DESCRIPTION:
Today's party platter is a artifact left behind by an early incarnation of The Band, after they left Ronnie Hawkins and right before they hooked up with Bob Dylan. The post-Hawkins Hawks were busy under different names on the Canadian and midwestern nightclub circuit in the early to mid-60s and this was their first record as Levon and The Hawks. Notice the beautiful black label - this was released on the Canadian ATCO but never crossed over to the USA. The band A-side here "The Stones That I Throw" made a small dent in Toronto radio but otherwise this record was dead on arrival.

"He Don't Love You (And He'll Break Your Heart)" is a rare document of what the band sounded like in this phase of their career. The lineup is already The Band as we know it: Rick Danko, Levon Helm, Garth Hudson, Richard Manuel, and Robbie Robertson. Robertson claims these early sides were all recorded informally in a single afternoon with the group just plowing through their repertoire. So what you hear is an accurate approximation of the type of music The Band were playing on the road. All of the elements here instantly establish a skin-tight danceable "Shotgun" groove that not only makes the song, but also relentlessly slugs it out 'til the final round. And killer hammond flair on top from Hudson. The harmonies are a little sweet for my tooth but if you stick around, Helm's jungle drum break balances everything out with a raw counterweight - elevating the entire beast at the perfect time. Imagine a rowdy crowd getting down and dirty to this late at night in a dark dive on the edge of town in 1965. Your postcard from a murky place in The Band's history...


graphics by AVI SPIVAK (http://www.avispivak.com)!

You're listening to my daily addition to the New York Night Train Party Platter playlist. Each track here is recorded directly from my original 45s (no bootlegs, reproductions, etc) to give you an idea of what the real deal authentic vinyl sounds like. COME BACK EVERY DAY FOR A NEW FIX! Because the records pass so quickly at my dance parties, this channel is an attempt to stop and focus on one record at a time in hopes to personally learn more about each one and at the same time turn you on to the artists, tracks, labels, etc. I'm just hipping myself to a lot of these records for the first time as well - so you can view this as our journey to learning more about cool old records together! But mostly I hope this music moves you as much as it moves me.

Get your enjoys,
Jonathan Toubin
Soul Proprietor, New York Night Train

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