I guess the name couldn’t have been more prescient — THE band! IMHO this is the greatest band of all for many reasons as nicely set out in this documentary (yet another excellent installment to the Classic album series). The three primary and inextricably linked markers of their greatness:
1. indifferent to mainstream musical fashion;
2. no egos;
3. supremely talented individuals.
As Carol Caffin puts it:
The Band were not derivative. The Band was soul music, in that it came from the soul, and spoke to the soul. They culled from music of the country. They culled from American music, but they did not take it and water it down. They took it and made it richer, and they made it their own. It was real and timeless.
And since it’s just over three years since Levon’s passing, here’s a recent memoir which seems to catch what one would imagine the man to be like. See the comment by Sandra (Levon’s widow).
manwithoutqualities 