A Toast to Levon

From the desk of Ned P. Rauch:

Is Levon Helm the most successful Band alum?

Without a whole lot of hubbub, Levon, drummer from The Band, released Electric Dirt, the follow-up to his 2007, Grammy-winning record, Dirt Farmer. Both of these albums are loose and upbeat. The playing's terrific, the arrangements are simple and the songs all swing. Really, really good work here, representing a kind of rebirth for Levon. His Midnight Rambles at his home/studio in Woodstock over the last few years have proved a success (I went to one; it was one of the best musical nights of my life), he's surrounded by top-notch musicians like the peerless Larry Campbell, and he's healthy (he won a tangle with throat cancer a few years back).

So, consider: Is the last laugh Levon's? Two of his former Band-mates are dead. Of the survivors, Garth Hudson produces and plays on Neko Case's records. Robbie Robertson put out a few solo records a while ago and got into scoring movies, most recently serving as music producer on "The Departed." He doesn't play much anymore. Only Levon's doing anything that people are writing and talking about. Garth sits in at Levon's Rambles every now and then, but Robbie has pretty much disappeared from the scene; he and Levon are still at odds, which is too bad.

I don't think one can consider The Band's run without conjuring a large dose of melancholy. The only antidote, as I see it, is Levon's music from the last few years. It's...happy. Hats off to him.