Experience the improbable ascent of The Band — five road-worn club musicians from forgotten rural towns who for years played beer-soaked barrooms, drove endless highways and dragged battered amps across borders. And then fate intervened for these four young Canadians and one Southerner. The result: the music they invented was the opposite of the psychedelic rage of the late ’60s — blending country, blues, R&B and story-telling into songs that reshaped rock’s future, leaving its mark on Crosby, Stills & Nash, The Eagles, The Beatles, and The Rolling Stones. In this episode you'll learn:

1. How relentless touring of bars and clubs forged their otherworldly chemistry

2. The incredible accident of timing that launched them from bar gigs to the global stage
3. Their controversial world tour that changed modern music
4. The internal challenges that began to hinder The Band's chemistry
5. How one member went on to be the musical architect of several famous Hollywood movies

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Guest Bio
Craig Harris, is the author of The Last Waltz: The Full Story of The Band, a musician who has performed with a member of the band and the host of the Craig Harris show on WAMU-FM, Bluegrass/Country.