The Band first gained fame as a backup band for Bob Dylan in 1966, first as a touring band and then for the series of demos they recorded with him in upstate New York as he recuperated from a motorcycle accident, in a house they christened “Big Pink.” Their soulful country-rock was a major influence in the retreat from psychedelic excess in rock back to more basic song forms and concrete subject matter.
Not long after the Band’s debut album release, the Byrds would go all-out country-rock on Sweetheart of the Rodeo; the Rolling Stones would shift back to basics with their stellar Beggars Banquet; and Eric Clapton would leave behind the psychedelic sounds and virtuoso excess of Cream to return to simpler blues forms with Derek and the Dominoes. Likewise, the Grateful Dead would soon filter out the noise and experimentation in favor of a relaxed countrified sound for their 1970s releases.
Playlist 1: The 1960s
The Band’s best work came with their first two album releases, Music from Big Pink and The Band. This playlist blends the best of these two albums, adding a few tracks from their contributions to The Basement Tapes, recorded around the same time but not released until 1975.
Playlist 2: The 1970s
The Band’s 1970s output was less consistent. After quite a decent amount of listening, I’d say that if you compiled the best tracks of their studio releases of the ‘70s onto one LP, you’d end up with a good album that still couldn’t approach the quality of either of their ‘60s releases.
It could easily be argued that their best music from that time came on their live albums, which crackle with an energy not found in their studio albums of the time. Their most impressive feature is their incorporation of a horn section, often courtesy of Alain Toussaint. Hunting out their live releases would be fine as a recommendation—if that didn’t mean checking out a whopping two double-LPs plus a triple! 14 album-sides of music? It’s a catalog that needs some serious pruning.
So here you are!
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