TAKE A LOAD OFF, ROBBIE
It’s not been the easiest past few weeks for bands named after a bird of prey – Robbie Robertson got his start with the Hawks, the backing group for rockabilly singer and pancan miracle Ronnie Hawkins. Robertson and his bandmates – Rick Danko, Garth Hudson, Richard Manuel, and Levon Helm – split with Hawkins over creative differences, and gained a wider audience while backing Bob Dylan on his divisive electric tour. The reputation as a backing band stuck enough that they took “the Band” as their own monicker, but came onto their own as a solo outfit with enduring pieces of folk rock such as Robertson-penned tunes “The Weight” and “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down”.
Martin Scorsese captured their farewell tour in rockumentary The Last Waltz, and it kickstarted a lengthy collaborative career where Robertson supplied music for Raging Bull, Casino, and other Scorsese films. Robertson was 80 and leaves a One Man Band with Garth Hudson the last standing of the Band’s classic lineup. With a name like that, Gris Gris was always going to pick him, and sharing the love is folkies gang Buying Max Yasgur’s Farm.
Robbie Robertson
5 July 1943 – 9 August 2023, aged 80
2 TEAMS (💀💀💀💀💀💀 6 POINTS)