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Rock of Ages

 
Album Review: Rock of Ages
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Rock of Ages

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Live at Massey Hall 1971, Concert for Bangladesh, Grateful Dead (Skull & Roses), 4 Way Street, Eric Clapton's Rainbow Concert, At Fillmore East
  • Artist: The Band
  • Rating: StarStarStarStar
  • Release Date: August 15, 1972
  • Total Time: 78:19
  • Type: Live
  • Genre: Rock

Review

Released on the heels of the stilted, static Cahoots, the double-album Rock of Ages occupies a curious yet important place in Band history. Recorded at a spectacular New Years Eve 1971 gig, the show and album were intended to be a farewell of sorts before the Band took an extended break in 1972, but it turned out to be a last hurrah in many different ways, closing the chapter on the first stage of their career, when they were among the biggest and most important rock & roll bands. That sense of importance had started to creep into their music, turning their studio albums after The Band into self-conscious affairs, and even the wildly acclaimed first two albums seemed to float out of time, existing in a sphere of their own and never having the kick of a rock & roll band. Rock of Ages has that kick in spades, and it captures that road warrior side of the band that was yet unheard on record. Since this band -- or more accurately its leader, Robbie Robertson -- was acutely aware of image and myth, this record didn't merely capture an everyday gig, it captured a spectacular, in retrospect almost a dry run for the legendary Last Waltz. New Orleans R&B legend Allen Toussaint was hired to write horn charts and conduct them, helping to open up the familiar tunes, which in turn helped turn this music into a warm, loose, big-hearted party. And that's what's so splendid about Rock of Ages: sure, the tightness of the Band as a performing unit is on display, but there's also a wild, rowdy heart pumping away in the backbeat of this music, something that the otherwise superb studio albums do not have. Simply put, this is a joy to hear, which may have been especially true after the dour, messy Cahoots, but even stripped of that context Rock of Ages has a spirit quite unlike any other Band album. Indeed, it could be argued that it captured the spirit of the Band at the time in a way none of their other albums do. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide

Tracks



CD 1

Track TitleComposersPerformersTime
Don't Do It (Lyrics) Lamont Dozier, Brian Holland The Band
King Harvest (Has Surely Come) Robbie Robertson The Band
Caledonia Mission (Lyrics) Robbie Robertson The Band
Get Up Jake (Lyrics) Robbie Robertson The Band
The W.S. Walcott Medicine Show Robbie Robertson The Band
Stage Fright (Lyrics) Robbie Robertson The Band
The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down Robbie Robertson The Band
Across the Great Divide (Lyrics) Robbie Robertson The Band
This Wheel's on Fire (Lyrics) Bob Dylan, Rick Danko The Band
Rag Mama Rag (Lyrics) Robbie Robertson The Band


CD 2

Track TitleComposersPerformersTime
The Weight Robbie Robertson The Band
The Shape I'm In Robbie Robertson The Band
Unfaithful Servant (Lyrics) Robbie Robertson The Band
Life Is a Carnival (Lyrics) Robbie Robertson, Rick Danko, Levon Helm The Band
The Genetic Method Robbie Robertson, Garth Hudson The Band
Chest Fever (Lyrics) Robbie Robertson The Band
(I Don't Want To) Hang Up My Rock and Roll Shoes C. Willis The Band

Credits

The Band (Producer), The Band (Main Performer), Howard Johnson (Tuba), Howard Johnson (Euphonium), Howard Johnson (Sax (Baritone)), Joe Farrell (Horn (English)), Joe Farrell (Sax (Soprano)), Joe Farrell (Sax (Tenor)), Garth Hudson (Sax (Soprano)), Garth Hudson (Sax (Tenor)), Earl McIntyre (Trombone), Phil Ramone (Engineer), Allen Toussaint (Horn Arrangements), Snooky Young (Trumpet), Snooky Young (Flugelhorn), J.D. Parron (Sax (Alto)), J.D. Parron (E Flat Clarinet), Larry Walsh (Remastering), Mark Harman (Engineer), Greil Marcus (Liner Notes), Fred Lombardi (Photography), Bob Cato (Design), Bob Cato (Photography), Ernst Haas (Photography), John Scheele (Photography)
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Wikipedia: Rock of Ages (album)
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Home > Library > Miscellaneous > Wikipedia
This article is about an album by The Band. For the Def Leppard album, see Rock of Ages: The Definitive Collection. For the Amy Grant album, see Rock of Ages...Hymns and Faith.
Rock of Ages
Live album by The Band
Released August 15, 1972
Recorded December 1971
Genre Rock
Length 78:19 (original)
125:07 (2001 reissue)
Label Capitol
Producer The Band
Professional reviews
The Band chronology
Cahoots
(1971)		 Rock of Ages
(1972)		 Moondog Matinee
(1973)

Rock of Ages: The Band in Concert is The Band's fifth album. A live disc recorded during their series of shows at New York City's Academy of Music on December 28-31, 1971, it combines several of their hits with enthusiastic covers of songs originally performed by the likes of Marvin Gaye and Chuck Willis and features a wild organ improvisation by organist Garth Hudson, recorded as 1971 turned to 1972.

Originally released in 1972 as a double album, it was reissued in 1980 as two separate LPs (titled Rock of Ages, Vol. 1 and Rock of Ages, Vol. 2). The first CD edition, in 1987, was widely panned for the editing of several tracks to fit the program onto a single disc; an unedited 2-CD version followed in 1990.

2001 saw the release of a substantially revised and expanded 2-CD edition of the album, including ten additional songs from the same concert series (four of which featured performances by surprise "guest star" Bob Dylan).

The 2005 retrospective Band box set A Musical History contains several Rock of Ages tracks newly remixed from the multitrack tapes, as well as a previously-unissued performance of the song "Smoke Signal" from the December 28 show.

Contents

Track listing

Original album

  1. "Introduction" – 1:22
  2. "Don't Do It" (Holland-Dozier-Holland) – 5:00
  3. "King Harvest (Has Surely Come)" (Robertson) – 4:04
  4. "Caledonia Mission" (Robertson) – 3:38
  5. "Get Up Jake" (Robertson) – 3:33
  6. "The W. S. Walcott Medicine Show" (Robertson) – 3:54
  7. "Stage Fright" (Robertson) – 4:38
  8. "The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down" (Robertson) – 4:34
  9. "Across The Great Divide" (Robertson) – 3:59
  10. "This Wheel's On Fire" (Danko, Bob Dylan) – 4:07
  11. "Rag Mama Rag" (Robertson) – 4:33
  12. "The Weight" (Robertson) – 5:32
  13. "The Shape I'm In" (Robertson) – 4:14
  14. "The Unfaithful Servant" (Robertson) – 4:48
  15. "Life Is a Carnival" (Danko, Helm, Robertson) – 4:17
  16. "The Genetic Method" (Hudson) – 7:48
  17. "Chest Fever" (Robertson) – 5:24
  18. "(I Don't Want To) Hang Up My Rock and Roll Shoes" (C. Willis) – 4:20

2001 reissue

Disc one

  1. "Introduction" – 1:22
  2. "Don't Do It" (Holland-Dozier-Holland) – 5:00
  3. "King Harvest (Has Surely Come)" (Robertson) – 4:04
  4. "Caledonia Mission" (Robertson) – 3:38
  5. "Get Up Jake" (Robertson) – 3:33
  6. "The W. S. Walcott Medicine Show" (Robertson) – 3:54
  7. "Stage Fright" (Robertson) – 4:38
  8. "The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down" (Robertson) – 4:34
  9. "Across The Great Divide" (Robertson) – 3:59
  10. "This Wheel's On Fire (Danko, Dylan) – 4:07
  11. "Rag Mama Rag" (Robertson) – 4:33
  12. "The Weight" (Robertson) – 5:32
  13. "The Shape I'm In" (Robertson) – 4:14
  14. "The Unfaithful Servant" (Robertson) – 4:48
  15. "Life Is A Carnival" (Danko, Helm, Robertson) – 4:17
  16. "The Genetic Method" (Hudson) – 7:48
  17. "Chest Fever" (Robertson) – 5:24
  18. "(I Don't Want To) Hang Up My Rock and Roll Shoes" (Willis) – 4:20

Disc two

  1. "Loving You Is Sweeter Than Ever" (Stevie Wonder, Ivy Jo Hunter) – 3:28
  2. "I Shall Be Released" (Dylan) – 4:03
  3. "Up On Cripple Creek" (Robertson) – 4:38
  4. "The Rumor" (Robertson) – 5:02
  5. "Rockin' Chair" (Robertson) – 4:06
  6. "Time To Kill" (Robertson) – 4:07
  7. "Down in the Flood (Dylan) – 5:25
  8. "When I Paint My Masterpiece" (Dylan) – 4:17
  9. "Don't Ya Tell Henry" (Dylan) – 4:38
  10. "Like a Rolling Stone" (Dylan) – 5:24
    • Tracks 7-10 on Disc 2 feature Bob Dylan during 31 December 1971 performance

Credits

Charts

Singles - Billboard (North America)

Year Single Chart Position
1972 "Don't Do It" Pop Singles 34
v • d • e
The Band
Rick Danko • Levon Helm • Garth Hudson • Richard Manuel • Robbie Robertson
Ronnie Hawkins • Bob Dylan • John Simon • Allen Toussaint • Jim Weider • Randy Ciarlante • Richard Bell • Stan Szelest
Studio albums
Live albums
Compilations
Songs
Related topics

This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)

 
 

 

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Album Review. Copyright © 2009 All Media Guide, LLC. Content provided by All Music Guide ®, a trademark of All Media Guide, LLC. All rights reserved.  Read more
Wikipedia. This article is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Rock of Ages (album)".  Read more

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