'Bye, Levon



It is with great sadness that I report the death of Levon Helm, the drummer and main singer of the Band.

I saw The Band several times.  I remember so well the first time- I had never in my life seen a group play with such force and precision.  I was so mesmerized that I found my way down in front of the stage with a couple of hundred other people, when Bill Graham came crawling out from under the stage and, half crankily, half in amusement, chased us back to our seats. I had never seen Graham before, and that was almost as stunning as the music.  People who missed the Band in their heyday missed one of the great rock experiences of all time.

I gave away my tickets to the Last Waltz to go to see the Meters.  I know I got the better musical performance of the night, but I've always regretted it. 

The band had already seen two members fall before today, and Levon Helm is the third.  I guess this is just one more of the great experiences of past music that has now fallen into oblivion, along with Jimi Hendrix and the Beatles and so many more.  When, oh, when will musicians of that stature start to appear to replace them?

Comments

Paula said…
I've been playing "Moondog Matinee" on Spotify. The soundtrack of my glory years! (When I looked good...:)) They were always great to dance to. He's certainly was one of the greatest drummers in rock.
April 20, 2012 at 1:09 PM
Dave Dubya said…
I saw one of his last shows a month to the day before he died.

Amazing.

He drummed the entire show and even sang some.

I'd have loved to have seen the original Meters. Always caught the Neville Brothers when I could.
April 21, 2012 at 5:39 PM
Green Eagle said…
The Meters do still get together once in a while.

I saw George Porter and his band a couple of months ago, and I've seen Leo and Zig in L.A. It was all fine, but it still wasn't the Meters.
April 22, 2012 at 8:19 AM
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