The Band: why were they so revered?*

I'm curious as to why The Band made such a huge splash when they emerged in 1968. While I like them, their music never hit me as life-altering as it has been for many of their contemporaries. I've heard that Clapton left Cream for the sole purpose of joining them, and David Crosby mentioned in an interview that CSNY was "in awe of them". I respect that they brought a sense of "back-to-the-roots" to rock music and that Robertson is a fine, literate songwriter. But I am missing the level of worship that Clapton, Crosby and others have heaped upon them.

 

They were laid back, and had an Americana style. Kind of moving the opposite direction from pop music. Probably why Clapton liked them.

 

They played like a tight (yet loose) ensemble that reminded me, at times, of a Dixieland jazz band...crossed with fierce rock 'n' roll. Their first few albums were stellar, and their first live album, Rock Of Ages, is a well-recorded rock and roll party on black rubber.

 

Excellent musicians. Three unique singers. Unlike any other group which had come before. They also happened at exactly the right moment of the death of the psycho-delic mess and reflected a more basic rural lifestyle. That appealed to a great many people...especially musicians

 

Yeah, nice record that is. I have a minty RL .

 

Rick Danko singing "Makes No Difference" is sublime.

 

They were Dylan's rock band done good. Their songs were deeply steeped in Americana that stretched far past the blues at a time when most bands were either doing blues based rock or psychedelia. Their songs had a transcendent quality about them. I can easily see why they were so admired.

 

Well Music From Big Pink was a radical stylistic departure from the psychedelia surrounding it. I guess quite a few people who never were really comfortable with psych were glad music was shifting away from it (the Stones as the most obvious example). And then there was the Dylan connection...

And oh yeah, lest we forget, The Band's music simply was friggin' great.

 

I think that when Dylan was in hiding and not touring, there was still that mystic about him and since they had that connection it seemed to have a lot to do with it. I'm sure that people were getting a little burnt out with the acid rock style too, so a return to roots type music is always appealing. And they were good, still love their harmonies! Richard Manuel can straight out sing!

 

At a time when many bands were trying to get further out, they reminded everyone about the basics. You could play their music on the big stage or the front porch and it felt natural either way. They were real people, not untouchable stars. I think that was the draw for folks like clapton.

 

I kinda disagree here because "Big Pink" was a favorite tripping album for me, but the early records were magnificent. Plus the Dylan 1967 thingy...

 

Because they were effing great.

 

Traditional rock history usually holds that they started the whole roots rock movement of the late 60's and early 70's. They supposedly inspired the movement that included albums such as Beggar's Banquet, Volunteers, Morrison Hotel, American Beauty, Let it Be, Sweetheart of the Rodeo, and other classic albums from the high-profile artists of the Woodstock era. This, of course, could be revisionism, but everyone involved in psychedelia seemed to suddenly embrace roots rock when Music From Big Pink came out.

 

Speaking of big pink, that's me outside last summer.

 

Forget the house. I dig the Professor Longhair shirt!

 

I have to admit, the first time I listened to Big Pink (in 1994 when I was in college), I liked it but I didn't see what made it so monumental. Perhaps you had to be there. That said, I look at the other music that was big in 1968 and it is certainly a radical departure from that. It was relatively low-key and rootsy (although some late sixties excesses do show through now, notably on "Wheels on Fire"), and it definitely carried a vibe of the back-to-the-land spirit that was big among the counterculture at the time. So I see both why it was only a modest hit on the charts and why it's become so revered among classic rock fans.

What I did not see - then or now - is how Robbie got his reputation as a guitar god from the album. The whole point of their sound was that it didn't have any flashy solos - after all, everyone was doing that at the time and they were out to create something different. At that time I hadn't heard his earlier work with Ronnie Hawkins and John Hammond Jr (I had heard Blonde on Blonde but I didn't know it was him), which is indeed fantastic. That's why I've always suspected that's where his reputation really came from - only now most people only know his work with The Band and on his own, and hey, everyone says he's a genius, so he is.

 

Wow, did the current owners know you were there and allow that? (Not judging you in any way, I'm just imagining they must have to put up with a lot of this sort of thing and I'm wondering how they react to it!)

 

they don't mind a bit! and you can stay there too although not in the basement.

Big Pink Basement. Locus of Creative Inspiration

Owners since 1998, Don & Sue LaSala have striven to steward this special place with awareness of and respect to, and preserve, conserve and reserve this home birthplace of songs and bands for now and future: keeping this micro-preserve of 4 acres intact & unsullied, the surrounding land pristine as when its peacefulness was inspirational to certain now-world renowned musicians.


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If You Are Planning to Visit... Parnassus Lane, not a town road, is itself privately owned by various property owners. We own only part of the road before Big Pink and somewhat beyond. A neighbor who can be unfriendly to Big Pink fans is responsible for the "No Trespassing" signs. We are actually friendly folk who appreciate everyone's often moving stories of their connections to this place!

If you end up on Parnassus Lane, please realize you are one of many hundreds of folks coming here. Please respect our and our guests privacy by remaining in the "street front" area and not walking around the property unless invited by us.

So, if you happen to wander up the road, getting "lost" somehow and happen upon Big Pink: and if you need to stop the car, better to do so on the Big Pink side of the road: hey, as you happened upon the place, you might as well take a picture of you and your friends in front! You could even send us one of your favs!

 

Danko and Manuel were passed out on the front lawn.
Levon and Robbie were yelling at each other (as usual) and couldn't be bothered.
And Garth was in the basement playing a multitude of instruments at huge volumes, so he didn't hear anyone.

 

With the Band so much of their magic is about "feel" that it's hard to express in words what makes them so great sometimes.

 

I consider "Chest Fever" psychedelic to some extent.

 

Because it was a great band that did numerous great, original songs?

 

I guess I feel that they don't hit me in the same way as CSNY, who don't seem to garner the same level of critical success. It's not fair to compare the two, but I find the first CSN record and Deja Vu to be transcendent thanks to the harmonies and songwriting. While The Band seems more subdued and understated, it just doesn't hit me in the same way.