'Last Waltz' Showcases The Band's Legacy At Philly Area Concert: Review

GLENSIDE, PA — It's considered the greatest concert movie of all time.

"The Last Waltz," the legendary farewell concert by The Band, will celebrate its 50th anniversary next Thanksgiving. With the holiday soon approaching, The Band Band recreated the concert during its recent show at the Keswick Theatre, capturing the spirit of that magical evening way back when.

The Band always let their music do the talking after stepping out on their own following stints as the backup band to Ronnie Hawkins and then Bob Dylan.

You may not know the now deceased members: guitarist Robbie Robertson, drummer Levon Helm, bassist Rick Danko, pianist Richard Manuel, and keyboard extraordinaire Garth Hudson.

You do know the songs: "Up On Cripple Creek," "The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down," and "The Weight," all classics still featured on Classic Rock stations throughout the country.

The Band Band kicked off its "Last Waltz" recreation with "Up On Cripple Creek," showing the tight playing and professional musicianship that made the real band a solid foundation throughout its tenure.

The setlist then ran through The Band's big songs: "Rag Mama Rag," "The Shape I'm In," "It Makes No Difference," "The Weight," and "The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down" as various singers took the lead and the original fiddller from "The Last Waltz" show in San Francisco in November 1976 also joined for most of the show.

Robertson had decided that The Band should stop touring after years on the road. But he wanted to go out in a blaze of glory by holding a farewell concert on Thanksgiving 1976. And he wanted to invite friends who influenced the group to perform with them at the San Francisco show.

That's really what set "The Last Waltz" apart from any other farewell concert.

The Band backed up Hawkins and Dylan along with a host of guests, including Eric Clapton, Neil Diamond, Dr. John, Neil Young, Joni Mitchell, and Van Morrison, turning the evening into a celebration that later appeared on the big screen as a concert movie.

The Band Band recreated some of those performances with its own special guests, who took on the roles of the performers mentioned above.

What this tribute concert showed was that sometimes it really isn't about the bands: It's about the staying power of the songs that still create musical memories nearly five decades after they were performed.

That's what this "Last Waltz" tribute concert delivered: Songs for the ages and a concert performance by a 1960s group that will last for generations to come.