Levon: From Down in the Delta to the Birth of The Band and Beyond Hardcover – August 25, 2020

This book has to be the most thorough autobiography ever written about anyone, and it's a love letter to Levon Helm.It goes through his entire life; all the bands he played in, the music he made, the mistakes he made, the friends he made, and all the rest. It has the good, the bad, and the ugly, and presents it all in rich detail.It made me love Levon more than I already did and put into perspective the ongoing feud he had with Robbie Robertson over the years. It made me appreciate his music more, and his talents, and I absolutely loved reading this book.And I'm not a huge fan of The Band -- I appreciate them, even more so now, but I still recommend this book. If you love music, do yourself a favor and read this book.

A great life in his own words.

Sandra Tooze has captured the unique character and genius of Levon Helm, an American original who lived, dreamed and made music like nobody else. It was, literally, in his body – and his approach to drumming and singing remade contemporary rock music, as drummer after drummer from Jim Keltner to Steve Jordan to Ringo explains. Tooze’s new interview work with many of the principals, and attention to musical detail is nothing short of superb. She picks up the nuances and history of Levon’s music, his southern roots, and his long, difficult journey through relationships, success, fame, illness, revival and survival. Particularly appreciated the background on Libby Titus (who wrote ‘love has no pride’) and her and Levon’s children and families. Tooze must be a drummer, because her explanations of tempo changes, drum kit set ups and gear, shuffles and 16th notes actually made me go back and relisten to classics like King Harvest or the more recent Dirt Farmer sessions with fresh ears. Her breakdowns of Levon’s work on Moondog Matinee also took me back to the covers with renewed interest. The backstory, readers will know by now, is about Helm’s well-documented dispute with Robbie Robertson over the royalties and publishing rights for what Helm viewed as the collaborative efforts of the Band on the first two key albums of music: now acknowledged classics in American rock and folk music. What Tooze adds to the story is interviews of others who were around Woodstock at the time. There isn’t a clear consensus and it raises the perennial question about what the overlapping roles of ‘songwriter’, lyricist, arranger, player and producer, something also taken up in John Simon’s recent memoir (he might have had some claims as well). Danko, Manual and Hudson also felt aggrieved over Robertson’s running of the business, his writers’ credit, his declaration of the end of the Band, and his refusal to step up when the others were in financial and health difficulty. What comes through both Tooze’s book and Robertson’s autobiography is that Robertson was always deliberately crafting his image and career, with a sharp business eye, while the others made music, spent money, crashed cars and partied with abandon (Hudson excluded). Comparing the original collaborative from the Basement Tapes on to the later albums, Tooze explains that the other guys gave up after the second album and were performing Robertson’s tunes with perfunctory, mixed results. Some of the old magic is there on Stage Fright and Northern Lights – but something is missing: the quirkiness, playfulness and eccentricity of some of the Helm/Danko/Manual work on the early albums. Hudson played on through the chaos, with novelty and virtuosity. Danko’s solo work holds up well and Robertson’s solo work struggled the recapture the magic, then headed in another Indigenous direction. Helm’s later collaborative work was rich and wonderous, and Tooze does it real justice here. While it didn’t establish his credentials as a songwriter, there was no Band without Levon. His voice, drums, mandolin and occasional guitar were the beating heart of the classic work.

Well researched, well-written account of the rise, fall, and ultimate resurrection of the career of the late, great Levon Helm. Of the books I've read that zero in on the history of The Band (Barney Hoskyns' Across The Great Divide, Levon's This Wheel's On Fire, Robbie's Testimony), this one outclasses them all. Even-handed, with no axes to grind, Sandra B. Tooze sets about setting the record straight and does just about the best job of it that I can imagine being done (with 3/5ths of the Band being gone). The one thing missing is a thorough discography, although Ms. Tooze does indeed offer commentary on each major release throughout the body of the book. Still, a stand alone, easily accessible discography would've been a welcome addition. Highly recommended.

Being a child of the 60's I grew up listening to rock n' roll, especially the Beatles and Stones. I wasn't that familiar with The Band because they didn't get much air play on our local Long Island or even the New York City stations I would tune into. I'm not sure when it was, but the first time I heard The Weight I became a fan. After that, of course, I bought Music from Big Pink and then the "Brown" album. I would argue that there's more musical talent contained in those two albums than any other from that, or any era.Now for the book: I read This Wheel's on Fire years ago. Being a Levon Helm fan of course I loved it. That being said, it was a very one sided account because of his hatred towards Robbie Robertson due to his not sharing the song writing royalties with his band mates. This book takes a more balanced view of what was going on at the time from the perspective of Robbie Robertson as well as Levon (it's hard to contribute to quality song writing when your out partying and doing drugs). The flow of the book is also excellent- it progresses from Levon's early days in Arkansas until his death from cancer in 2012 without veering off into minutiae.My wife and I drove to Woodstock last summer and by coincidence turned onto Levon Helm Way. Now that I've read Sandra Toozes' excellent biography I plan to make another trip and perhaps buy tickets to The Midnight Rambles!

Still reading this. Of course the subject is very interesting but the book itself is as advertised. Sold at a fair price with quick delivery.

Excellent and well-written. After just having read Wheels On Fire and Testimony, this one really filled in all sorts of information, and I now feel I know more than ever. I truly love Levon, though I now know what a pain he could be - arguing about money and then giving away thousands on impulse the same day...amazing. Best drummer I can think of, and we learn a lot in this book. Levon's autobio goes up to his going solo, but this book goes with him to the end, decades later. If you care about The Band, this is vital.