Added: 2 years ago
From: jrobb101
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  • Music from Big Pink was the album of the decade (1960's) and The Band was what everyone listened to. I am glad to see it posted here, brings back the memories.

  • why can't a good song be a good song anymore? you all have to get over your issues and yourselves. oh wait, i'm commenting on youtube... you're all cunts

  • get over it you fuckin rednecks you lost the war, now we see all these teabaggers wrapped in a yankee flag, bunch of hypocrites, oh and robbie roberston is a jew and a native american,,,, and you wonder why he left THE BAND

  • @ivanzuc21 what does it matter if he is a jew or native or canadian,he wrote the song and he loved the american south,maybe it,s you that needs get over it.

  • love you guys

  • Robbie walked away after this...this was the Band at its peak. Robertson NEVER had it this good after.

  • this song sounds like the your last fight to the death. i felt that even before I really knew what the lyrics meant

  • TheStrat1957 has the absolute PERFECT comment...

  • What can one say about perfection. All I can say is, "Damn."

  • absolutely awesome

  • the only bad thing about this video is they cut to rob at the end, who looks like he just clawed his way out of the womb. it was levon's song! show him! not that talent leach covered in afterbirth known as robbie robertson. (thats what happens when you pleasure the movie director orally)

  • is that marty in the back with the best seat in the house?

  • "No description available."

    Wise words.

  • Pensacola Was Union!

  • Levon FTW, bless his battle in upstate NY keepin it keepin on!

  • Such a great band. This is my absolute favorite song by them. And I'm not even from the South.

  • @JimothyBrandywine Don't worry, they arent either

  • @abrockma36 Well, Levon is from Arkansas.

  • tell it like it is, boys - and of course with all your heart and soul - what a privilege to witness it.

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  • Aww it's not like it used to be...

  • Thank you for posting this and thanks to everyone who has posted pieces of the The Last Waltz. I ordered the DVD from amazon a couple of weeks ago and it's priceless. I still can't figure out how I didn't know about it as I grew up with all these old songs. I was 12 when this concert took place and that's around the same time that I started playing guitar. I'm glad to see Levon is still playing. You can catch him now and then on Imus in the morning. He's a regular musical guest on there.

  • Having seen Levon up close at his Rambles, I can tell you that he puts his soul into EVERY song he sings. The desperation he adds here, knowing that this is in all likelihood the last time he would ever sing this song (it wasn't, as it turned out), is just shattering. Levon, Rick, Richard, Garth, Robbie... long live The Band!!!!

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  • the band kicks ass

  • @2:36 greatest whale in history

  • love the band

  • beutiful song

    

  • there may have been a better vocal than levon's, but i've never heard it. i doubt anyone has...

  • I've seen a lot of performers in my life but can't say I remember ever seeing anyone give more than Levon Helm did here. We are truly privileged. Thanks for sharing.

  • @tilestyles Ain't that the truth !!!

  • @tilestyles I wish Levon would sing it again, I would morgage my house to see him sing this live.

  • Last Waltz, probably the greatest DVD ever made. Thank you Scorcese for making such an amazing film that captivates one of the greatest bands ever, THE BAND!

  • Love Rick Danko, miss him.

  • Rick Danko, damn, what a voice!

  • @fex500 Do you mean Levon Helm? 

  • @thebdaniel83 No I ment Rick Danko, i just posted my comment on the wrong video.

  • Absolute classic

  • An aboriginal from Canada wrote it and a good ole boy from Arkansas sang it but you can be from anywhere and shed a few tears watching the emotion in this. I've never heard a more expressive voice. Levon's has so much flavor to it. He burps cool.

  • i love this song. no one could have performed it better than them

  • Long live Levon Helm! Good luck with your surgery buddy! Hope to hear you sing again!

  • the history and lyrics behind this song really capture the imagination....."in the winter of 65, we were hungry, just barely alive." Makes me want to study civil war history....

  • Flat out the BEST.....

  • never, ever grows old.

  • Without words...

  • This song is the centerpiece of Americana music.

  • So in love with The Band! I would trade anything to be able to go to The Last Waltz! Such a classic!

  • the south will rise again!

  • Thanks for puttin' this up!!! Been a long time since I've seen footage like that. And YES, The Band was an extremely under rated group of musicians and song writers. No car,bus or motorcycle wrecks... or plane crashes in their history- so they never grabbed the cult of personality like the record labels did for Skynyrd,Marshall Tucker or Allman Bros.! But STILL a great group of multi instrumental individuals who melted into their own group perfectly.

  • @instinct62shooter actually, Rick Danko fucked himself really badly in a car accident when he was drunk and stoned out of his mind right after the release of Big Pink. That's why they never toured following that album until the spring of 1969....I agree with you though...EXTREMELY under-rated. Garth might be the best pure musician I've ever heard in my life.

  • everyone is on here lovin' Levon's singing, and I don't blame any of you....but what's even more impressive is he plays damn good drums while he's doing it!! The Band is so tight live...I wish I could have seen it. Levon might be the most under-rated drummer out there.

  • God bless Levon.

  • 'rangin and shangin'....levon helm, the best!!

  • The world misses Rick Danko more than it knows.

  • @aprilwino he is gone? :_(

    i dont even wanna google it...

    

  • @aprilwino Amen

  • Powerful! F'ing POWERFUL!

  • this is a real band, the band

  • thats the way a BAND works together.......YEAH

  • Levon is from Arkansas so I would imagine the additional passion was there...

  • The Band is the only thing I like about Canada

  • @elms91 You don't like Ron Sexsmith?

  • @elms91 lol avril lavigne is hot as hell...i don't care what anyone says - i'd get with her in a second if i had a chance...and i dont so yeah...canada is alright...i prefer it to where i'm from....the usa...but levon is from the usa, he's a cool guy...such a nice guy

  • @DanKreiger i banged her, she wasnt the best. she's really whiney. she gives it up to pro skaters all the time.

  • @elms91 You've obviously never heard much of the music made in Canada. Many of my American friends are jealous of the cool music/bands we hear regularly. Today, America sadly gets to hear ghetto influenced rap shite like Jay-Z, Eminem, and Puff Diddler.

  • @GrandMasterKolbasa It was just a joke that was taken far too seriously by some. Canada is a great country with great music, happy now?

  • @elms91 Yes. Much happier now. Thank you. We Canadians need to feel appreciated and loved by Americans.

  • @GrandMasterKolbasa Haha oh canada

  • @GrandMasterKolbasa I can say with certainty that we Americans appreciate Canadian musicians and bands. Rush and Triumph immediately come to mind. Who doesn't love Rush ?

  • @jimiray1 Good taste. (I think Americans appreciate Rush more than Canadians.) "Newer" acts (not so new to us) such as Big Sugar, The Sheepdogs, The Trews, Sloan, and a dozen others are more aligned to old school rock than the US mainstream urban/ghetto music. North America has a long way to go compared to the current rock scene in Sweden and other Scandi countries. Good stuff going on there.

  • Why is there a dislike button? Who could dare!

  • sherman was a asshole.

  • No song - before or since - has ever, or will ever have the same energy to it as this song... the sound and passion in Levon's voice just makes you picture the scene in the South in 1865...

  • This performance just blows my mind. It nearly brings me to tears, and that's saying a lot for me.

  • Who ever wrote it, God Save Dixie!! Love Levon and Robbie. It's a great song!!

  • I WISH I WAS A GRAY COAT IN THEM DAYS AN AM ENGLISH

  • Love, This Song!!

    

  • The true test of a great song is does it stand up to the test of time. This is one of those great songs!

  • robbie after taking a toke laughs and says "its not like it used to be"

  • what does robertson (the guitar player) say at the end there?

  • @cgrigalus I think he says "end on a roll" to levon as in a drum roll (which he didn't)... Think Robbie was power trippin' after a little too much of the old columbian marching powder... Great version though, always gets me.

  • @markdmc1 I think he says, "Timpani roll."

  • l was 18 doing 25 yrs,every sat. night they showed a movie,back in 78,the blacks were pissed.A white concert,by the end they loved it,some just liked it.l never like the band,fliped my whole world

  • Love it

  • was never their till now

  • fuck u advertisement motherfucker

  • why is there so much more hate and conflict amongst fans of The Band than pretty much any other classic band I know of? As a fairly recent recruit to their fanbase, I'm curious...

  • @bibliosbird Probably because there was conflict within The Band. Levon Helm believed that Robbie Robertson stole a lot of the credit and stole the show when The Last Waltz was made. some of the fans take Levon's side, others take Robbie's side.

  • @bibliosbird Probably because RR kept all of the rights to the Band's music due to a "glitch" in a contract. And really, how do you think a guy born and raised in Canada could come up with the Night They drove Old Dixie Down. People can believe what they want. I had the great fortune of seeing Levon last summer. He's still rocking and I was never so glad I got that opportunity when I did before it's too late.

  • @bibliosbird I also believe if you will look at the reunion tour in 83/84 the absence of Robbie R. pretty much sums it up.

  • Lyrics and music written by Robbie Robertson. Captures the Civil War era in a song like no other. . . and Robbie is Canadian! Wonderful Song, Terrific and One of Kind Band, , , THE BAND

  • From Wikipedia

    The Band was an acclaimed and influential roots rock group. The original group consisted of Rick Danko (bass guitar, double bass, fiddle, trombone, vocals), Garth Hudson (keyboard instruments, saxophones, trumpet), Richard Manuel (piano, drums, baritone saxophone, vocals), and Robbie Robertson (guitar, vocals), and Levon Helm (drums, mandolin, guitar, vocals). All five members were notable musicians in their own right.

    Last recorded performance 'The Last Waltz' 1976 Check it !

  • @boleroboy723 well if its from wikipedia it must be true.

  • And Levon is from Arkansas! Pure dixie!

  • F'ing awesome!

  • ok people chill out, its a good song written by a good band, they are all excellant musicians and very talented singers. who cares who wrote. its a good song

  • Can you believe a CANADIAN wrote a song about the U.S. south?

    Love Levon Helms.

  • @TheJwood45154

    Levon Helm is from the south. lol

  • Classic......we need more Bands that are willing to work together and put there past behind them!!!!!!

  • This song and Caravan were the 2 best performances of the Last Waltz. They say the resignation of Nixon was the end of the 60's politically. The Last Waltz was perhaps the culmination of the 60's musically. I saw the Band 3 months before at the Greek theater. I feel lucky to have lived through it all. It will be along time before popular music reaches these heights again.

  • Writing is hard, a lot harder then any other aspect of music. He wrote the words, chords, and general melody to most band songs. He tried to get others to write but they did not want to. Robbie wins. Though I like them all.

  • I've heard rumors about Robbie being a creative bully. I believe on the other hand that, if he was the creative force behind The Band, it would be difficult to be anyone in the band not feel a bit pushed around. OK... I'm more than quite well known as a writer . When I acknowledged, on stage, how much my editor contributed to my writing, MANY people came down on me in the writing world, saying I "shouldn't sell myself out" to them; that it was my book. Does The Band fit into this kind of thing?

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  • Suck my balls Joan Beaz! This is how you play that song!

  • You can see why,after this night, no incarnation of "The Band" ever played this song live again.

  • no description available :')

  • Sounds like Nickelback! Haha don't you love it when 15 year olds drop those comments on here? Love this song.

  • did robbie write all the songs???? I dont think so, just gave himself credit

  • @kmcd729 not ALL the songs and they aren't ALL credited that way - but he DID write that one.

  • @jrobb101 Who cares if he wrote it. If I wrote something and Levon sang it that way, he wrote it, not me.

  • @farsah14 i'm gonna guess from that you have never written a song

  • @kmcd729 you are right...then again i've never heard robbie's side of the story, but most people say you are right - it seems robbie was a real jerk - read "this wheel's on fire" by levon

  • the best vocal you will ever hear. period.

  • @skontch1 and greatest drumming!!

  • @skontch1 Amen to that. My mum went out with Ronnie Hawkins for a while in the late 60's and she told me that Levon Helm had a voice that reduced women to tears....

  • Ladies and Gentlemen, Robbie Robertson's grand masterpiece, The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down.

  • "No description available". I like to think that the poster was wise in doing that, because none will suffice.

  • Enjoy the Music for the Music.

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  • :')

  • This is Levon at his very best. Like the song was written just for him to sing.

  • True dat, cher!

  • @sherrillwallace It's an astonishing performance. I'm a 190lb guy and I find myself getting tears in my eyes. Embarrassing but forgivable I hope!

  • @jamesknox64 Forgivable for sure. What a great performance. Sherrill

  • @theDeckisStacked your comment paints a perfect picture of levon..

  • All I can say, this is possibly the best song I have ever heard. Just apply it today. We're questioned about being Americans. It's like we've done something wrong. Well, we have not. My family goes back to the most early of times in this country, with the exception of my father,who was first generation born Irish. All that I can say is do not let anyone take this country from us. We have done the best and will be historically revered.

  • I sing this song with my 5-year-old twin sons driving them to school each morning. It always prompts questions like, "why did they tear up the tracks again?" and "why were they barely alive?" I've used it as an opportunity to teach them about the Civil War and introduce them to a great song by a great band.

  • The artistry and power of this song will not soon be matched. I was lucky enough to have lived and experienced the Band in reaI time. I saw them at the Greek in LA about 2 months before the Last Waltz. The relative quality of music in the current period is woeful indeed. One could argue that the decline of the American Middle class and American culture is following a parallel track.

  • no. robbie wrote this song. joan did well with it, but its a band song

  • its joan baez

  • i have been to halls from east to west.i wish i was old enough to see this.it would be a book mark

  • The Danville Train took Union Solders to The Danville Prison. A horrific place full of dying Union Solders. Joan Baez recorded the song with the wrong words abd had to redo it.

  • ah levon you're gorgeous. rock-on my brother.

  • This is the Internet people. Learn to do some DD before you post UMM I THINK.

  • The Band were the American Beatles.

  • @MrHempenhomespun aaand they are a Canadian band.

  • @1dixielandcrew Yeah, sorry about that! I meant North American Beatles. Respect.

  • @MrHempenhomespun No worries..song rules regardless!

  • @elstroshitnonstop good point. i always thought the song's undercurrent was pointing out that while the war was over, the suffering was only just beginning, for EVERYONE in the south. i've also always felt there was an analogy to vietnam in there as well. forget the fact that we lost the war, we lost a great deal of our innocence, faith in our leaders, a lot of our optimism. a generation and a half after, we still wrestle with its internal effects on our national identity.

  • although joan baez didn't actually write this masterpiece, she perfected it. hahahahahhahaha. talk about drawing a mustache on the mona lisa.

  • they put a great place to rest that night good night winterland

  • @bluefishtank22

    Nope. Hers is a cover. She does a nice rendition of it though, considering I don't even like Joan Baez but I liked her version.

  • @bluefishtank22 sorry my friend....Joan's is the cover...the song was written by Robbie Robertson....

  • @jrobb101 nope i pretty sure it was wrote by robbie robertson but joan origanally SANG this song

  • @csmall1221 Nope.avi not even that. Robbie wrote and The Band Recorded it in '69. Joan covered it in '71.

  • @csmall1221 still not right - written by Robbie and recorded AND RELEASED by the Band in 1969.......Joan covered it in 1971....

  • @csmall1221 still not right - written by Robbie and recorded AND RELEASED by the Band in 1969.......Joan covered it in 1971....

  • @jrobb101 joan baez's version sucked 

  • @csmall1221

    And all the bells were RANGIN. These guys formed around the corner from my place. Ronnie Hakins found them all. Except Levon. He came up from the Arkansaw with Ronnie. Then Bob Dylan came up to Canada to see them and that was it.

  • @bluefishtank22 its joan baez

  • @bluefishtank22 written by RR; recorded by The Band originally,covered by Joan Baez. See Wiki on this one...

  • @bluefishtank22 HELL NA lol

  • @bluefishtank22 Fuck you

  • @PitchBlackGuitarMan fuck you too boy

  • @bluefishtank22 ok now listen to The Band and shut up.

  • Wow! This is truly fantastic stuff.

  • i don't care if the money no's good.....you take what you can and you leave the rest......classic

  • One of the best songs ever written.....no matter where your from....CLASSIC

  • @theDeckisStacked I'm a Yankee and this song gives me goose bumps. This song captures a era. What a song that all of America can relate to.God bless all those brave men who lived this song.

  • @theDeckisStacked does it even make sense that a canadian wrote a song about a US civil war--yet he can interpret it on vocals ??

  • You can just see the ragged troops straggling back home, their uniforms and flags in tatters

  • Just love watching the passion and love of the music from Rick Danko from 3:02 - 3:15.

  • @loveprocolfloyd How very true about The Band as musicians. I'm not surprised Levon would say something like that, because it seems to come so naturally to him as you said. His drumming in Cripple Creek is also terrific.

  • Better than the studio version IMO, love the Allan Toussaint horn section!

  • I'd say something derogatory about the one dislike, but it's impolite to berate the deaf.

  • the one moron who disliked this video should probably be shot in the face with a .53 caliber rifled musket. just sayin.