“The Weight” – 50 years, still transcending time and space

Robbie Robertson / “The Weight”

Growing up as a teen in Ocean Springs, Miss., then continuing through my university days at Macalester College in Saint Paul, Minnesota, The Band always stood out as one of my favorite music groups. Starting with their outstanding live LP Rock of Ages, I started collecting their albums over the years and my appreciation for this Canadian-American roots rock group never wavered. They made critically-acclaimed soulful music enriched by a singular voice that was influenced by country, blues and Americana. Going on a musical journey with The Band also meant hearing gospel and mountain music – even Angelic hymns.

I always appreciated that there was stability – and versatility – in The Band’s lineup, which featured Robbie Robertson on guitar and vocals; Levon Helm on drums, vocals, mandolin and guitar; Rick Danko on bass guitar, vocals and fiddle; Garth Hudson on Lowrey organ and keyboards, accordion and saxophone; and Richard Manuel on piano and keyboards, drums and vocals. Though The Band had three vocalists sharing lead and harmonies, Manuel was seen as their primary vocalist. All but Helm, who was born among the dirt farms in Elaine, Arkansas, hailed from the provinces of Canada. It was during their time spent backing up Bob Dylan when he ditched folk and went electric that The Band gained not only prominence but also their monicker. They were originally formed as The Hawks, a backing band for the rockabilly singer Ronnie Hawkins, joining him one by one between 1958 and 1963.

Although they were always “the band” to the various frontmen and locals in Woodstock, New York, where they moved after touring with Dylan in the U.S. in 1965 and around the world in 1996, Helm once said the name “The Band” worked pretty well when they came into their own. Once they began performing as The Band in 1968, they recorded 10 studio albums and collaborated again with Dylan in 1974 on a live concert album. The original quintet ended their touring career back in 1976 with “The Last Waltz” concert at the Winterland Ballroom in San Francisco, which featured many iconic musical celebrities of that era, including: Dylan, Van Morrison, Eric Clapton, Neil Young, Muddy Waters, Dr. John, the Staples Singers and Joni Mitchell. The performance was filmed by Martin Scorsese and released as a 1978 documentary, The Last Waltz.

Since then, three of the original members of The Band have passed away – Manuel committed suicide in 1986, Danko died of heart failure in 1999 and Helm, who went on to a successful film career with roles in The Coal Miner’s Daughter and The Right Stuff, died of throat cancer at age 71 in 2012. Meanwhile, Robertson, now 76, found success with a solo career and as a Hollywood music producer. He has scored the music for 10 Martin Scorsese films. Hudson, now 82, went on to record a number of solo projects and is still a much in-demand studio musician. Last year, he was named a Member of the Order of Canada.

Although my music tastes have expanded over the years since my days as college radio disc jockey at Macalester’s WMCN-FM, I have maintained a fondness for The Band’s musical template of Americana, roots rock and country rock, which along with The Byrds and The Flying Burrito Brothers, helped pave the wave for the popularity of The Eagles.

The Band’s first album, Music From Big Pink, which was released in 1968, included three songs penned by Dylan: “This Wheel’s On Fire,” “Tears of Rage,” and “I Shall Be Released.” It also included “The Weight,” which was featured in the seminal counterculture film Easy Rider, making it one of the group’s most memorable and best-known songs. According to The Wall Street Journal, the songs on Music From Big Pink combined “vivid imagery with a touch of Impressionism; they sound both utterly original and like folk songs that have been passed down for generations.”

While it’s been a while since I listened to Music From Big Pink, lo and behold, a week ago I came across an interesting Rolling Stone article about Robbie Robertson playing “The Weight” with Ringo Starr and musicians across five continents, captured in an epic “Playing For Change” video, that was the result of two years of work spread across 10 countries. I was intrigued by the possibilities and gave the video a good watch and listen.

“The Weight,” written by Robertson and sung by Helm, has been described as “a masterpiece of Biblical allusions, enigmatic lines and iconic characters,” and its enduring popularity makes it an essential part of not only the American songbook but it’s also one of the great songs that shaped rock and roll, too.

“What key is it in, Robbie?” Starr, sitting behind his drum kit, asks Robertson, who’s in Los Angeles, during a telephone conversation at the beginning of the video. The former mop-top Beatles drummer nods. “F-demented!” What follows is a delightful and heartfelt cover of “The Weight,” beginning with Robertson’s soulful guitar lick that brings back memories of the original introduction. From there, the song takes off verse by verse as a series of all-star musicians spanning the globe – Lukas Nelson (son of Willie), Marcus King, Congolese soul singer Mermens Mosengo, Japanese guitar virtuoso Char, among many – add their own distinctive influence to enhance the palate of the song, each from different locations around the world.

According to Rolling Stone, the project for “The Weight” came from Playing For Change, a group that is dedicated to “breaking down the boundaries and overcome distances between people.” It includes 15 music schools across 11 countries, documentaries and viral videos bringing artists from different cultures together. Co-founder Mark Johnson, a Grammy Award-winning producer-engineer who has worked with Paul Simon among many, told Rolling Stone that it took a year and a half of production over five continents. “We made it brick by brick, starting with Robbie. That’s what makes this special. We could never have assembled this group in the studio. You need to go there, and then when you go there, you’re where they feel comfortable. You hear that in the music.”

After watching and listening to this version of “The Weight,” I’m gobsmacked. After 50 years, thanks to time and space, this enduring classic has only gotten better. Levon Helm would be proud.

Credits: Video courtesy of YouTube.com. Screenshot photo of Robbie Robertson courtesy of Playing For Change.