Levon Helm played Boston & NJ - tonight & tomorrow in NYC

when he plays 'atlantic city' it can make you cry.

too bad he doesnt seem to be doing "The Night they Drove Old Dixie Down" anymore, thats one of my favorite songs.

yeah I was wondering why he doesn't play that anymore - I think it has something to do with him and robbie robertson not being on good terms.

bc robertson wrote that song right?

Saw him in Philly last month and it was AMAZING!!!! Every song in the 2-hour set was incredible!

Band songs played were Rag Mama Rag, Long Black Veil, Ophelia, Tears of Rage, The Shape I'm In, Chest Fever, and The Weight.

GET YR TIX NOW...seriously, Vampire Weekend stinks, Yeasayer is lame, and Dirty Projectors will be forgotten about in a year from now. See a living legend while you still have the chance.

ah they've been disputing who wrote what for the longest time, that robertson took all the credit and they were too naive to complain, like rick manuel and all those other guys had a lot of input into the songs but never got the credit. Anyway I went last year. Great show.

i love the band.

see this legend while you can. saw him in asbury recently and the beacon last year. asbury was far superior. what has happened to the beacon? the sound was so boomy and muddy in the balcony it almost ruined the show for me. his band is amazing -

Out of all the bands that began in the past 5 years discussed on this site....NONE of them will EVER achieve anything as significant as Levon Helm has.

They weren't called "The Band" for nothing!

anyone know who's opening for him and what time he goes on?

oladelle is opening - levon's daughter is in that band (though she just gave birth so she might not be around)

Wow, there is some baby boomer-ish snobbery getting in the way of my curiosity about this. Thanks 2:54 and 3:34! You sound like my dad. And I'm 30!

Don't know if the snobbery remark makes any sense. You are talking about one of the greatest American bands of the last 50 years. Their impact is really undeniable. Right now, I cannot imagine any band that began the last five years having as much impact or influence.

This is coming from a 48 year old who actively supports the indy scene locally.

beacon is a fire trap. go see this show but be careful.

Yes, all your 60s and 70s icons defined rock & roll and nothing will ever be as good or important. We all know this. Belittling new bands that people like is not a good way to win them over to appreciating the old stuff.

Speaking of which, the Slits were fucking awesome at Mercury Lounge Wednesday night. If there were any justice in the world they'd be selling out Webster Hall WITHOUT Chloe Sevigny's help.

Under rated singer, his voice is so warm.

"They weren't called 'The Band' for nothing!"

Oh, so they called themselves "The Band" because they had a humongous collective ego.

Seriously, that's NOT why they called themselves, or were called by others, "The Band."

I didn't know Zorro played guitar.

Holy mother of all things sacred and good. The Band fucking Rocked!

I believe the reason Levon doesn't play The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down is his voice can't do it justice.

In all seriousness, in the history of ensemble music, in the history of recorded music, there are few bands that rival what The Band accomplished musically, or how they influenced their peers and those that came after. Call that snobbery if you like, but if you have ears, it's common sense. I'm still in my forties. But I guess I'm still a baby boomer

On a Brooklyn Levon Helm related note. After Levon recovered from cancer, but before he regained his singing voice enough to sing publicly
(04), he drummed on lots of projects. A Brooklyn related project that Levon drummed on 10 songs on, is School For Fools, the artist is Larry Thurston. A great song on it, is Blues For Brooklyn. It's fantastic, a speeding ticket kind of song.
I went to Midwood High School with the guy who wrote the songs, and produced it. You can buy the mp3s of the whole project or just the song inexpensively at http://cdbaby.com/cd/lthurston.

Blues For Brooklyn, was recorded in Brooklyn, at Coyote Studios.Levon did not play drums on that song,but he played on 10 out of 12 songs on the record. My friend sent me the cd when he finished it. On many songs, you recognize Levon's drums right away. Lost Dog Blues, Gravediggin Man.

You young whippersnappers should not take The Band lightly.I don't listen to all the bands I grew up listening all the time. I still love them all, but I don't have to hear them all the time.
But there are sounds I shouldn't have to live without. The sound of The Band is one of those sounds. Two of the saddest days of my life were the days Richard and Rick died. The music The Band created was new, they melded musics that hadn't been melded before, but did in a way that no one could match,and no one can get that sound again. The musical sounds were their personal sounds. You'll never hear a bass player like Rick again, or a drummer like Levon again. No one can nail what they did. Garth, fugghedaboudit. Ditto, the voices.
Anyone going to the show tonight, will have a blast. And The Rambles at Levon's home canlt be described.
Another Levon/Brooklyn connection is The Alexis Suter Band. They are all Brooklynites, and were the opening act at The Rambles for three years. Last year they opened The Beacon and blew the roof off the place. Alexis can sing!

Martha Scanlan sat in for Amy Helm w/Ollabelle opening for Levon.
Both Helms were on drums for Scanlan's "The West Was Burning", recorded in Woodstock, produced by Dirk Powell.

Did anyone see Levon in NYC Friday or Saturday night? If so sound off......

He was great saturday night, and Clarence Clemens came out and played sax on a song. awesome. Phoebe Snow was pretty great too.