Yesterday morning when I jumped in my sled, the first song on the radio was The Band covering Springsteen's Atlantic City. Anyone who is following this blog knows that I am a huge fan of The Band. Nevertheless, this song fell through the cracks for me.
Once Robbie left The Band and poor Richard died, I lost interest in their music. I think I was so depressed about Richard's tragic end that I didn't want to listen to their new music without him in the band. In fact, I never bought Jericho when it was released.
Yesterday, I got very excited when I heard Levon singing this song. You might think that Levon's country vocal style wouldn't be up to the task on Bruce's story from New Jersey. Not at all. His vocal absolutely nails it and his mandolin playing is a tasty addition to the sound. All the best parts of The Band come together on this cut.
Although I am not quite as enthusiastic about the rest of the album, this song is worth owning. You can buy the whole album from iTunes or in these uncertain financial times, you can buy this cut for 99 cents. If you don't buy the whole album, you might also want to pick up the cover of Bob's Blind Willie McTell for another 99 cents. It is excellent as well.
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It's also worth downloading Remedy, the only song on Jericho that actually sounds like it could come off a proper Band album.
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