The first time I saw The Last Waltz was on an enormous projection screen at a friend’s house. I was in high school at the time, and neither my musical taste nor my music collection had expanded very far yet. At the time I was still accumulating songs one by one on Kazaa or Limewire. But that night, watching “Van the Man” strut around and kick his leg up while Robbie Robertson and the Band belted out the chorus on “Caravan,” my outlook on rock music was forever changed.
In some ways, The Last Waltz concert (1976) came at the end of the golden age of rock and roll. The Beatles were over, the Stones were past their prime. Dylan was meandering. Maybe that means something to the folks who were alive in 1976. But to me, The Last Waltz means the greatest rock moment ever captured on film. And if I was given the task of explaining rock and roll to an alien, the first thing I'd do is pop The Last Waltz in the DVD player.
The concept is so perfect. What I mean is, The Band's career sans Dylan ran from '68-'76 (ending with The Last Waltz concert). That was the golden age, in my opinion. That captures the peaks of Zeppelin and the Rolling Stones, the end of the Beatles (the best part), Woodstock, Joni Mitchell, Clapton, Neil Young, and countless other acts with unreal albums from that time period. Not to mention The Band itself, which is possibly the most underrated act of the classic rock era (and my favorite band ever). So the Last Waltz brings all these folks together on one stage. Oh, and Scorcese took care of the filmmaking.
Have you seen The Last Waltz? If not, do yourself a favor and watch it on the biggest TV you've got, with the sound up. And pay attention to "Caravan" with Van Morrison. If you like classic rock, you're gonna love this.
Oh, but of course they took down all the video and audio of "Caravan" online. So here, I'll show you video of "Don't Do It," another great performance that plays in the opening credits. This'll get you excited to watch the whole thing at home.
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