4 Acts That Lit up the Stage Alongside The Band at the Last Waltz

The Band was beloved enough that they could have made their final concert a gig with no special guests. But they reached out to a bevy of musical superstars and turned The Last Waltz, held in November 1976, into an unforgettable experience.

While all the special guests did their thing, some went above and beyond with their efforts. Here are four that deserve special mention.

Ronnie Hawkins

No one would argue that Hawkins gave a technically perfect vocal performance that night in San Francisco. By that time, he was more than two decades into his career. But Hawkins’ mere presence was needed on the stage. After all, he was the bandleader who invited the men who would become The Band into his touring outfit, known as The Hawks. When Hawkins came on stage to perform “Who Do You Love?” at The Last Waltz, his old buddies fell into line behind him as he pranced and mugged his way through the number. As he mimed fanning Robbie Robertson to try and cool down his furious guitar soloing, Hawkins brought the fans back to The Band’s early days.

Eric Clapton

Eric Clapton’s fondness for The Band dates back to when the group first emerged with albums like Music From Big Pink and The Band. Clapton was so overwhelmed by what he heard that he basically decided his current band (Cream) was no longer a feasible option. And he even asked The Band if he could join them. (They politely declined). Clapton came aboard to play a couple of songs at The Last Waltz. Most notably, he and Robbie Robertson put on a show of pyrotechnics with dueling guitars on “Further On Up The Road”. At one point, Clapton’s guitar strap broke in the middle of a solo. Without hesitation, Robertson picked up the slack without missing a beat in one of the more memorable moments of the show.

Neil Young

Neil Young shared a Canadian connection with The Band. (Four of the five members of the group hailed from our neighbors from the north.) Many people remember his appearance at The Last Waltz for infamous reasons. You can allegedly see residue of Young’s, shall we say, partaking on his face when the film catches him in close-up. But once he gets down to business on the song “Helpless”, all of that is forgotten. The song itself stands as one of the most moving in his catalog. When you add in the vocal harmonies of the brilliant singers in The Band, it hits another level. To top it all off, Joni Mitchell, another Canadian, pipes up with some powerful complementary vocals from offstage.

Van Morrison

Van Morrison’s star had fallen a bit by 1976. The dynamo who made classics like Astral Weeks and Moondance lost his way somewhat amidst the changing musical tastes of the 70s. His connection to The Band dated to the time they all spent in Woodstock together. Morrison also guested on the 1971 Band track “4% Pantomime”. The story goes that he very nearly left The Winterland prior to his appearance at The Last Waltz because he was having second thoughts. That’s why he shows up late for this first number. But he soon found his stride. And once The Band kicked into “Caravan”, Van The Man was completely in his element, belting to the rafters and punctuating each horn blast with a high kick.

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