Career
Levon Helm got his start in the late 1950s playing drums for Ronnie Hawkins. The two of them formed a band with Robbie Robertson, Rick Danko, Richard Manuel and Garth Hudson, and when Hawkins left in the early 1960s, the band was named Levon and the Hawks. The band teamed up with Bob Dylan, and explored an electric sound, which wasn't popular at first. Helm took a two year break from the band, which relocated to Woodstock, New York to be closer to Dylan. Upon Helm's return, they renamed the group, The Band, and released "Music from Big Pink" in 1967.
In 1975, The Band released "The Basement Tapes," a double album of live recordings. In 1976 Helm appeared in The Last Waltz, Martin Scorsese's documentary concert film of The Band's farewell tour.
Since leaving The Band, Helm has released several solo albums, including "Levon Helm and the RCO All Stars," "Levon Helm," "American Son" and "Dirt Farmer." In the early 2000s, Helm began performing Midnight Rambles at his house in Woodstock. These concert jam sessions are open to the public.
Studio Albums or Notable Recordings
References
Fast Facts
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Full Name
Mark Levon Helm
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Born
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Genre
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Origin
Marvell, Ar, Arkansas
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Active
1957 - present
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Record Labels
Capitol Records, Mobile Fidelity, MCA Records, Breeze Hill, Levon Helm Studios, Vanguard Records
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Associated Groups
The Band, Levon Helm and the RCO All Stars, Levon Helm and the Hawks, Ringo Starr and his All Starr Band, The Levon Helm Band
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Fact:
Throat cancer and subsequent radiation treatments in the late 1990s left Helm unable to sing for years
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Fact:
Elton John's classic hit song "Levon" came from Helm; John and Bernie Taupin were big fans of The Band
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Fact:
Actor in several well-known films, most notably Coal Miner's Daughter and The Right Stuff
