By: David Schultz

No discussion of the late Sixties would be complete without spending serious time on The Band. Both with Bob Dylan and on their own, they contributed significantly to the soundtrack of the peace and love generation. Given their relevance, The Band’s absence from the nostalgic reflection on the musicians, events and other assorted personalities that has accompanied the 40th anniversary of the Summer Of Love may seem odd, but it’s not unfair. During that time, in which the world took notice of the happenings going on in San Francisco, The Band were holed up with Bob Dylan in the Woodstock, New York area, changing the face of folk and acoustic music while the mercurial singer recuperated from a motorcycle accident. The Woodstock area would rise in renown only a couple years later and the recording sessions, after having a substantial shelf life as bootlegs, would be officially released as The Basement Tapes in 1975.

Woodstock’s soil remained fertile decades later, serving as the home for Levon Helm’s Rambles, weekly intimate gatherings held at Helm’s Woodstock home studio. While the legendary drummer recovered from radiation therapy associated with his treatment for throat cancer, Helm and friends like guitarists Larry Campbell and Jimmy Vivino began playing near weekly shows. Levon’s Rambles began to draw eager fans into the upstate New York mountains, becoming one of the area’s hidden gems. This past March, upon the urging of Campbell and the other musicians who had been a key part of the Rambles, Helm brought the show to New York City, playing two sold-out shows at the Beacon Theater over St. Patrick’s Day weekend. This past Thursday evening, Helm once again rambled in the city, playing the Rumsey Playfield as part of the Central Park Summerstage series.

Levon’s Rambles are a throwback to an older style of playing: heavy on substantive blues, country and folk with the style evolving organically. The Ramble In The Park was very much a group effort. Helm, whose voice has returned to fine form after his battle with throat cancer, clearly anchors the show, but Larry Campbell and Jimmy Vivino are the band’s pillars, doing all the heavy lifting with their mighty guitar work. Campbell moved between lead guitar and violin throughout the show, handling lead vocals on an acoustic romp through “Deep Elem Blues” and a growling, showstopping version of “Chest Fever.” Vivino fronted the band on a blazing version of Woody Guthrie’s “I Ain’t Got No Home In This World Anymore.” It’s also very much a family affair, Levon’s daughter Amy Helm, her Ollabelle bandmate Fiona McBain and Campbell’s wife, Teresa Williams, provided a variety of lead and backing vocals. If that weren’t enough, oft-time Rambler bassist Mike Merritt was joined by a pair of keyboardists and a full horn section.

The set list featured a healthy number of blues and revved up folk covers as well as an expected handful of Levon’s beloved tunes from The Band. With Helm’s unmistakable howl, the Ramblers recreated the carnival-like atmosphere accompanying “Ophelia” and “The Shape I’m In.” the naked emotion of “Tears Of Rage” and the down-home county-funk of “The Weight.” The three song acoustic mini-set, which saw Helm moving to mandolin and Campbell playing violin, matched The Band classics in terms of excitement. Kicking off with a foot-stomping traditional run through “Man Of Constant Sorrow,” Helm covered Bruce Springsteen’s “Atlantic City” before concluding with nice countrified roll through “Deep Elem Blues.”

Surprise guests were announced which had some speculating as to whether Bob Dylan, who was famously backed at different times of his career by Helm and Campbell, might stop by on an off night between his shows at Connecticut’s Mohegan Sun and Long Island’s Jones Beach. Other than Big Pussy Vincent Pastore making a cameo appearance to shake some hands, all of Helm’s guests have a deep affiliation with the Rambles, notably Little Sammy Davis. Wearing a brilliant purple suit that defines the wearer as either color blind or a master bluesman, Davis showed himself the latter, handling lead vocals and harmonica on a couple blues standards early on it the evening.

A classic rock icon, Helm doesn’t seem to relish the spotlight. For most of the evening, Helm played drums along the side of the stage, only leaving the kit to come play mandolin at center stage during the acoustic mini-set. At the very end, instead of coming up front to accept the rousing applause he so richly deserved, Helm modestly stood before his drums and waved before making his way backstage by walking behind the equipment.

Proving that you don’t need a weatherman to know which way the wind blows, the forecasted torrential rains that cast a worrisome shadow over the show remained relatively light, striking the outer boroughs instead of Central Park. Even Mother Nature was excited to see Levon in the Park.

Labels: Levon Helm, Midnight Ramble