Posted on 05/30/2022 5:33:12 AM PDT by Mr. Mojo
He sure outlasted levon
Lots of talent around then
King biscuit hour with Sonny boy
He sure outlasted levon
Lots of talent around then
King biscuit hour with Sonny boy
RIP.
Absolutely fantastic find. Proof as there ever could be.
A good article explaining why Ronnie remained mostly unknown in the States despite mentoring many good musicians. Kind of reminds me of John Mayall.
The only reason that I’d ever heard of Ronnie Hawkins is from digging into the origins of The Band.
I don’t think that I ever actually heard a recording of The Hawks and I’ve wondered how much they might have sounded like the Big Pink band. I do remember the Electric Dylan uproar but of course I didn’t know that The Hawks/The Band were Dylan’s partners in crime offending the Newport Folk Music purists.
The Band felt like they had been time warped right out of the 1860s straight into 1969. There was a timeless quality to what they were doing. It was so entirely different from the psychedelic and heavily electric rock everyone else was doing. Apparently they made a huge impression on Eric Clapton of all people. A shame that so many of them are passing on. I can’t be getting old.
...and so now I have heard Ronnie and The Band. Thanks for posting that. I’ve seen a lot of The Last Waltz but I don’t recall that cut. That group was so tight and clean in their playing. Just not many others like them other than maybe The Wrecking Crew.
First I heard of Hawkins was in The Last Waltz. He was The Band’s oldest guest that night — “I’m just 41 and I don’t mind dying.”
Best performance of the evening by a guest was by Dr. John, imo. “Such a Night.” The Doctor was on his game. I’ve seen him…less motivated a couple times.
Good observation on the timelessness of the Band’s music. In ‘67 when everyone including the Stones (thankfully briefly) was into psychedelia, Dylan and The Band were holed up in the basement at Big Pink in Woodstock making music that sounded it was excavated from another century.
I saw The Last Waltz in the theater in ‘78 right after it was released. Very eye-opening for a 14-year old kid who was mostly listening to Zep and Stones at the time. Went out and bought the Band’s “The Brown Album” (their second release) shortly thereafter. It’s still in my top 5 all time records.
From The Last Waltz:
Muddy Waters: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=E5Sj5tpn-no
Dr. John: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=SCRrXZP8b0I
Correction— Muddy was the oldest guest at 63.
Dr John the Night Tripper... he and Leon Redbone both used to amuse me.
Like The Band they had absolutely nothing in common with other Sixties music. Dr John did a great job of playing up his New Orleans roots. And Leon Redbone must have stepped out of a film noir or something.
A real showman of the old school. A character. A personality. Don’t rest in peace, Ronnie, rock on in a better world.
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