SOUTH ORANGE, NJ — South Orange Performing Arts Center will play host to a celebration of The Band’s landmark concert “The Last Waltz” on Saturday, Nov. 12, at 8 p.m., when The THE BAND Band, accompanied by a dozen guest performers, will bring to life one of the most historic concerts of the rock era.
On Thanksgiving Day in 1976, concertgoers packed San Francisco’s Winterland Ballroom to witness “The Last Waltz,” the final performance of The Band’s legendary 16-year career. The group, who had originally come to worldwide attention as Bob Dylan’s backing band, had gone on to record eight albums on their own that featured such classic songs as “The Weight,” “Up on Cripple Creek” and “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down.”
The farewell party they hosted that Thanksgiving night featured a who’s who of rock royalty from Bob Dylan, Neil Young and Eric Clapton to Van Morrison, Joni Mitchell and Muddy Waters.
“It was one of the most incredible concerts ever held,” said Gary Solomon, co-founder of the Rockland County–based tribute act The THE BAND Band.
He would know because he was there. In 1976, Solomon, still a teenager, was visiting some former bandmates in the Bay area and went to the show.
“I knew that what I was seeing was not just another rock concert, which was what I thought I had bought a ticket for. It was a once-in-a-lifetime moment,” he said. It was also a moment that years later inspired Solomon, decades into his career as a professional musician, to form his tribute band.
Since most of the original members of The Band have died, Solomon feels it is especially meaningful to keep their music alive. And for the past 15 years, The THE BAND Band has brought the sound, spirit and energy of The Band to concertgoers across the country. Now the group will bring their live celebration of “The Last Waltz” to South Orange, part of a six-city tour running November through January that includes theaters throughout the northeast.
Creating a celebration of “The Last Waltz” required moving beyond the core five-piece group and enlisting a dozen more musicians, including their horn section, to cover numerous artists and songs featured in the original concert. The lineup Solomon has assembled even includes fiddle player Larry Packer, who actually played with The Band at the original concert in 1976.
For Solomon, this show resonates on a personal level.
“Having been at ‘The Last Waltz’ nearly a half a century ago, and now performing it with my tribute band, really feels like things have come full circle,” he said. “The feeling I had at ‘The Last Waltz’ was so incredible and unforgettable. I want to share that excitement and joy.”
For more information or to purchase tickets, visit sopacnow.org or call -973-313-2787. The theater is located at 1 SOPAC Way, South Orange.
Photos Courtesy of Gary Solomon
‘The Last Waltz’ to come alive at SOPAC on Nov. 12 added by Editor on
View all posts by Editor →