Robbie Robertson Talks About Bob Dylan and the Basement Tapes

[mrfish4lyfe]

levon should have done this interview

[happygleason]

@mrfish4lyfe i met and read Levons book....he missed much / most of the taping

[NathanIsReallyBored]

YOU NEVER FUCKING HELD THE LEASE TO BIG PINK ROBERTSON.

[scalemiester]

Excuse my ignorance, but why do I sense some dissaproval of Robbie's interview? I've always been a fan of both Dylan and the Band and I don't think he sounds stuckup or anything. Maybe I'm missin sumthin...

[andrewj44]

shut up Robbie, you've given me a fuckin headache

[fullblowngenius]

It IS O K~E

[ElnaCopper]

OK dave....

[ElnaCopper]

tell us about the broke neck...how bad was it?? did he have medical help at home? did he need a halo traction set-up?...was there pain meds needed? or was the motorcycle crash not that severe w/o a broke neck? w/o need 4 meds?? another kind of healing was needed...maybe?

[Dave897456]

@ElnaCopper It's because of people like you that Dylan rarely gives interviews!

[noah330]

A lot of people don't like Robbie for whatever reason. I have met him a few times and he has always been hospitable. Also met Rick twice and he was a amazingly cool guy.

I read Levon's book and liked a lot of it, but have also been in bands and understand that there are usually a few sides to every story. One thing is for sure, after Robbie left they never made records like they did before - even the lesser known Robbie era records are better then High on the Hog - no disrespect to Jim W.

[sharpie871]

Funny how Robbie's story sort of contradicts what wikipedia says of the Basement Tapes. Even funnier that I believe wikipedia's version more than his.

[mrfester42]

@sharpie871 Every story ever told or written is subjective BUT the fact that you give Wikipedia (more than 40 years after the fact) more credence than someone who actually lived it is just baffling. Why you wouldn't say "Funny how wikipedia story sort of contradicts what Robbie's says..."! People of later generations are so jaded that they prefer to go against simple logic rather than believe something good. Pretty sad!

[2006moorem]

Couldn't agree more, look what he did with the basement tapes when they came out, and the songs he left off, criminal. Read Levon Helms book who tells us what a self promoting, money grabbing ego maniac he really is. and this is from someonne who loves the Band.

[mikeincalifornia]

As always, it's all about Robbie. More than telling that he doesn't so much as even mention any of the other members of the band!!! Most especially the fact that Garth was an electronics whiz who managed the recording and is the one responsible for making them sound so good. Very sad.

[shitdate]

@mikeincalifornia Right on.

[happygleason]

@mikeincalifornia thanks

[tomthetemplar]

Thanks for putting this on.What a band and what an album it turned out to be.

[waketheoblivious]

Robbies oratory skills are simply amazing. As he tells a story, any story it is beautifully told and always respectful. The Last Waltz is without question my favorite music DVD of all time and each member of the Band did a wonderful job during the interviews, but Robbie was the master of Ceremony on stage or during the interviews.

[TheMusicmaam]

It is so very interesting to hear Robbie speak about a time in musical history that was, and still is, magical. I never tire of anything he has to say on the subject!

[Cannibalization]

Did Dylan really break his neck?

[Pmitsou123]

@Cannibalization That's the official part of the story. Who knows?

[TerrySleeper]

A lot of the tracks on the officially-released "Basement Tapes" were not - not - recorded at "Big Pink" in 1967. They are out-takes of later Band albums (including "Cahoots").

Anything Robertson says about "The Basement Tapes" has to be taken with HUGE pinches of salt.

Robertson went on to fall-out with all the members of The Band as he bought-out their shares in that band's copyrights.

See Michael Gray, "The Bob Dylan Encyclopaedia".

[jabuhrer1]

@TerrySleeper Is there anything in particular that Robbie says here that you think needs to be taken with a pinch of salt? Is there anything said here that you can point out as inaccurate? I doubt it. Just more blind anti-Robbie tropes, residuals from an old battle that we know very little about (despite having read a tell-all book). Robbie is talking here about some things that happened in 1967, not about the 1975 "The Basement Tapes" LP. Thanks for attempting to enlighten us though.

[waketheoblivious]

@TerrySleeper

Thank God that it was Robbie who bought out their shares. I am certain no one had a gun to their head and if not for Robbie buying them out he'd be sharing Royalties with Michael Jacksons heirs...........

[happygleason]

@waketheoblivious huh

[happygleason]

@TerrySleeper CAHOOTS

WHICH ONES??