.
Back in 1986, we had a day job on a construction site during the summer before going off to Seminary and after coming home one evening and plopping ourself on the couch next to Pops who was evidently watching a PBS pledge drive on our clunky 27" RCA cathode ray tube symbol of subarban middle-class status, we heard emanating from said symbol a sound both familiar yet unique... Ahh... so this is what rock and roll is supposed to sound like.
Levon Helm, drummer for The Band, the lone American amongst 4 other Canadians yet which formed a veritable Smithsonian of popular American music styles (rock, blues, R&B, country, folk, Dixieland jazz) died of cancer this past Thursday.
Ladies and Gentlemen, from Elaine, Arkansas via Turkey Scratch, Arkansas and to every dive, strip club, honky-tonk and concert venue imaginable, it's Levon Helm and The Band playing that song we heard that evening from The Last Waltz, "Up on Cripple Creek".
................................
Levon, God bless ya, man, you are an American original.
Posts
3 comments:
This was played in Tribute on the Bill Carroll show Friday on KFI.
This was played in Tribute on the Bill Carroll show Friday on KFI.
I watched their farewell concert with Clapton, Baez, and others.
He smoked THREE packs a day.
Glad I quit.
Post a Comment