Tag Archives: Richard Manuel

August 17: The Band released Stage Fright in 1970

stage fright

See the man with the stage fright
Just standin’ up there to give it all his might.
And he got caught in the spotlight,
But when we get to the end
He wants to start all over again.

August 17: The Band released Stage Fright in 1970

Stage Fright is the third studio album by The Band. Much more of a rock album than its predecessors, it was a departure from their previous two efforts in that its tone was darker and featured less of the harmony vocal blend that had been a centerpiece of those two albums. It also included the last two recordings by The Band of new songs credited to pianist Richard Manuel; both were co-written with guitarist Robbie Robertson, who would continue to be the group’s dominant lyricist until the group disbanded in 1976. Nonetheless, the tradition of switching instruments that had begun on the previous album continued here, with each musician contributing instrumental parts on at least two different instruments.

Engineered by an up-and-coming Todd Rundgren, and produced by the group themselves for the first time, the album was recorded at the Woodstock Playhouse in their homebase of Woodstock, New York.

Stage Fright (from The Last Waltz):

Continue reading August 17: The Band released Stage Fright in 1970

April 03: The late Richard Manuel was born in 1943

richard manuel

“I play patterns. I’ll make up a pattern and just play it.”
~Richard Manuel

 

 

“Well, let’s see: I started [in music] at nine and quit. Then got back to it when I was twelve. Then I became a party star. In fact, I became a party!”
~Richard Manuel

April 03: The late Richard Manuel was born in 1943

For me he was the true light of the Band. The other guys were fantastic talents, of course, but there was something of the holy madman about Richard. He was raw. When he sang in that high falsetto the hair on my neck would stand on end. Not many people can do that.
~Eric Clapton

A nice tribute video – I’m just a country boy:

Continue reading April 03: The late Richard Manuel was born in 1943

March 4: The Late Bobby Womack was born in 1944

bobby womack

It is my fondest wish that the gift of song that God has given me will flow from my soul to yours and help ease any burden that might weigh upon you.
~Bobby Womack

You gotta know when it’s time to hang up. But when I finally go, let me go out on stage, my perfect ending. Don’t let me go when I’m sick or asleep. Let me be in motion.
~Bobby Womack

Ron Wood inducts Bobby Womack Rock and Roll Hall of Fame:

Continue reading March 4: The Late Bobby Womack was born in 1944

Today: Bob Dylan recorded “She’s Your Lover Now” in 1966, 48 years ago

Bob Dylan 1966 10

Pain sure brings out the best in people, doesn’t it?
– Bob Dylan (She’s Your Lover Now)

..‘She’s Your Lover Now’, a gleeful masterpiece more redolent of its era than most things that came out at the time..
~Michael Gray (BD Encyclopedia)

Continue reading Today: Bob Dylan recorded “She’s Your Lover Now” in 1966, 48 years ago

Today: The late Richard Manuel was born in 1943 – 70 years ago

richard manuel

I play patterns. I’ll make up a pattern and just play it.
~Richard Manuel

“Well, let’s see: I started [in music] at nine and quit. Then got back to it when I was twelve. Then I became a party star. In fact, I became a party!”
~Richard Manuel

For me he was the true light of the Band. The other guys were fantastic talents, of course, but there was something of the holy madman about Richard. He was raw. When he sang in that high falsetto the hair on my neck would stand on end. Not many people can do that.
~Eric Clapton

A nice tribute video – I’m just a country boy:

I Shall Be Released (The Band)

Gonna dedicate this song to Mr. Richard Manuel, who does it so well
~Bob Dylan (Introducing “I Shall Be Released” December 8, 1975)

Bob Dylan and Richard Manuel

Birth name Richard George Manuel
Born April 3, 1943
Stratford, Ontario, Canada
Died March 4, 1986 (aged 42)
Winter Park, Florida, U.S.
Genres Country rock, R&B, rock and roll, americana
Occupations Musician, songwriter
Instruments Vocals, piano, drums, keyboard,lap slide guitar, harmonica, clavinet, marimba, conga
Years active 1957–1986

Richard George Manuel (April 3, 1943 – March 4, 1986) was a Canadian composer, singer, and multi-instrumentalist, best known for his contributions to and membership in The Band.

richard manuel

Here is the wonderful “Georgia On My Mind” from The Last Waltz concert:

“Richard Manuel was a whole show unto himself. He was hot. He was about the best singer I’d ever heard; most people said he reminded them of Ray Charles. He’d do those ballads, and the ladies would swoon. To me that became the highlight of our show.”
~Levon Helm

The Band was a Canadian-American roots rock group that originally consisted of Rick Danko (bass guitar, double bass, fiddle, trombone, vocals), Levon Helm (drums, mandolin, guitar, vocals), Garth Hudson (keyboard instruments, saxophones, trumpet), Richard Manuel (piano, drums, baritone saxophone, vocals) and Robbie Robertson (guitar, vocals). The members of the Band first came together as they joined rockabilly singer Ronnie Hawkins’s backing group, The Hawks, one by one between 1958 and 1963.

the-band

You Dont Know Me – Tokyo 1983

“He brought a lot of powers and strengths to the group. He brought in gospel music from his church upbringing. Plus, he loved to play and just come up with new things. It was like having a force of nature in the band.”
~Rick Danko

Posthumous recognition

  • In 1994, Richard Manuel was inducted, posthumously, into The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of The Band. 
  • In 2003, Japan’s Dreamsville Records released Whispering Pines: Live at the Getaway, which contains selections from a solo concert recorded in Saugerties, New York in October 1985.
  • Former bandmate Robbie Robertson‘s song “Fallen Angel” (1987) and The Band‘s song “Too Soon Gone” (1993) are each tributes to Manuel. 
  • On Forbes.com, Allen St. John wrote a tribute article about Richard Manuel and Rick Danko on April 19, 2012.
  • Eric Clapton’s 1986 album, August, features his tribute to Richard Manuel entitled “Holy Mother”.
  • San Francisco-area group, The Call, who had collaborated with former Band members Hudson and Robertson, dedicated the video for their 1986 single, “Everywhere I Go” to Manuel.
  • Counting Crows recorded the song “If I Could Give All My Love -or- Richard Manuel Is Dead”, released on their 2002 album Hard Candy.
  • The Drive-By Truckers’ song “Danko/Manuel” was released on their album The Dirty South in 2004.

Wikipedia, http://theband.hiof.no, +

Playlist of the day

Other April-03

Continue reading Today: The late Richard Manuel was born in 1943 – 70 years ago