"The Weight" by The Band

On Monday night I had the opportunity to go see "The Felice Brothers" in concert with Meg Drew.  The Felice Brothers have a couple of really solid songs, but I wasn't blown away with a great stage presence or chemistry (with each other or the audience).  To me, the shining star of the band was not their front man, it was their accordion player.  This guy was clearly into the music, had a wonderful smoky voice, and interacted very well with the audience. While I was listening to The Felice Brothers I started thinking about The Band.

The Band is an American classic.  They were the back up band for Ronnie Hawkins and Bob Dylan before striking it out on their own.  I love the way "The Band" got their name. They say that after spending a lot of time being "the band" for Hawkins and Dylan, it just made sense to stick with "The Band" as their own name.  To me that speaks to more than just the name, it speaks to what The Band was all about. They don't have a flashy, pretentious vibe, they just played music and did it well.  I got to see Levon Helm in concert this past year and even after a fight with cancer and 70 years under his belt, he got up excited to play and happy to be alive.

I got into The Band through Ron Cepek, and to this day my favorite memory of listening to their music was a day that Ron and I spent driving around Seattle talking about life.  That was the last day of my first trip to Seattle. It was a warm August day in the city and rolling the windows down and throwing The Band in was a perfect fit. If I recall correctly I remember thinking "The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down" was the best jam that day, but I like "The Weight" for today.