Robbie Robertson’s favourite Joni Mitchell song: “The rhythm is incredible”
From life on the road as a touring musician to finally sharing the spotlight when The Band emerged from the shadows, the late Robbie Robertson’s journey in music was rather more winding one than most. He passed away in 2023 at the age of 80 and typifies his tireless pursuit of great art that he was pretty much working until the very end.
With a string of esteemed masterpieces out behind him, Robertson could’ve been forgiven for finally putting his feet up and basking in the harvest of his toil. However, if The Band were anything, it was a culmination and, thus, it simply wouldn’t be in keeping with his own unique legacy if he didn’t remain at the forefront of his gathering musical momentum, continually adding to his own storied lore as a true folk star should.
In 2019, he crafted his lauded final album, Sinematic, and unlike a lot of artists in their autumnal years, it was still fresh enough to celebrate without any hint of glossy-eyed nostalgia. While the legendary musician was promoting the album, Robertson caught up with the Los Angeles Times to discuss his life in music. As a musician who worked with seemingly the entire folk scene in his day, he had greater insight than many regarding what made the folk renaissance soar.
In the awe-inspiring epic concert film The Last Waltz, The Band managed to rub shoulders with many of their heroes. One of the many highlights is when they are joined on stage by Joni Mitchell, who sang ‘Coyote’. She later provided becloaked backing vocals for the Neil Young track ‘Hopeless’. This strange addition proves that even when she’s not present physically, she still adds something mesmeric to the performance.
Robertson often extolled his gratitude for Mitchell being part of the show and expressed how much he admired her as an artist. Part of this is because, beneath the simple beauty of her music, there is a filigreed complexity that elevates them. “Joni’s songs might have been the most challenging of the night, with their syncopation and chord structures that kept you on your toes,” Robertson once revealed, “But we sailed through that one like a cool breeze”. In part, that triumph was because The Band shared many of her artistic tenets.
This made Mitchell a firm favourite of Robertson’s. However, there is one song in particular – a song which he was fortunate enough to play on – that he holds dearest in her entire discography. In fact, he goes as far as to say that ‘Raised on Robbery’ from her 1974 record Court and Spark is one of his favourite songs of all time, period.
The track documents the tale of a prostitute who tries to pick up a lonely man sitting in a hotel bar by expressing her life story, but when the final verse is cast, the man simply gets up, leaving her in despair. The song itself is as performative as anything in Mitchell’s songbook, with histrionic vocals and slide guitars giving the track an almost cinematic feel.
“[They recently remixed the record] and when they did, Joni said to me, ‘I listened to the whole song, and just listened to your guitar in it. The rhythm is incredible. And so when we remixed it, we turned it up,’” Robertson recalled. “She and I have dinner every once in a while,” he happily added. Clearly, being part of the song was a mark of great artistic pride for Robertson, so why wouldn’t it be? The track is a timeless beauty that exhibits a humorous side to the often solemn Mitchell.
Today, it still typifies her timelessness and the enigmatic nature of her writing, which plays into that. Alas, Mitchell would also be quick to add that she was always keen to raise her own talents by collaborating with the musicians in her field, hence why she recruited Robertson and amplified him in the mix. She might be fiercely individualistic, but it is one of her many strengths that ego was never thought about in the creative process.
Perhaps this is why Mitchell and Robertson remained firm friends. In fact, when The Last Waltz director Martin Scorsese held a tribute concert for his late friend, Joni Mitchell was one of the notable stars present. She also eulogised the folk legend shortly after his passing, writing: “May his legacy and musical harmony resonate for generations to come.”
