The Band - The Band (1969)

A couple of days ago I saw the movie The Last Waltz (1978), which documents the last concert, The Last Waltz, of the Canadian-Amercan rock and roll group The Band. I didn't even know that such band exists, and this is not only due to my musical ignorance, but due to the fact that they were popular mainly among music journalists and musicians.

The Band's style is a mixture of old country music, early rock and roll , and other influences. All the members of the group were multi-instrumentalists. In 1976 they broke up after 16 years touring. As Robbie Robertson (guitar, piano, vocals) says in the movie, they felt that they cannot continue this live anymore, that it's going to destroy them soon.

Anyway, I started with The Band's eponymous second album, released in 1969 and popularly known as The Brown Album.

I find the album quite good and enjoyable. The music is an amazing combination of guitars, church organ, piano, and who knows what else. My favorite songs so far are Across The Great Divine, The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down, and Up On Cripple Creek, but the whole CD is fantastic, I think.