The Band’s Garth Hudson dead at 87
The Band‘s last living member, Garth Hudson, has died aged 87.
Hudson’s death has been confirmed by The Toronto Star, which revealed the organist, keyboardist and saxophonist passed away during his sleep in a nursing home in Woodstock, New York, on January 21st.
The Ontario-born musician began his musical journey in 1961 when he was recruited to join Levon and the Hawks, which later became The Band. Their line-up also included the late Robbie Robertson, Rick Danko and Richard Manuel, who also began playing with Bob Dylan in 1966 as The Band.
After The Band’s partnership with Dylan ended, they established themselves as a musical force in their own right. Their most celebrated albums include their eponymous 1969 release, along with Music from Big Pink and Stage Fright.
After The Band bid farewell with their legendary live concert film, The Last Waltz, in 1976, Hudson reunited with the group in 1983 for another 16-year stint. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of The Band in 1994. Additionally, Hudson received a ‘Lifetime Achievement Award’ from the Recording Academy in 2008.
It took until 2001 for Hudson to launch his solo career with his debut album, The Sea to the North. He also formed a band with his wife, Maud Hudson, in 2005, and together, they released the live album, Live at the Wolf.
Hudson maintained a low profile and rarely gave in-depth interviews throughout his career. Instead, he preferred to allow his music do the talking on his behalf.
His late bandmate, Robbie Robertson, wrote in his 2016 memoir, Testimony, of Hudson’s talent: “He played brilliantly, in a more complex way than anybody we had ever jammed with. Most of us had just picked up our instruments as kids and plowed ahead, but Garth was classically trained and could find musical avenues on the keyboard we didn’t know existed. It impressed us deeply.”
Outside of his work with The Band, Hudson was also an accomplished session musician whose services were acquired by Leonard Cohen, Van Morrison, Emmylou Harris, Neko Case and The Lemonheads.
Hudson performed live for the final time in April, 2023, when he played a version of Duke Ellington’s ‘Sophisticated Lady’ at a private function in Kingston, New York.
Reflecting on his time with The Band during an interview with the Canadian publication Maclean’s in 2003, Hudson nonchalantly said of their tenure: “It was a job. Play a stadium, play a theater. My job was to provide arrangements with pads underneath, pads and fills behind good poets. Same poems every night.”
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