000 to half a million people. In 1993, Helm published an autobiography entitled This Wheel's on Fire: Levon Helm and
17346-462: The best rock group in the thriving Toronto music scene. Hawkins regularly convened all-night rehearsals following long club shows, with the result that the young musicians quickly developed their instrumental skills. In late 1963, the group split from Hawkins over personal differences. They had grown tired of playing the same songs so often and wanted to perform original material, and they were also wary of Hawkins's heavy-handed leadership. He would fine
17523-560: The birth of his grandson, Lavon (Lee) Henry Collins. In 2008, Helm performed at Warren Haynes 's Mountain Jam Music Festival in Hunter, New York , playing alongside Haynes on the last day of the three-day festival. Helm also joined guitarist Bob Weir and his band RatDog on stage as they closed out the festival. Helm performed to great acclaim at the 2008 Bonnaroo Music Festival in Manchester, Tennessee . Helm drummed on
17700-536: The black popular music of the late Forties and early Fifties". Further, Little Richard built his ground-breaking sound of the same era with an uptempo blend of boogie-woogie, New Orleans rhythm and blues, and the soul and fervor of gospel music vocalization. Less frequently cited as an influencer, LaVern Baker was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1991. The Hall remarked that her "fiery fusion of blues, jazz and R&B showcased her alluring vocals and set
17877-563: The charts with " Move It ". At the same time, TV shows such as Six-Five Special and Oh Boy! promoted the careers of British rock and rollers like Marty Wilde and Adam Faith . Cliff Richard and his backing band, the Shadows , were the most successful home grown rock and roll based acts of the era. Other leading acts included Billy Fury , Joe Brown , and Johnny Kidd & the Pirates , whose 1960 hit song " Shakin' All Over " became
18054-632: The concept of rock and roll had been defined, Billboard magazine columnist Maurie Orodenker started to use the term to describe upbeat recordings such as "Rock Me" by Sister Rosetta Tharpe ; her style on that recording was described as "rock-and-roll spiritual singing". By 1943, the "Rock and Roll Inn" in South Merchantville, New Jersey , was established as a music venue. In 1951, Cleveland , Ohio, disc jockey Alan Freed began playing this music style, and referring to it as "rock and roll" on his mainstream radio program, which popularized
18231-415: The crossover of African-American "race music" to a growing white youth audience, the popularization of rock and roll involved both black performers reaching a white audience and white musicians performing African-American music. Rock and roll appeared at a time when racial tensions in the United States were entering a new phase, with the beginnings of the civil rights movement for desegregation , leading to
18408-411: The death of Danko, the remaining members decided to break up for good. Helm would go on to have a successful solo career, winning multiple Grammy Awards in the folk and Americana categories until his 2012 death, while Hudson worked as a featured session musician. Robertson died in 2023, leaving Hudson as the only living member of the original lineup. Music critic Bruce Eder described The Band as "one of
18585-588: The development of what was to be defined as rock and roll as a distinct genre. Because the development of rock and roll was an evolutionary process, no single record can be identified as unambiguously "the first" rock and roll record. Contenders for the title of " first rock and roll record " include Sister Rosetta Tharpe 's " Strange Things Happening Every Day " (1944), " That's All Right " by Arthur Crudup (1946), " Move It On Over " by Hank Williams (1947), " The Fat Man " by Fats Domino (1949), Goree Carter 's " Rock Awhile " (1949), and Jimmy Preston 's " Rock
18762-427: The electric guitar as its centerpiece, adapting his rock band instrumentation from the basic blues band instrumentation of a lead guitar, second chord instrument, bass and drums. In 2017, Robert Christgau declared that "Chuck Berry did in fact invent rock 'n' roll", explaining that this artist "came the closest of any single figure to being the one who put all the essential pieces together". Rock and roll arrived at
18939-511: The electric guitar, creating what is instantly recognizable as rock guitar. This proposal by Richards neglects the black guitarists who did the same thing before Berry, such as Goree Carter , Gatemouth Brown , and the originator of the style, T-Bone Walker . Country boogie and Chicago electric blues supplied many of the elements that would be seen as characteristic of rock and roll. Inspired by electric blues , Chuck Berry introduced an aggressive guitar sound to rock and roll, and established
19116-455: The electronic treatment of sound by such innovators as Joe Meek , and the " Wall of Sound " productions of Phil Spector , continued desegregation of the charts, the rise of surf music , garage rock and the Twist dance craze. Surf rock in particular, noted for the use of reverb-drenched guitars, became one of the most popular forms of American rock of the early 1960s. While the sounds of
19293-549: The exception of " The Weight ". However, as Manuel's health deteriorated and Robbie Robertson 's songwriting increasingly looked to the South for influence and direction, subsequent albums relied more and more on Helm's vocals, alone or in harmony with Danko. Helm was primarily a drummer and vocalist and increasingly sang lead, although, like all his bandmates, he was also a multi-instrumentalist. On occasion Manuel switched to drums while Helm played mandolin , guitar, or bass guitar (while Danko played fiddle ) on some songs. Helm played
19470-897: The film and Robertson who produced it. With the breakup of the Band in its original form, Helm began working on a solo-ensemble album, Levon Helm & the RCO All-Stars , with Paul Butterfield , Fred Carter, Jr. , Emmeretta Marks, Howard Johnson , Steve Cropper , Donald "Duck" Dunn , Booker T. Jones , and others. Levon Helm and the RCO All-Stars recorded Live at The Palladium NYC, New Year's Eve 1977 . The CD album released in March 2006 features over one hour of blues-rock music performed by an ensemble featuring Levon Helm (drums/vocals), Dr. John (keys/vocals), Paul Butterfield (harmonica/vocals), Fred Carter (guitar/vocals), Donald "Duck" Dunn (bass), Cropper (guitar), Lou Marini (saxophones), Howard Johnson (tuba/baritone sax), Tom "Bones" Malone (trombone), and Alan Rubin (trumpet). This
19647-420: The final stages of his battle with cancer. Please send your prayers and love to him as he makes his way through this part of his journey. Thank you fans and music lovers who have made his life so filled with joy and celebration ... he has loved nothing more than to play, to fill the room up with music, lay down the back beat, and make the people dance! He did it every time he took the stage ... We appreciate all
19824-463: The greatest Black musicians like BB King, Arthur Crudup and Fats Domino. His style of music combined with black influences created controversy during a turbulent time in history. Many other popular rock and roll singers of the time, such as Fats Domino and Little Richard , came out of the black rhythm and blues tradition, making the music attractive to white audiences, and are not usually classed as "rockabilly". Presley popularized rock and roll on
20001-468: The group (with the exception of Helm's), giving him major control of the presentation of the group's material, including latter-day compilations. Richard Bell died of multiple myeloma in June 2007. The Band received a Lifetime Achievement Grammy Award on February 9, 2008, but there was no reunion of former members. In honor of the event, Helm held a Midnight Ramble in Woodstock. He continued to perform and released several albums. On April 17, 2012, it
20178-649: The group as "the Secret Squirrels"), Michael Angelo D'Arrigo with various members of the Sistine Chapel, Johnny Johnson, Ithalia, David Bromberg , the Youngers, and Grace Potter and the Nocturnals . During this period, Helm switched to the matched grip and adopted a less busy, greatly simplified drumming style, as opposed to the traditional grip he used during his years with the Band. Helm
20355-533: The group came into its own. The group decided on it as their official name began performing as under it in from 1968 onward. Dylan continued to collaborate with The Band over the course of their career, most notably in a joint 1974 tour . In late summer 1965, Bob Dylan was looking for a backup band for his first U.S. "electric" tour. Levon and the Hawks were recommended by blues singer John P. Hammond , who earlier that year had recorded with Helm, Hudson and Robertson on his Vanguard album So Many Roads . Around
20532-521: The group in the autumn of 1965 for what turned out to be a two-year layoff, being replaced by a range of touring drummers (most notably Mickey Jones ) and Manuel, who began to double on the instrument. He spent time with his family in Arkansas, and undertook sojourns in Los Angeles , where he experimented with LSD and performed with Bobby Keys , and Memphis and New Orleans , where he worked on
20709-524: The group members, The Band forged ahead with their next album, Cahoots (1971). Cahoots featured Dylan's " When I Paint My Masterpiece ", "4% Pantomime" (with Van Morrison ), and " Life Is a Carnival ", the last featuring a horn arrangement by Allen Toussaint . Toussaint's contribution was a critical addition to The Band's next project, and the group would later record two songs written by Toussaint: " Holy Cow " on Moondog Matinee and "You See Me" on Jubilation . In late December 1971, The Band recorded
20886-459: The group released their eighth studio album, Jericho . Without Robbie Robertson as primary lyricist, much of the songwriting for the album came from outside of the group. Also that year, The Band, along with Ronnie Hawkins, Bob Dylan, and other performers, appeared at U.S. President Bill Clinton 's 1993 "Blue Jean Bash" inauguration party. In 1994, The Band performed at Woodstock '94 . Later that year Robertson appeared with Danko and Hudson as
21063-409: The group's songs turned to darker themes of fear and alienation: the influence on their next work is self-explanatory. Stage Fright (1970) was engineered by musician-engineer-producer Todd Rundgren and recorded on stage at the iconic Woodstock Playhouse . As with their previous, self-titled record, Robertson was credited with most of the songwriting. Initial critical reaction was positive, but it
21240-443: The group, then referred to simply as "the band,” as it was known around Woodstock. While contemplating a recording contract, Helm had dubbed the band "The Crackers.” However, when Robertson and their new manager Albert Grossman worked out the contracts, the group's name was given as "The Band.” Under these contracts, the Band was contracted to Grossman, who in turn contracted their services to Capitol Records . This arrangement allowed
21417-403: The group—with the 1976 concert footage. The resulting concert film – documentary was released in 1978, along with a three-LP soundtrack . Helm later wrote about The Last Waltz in his autobiography, This Wheel's on Fire , in which he made the case that it had been primarily Robbie Robertson's project and that Robertson had forced The Band's breakup on the rest of the group. Robertson offered
21594-515: The guests were fundamental to The Band's existence and growth: Ronnie Hawkins and Bob Dylan. Other guests they admired (and in most cases had worked with before) included Muddy Waters , Dr. John , Van Morrison, Ringo Starr , Eric Clapton, Ron Wood , Bobby Charles , Neil Diamond , and Paul Butterfield . The concert was filmed by Robertson's friend, filmmaker Martin Scorsese . In 1977, The Band released their seventh studio album Islands , which fulfilled their record contract with Capitol so that
21771-453: The late set of a Rick Danko solo show at The Roxy , the group performed "Stage Fright", "The Shape I'm In", and "The Weight" for an encore. Although the members of the group intended to continue working on studio projects, they drifted apart after the release of Islands in March 1977. The Band resumed touring in 1983 without Robertson. Accomplished musician from Woodstock, NY, Jim Weider became lead guitarist. Robertson had found success with
21948-399: The levees and plantations, took in folk songs, and features blues and rhythm". In discussing Alan Freed's contribution to the genre, two significant sources emphasized the importance of African-American rhythm and blues. Greg Harris, then the executive director of the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame, offered this comment to CNN : "Freed's role in breaking down racial barriers in U.S. pop culture in
22125-402: The live album Rock of Ages , which was released in the summer of 1972. On Rock of Ages , they were bolstered by the addition of a horn section, with arrangements written by Toussaint. Dylan appeared on stage on New Year's Eve and performed four songs with the group, including a version of "When I Paint My Masterpiece". In 1973, The Band released the covers album Moondog Matinee . There
22302-607: The love and support and concern. From his daughter Amy, and wife Sandy On April 18, Robertson revealed on his Facebook page that he had a long visit with Helm at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center the previous Sunday. On the same day, Garth Hudson posted on his personal website that he was "too sad for words". He then left a link for a video of himself and the Alexis P. Suter Band performing Bob Dylan's song " Knocking on Heaven's Door ". Helm died on April 19 from complications of throat cancer at age 71. The Band The Band
22479-580: The magazine's history ; Greil Marcus 's articles contributed to The Band's mystique. The Band was also featured on the cover of Time (January 12, 1970), the first rock group after the Beatles, over two years earlier, to achieve this rare distinction. David Attie 's unused photographs for this cover—among the very few studio portraits taken during the Band's prime—have only recently been discovered, and were featured in Daniel Roher's Robbie Robertson documentary Once Were Brothers: Robbie Robertson and
22656-533: The manner in which they ultimately adopted the name "The Band". In The Last Waltz , Manuel claimed that they wanted to call themselves either "the Honkies " or "the Crackers " (which they used when backing Dylan for a January 1968 concert tribute to Woody Guthrie ), but these names were vetoed by their record label; Robertson suggests that during their time with Dylan everyone just referred to them as "the band" and
22833-498: The most popular and influential rock groups in the world, their music embraced by critics ... as seriously as the music of the Beatles and the Rolling Stones ." The Band was inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame in 1989 and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994. In 2004, Rolling Stone ranked them 50th on its list of the " 100 Greatest Artists of All Time ", and ranked "The Weight" 41st on its list of
23010-524: The music had a positive influence on the civil rights movement , because of its widespread appeal to both Black American and White American teenagers. The term "rock and roll" is defined by Greg Kot in Encyclopædia Britannica as the music that originated in the mid-1950s and later developed "into the more encompassing international style known as rock music ". The term is sometimes also used as synonymous with "rock music" and
23187-581: The music. Many early rock and roll songs dealt with issues of cars, school, dating, and clothing. The lyrics of rock and roll songs described events and conflicts to which most listeners could relate through personal experience. Topics such as sex that had generally been considered taboo began to appear in rock and roll lyrics. This new music tried to break boundaries and express emotions that people were actually feeling but had not discussed openly. An awakening began to take place in American youth culture. In
23364-666: The name of rock and roll". Not often acknowledged in the history of rock and roll, Todd Storz , the owner of radio station KOWH in Omaha , Nebraska, was the first to adopt the Top 40 format (in 1953), playing only the most popular records in rotation. His station, and the numerous others which adopted the concept, helped to promote the genre: by the mid 50s, the playlist included artists such as " Presley , Lewis , Haley , Berry and Domino ". The origins of rock and roll have been fiercely debated by commentators and historians of music. There
23541-508: The name stuck. Initially they disliked the moniker, but eventually they grew to like it, thinking it both humble and presumptuous. In 1969, Rolling Stone referred to them as "the band from Big Pink". Their debut album, Music from Big Pink was released in July 1968 and was widely acclaimed. It included three songs written or co-written by Dylan (" This Wheel's on Fire ", " Tears of Rage " and " I Shall Be Released ") as well as " The Weight ", which became one of their best-known songs after it
23718-474: The ongoing British Invasion. Another example was Bobby Fuller and his group The Bobby Fuller Four , who were especially inspired by Buddy Holly and stuck with a rock and roll style, scoring their most notable hit with "I Fought the Law" (1965). In the 1950s, Britain was well placed to receive American rock and roll music and culture. It shared a common language , had been exposed to American culture through
23895-418: The phrase. Several sources suggest that Freed found the term, used as a synonym for sexual intercourse, on the record " Sixty Minute Man " by Billy Ward and his Dominoes . The lyrics include the line, "I rock 'em, roll 'em all night long". Freed did not acknowledge the suggestion about that source in interviews, and explained the term as follows: "Rock 'n roll is really swing with a modern name. It began on
24072-512: The physical looks of the artist rather than the music, contributing to the successful careers of Ricky Nelson , Tommy Sands , Bobby Vee , Jimmy Clanton , and the Philadelphia trio of Bobby Rydell , Frankie Avalon , and Fabian , who all became "teen idols". Some music historians have also pointed to important and innovative developments that built on rock and roll in this period, including multitrack recording , developed by Les Paul ,
24249-465: The public at his home in Woodstock. The Midnight Ramble was an outgrowth of an idea Helm explained to Martin Scorsese in The Last Waltz . Earlier in the 20th century, Helm recounted, traveling medicine shows and music shows such as F. S. Wolcott's Original Rabbit's Foot Minstrels, featuring African-American blues singers and dancers, would put on titillating performances in rural areas. (This
24426-433: The purpose of differentiation, this article deals with the first definition. In the earliest rock and roll styles, either the piano or saxophone was typically the lead instrument. These instruments were generally replaced or supplemented by the electric guitar in the mid-to-late 1950s. The beat is essentially a dance rhythm with an accentuated backbeat , almost always provided by a snare drum . Classic rock and roll
24603-409: The release of Dirt Farmer , Helm's first studio solo album since 1982. Dedicated to his parents and co-produced by his daughter Amy, the album combines traditional tunes Levon recalled from his youth with newer songs (by Steve Earle , Paul Kennerley , and others) which flow from similar historical streams. The album was released to almost immediate critical acclaim, and earned him a Grammy Award in
24780-528: The same period, particularly on the West Coast and in the Midwest , the development of jump blues , with its guitar riffs, prominent beats and shouted lyrics, prefigured many later developments. In the documentary film Hail! Hail! Rock 'n' Roll , Keith Richards proposes that Chuck Berry developed his brand of rock and roll by transposing the familiar two-note lead line of jump blues piano directly to
24957-757: The same time, one of their friends from Toronto, Mary Martin, was working as secretary to Dylan's manager, Albert Grossman . She told Dylan to visit the group at Le Coq d'Or Tavern, a club on Yonge Street , in Toronto—though Robertson recollects it was the Friar's Tavern, just down the street. Her advice to Dylan: "You gotta see these guys." After hearing The Band play and meeting with Robertson, Dylan invited Helm and Robertson to join his backing band. After two concerts backing Dylan, Helm and Robertson told Dylan of their loyalty to their bandmates and told him that they would continue with him only if he hired all of
25134-497: The show, including Danko, who performed "Mystery Train". Danko also released two collaborative albums with Eric Andersen and Jonas Fjeld , along with some live and compilation albums in the 1990s and 2000s; many of the latter records were produced by Aaron L. Hurwitz and are on the Breeze Hill/Woodstock Records Label. In the late 1970s and 1980s, Helm released several solo albums and toured with
25311-684: The slow progress in the New York studio, Dylan accepted the suggestion of producer Bob Johnston and moved the recording sessions to Nashville. In Nashville, Robertson's guitar was prominent on the Blonde on Blonde recordings, especially in the song " Leopard-Skin Pill-Box Hat ", but the other members of the Hawks did not attend the sessions. During the European leg of their 1966 world tour, Mickey Jones replaced Sandy Konikoff on drums. Dylan and
25488-573: The song has been seen as the major breakthrough for the rock and roll genre, as its immense popularity introduced the music to a global audience. In 1956, the arrival of rockabilly was underlined by the success of songs like " Folsom Prison Blues " by Johnny Cash , " Blue Suede Shoes " by Perkins, and the No. 1 hit " Heartbreak Hotel " by Presley. For a few years it became the most commercially successful form of rock and roll. Later rockabilly acts, particularly performing songwriters like Buddy Holly , would be
25665-494: The stage for the rock and roll surge of the Fifties". "Rockabilly" usually (but not exclusively) refers to the type of rock and roll music which was played and recorded in the mid-1950s primarily by white singers such as Elvis Presley , Carl Perkins , Johnny Cash , and Jerry Lee Lewis , who drew mainly on the country roots of the music. Presley was greatly influenced by and incorporated his style of music with that of some of
25842-626: The stationing of troops in the country, and shared many social developments, including the emergence of distinct youth sub-cultures, which in Britain included the Teddy Boys and the rockers . Trad jazz became popular in the UK, and many of its musicians were influenced by related American styles, including boogie woogie and the blues . The skiffle craze, led by Lonnie Donegan , used amateurish versions of American folk songs and encouraged many of
26019-516: The subsequent generation of rock and roll, folk, R&B and beat musicians to start performing. At the same time British audiences were beginning to encounter American rock and roll, initially through films including Blackboard Jungle (1955) and Rock Around the Clock (1956). Both movies featured the Bill Haley & His Comets hit " Rock Around the Clock ", which first entered the British charts in early 1955 – four months before it reached
26196-523: The traditional song " The Baffled Knight " to the folklorist James Madison Carpenter in the early 1930s, which he would have learned at sea in the 1800s; the recording can be heard on the Vaughan Williams Memorial Library website. Various gospel, blues and swing recordings used the phrase before it became widely popular. " Bosom of Abraham ", an African-American spiritual that was documented no later than 1867 (just after
26373-512: The use of his voice. His 2007 comeback album Dirt Farmer earned the Grammy Award for Best Traditional Folk Album in February 2008, and in November of that year, Rolling Stone magazine ranked him No. 91 in its list of 100 Greatest Singers of All Time. In 2010, Electric Dirt , his 2009 follow-up to Dirt Farmer , won the first Grammy Award for Best Americana Album , a category inaugurated in 2010. In 2011, his live album Ramble at
26550-451: The way for desegregation, in creating a new form of music that encouraged racial cooperation and shared experience. Many authors have argued that early rock and roll was instrumental in the way both white and black teenagers identified themselves. Several rock historians have claimed that rock and roll was one of the first music genres to define an age group . It gave teenagers a sense of belonging, even when they were alone. Rock and roll
26727-804: The white market also had much better distribution networks and were generally much more profitable. Famously, Pat Boone recorded sanitized versions of songs recorded by the likes of Fats Domino, Little Richard, the Flamingos and Ivory Joe Hunter. Later, as those songs became popular, the original artists' recordings received radio play as well. The cover versions were not necessarily straightforward imitations. For example, Bill Haley's incompletely bowdlerized cover of " Shake, Rattle and Roll " transformed Big Joe Turner's humorous and racy tale of adult love into an energetic teen dance number, while Georgia Gibbs replaced Etta James ' tough, sarcastic vocal in "Roll With Me, Henry" (covered as "Dance With Me, Henry") with
26904-486: The world, because we knew what his vision was for himself, and we were all younger and more ambitious musically." Upon leaving Hawkins, the group was briefly known as the Levon Helm Sextet, with a sixth member, saxophonist Jerry Penfound, and then as Levon and the Hawks after Penfound's departure. In 1965, they released a single on Ware Records under the name the Canadian Squires, but they returned as Levon and
27081-519: Was 80 percent recovered. The Levon Helm Band featured his daughter Amy Helm , Larry Campbell , Teresa Williams, Jim Weider (The Band's last guitarist), Jimmy Vivino , Mike Merritt , Brian Mitchell , Erik Lawrence , Steven Bernstein , Howard Johnson ( tuba player in the horn section on the Band's Rock of Ages and The Last Waltz ), Clark Gayton , Jay Collins (Helm's now former son-in-law), Byron Isaacs, and blues harmonica player Little Sammy Davis . Helm hosted Midnight Rambles that were open to
27258-573: Was a Canadian-American rock band formed in Toronto, Ontario , in 1967. It consisted of Canadians Rick Danko (bass, guitar, vocals, fiddle), Garth Hudson (organ, keyboards, accordion, saxophone), Richard Manuel (piano, drums, vocals), Robbie Robertson (guitar, vocals, piano, percussion), and American Levon Helm (drums, vocals, mandolin, guitar, bass). The Band's music combined elements of Americana , folk , rock, jazz and country , which influenced artists such as George Harrison , Elton John ,
27435-581: Was a frequent opening act. Helm was a favorite of radio personality Don Imus and was frequently featured on Imus in the Morning . In the summer of 2009, it was reported that a reality television series centering on the Midnight Ramble was in development. In 2012, Levon Helm and his "midnight rambles" were featured on the PBS Arts site, "Sound Tracks: Music Without Borders," including a poignant last interview with PBS's Marco Werman. The autumn of 2007 saw
27612-502: Was a guest on accordion on some dates. Helm played drums and harmonica and sang "The Weight" and "Up on Cripple Creek" each night. In the televised 1989 Juno Awards celebration, the Band was inducted into the Juno Awards' Hall of Fame. Helm was not present at the ceremony, but a taped segment of him offering his thanks was broadcast after the acceptance speeches by Rick Danko and Robbie Robertson. Richard Manuel's children accepted
27789-401: Was a recurring source of concern for older generations, who worried about juvenile delinquency and social rebellion, particularly because, to a large extent, rock and roll culture was shared by different racial and social groups. In America, that concern was conveyed even in youth cultural artifacts such as comic books . In "There's No Romance in Rock and Roll" from True Life Romance (1956),
27966-473: Was also in the group at that time. Hawkins's act was popular in and around Toronto and nearby Hamilton, and he had an effective way of eliminating his musical competition: when a promising band appeared, Hawkins would hire their best musicians for his own group; Robertson, Danko, and Manuel came under Hawkins's tutelage this way. While most of the Hawks were eager to join Hawkins's group, getting Hudson to join
28143-401: Was also turned into a song by the Band, "The W.S. Walcott Medicine Show," with the name altered so the lyric was easier to sing.) "After the finale, they'd have the midnight ramble," Helm told Scorsese. With young children off the premises, the show resumed: "The songs would get a little bit juicier. The jokes would get a little funnier and the prettiest dancer would really get down and shake it
28320-409: Was announced via Helm's official website that he was in the "final stages of cancer"; he died two days later. In December 2020, it was announced that the third album of The Band, Stage Fright , would get an expanded reissue. The album has alternate versions of some songs. Robbie Robertson died at the age of 80 on August 9, 2023, after battling prostate cancer. With Robertson's death, Garth Hudson
28497-676: Was busy touring every year during the 2000s, generally traveling by tour bus to venues in eastern Canada and the eastern United States. After 2007, he performed in large venues such the Beacon Theatre in New York. Dr. John and Warren Haynes (the Allman Brothers Band , Gov't Mule ) and Garth Hudson played at the concerts along with several other guests. At a show in Vancouver Elvis Costello joined to sing " Tears of Rage ". The Alexis P. Suter Band
28674-652: Was cast as Loretta Lynn 's father in the 1980 film Coal Miner's Daughter , followed three years later by a role as U.S. Air Force test pilot and engineer Capt. Jack Ridley , in The Right Stuff . Helm was also the latter film's narrator. 1987's under-appreciated End of the Line featured Levon as a small-town railroad employee alongside Wilford Brimley and Kevin Bacon . He played a Kentucky backwoods preacher in Fire Down Below . He played an eccentric old man in
28851-469: Was filled by old friend Stan Szelest (who died not long after) and then by Richard Bell. Bell had played with Ronnie Hawkins after the departure of the original Hawks, and was best known from his days as a member of Janis Joplin's Full Tilt Boogie Band . The Band was inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame at the 1989 Juno Awards , where Robertson was reunited with original members Danko and Hudson. With Canadian country rock superstars Blue Rodeo as
29028-516: Was followed in 1978 by the solo album Levon Helm . More solo albums were released in 1980 and 1982: American Son and (once again) Levon Helm , both produced by Fred Carter, Jr. He also participated in musician Paul Kennerley 's 1980 country music concept album , The Legend of Jesse James singing the role of Jesse James alongside Johnny Cash , Emmylou Harris , Charlie Daniels , Albert Lee , and others. In addition to his work as musician, Helm also acted in several dramatic films. He
29205-524: Was influenced by each of these styles, which he heard on the Grand Ole Opry on radio station WSM and R&B on radio station WLAC in Nashville . He also saw the last vestiges of minstrelsy and other traveling variety shows, such as F. S. Wolcott's Original Rabbit's Foot Minstrels , which featured top Black artists of the era. A key early influence on Helm was Sonny Boy Williamson II , who played electric blues and early rhythm and blues on
29382-453: Was intended to be Dylan's next album, Blonde on Blonde , resulted in " One of Us Must Know (Sooner or Later) ", which was released as a single a few weeks later and was subsequently selected for the album. On "One of Us Must Know", Dylan was backed by drummer Bobby Gregg , bassist Danko (or Bill Lee ), guitarist Robbie Robertson, pianist Paul Griffin , and Al Kooper (who was more a guitarist than an organist) playing organ. Frustrated by
29559-459: Was more difficult. Having earned a college degree, Hudson planned on a career as a music teacher, and was only interested in playing rock music as a hobby. The Hawks admired his wild, full-bore organ style and asked him repeatedly to join. Hudson finally agreed, under the condition that the Hawks each pay him $ 10 per week to be their instructor and purchase a new state-of-the-art Lowrey organ ; all music theory questions were directed to Hudson. There
29736-543: Was no tour in support of the album, which garnered mixed reviews. However, on July 28, 1973, they played at Summer Jam at Watkins Glen , a massive concert that took place at the Grand Prix Raceway outside Watkins Glen, New York . The event, which was attended by over 600,000 fans, also featured the Grateful Dead and the Allman Brothers Band . It was during this event that discussions began about
29913-400: Was not involved in the initial recording, he did perform in later sessions and in overdubs recorded in 1975 before the album's release. The sessions with Dylan ended in October 1967, with Helm having rejoined the group by that time, and the Hawks began writing their own songs at Big Pink. When they went into the recording studio, they still did not have a name for themselves. Stories vary as to
30090-608: Was practically a group member: he aided in arrangements in addition to playing occasional piano and tuba . Simon reported that he was often asked about the distinctive horn sections featured so effectively on the first two albums: people wanted to know how they had achieved such memorable sounds. Simon stated that, besides Hudson (an accomplished saxophonist), the others had only rudimentary horn skills, and achieved their sound simply by creatively using their limited technique. Rolling Stone lavished praise on The Band in this era, giving them more attention than perhaps any other group in
30267-583: Was seen as a disappointment from the previous two albums for various reasons. After recording Stage Fright , The Band was among the acts participating in the Festival Express , an all-star rock concert tour of Canada by train that also included Janis Joplin , the Grateful Dead and future Band member Richard Bell (at the time he was a member of Joplin's band). In the concert documentary film, released in 2003, Danko can be seen participating in
30444-416: Was the best album we had done since The Band ." The album also produced more experimentation from Hudson, switching to synthesizers, showcased on "Jupiter Hollow". By the mid-1970s, Robbie Robertson was weary of touring. After Northern Lights – Southern Cross failed to meet commercial expectations, much of the group's 1976 tour was confined to theaters and smaller arenas in secondary markets (including
30621-452: Was their 1999 version of Bob Dylan's " One Too Many Mornings ", which they contributed to the Dylan tribute album Tangled Up in Blues . On December 10, 1999, Rick Danko died in his sleep at the age of 55. Following his death, The Band broke up for good. The final configuration of the group included Richard Bell (piano), Randy Ciarlante (drums), and Jim Weider (guitar). In 2002, Robertson bought all other former members' financial interests in
30798-409: Was used in 1940s recordings and reviews of what became known as " rhythm and blues " music aimed at a black audience. Huey "Piano" Smith credits Cha Cha Hogan , a jump-blues shouter and comic in New Orleans, with popularizing the term in his 1950 song "My Walking Baby". In 1934, the song "Rock and Roll" by the Boswell Sisters appeared in the film Transatlantic Merry-Go-Round . In 1942, before
30975-467: Was used in the 1969 film Easy Rider . While a thematic continuity ran through the music, the musical style varied from song to song. In early 1969, after the success of Music from Big Pink , The Band went on tour, starting with an appearance at Winterland Ballroom . They performed at the Woodstock Festival (their performance was not included in the famed Woodstock film because of legal complications), and later that year they performed with Dylan at
31152-491: Was widely bootlegged (and mistakenly placed at the Royal Albert Hall ). In a 1971 review for Creem , critic Dave Marsh wrote, "My response is that crystallization of everything that is rock'n'roll music, at its finest, was to allow my jaw to drop, my body to move, to leap out of the chair ... It is an experience that one desires simply to share, to play over and over again for those he knows thirst for such pleasure. If I speak in an almost worshipful sense about this music, it
31329-413: Was written during the Basement Tapes sessions, and the Byrds , on Sweetheart of the Rodeo (1968), which featured two Basement Tapes covers. The Band featured songs that evoked old-time rural America, from the Civil War in " The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down " to the unionization of farm workers in " King Harvest (Has Surely Come) ". These first two records were produced by John Simon , who
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