Levon Helm has lost his battle with cancer, the drummer and singer for The Band was 71. I grew up listening to The Band, their music resonates with me still, such a sad day.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/20/ar...ies-at-71.html

The Weight...

I pulled into Nazareth, I was feelin' about half past dead Just need to find a place where I can lay my head "Hey, mister, can you tell me where a man might find a bed?" He just grinned and shook my hand and, "No", was all he said

Take a load off Annie Take a load for free Take a load off Annie And you put the load right on me (You put the load right on me)

I picked up my bag and I went lookin' for a place to hide When I saw Carmen and the Devil walkin' side by side And I said, "Hey, Carmen, come on, would you go downtown" And she said, "Well, I gotta go but my friend can stick around"

And take a load off Annie Take a load for free Take a load off Annie And you put the load right on me (You put the load right on me)

Go down, Miss Moses, there ain't nothin' that you can say 'Cause just ol' Luke and Luke's waitin' on the Judgment Day "Well, now Luke, my friend, what about young Anna Lee?" He said, "Do me a favor, son, won't you stay an' keep Anna Lee company?"

Take a load off Annie Take a load for free Take a load off Annie And you put the load right on me (You put the load right on me)

Crazy Chester followed me and he caught me in the fog He said, "I will fix your rags, if you'll take Jack, my dog" I said, "Wait a minute, Chester, you know I'm a peaceful man" He said, "That's okay, boy, won't you feed him when you can?"

Take a load off Annie Take a load for free Take a load off Annie And you put the load right on me (You put the load right on me)

Catch a Cannonball, now, to take me down the line My, my bag is sinkin' low and I do believe it's time To get back to Miss Anny, you know she's the only one Who sent me here with her regards for everyone

Take a load off Annie Take a load for free Take a load off Annie And you put the load right on me (You put the load right on me)

Rest In Peace Levon, you're music will live on.

 

He had been fighting cancer for years - probably more than 10. May he now rest in peace. He was an original.

 

Wore out a eight track of Stage Fright back in the day. May it all be right for him now...

 

'Music from Big Pink' is a big part of the memories I have from the late 60's / early 70's. Gonna miss his voice most of all......

 

THE LAST WALTZ for Mr Helm... Never be forgotten...

Amazed me that a drummer could turn to playing a mandolin on a dime...

 

I've been busy, so it took me a while to get to this. I grew up a Northerner, but spent my high school years in the Chattanooga area, and got to tour Civil War battlefields and see why Lookout Mountain has its name, etc. I loved it all.

Being a student of history, this song always cut right to the heart of the Civil War for me, even if it WAS written by CANADIAN Robbie Robertson. I like to think his Canadian perspective was probably like my New England one, because when I was down there even in the early 1980s, it was pretty spooky how real it all seemed. Anyway, Levon's vocal made this what it was. Joan Baez was a pale imitator, despite having more success.

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Virgil Caine is the name and I served on the Danville train
'Til Stoneman's cavalry came and tore up the tracks again
In the winter of '65, we were hungry, just barely alive
By May the tenth, Richmond had fell
It's a time I remember, oh so well

The night they drove old Dixie down
And the bells were ringing
The night they drove old Dixie down
And the people were singing
They went, "La, la, la"

Back with my wife in Tennessee, when one day she called to me
"Virgil, quick, come see, there go the Robert E.Lee"
Now I don't mind choppin' wood, and I don't care if the money's no good
Ya take what ya need and ya leave the rest
But they should never have taken the very best

The night they drove old Dixie down
And the bells were ringing
The night they drove old Dixie down
And all the people were singing
They went, "La, la, la"

Like my father before me, I will work the land
And like my brother above me, who took a rebel stand
He was just eighteen, proud and brave, but a Yankee laid him in his grave
I swear by the mud below my feet
You can't raise a Caine back up when he's in defeat

The night they drove old Dixie down
And the bells were ringing
The night they drove old Dixie down
And all the people were singing
They went, "Na, na, na"

The night they drove old Dixie down
And all the bells were ringing
The night they drove old Dixie down
And the people were singing
They went, "Na, na, na"

 

rip