Leader of The Band dead at age 80. May he know the mercy of God. Hard to imagine The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down being made today, since the deeply censorious forces currently controlling our culture have no sympathy for enemies, and the Confederacy, dead for almost 160 years, is definitely on the enemy side of their ledger. Of course Robertson who wrote the song in 1969, a turbulent time in American history, was likely not making a political statement, but rather a song about defeat and the human cost of war. That Leftists like Joan Baez had no problem singing it illustrates that we were a much freer and more tolerant people, even in those times of division, than we are today.
They changed their name from The Hawks to The Band after a stint as Bob Dylan’s rhythm section. Their drummer, and main lead singer the late Levon Helm played Loretta Lynn’s father in the movie Coal Miner’s Daughter.
Helm also played General John Bell Hood in the movie The Electric Mist:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r6DBY8iXx14
RIP. The Last Waltz is worth watching, probably available online.
I always thought he’d have made a good addtion to Little Feat after Lowell George passed, were such things to have been contemplated.
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We have the “Last Waltz” and listen to it from time to time. One of our daughters had the “honor” to have her bottom pinched by Avan Holm (she was 20).
Levon Helm played the part of Jack Ridley in the movie “The Right Stuff.” He also provided narration.
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=brnaH0Zalbw
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0KTBb9em8qY
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Ridley is onboard the drop plane for the X1 sound barrier flight.
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DCE6DJrLCLk
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There are a lot of The Band’s music videos on YouTube.