Album of the Day

Previously “The Band” behind Bob Dylan in the mid-1960s, Rick Danko, Levon Helm, Garth Hudson, Richard Manuel and Robbie Robertson began recording on their own in a roots-rock style that might now be called Americana (though most members hailed from Canada). After more than a decade together, the quintet decided to go out in style with a final concert at San Francisco's Winterland Ballroom, joined by the likes of Dylan, Joni Mitchell, Neil Young, Van Morrison and Eric Clapton. The event was documented by director Martin Scorsese, and the accompanying soundtrack shows why The Band was among the most acclaimed groups in rock. Along with stirring live versions of “Up On Cripple Creek,” “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down,” “The Shape I'm In” and signature songs from some of the guest stars, the triple-album closes with an elegiac suite recorded specifically for the occasion. We'll play THE LAST WALTZ again now to wish Robbie Robertson a happy 80th birthday.