Robbie Robertson of The Band died on Wednesday (8/9) at age 80. Word came via his management, who wrote: “Robbie was surrounded by his family at the time of his death, including his wife, Janet, his ex-wife, Dominique, her partner Nicholas, and his children Alexandra, Sebastian, Delphine, and Delphine’s partner Kenny. He is also survived by his grandchildren Angelica, Donovan, Dominic, Gabriel and Seraphina.” His family has asked in lieu of flowers, donations be made to the Six Nations of the Grand River to support a new Woodland Cultural Center.
Born July 5, 1943 in Toronto, Robertson is best known for his work with The Band, who backed up Bob Dylan in the ’60s before heading out on their own. As guitarist and primary songwriter for The Band, Robertson penned such classics as “The Weight”, “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down”, and “Up on Cripple Creek.” He was inducted into the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame and was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award from the National Academy of Songwriters.
Roberton also had a long collaborative relationship with filmmaker Martin Scorsese, who directed classic rock documentary The Last Waltz (about the original configuration of The Band’s final concert), and worked on the soundtracks of Raging Bull, The King of Comedy, Casino, The Departed, The Wolf of Wall Street, The Irishman, and more as musical supervisor. He recently completed work on Scorsese’s upcoming Killers of the Flower Moon, their 14th project together.
Rest in peace, Robbie. Your music lives on.
