Richard Manuel 1943 - 1986
Rick Danko 1943 - 1999
Levon Helm 1940 - 2012
Robbie Robertson 1943 - 2023
Garth Hudson 1937 - 2025
And just like that, The Band is gone.
Garth Hudson, multi-instrumentalist and elder member of The Band, passed away in his sleep in a nursing home in Woodstock, New York. He was 87. Hudson was the most musically educated and quietly fearless searcher of fresh sounds. Hudson was a calm center in a band of rabble rousers who brought his necessary grace to The Band and its music.
People will forever remember Hudson, a quiet man, for his lengthy introduction to “Chest Fever” (entitled “The Genetic Method”). This introduction to “Chest Fever” often draws comparisons to Jon Lord’s introduction to “Lazy” from Made In Japan (Purple, 1972). Ain’t that just a kick in the head?