In June of 2020, with a pandemic raging, Robbie Robertson took some time to look back at his career with the Band, from writing their greatest hits to their work with Bob Dylan. The release of his documentary Once Were Brothers had him a reflective mood, ready to share new …
Read More »Robbie Robertson Was the Genius At the Heart of the Band's Communal Vision
If there’s a moment that sums up the genius of Robbie Robertson, it’s the part in The Last Waltz when they play “It Makes No Difference.” All five brothers in the Band perform like they’re reading each other’s minds. Every detail is perfect: Robertson’s guitar, Rick Danko’s voice, Garth Hudson’s …
Read More »Daniel Lanois on the Moment Robbie Robertson Reset His Career
In 1986, ten years after the Band had played “The Last Waltz,” its final show with the original lineup, Robbie Robertson decided the time had come to return to music. He’d dabbled in acting and film scoring — not to mention some wild Hollywood times that he would later begin …
Read More »Robbie Robertson, Master Storyteller Who Led the Band, Dead at 80
Robbie Robertson, the Band‘s guitarist and primary songwriter who penned “The Weight,” “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down,” “Up on Cripple Creek,” and many other beloved classics, died Wednesday at age 80. Robertson’s management company confirmed the musician’s death. “Robbie was surrounded by his family at the time of …
Read More »Watch Robbie Robertson's Finale Encore With The Band at 'The Last Waltz'
The life of Robbie Robertson — who died Wednesday morning after a long illness — can neatly be divided into everything that happened before The Last Waltz and everything that happened afterward. The 1976 all-star concert at San Francisco’s Winterland Ballroom marked the end of his career with the Band, …
Read More »Producer Dave Cobb Remembers Robbie Robertson: 'One of the Godfathers of Americana'
Dave Cobb had just gotten off a plane when he learned that Robbie Robertson, the leader of the Band and one of rock & roll’s great lyricists and guitar players, had died Wednesday at 80. The Nashville producer behind such modern-day milestones as Jason Isbell’s Southeastern, Chris Stapleton’s Traveller, and …
Read More »Robbie Robertson Remembers Ronnie Hawkins: 'The One Who Made This All Happen'
It’s no exaggeration to say that if Ronnie Hawkins, the rockabilly legend who died Sunday at 87, didn’t exist, that rock music would not be the same. The Arkansas singer who spent most of his career in Canada mentored and worked with numerous rock legends, with his band the Hawks …
Read More »Ronnie Hawkins, Rockabilly Legend Who Mentored Rock's Greatest, Dead at 87
Ronnie Hawkins, the Canadian rockabilly singer known as “the Hawk,” who mentored the Band and played with rock’s greats, died Sunday morning. He was 87. “He went peacefully and he looked as handsome as ever,” Wanda Hawkins, his wife, told the Canadian Press. A cause of death was not immediately …
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