Robbie Robertson, the lead guitarist and the primary songwriter for The Band, has died at 80.
Robertson and The Band, initially gained acclaim as backup for Bob Dylan, who first took them on tour in 1965 when they were still known as The Hawks.
The group soon became stars of their own thanks to classic albums, Music From Big Pink, released in 1968, and The Band, released in 1969.
Robertson would also immortalize The Band with the help of director Martin Scorsese in 1976 when they recorded a guest-star-studded performance announced as The Band‘s final show. Scorsese’s concert film, The Last Waltz, was released in theaters in 1978.
Their songwriting credits include The Weight, Up On Cripple Creek and the controversial The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down, a song narrated from the perspective of Confederate soldiers.
Members of The Band would reunite many times in the decades that followed, but Robertson never rejoined the group. He recorded music for soundtracks to Scorsese films like Raging Bull and The Color of Money and released a handful of solo albums. Sinematic, which came out in 2019, was his last.
I met Robertson 30 years ago at actress Kelly Lynch and writer/ director Mitch Glazer‘s wedding in L.A. It was at their house in Santa Monica and we arrived at the parking area at he same time and took the shuttle car up to the house together. He couldn’t have been nicer. Lynch posted a remembrance (2nd photo).
After Robertson’s passing, keyboardist and organist Garth Hudson is now The Band‘s only living member.
Robbie Robertson, was born Jaime Royal Robertson, the son of a Mohawk mother who was raised on the Six Nations reserve in Ontario.
The Band was joined by The Staple Singers, for the concert film The Last Waltz, on The Weight.
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(Photo, YouTube; via NPR)
