The Band - 1970 - The Weight - Festival Express, Toronto

[redhouseovayonda]

probably my favorite bassist ever

[skullkramp13]

i do love the band BUT...what's with the fuckin suits...HAHAHAH!!!!!!!!

[mphsVinylJim]

Levon is looking cool for sure. ~ mphsVinylJim & The Mrs

[RedSocialClub]

Viva la Banda! me prende.

[pwreric]

Great old version of this classic Rock/Blues/Jazz/Folk/Country masterpiece. Whatever happened in 76' is 35yrs. ago. Best just to forgive and move on.

[tdawg1294]

@pwreric this post sucks

[pwreric]

@tdawg1294 I wish you all the best my friend.

[XtehfuckX]

Crazy Chester followed me and he caught me in the fog

[RayNDeere]

Is it me, or are they playing this at a quicker tempo. Doesn't take away from the song, it just sounds a bit quicker than the studio version.

[1985MANAmericana]

@RayNDeere It is a bit faster.

[ShakinSlim]

Gotta love Crazy Chester. Rick's bass playing is so forward in the mix on these Festival Express vids. I love it!

[TheFletch827]

@ShakinSlim Yea the bass sounds good.

[jazzmanchgo]

Great -- but y'can't beat Mavis Staples' version of this song. And when she does it live, it's even more splendid.

And God bless Levon -- through all the health problems he's endured, he's still having those wonderful "Midnight Ramble" "sessions up there in Woodstock -- keeping the spirit alive!

[Jessev1968]

Thanks for posting! Levon Helm made me want to play drums! Bonham blew my mind, but it was Helm that made me get that groove that gets down to your bone! Thanks again!

[wweecwcollin]

they played it faster here

[XtraPibbDude]

canadians! lol great band.

[mauro99847]

clasico de the band. 

[imajeepster]

one of the best documentaries...great performances throughout. even better than woodstock!!

[ccoope02]

i think he said "richard's mic is too loud"

[mrampcat]

Not sure about the coke, but at first I thought the speed was due to Robbie, but I think Levon was caught a little off-guard, and how the tree is planted, is how it grows.

Ultimate responsibility for meter comes from the drummer (Levon is my favorite). I also think because the might have been on edge a little, the performed it at hyper speed excellently.

[SuperDoesitreallymat]

You can almost feel the coke they're on. The tempo is so jacked up and jumpy....

[mexicansmell]

Contrary to popular belief, Robbie Robertson didn't have a terrible singing voice. He even sings a verse on "To Kingdom Come", and he sings quite nicely there. Rick Danko even pressured him to sing more...but he did turn out to be a huge dick - didn't even go to Richard Manuel's funeral.

[NewWaver80014]

@mexicansmell Actually, Robbie sings lead on both verses of To Kingdom Come. He's not the world's worst vocalist but his singing on live version of TKC (the Isle of Wight one) is TERRIBLE.

[macarthur19]

Somebody fix Levon's hi-hat!

[beckole]

@macarthur19 I was thinking the exact same thing!

[MrUSandA]

This is the best video live version of The Weight as found on the Festival Express DVD 1970...... Yeah Levon......... So musical............

[HellBeers]

Robbie Robertson's singing reminds me somewhat of Dylan.

[maxxxx1972]

Nathan Philips square?

[FungusMossGnosis]

God I love Levon.

[Yumgui]

@jackbwise ... switched, thx.

[fizaratan]

@Yumgui I'm pretty sure you had it right the first time. Richard WAS the pianist, Garth the organist, but they usually swapped for this song. (Check song credits on Wikipedia, or other videos of this song where you can see them clearly.) It's hard to see on this version, but Richard's at the back (you can tell because he's singing - Garth never sang) and looks like he's sitting at an organ. The piano also sounds like Garth - Richard was a good pianist, but strictly rhythm. Great version, BTW!

[acjoven]

@jackbwise Garth and Richard's keyboard responsibilities can be viewed like a lead guitarist's vs. a rhythm guitarist's. Garth takes the lead roles, regardless of instrument (Lowery or piano), while Richard plays rhythm keys (or drums). Richard is also regarded by the members as their main vocalist, so this leaves him room to focus on his singing. In The Weight, Garth plays piano as the lead, given the rapid octave parts during the chorus, while you can see Richard singing behind the organ.

[SmileyGarrish]

Levon was supposed to appear in a Canadian movie Tucker & The Horse Thief, but never showed. It is no wonder he wanted the mic turned off on this night, but he did endure the dysfunctional guitar playing with no more than a grimace. A real pro struggling with a friend's issue. Can't blame him for being angered by the no-show - cause folks that ain't Robbie Robertson: It was a troubled man getting it together.

[wmwasmer]

THE BAND....enuf said.......WW

[hagront]

Is this concert available on DVD? It's awesome!

[trjordan]

@hagront some of the videos are on Festival Express.

[jgidd]

lovely! they are the greatest!

[jules7111]

thanks for the post.. Festival express rocks..

[conor30000]

The Long and Short of it is, Robertsons singing isnt the greatest, so they regularly turned his mic off live. But because he was so central to the bands image and stage prescence - and to stop himself feeling awkward - he sang along. The casual observer doesnt really notice anyway.

[mmarek1969]

this version is so fast

[NeedlesTheSpace]

Richard Manuel is the piano player, and Garth Hudson plays keyboard

[mapscannotcontainme]

He's only 30 here? 

[edwardmckelvey07]

For those of you who criticize Robbie Robertson's singing. He doesn't have a good singing voice, but he is a great guitarist and songwriter. In fact he wrote this brilliant song!

[Yumgui]

@edwardmckelvey07

OK, but why didn't he share the proceeds with the rest of the crew ? Alone he is/was nothing ... as in any musical endeavor ! Money really pollutes so many good things :/

In retrospect ... I'd turn his damn mic off too ;P

[zw75ned]

@Yumgui ; Robbie was drunk and under some dope her, that's why they wanted the mic turned off ( you can even see that when you look closely). Robbie made some great "solo's". With and without The Band.

[XZYOE]

@Yumgui Because they didn't write the songs? You don't see Lennon/McCartney giving Harrison and Starr royalties to Let it Be or Come Together.

[turtles12]

@Yumgui because he wrote the songs?

[thfedexguy]

@edwardmckelvey07 Actually he had his mic turned off most of the time. He knew he couldn't sing.

[edwardmckelvey07]

@thfedexguy He's the lead guitarist and main songwriter for one of the greatest bands ever! Why are you so obsessed with his singing???

[psychkoala]

@edwardmckelvey07

Everyone knows all of that.

[johnfright]

@edwardmckelvey07 Yes, we know. His singing sucks, though.

[tominniti]

0:52 "make sure his mike is turned off!"

[PackersAndTheBand]

@tominniti Whose mic does he want off?

[Optimatorz]

@tominniti that's funny, i never realized that's what levon was saying.

[AllisonRice]

it blows my fucking mind this only has 764 views. Whats wrong with music today, the majority is mass produced shit. THE BAND IS AWESOME

[irluckey]

@AllisonRice I think the sight of that phony Indian impostor, and credit grabber Robbie makes people so ill, they cannot watch the entire thing.

There is a drive to have Robbie erased from all videos. They turn his mic off, as he can't sing. So whats the point. Get his fag dance out of our face. Be sure to vote to delete him by Dec 31st.

[helmet959]

@irluckey he wrote this song. get the F out of here. levon helm learned most of what he knew about songwriting from Robertson. but listening to The Band should not be about choosing one or the other. i listen to Uncle Tupelo every day without having an argument with myself over whether Farrar or Tweedy is a better songwriter, or who was "worth more to the original band" gah. they're both brilliant. the same as Robertson and Helm.

[55vida]

Thanks for posting this. It's a Lowrey organ not a Hammond.

[Yumgui]

OK, modified. Don't know where that "Hammond" came from ... thanks for the info.

[ElliotGKnapp]

@Yumgui Richard Manuel actually plays the organ on this one--Garth Hudson is on piano.

[The60sMusicman]

@Yumgui i think the hammond came to be because the tour management took a b3 with them. but yeah i'd say this is a lowrey too. thanks for posting this!! Peace 'n Love from holland!

[aarfeld]

@55vida: That's true. Garth was unique in his choice of the Lowrey organ with its special sound. It's somewhat different than the sound of the Hammond organs, which was the choice of most other musicians then.