Tremendously underrated musician, put the magic in so many of The Band’s songs.
Now they are all gone.
Ohhh
That is bad news.
Time to put on some Band music…
That guy showed up everywhere. Here’s a fun place where he added some nice keyboards (and is also in the video):
All original members of The Band are gone now. My wife and I drove by The Big Pink while on vacation last year. It still looks the same.
RIP Garth
Googling “Garth Hudson” and “The Band”, I apparently have never heard of him or the group. What one song of theirs is the catchiest and most likable by new listeners?
The Weight.
Either that one, or maybe “Up on Cripple Creek.”
I had just put on the radio, and Chest Fever came on followed by the host talking about Garth passing and then a good half hour of various Band greats.
Another one to try is “Ophelia.”
I was too young to see them with Robbie. I did see them play a couple of times in the 80s. The Band was one of the opening acts for Rogers Waters The Wall concert at the Berlin Wall. They also participated. Here’s one with Garth on the accordion.
Also Rag Mama Rag. Though Whispering Pines may be their high point.
ABC Nightly new featured Garth tonight.
Played keyboards and Sax for The Band.
I’ve heard they backed Ronnie Hawkins as The Hawks. The Band then played for Bob Dylan. Before recording on their own.
RIP
They reunited with him on Planet Waves - Wikipedia. I’m not a huge Dylan fan, but I do like that album.
One of the most original and distinctive keyboard players in rock. He was responsible for much of that special Band sound that was so unique and never reproduced, though I couldn’t put it in words. It was a special magic. RIP, Garth.
“The Weight” is their most catchy and likeable song, IMHO.
But it’s also terribly overplayed and so I find I don’t like it much anymore.
I’m too young to have seen The Band the first time around, but I caught them on one of their early 90s tours when I was in university. They sounded amazing, though I think I remember the horrible-smelling skunkweed that the guy behind me was smoking all night. Met Danko and Hudson after the show and got their autographs. Danko was warm and friendly, Hudson came across as a bit of a mysterious eccentric. I kind of go back and forth on the group, TBH. They made some truly stellar music, but I also appreciate the line I heard recently, “I don’t know the Band’s music, but I once watched a Civil War documentary while sitting on an accordion case, so I get the jist of it.”
Fave song of theirs might be “It Makes No Difference” which I think has Danko on lead vocal. Just heartbreaking.
“The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down” is also a good gateway tune, no?
As veryfrank alluded to, The Band excelled at writing and performing songs that sounded rather like American folk classics. The Grateful Dead – especially Jerry Garcia (and their lyricist Robert Hunter) – were good at this, too, especially on the two albums they recorded during their annus mirabilis (1970). (I suppose Gillian Welch has taken this mantle on in many of her songs with David Rawlings).