Lit
09-26-2009, 01:12 PM
From Levon's website:
Levon lost his voice while we were on the road on June. The good news is that a biopsy of his vocal cord a few weeks ago resulted in a diagnosis of NO CANCER, however he does need to remain on vocal rest so that he can heal. He was diagnosed with a lesion on his vocal cord from acid reflux which was removed by laser. He will sing again, following some rigorous vocal lessons with his vocal coach, but he does need to take it slowly. Thanks to you, his loyal and loving fans, he's been welcomed to the stage with shouts and cheers and sounds of encouragement through this healing process.
So this was just posted. I knew he was having increasing voice issues recently, but I went to see him last night without knowing this news beforehand. I was operating (barely) on almost forty hours with no sleep so I was pretty wiped to begin with, and I was initially disappointed when I learned that he would not be singing. Prayers that he does indeed return to full voice.
The good news was that special guest Donald Fagen was in excellent voice, and he provided some of the best moments and great surprises of the night. He was in a great mood, like a little kid playing with his friends. I've never seen him play anybody else's material , but last night he did it with such ease and excitement that it seemed as if he was simply enjoying being liberated from the confines of his own material. He pulled out a great "Black Friday" half-way through the show, with excellent backing vocals by Theresa Williams and Amy Helm, and masterful (as always) guitar work by Larry Campbell. I had been having a bit of a "black" Friday myself up until that point, and that seemed to turn my night around. But the real surprises were his great and spirited vocals on some band classics including "Across the Great Divide," "The Weight" and a stunning "I Shall Be Released" for the encore, which conjured visions of Richard Manuel's hallmark treatment of this Dylan classic. As would be expected, his treatment of the piano and organ work was also excellent.
There were plenty of other highlights from this 13-piece ensemble of outstanding musicians. As usual, the legendary horn section provided a lot of them, including many New Orleans touches, especially a romping "All on a Mardi Gras Day" that morphed into "Iko Iko." Borrowing from their recent touring with Phil Lesh & Friends, Larry Campbell and Theresa Williams, joined by Amy Helm, did a stirring cover of the Grateful Dead's "Attics of My Life." Keeping with the Hunter/Garcia theme, the band also played "Tennessee Jed," which Levon sings on his latest album but was sung well by Campbell last night.
The band last night also included talented multi-instrumentalist Brian Mitchell, who joined Fagen on the keys and also handled some nice vocals a la Dr. John. And with Jimmy Vivino now stuck on the West Coast with Conan's move, Jim Weider has joined the band as guitarist, also taking the vocals on "Remedy," which he co-wrote with Levon as a member of the last version of the Band when they reformed without Robertson. Amy Helm was another highlight, and Theresa Williams, as always, provided some very nice moments as well.
In the end, I was pleasantly surprised at how good the show was despite not hearing Levon sing. He was in great spirits too, and seemed to really get a kick out of seeing Fagen perform some of the Band classics. Some of the best parts were watching him smile while he gets by with a little help from his incredible group of friends. But let's hope we do get to hear him sing again too.
Levon lost his voice while we were on the road on June. The good news is that a biopsy of his vocal cord a few weeks ago resulted in a diagnosis of NO CANCER, however he does need to remain on vocal rest so that he can heal. He was diagnosed with a lesion on his vocal cord from acid reflux which was removed by laser. He will sing again, following some rigorous vocal lessons with his vocal coach, but he does need to take it slowly. Thanks to you, his loyal and loving fans, he's been welcomed to the stage with shouts and cheers and sounds of encouragement through this healing process.
So this was just posted. I knew he was having increasing voice issues recently, but I went to see him last night without knowing this news beforehand. I was operating (barely) on almost forty hours with no sleep so I was pretty wiped to begin with, and I was initially disappointed when I learned that he would not be singing. Prayers that he does indeed return to full voice.
The good news was that special guest Donald Fagen was in excellent voice, and he provided some of the best moments and great surprises of the night. He was in a great mood, like a little kid playing with his friends. I've never seen him play anybody else's material , but last night he did it with such ease and excitement that it seemed as if he was simply enjoying being liberated from the confines of his own material. He pulled out a great "Black Friday" half-way through the show, with excellent backing vocals by Theresa Williams and Amy Helm, and masterful (as always) guitar work by Larry Campbell. I had been having a bit of a "black" Friday myself up until that point, and that seemed to turn my night around. But the real surprises were his great and spirited vocals on some band classics including "Across the Great Divide," "The Weight" and a stunning "I Shall Be Released" for the encore, which conjured visions of Richard Manuel's hallmark treatment of this Dylan classic. As would be expected, his treatment of the piano and organ work was also excellent.
There were plenty of other highlights from this 13-piece ensemble of outstanding musicians. As usual, the legendary horn section provided a lot of them, including many New Orleans touches, especially a romping "All on a Mardi Gras Day" that morphed into "Iko Iko." Borrowing from their recent touring with Phil Lesh & Friends, Larry Campbell and Theresa Williams, joined by Amy Helm, did a stirring cover of the Grateful Dead's "Attics of My Life." Keeping with the Hunter/Garcia theme, the band also played "Tennessee Jed," which Levon sings on his latest album but was sung well by Campbell last night.
The band last night also included talented multi-instrumentalist Brian Mitchell, who joined Fagen on the keys and also handled some nice vocals a la Dr. John. And with Jimmy Vivino now stuck on the West Coast with Conan's move, Jim Weider has joined the band as guitarist, also taking the vocals on "Remedy," which he co-wrote with Levon as a member of the last version of the Band when they reformed without Robertson. Amy Helm was another highlight, and Theresa Williams, as always, provided some very nice moments as well.
In the end, I was pleasantly surprised at how good the show was despite not hearing Levon sing. He was in great spirits too, and seemed to really get a kick out of seeing Fagen perform some of the Band classics. Some of the best parts were watching him smile while he gets by with a little help from his incredible group of friends. But let's hope we do get to hear him sing again too.