The Band Robbie Robertson

Bob Dylan & The Band - The Bootleg Series, Vol. 11: The Basement Tapes - Raw (2014) [2CD] {Columbia}
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© 2014 Columbia / Legacy / Sony Music | 88875019672
Rock / Folk Rock / Roots Rock / Songwriter

A double-disc distillation of the six-disc box The Basement Tapes Complete, The Basement Tapes: Raw can't quite be seen as an expansion of the 1975 double-LP The Basement Tapes but rather a necessary revision. Shepherded by the Band's Robbie Robertson, that 1975 double-vinyl inserted Band recordings where they didn't belong, suggesting the group were equal partners when it was really Dylan's show.

Bob Dylan & The Band - The Bootleg Series, Vol. 11: The Basement Tapes - Complete (2014) [6CD] {Columbia}
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© 2014 Columbia / Legacy / Sony Music | 8875016122
Rock / Folk Rock / Roots Rock / Songwriter

Preserving newly written Bob Dylan songs for copyright is the reason why the Band's Garth Hudson rolled tape at Big Pink but The Basement Tapes were something much more than songwriting demos. Greil Marcus dubbed it a celebration of the "Old, Weird America" in his 1997 book Invisible Republic, connecting these songs to Harry Smith's Anthology of American Folk Music, adding an extra layer of myth to tapes that were shrouded in mystery from the moment bootlegs started to circulate. The Basement Tapes Complete strengthens portions of that legend while simultaneously puncturing it. Certainly, the six-disc box – its first five discs assembled according to Hudson's numbering system, with the sixth disc collecting sessions discovered later – feels substantially different from the LP released in 1975, where the overall picture was distorted by Robbie Robertson adding sometimes significant overdubs and including Band recordings that weren't cut during those seven months in 1967.

Though it appears in the aftermath of their dissolution in 2014, and the deaths of both actual Allman brothers, Duane and Gregg, this 50th anniversary retrospective box set is arguably the only career overview of the band one can call representative. Arranged over ten LPs or five compact discs, Trouble No More examines in depth each incarnation and stage of the pioneering rockers. It convincingly formulates the argument that no other American band accomplished more musically (especially live) by seamlessly marrying rock, blues, jazz, and R&B to each other and to extended improvisation. This set compiles 61 Allman Brothers Band classics, live performances, and rarities – including seven previously unreleased tracks – all painstakingly remastered, with and a hefty 88-page book full of photos and a lengthy historical essay by ABB historian John Lynskey that recaps all 13 incarnations of the band's lineup.

The Band - Across The Great Divide (1994) {3 CD Box Set Capitol D207193}
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© 1994 Capitol Records | D207193
Rock / Album Rock / Country-Rock / Folk-Rock / Psychedelic / Rock & Roll

Let face it… The Band brought new life to U.S. musical expression in the 60's after the British invasion. Across the Great Divide: continues that legacy. These're some of my favorite listening pieces, and as a longtime Band fan, I think matches the feel and diversity of "Americana roots" music that "The Band" brought to the ears of the world via North America. May these cuts carry on this traditional inspiration for musicians and music lovers everywhere.

Released on the heels of the stilted, static Cahoots, the double-album Rock of Ages occupies a curious yet important place in Band history. Recorded at a spectacular New Years Eve 1971 gig, the show and album were intended to be a farewell of sorts before the Band took an extended break in 1972, but it turned out to be a last hurrah in many different ways, closing the chapter on the first stage of their career, when they were among the biggest and most important rock & roll bands…

In comparison to its predecessors, Cahoots, the Band's fourth album, may be characterized as an essentially minor effort that nevertheless contains a few small pleasures. These pleasures begin with the leadoff track, "Life Is a Carnival," a song that continues the theme of Stage Fright by emphasizing the false nature of show business and its impact on reality…

The Band is the eponymous second studio album by The Band, released on September 22, 1969. It is also known as The Brown Album. According to Rob Bowman's liner notes for the 2000 reissue, The Band has been viewed as a concept album, with the songs focusing on people, places and traditions associated with an older version of Americana.