Hi there, kids out there reading this in your homes... how are you? Grocery shopping has become a real life version of Pac-Man. Avoid everyone, get the fruit, and take any route to avoid contact. I haven't seen "Tiger King" yet, but fuck you Carrot Basket.
This is a story for you ladies out there and you're welcome in advance. Who said that this whole lockdown thing because of the coronavirus outbreak is a bad thing? Turns out, Las Vegas Chippendales dancers are turning their routines into quarantine workout videos. Finally that workout motivation that you have all been waiting for. Since it looks like you’re probably going to be stuck inside for quite a while because of COVID-19, it’s very crucial to get in some workouts to stay healthy. Sure, you can run on the treadmill, go on a bike ride, or do some yoga in your living room, but what if you like to dance? Well, this is where the Chippendale dancers come in. The true Las Vegas institution is bringing their dances, and their heat, to social media with a series of several workout videos to help you work up a sweat in more than one way. According to Chippendales dancer Ryan Worley, “We’ve got the idea for these home workouts because so many fans have been emailing and posting on social media that they wanted to see the Chippendales during the quarantine. So our team decided the best way was to do these home workouts.” So yes, the guys went on to Instagram and posted a few workout routines. The entertainers also noted that they’re not only entertaining their fans, but they’re actually helping them stay fit and active during the quarantine, which in all honesty is very important for our mental and physical health. Apparently, the fans love it so much that they are actually working in the entire series to release in the coming weeks. With Las Vegas strip’s shut down, and gyms closed around the nation, this is truly genius. Now if the Vegas strippers can get on the bandwagon... or any strippers actually.
Panic is everywhere as more and more states are extending and enforcing stricter “stay-at-home” policies. The coronavirus has truly exposed so much about our government and our people. Terms such as “COVID-19” and “pandemic” make people a little weary inside, and no one wants to read any more negative headlines about the coronavirus. Yet while all we see are numbers of infected ones or death rates, how about an underdog story for a change? I promise this one is worth reading. Oregon veteran Bill Kelly is a survivor of the coronavirus. Yes, an elderly man is a SURVIVOR of this pandemic. This 95-year-old veteran has not only survived the Great Depression and World War II, but can now add coronavirus pandemic to his list of accolades. There is nothing more hardcore and badass than that. The Oregonian was starting to feel sick on March 15th with a low-grade fever. With other medical conditions such as kidney disease, high blood pressure, and a congenital heart condition, Bill Kelly was considered high-risk and hospitalized overnight. After testing positive for the coronavirus, Kelly isolated himself in a bedroom where he lives with his granddaughter, Rose Ayers-Etherington, her husband, their two kids, and her mother. So how did he recover with his age AND not affect his loved ones who he lived with? Rose Ayers-Etherington’s husband, Isaac Etherington is a medical evacuation pilot who came in contact with patients possibly exposed to the coronavirus. Assuming that’s how the World War II veteran became infected, Isaac Etherington actually tested negative for COVID-19. However, the family worked as a team to make sure no one else was affected. The first week after her grandfather’s diagnosis, Isaac Etherington stated that Kelly was “treated like a leper.” After quarantining himself to his bedroom, Kelly would wear a mask if he needed to come out. Every single thing he touched was disinfected and the family made sure to wash their hands all the time. Nevertheless, Grandpa Bill recovered and the family remains to be just fine. Not only is this great news, but a reminder to us all how important social distancing truly is if we want to defeat these tough times as a nation. Take it from the legend who was described as “hardcore” and “tough as nails” by his own granddaughter. “I survived the foxholes of Guam, I can get through this coronavirus bullshit.”
Okay, I’ll admit it, these actually, sort of, kind of look cool.
I mean, who doesn’t like lava lamps, am I right? Some people love them so much that they have actually started to put them on their nails. No, not actual lava lamps, rather acrylic ones that nail artists are creating for them. I mean, it’s obvious, we should have known that the ’60s were back as soon as we saw the bell pants making their way around the Internet. The trend takes the stiletto shaped nail, transforming them into miniature lava lamps. Through Instagram, the artist stated he created the look by using The GelBottle INC. gel nail polish in Cosmopolitan, a sheer and bright pink color, and Bellini which is a light orange shade. Speaking with Allure, he stated, “Layering jelly and neon gel polishes gives depth and makes it seem as though the blobs are really flowing around. The real star, though, is the sunlight. Just like with holographic effects, these come alive when the sun hits the nail.” The trend is definitely not new since it began in 2015, but it’s making its way around 2020 because well, let’s face it, they look pretty rad. Several have called the lava lamp nails a “moving nail trend” since the liquid inside the actual nail inside moves. The bubbles inside the lamp, which are colored, swim in a clear fluid. Apparently, this is done by sticking two nail tips on top of each other and then injecting baby oil between them with a syringe to create the illusion of floating water. Yes, insane but so so cool. So, all you have to do is then inject colors blobs and boom, you have yourself a groovy nail. Once the nail places are open, go get that done, ladies.
Oh... here we go... Dallas-area service industry professionals are hurting financially during the coronavirus shutdown as business grinds to a halt, so in response, some of them are adding to their professional repertoires by taking their clothes off. Katherine Doolittle, a former bartender at Deep Ellum’s Ebb & Flow in Dallas, has started Nudes for Industry Babes and Dudes with two service industry friends who were also affected by restaurant closures to help raise money for service industry pros in Dallas. Here's one of the pics... and I dod not put the heart on the photo...
The group has paired with local photographers to shoot and then sell nude photos on OnlyFans, a platform that allows patrons to buy paid subscriptions to exclusive content from adult entertainment stars and models. They’re expecting to charge 20 dollars for the full set of photos and say that 100% of the proceeds they raise will go to cooks, servers, bartenders, hosts, and other restaurant professionals, as well as anyone else they’re able to help. Doolittle urges people to buy or at the very least share it far and wide so they can raise as much money as possible. This is some A+ charity work. Imagine how much money those Salvation Army bell wavers could raise if they were all naked hot chicks. But really, this is great. I’ve been wondering, during this COVID-19 pandemic, how long until I’m at the point where I’ll take off my clothes for money on the Internet. Of course, the difference between me and the people behind Nudes for Industry Babes and Dudes is that far fewer people... and probably no woman... is really going to be into me baring all, so it’d probably have to be for gay dudes who have a thing for seeing mediocre straight dudes get naked and/or humiliate themselves. But, whatever. Money is money. My worry is that by the time I get to that point the power grids and telecommunications will be all but done for. That I’ll have missed my window. These truly are uncertain times.
Being a teacher is tough. Being a parent is even tougher. Being both a teacher and a parent is… unenviable for a normal mom or dad who decides to homeschool their kids. Like my son who was homeschooled for years. Anyway, for the parents who are forced to teach their kids at home while the schools are shut down for the coronavirus pandemic? That is straight-up nightmare territory. And so it was for one parent, in particular, Candice Kennedy, a Kentucky stay at home mom who recently started teaching her 8-year-old son Ben. Teaching is tough! One day you tell yourself, “Of course I can do first-grade math and grammar,” and the next minute you’re telling your kid to turn on the Discovery channel while you go outside to scream at the sky because WHAT IN THE LOVE OF ALL HOLY HELL IS A PREDICATE!?! So, Candice Kennedy was having a rough go of teaching. While she told her son to take five and write in his journal so she could figure out what was going on, little Ben wrote her an inadvertently scathing review.
Kids are quite the unfortunately perceptive little rascals, aren’t they? Of course, again, being conspicuously furious at how infuriating school is probably isn’t all that hard to read. Regardless, you’ve got to feel for this mom. We all think we could do well on our SATs or pass a high school history test but Candice here knows the real truth. Most of us could barely handle grade school.
Doctor Fauci said, "If properly fitted one mask can save thousands of lives..."
Ha! I think Trunp has the coronavirus and here's proof...
When I saw this it reminded me of something...
Then it hit me...
"Meep" is right. Some churches are proving they have a sense of humor because of the pandemic.
Haha! Some people are proving they are so dumb though...
Good news though is wildlife is finally returning. Nature is healing.
Haha. Broadway shows when they come back are going to have different names and slightly different plots. Such as this one...
If you need to do to the store it's good to wear gloves and a mask, but some people are taking it way too far.
So, on Disney+ there's a series of shorts called "Forky Asks a Question." This is the ad for the latest one...
Yup. I need to watch that one. I love Forky. If I had a TARDIS I would go to Essen, Germany where blocks of houses were destroyed by Allied air raids and bring skates to these girls so they wouldn't just have one each...
So, this is March versus April...
Speaking of... Kellogg's have jumped on the whole "Tiger King' craze.
Okay then. Now from the home office in Port Jefferson, here is...
Top Phive New TV Shows Coming Out This Fall
5. "The Home Office"
4. "American Idle"
3. "Its Always Sunny In My Living Room"
2. "How I Avoided Your Mother"
And the number one new TV show coming out this fall is...
1. "Better Zoom Saul"
The commenter who wants to let old people die. Hey, I wonder what's going on in Port Jefferson right now...
I see people and the ferry leaving... or is it coming in? I think it's leaving. Wouldn't it be great if someone would write in chalk "Hello, Peverett Phile" in the street there? Haha. Okay, moving on...
If you spot the Mindphuck let me know. It's kinda a dumb one. Speaking of dumb...
President Donald Trump claimed the “total” authority to decide how and when to reopen the economy after weeks of tough social distancing guidelines aimed at fighting the new coronavirus. But governors from both parties were quick to push back, noting they have primary responsibility for ensuring public safety in their states and would decide when it’s safe to begin a return to normal operations. Trump would not offer specifics about the source of his asserted power, which he claimed, despite constitutional limitations, was absolute. “When somebody is president of the United States, the authority is total,” Trump said Monday at the White House. “The governors know that.” Governors instead made clear they wouldn’t tolerate being pressures to act. “The president’s position is just absurd,” said New York Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo in an appearance Tuesday on “CBS This Morning.” “It’s not the law. It’s not the Constitution. We don’t have a king. We have a president.” New Hampshire Republican Gov. Chris Sununu told CNN that, “All of these executive orders are state executive orders and so therefore it would be up to the state and the governor to undo a lot of that.” The comments came not long after Democratic leaders in the Northeast and along the west coast announced separate state compacts to coordinate their efforts to scale back stay-at-home orders or reopen businesses on their own timetables. Anxious to put the crisis behind him, Trump has been discussing with senior aides how to roll back federal social distancing recommendations that expire at the end of the month. While Trump has issued national recommendations advising people stay home, it has been governors and local leaders who have instituted mandatory restrictions, including shuttering schools and closing nonessential businesses. Some of those orders carry fines or other penalties, and in some jurisdictions they extend into the early summer. Meanwhile, governors were banding together, with New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Delaware and Rhode Island agreeing to coordinate their actions. The governors of California, Oregon and Washington announced a similar pact, saying they will work together and put their residents’ health first and let science guide their decisions. New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy, a Democrat, stressed the efforts would take time. “The house is still on fire,” Murphy said on a conference call with reporters. “We still have to put the fire out, but we do have to begin putting in the pieces of the puzzle that we know we’re going to need... to make sure this doesn’t reignite.” Trump, however, insisted it was his decision to make. “The president of the United States calls the shots,” he said, promising to release a paper outlining his legal argument at some point. While Trump can use his bully pulpit, including his daily White House briefings and Twitter account, to try to threaten states with consequences and pressure governors to bend to his will, “there are real limits on the president and the federal government when it comes to domestic affairs,” said John Yoo, a University of California at Berkeley law school professor. Mississippi Republican Gov. Tate Reeves, a supporter of Trump, said the question of when to lift restrictions would be “a joint effort” between Washington and the states. But Cuomo said that, if Trump ordered him to reopen New York’s economy before he thought it was ready, he would refuse. “And we would have a constitutional challenge between the state and the federal government and that would go into the courts and that would be the worst possible thing he could do at this moment,” Cuomo said on CNN’s “New Day.” Trump slapped back, accusing Cuomo of “calling daily, even hourly, begging for” lifesaving supplies. “I got it all done for him, and everyone else, and now he seems to want Independence!” he tweeted. “That won’t happen!” And Joe Biden, the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, tweeted that he’s “not running for office to be King of America” and respects “the great job so many of this country’s governors... Democratic and Republican... are doing under these horrific circumstances.” Trump’s claim that he could force governors to reopen their states also represented a dramatic shift in tone. For weeks Trump had argued that states, not the federal government, should lead the response to the crisis. Indeed, he refused to publicly pressure states to enact stay-at-home restrictions, citing his belief in local control of government. Though Trump abandoned his goal of beginning to roll back social distancing guidelines by Easter, he has been itching to reboot an economy that has dramatically contracted as businesses have shuttered, leaving millions of people out of work and struggling to obtain basic commodities. The closure has also undermined Trump’s reelection message, which hinged on a booming economy. Talk about how and when to reboot the nation’s economy has come as Trump has bristled at criticism that he was slow to respond to the virus. That frustration was amplified by comments made by Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation’s top infectious diseases expert, who told CNN on Sunday that, “obviously,” had the country “started mitigation earlier, you could have saved lives.” Trump responded by reposting a tweet that included the line, “Time to #FireFauci,” raising alarms that Trump might consider trying to oust the 79-year-old doctor. But at Monday’s briefing, Trump insisted Fauci’s job was safe after Fauci took the podium to try to explain his comments. Trump has complained to aides and confidants about Fauci’s positive media attention and his willingness to contradict the president in interviews and from the briefing room stage, according to two Republicans close to the White House. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss internal conversations. But Trump has told aides that he knows blowback to removing Fauci would be fierce and that... at least for now... he is stuck with the doctor.
The 120th book to be pheatured in the Phile's Book Club is...
Phile Alum Rushdie will be on the Phile tomorrow.
Today's pheatured guest is a Phile Alum and a Canadian musician, songwriter, film composer, producer, actor, and author. Robertson is best known for his work as lead guitarist and primary songwriter for the Band, and for his career as a solo recording artist. The documentary Once Were Brothers: Robbie Robertson and The Band is available to see on Amazon Prime and YouTube and his new album "Sinematic" is available on iTunes, Amazon and Spotify. Please welcome back to the Phile for the third time... Robbie Robertson!
Me: Hello, Robbie. Welcome back to the Phile. How are you?
Robbie: I am good. It's good to be back on the Phile.
Me: Yay. This is your third time here, which is pretty cool. I was listening to the song "Up on Cripple Creek" the other day. I love that song. What do you think of it?
Robbie: It's funny. From a songwriter point of view certain things come back to me and I think I remember that third verse I couldn't get something to rhyme with the last one. There's all these little pieces that made up something that I go back to. It's just a natural reflex.
Me: Do you hear that song often?
Robbie: Yeah, I hear it. It's still played around and I do think my God, they haven't got sick of that yet.
Me: I love your new album and I love the song "Once Were Brothers" which is the same name as your new documentary. Is the song about the Band?
Robbie: Well, it is obviously a direct reflection of my experience in the brotherhood of the band and when I think about how Richard Manuel, Rick Danko and Levon Helm are no longer with us, it's a very deep sadness for me. We went through so much together and so many amazing things. In writing my book Testimony, which is actually the origin of the documentary, when I was writing that it was so much to relive, so much to go into, so many incredible joys and risks. I put the story of the Band up against any of the amazing experiences that we had. In this song, I was paying homage to that and I was also addressing this sadness that I feel that three of the guys are no longer with us.
Me: In the song you sing "we lost our connection after the war." What was the war?
Robbie: In the beginning of the Band with "Music From Big Pink" and the Band album and the records we were making after that there was a war going on. When that war ended, that Vietnam war concluded, the Band started to separate and go in different directions.
Me: So, what was it like putting this film together?
Robbie: It's one of the extraordinary things for me that came out of this documentary was how heartfelt it is. How moving the documentary is. I didn't know that was going to be what we were going after and the result of it. When Martin Scorsese came in as executive producer on it, he really pointed out the value in that emotional thing that was coming across from the brotherhood of the Band. He had suggestions and they were really about don't let this get in the way of that emotion.
Me: Don't let what get in the way?
Robbie: There were different ways of editing and storytelling and things. He was saying that when we go to that place that it is so heartfelt, don't cut away to tis or to that, state with that because it's that moving and it's that valuable.
Me: Is it weird for you to relive the life?
Robbie: I look at it and there is a very strong tie and there is a bit of a distance too because time has passed. I am very much on a mission of working on what I'm doing today and what I need to be doing tomorrow. I'm not really big on redoing or reliving or anything necessary being based on that. If there weren't so many stories to tell, if it wasn't such an extraordinary journey and experience, I would completely move on and I wouldn't be here talking to you about it.
Me: Are you a nostalgic person, Robbie? I'm a very nostalgic person.
Robbie: I appreciate all of it. I've been so fortunate to be part of all this musical world-changing events and things in music and all of that. But in the meantime, I'm busy.
Me: You mentioned Martin Scorsese who was the executive producer of the film. When did you first meet him?
Robbie: When I first met him he had just made a movie called Mean Streets. Jon Taplin was the road manager for the Band, when he left he said, "I'm going out in the world, I'm going to produce movies." Everybody who says that I think oh great, well good luck with that. He went and he produced Mean Streets. He says to me, "Listen, there's this director this guy who I'm working with I think he's really quite amazing." He said, "There's an actor in this movie, oh my God, he's as good as an actor you've ever seen. It's really something." They set up a screening for me to see it and after I saw the movie Marty came to the screening room and said hello to me. It was wonderful to meet him right after seeing his work and seeing what he did in this movie. And Bob DeNiro, Harvey Keitel, they did in these early days and everything. It was like it was overflowing with talent. So when I met Marty I was like whoa. And the use of music in it and everything, So it really stuck with me. Then when It came time when I thought who would be really good to direct The Last Waltz, because of this special thing that I felt with Marty's connection to music I thought I want to start with him. I want to see if he'll be interested in this. The rest is a beautiful story.
Me: He was a kid back then, right?
Robbie: Well, yeah, everybody was young.
Me: True. Haha. So, was it a hard sell?
Robbie: It was a tough sell because he was in the middle of directing a movie. When someone is directing a movie the studios hate it when they go and direct another movie at the same time. They really don't like it. So we had to do this all underground. In the beginning he said, "I'm in he middle of doing this movie, they're not gong to let me do this. Then as we talked about different artists that were going to be in the film at the concert and everything, over the course of the evening finally he threw his arms in the air and says, "I don't care. They can fire me, they can kill me, I don't care. I've got to do this." So I was like whew, because I just felt it's one of those things in my gut. I just felt he was the man to do this and boy, was I right.
Me: What one?
Robbie: It was called New York, New York.
Me: Ah, okay. So, Doctor John was in the movie The Last Waltz. He passed away last year, and I wanted to have him on the Phile. What do you remember about him?
Robbie: Well, I remember Doctor John from many different things. He was a friend and a fantastic musician and a fantastic traditionalist. He could tell you stories about music out of New Orleans that would make your hair stand on end. I just absorbed it, I would love it when he would do this. So anyway, he was a pal of ours and when we were doing The Last Waltz we just thought the Doctor's got to be there. That's it. Anyway, when he came and comes out on the stage he's gone through this whole "gris-gris" period and everything, he was like a voodoo priest. Now he was in this new stage and he comes out in this beret and this pink shirt he was like a different guy. He comes out and he's smiling like the Cheshire Cat sits down at the piano and says., "Thankfulness to the Band and all the fellas." He's looking over and he's seeing the horn section so he's thinking he's got to include them too.
Me: You and Martin Scorsese have worked so well together on so many movie. Why do you think that is?
Robbie: I think that we have a certain musical and film connection that we discovered early on when we were making The Last Waltz. I was movie big and I thought there was something so deep in him and his appreciation of music. I thought that in the beginning and as I got to know him more, it just went deeper and deeper. He was turning me on to movies that I'd never seen. It was a fantastic experience and seeing them with him and through his eyes in some cases was so rewarding. I was turning him on to music that he had not experienced before. This connection that we made just stuck. Then when he was doing Raging Bull he said, "I need to get the source music for this movie done, can you help me figure that out?"
Me: Have you done any scoring work before?
Robbie: No. And I didn't know that I even wanted to. I still don't know whether I want to. But working with him is a different experience. Doing the music for his new movie, The Irishman and we're talking for every movie we start from scratch... what are we going to do this time? I'll have ideas, he'll have ideas, and in the process of doing this I said, "I'm eating this thing and it doesn't directly connect to anything with this movie but it could be an interesting counterpoint." I would describe something to him, a soul or a flavor to him. He'll say, "That's good, that's good. As long as it doesn't sound like movie music." Uh-huh. Now we're talking my language. Because doing a traditional movie score he doesn't need me for that, There's people that do that and they do that really well. But I' not interested in that and thankfully neither is he.
Me: Does writing music for a movie, yourself or when you write music for the Band feel the same?
Robbie: I've always been strongly influenced by movies. For many years I thought the songs I am writing are like little movies.
Me: Yeah, I see that... "The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down" is like a movie, "Up on Cripple Creek" is like a movie. "King Harvest" as well. I see what you mean.
Robbie: Yeah. "Stage Freight" is named after a movie. Alfred Hitchcock made a movie called Stage Freight.
Me: "The Weight" is a movie! Haha. I think we talked about this before but are you thinking of movies when you're writing the songs?
Robbie: When I was writing these songs I was reading classic movie scripts. I found a place where I could but these scripts in New York at Gotham Book Mart. So I would go in there and they would have all of these scripts so I would read the script for a John Ford movie or an Ingmar Burton movie. Or a Luis Buñuel or Fellini or Karasawa or Howard Hawkes or Orson Wells, all of these things. And that became my reading material.
Me: I love reading scripts as well. I collected a bunch of James Bond scripts years ago. What made you decide to collect scripts?
Robbie: I was so fascinated when I looked at these movies I thought wait a minute, where does this start from, where does it begin from? When I was very young if I hadn't got the music bug or the music addiction at such an early age I would've ended up in movieland. Maybe as a screenwriter or a director.
Me: Does that go with music as well? If you listen to a Beethoven piece do you want to see the score?
Robbie: I do see images in that and do think sometimes would that be a good accompaniment to and there's been many cases with working with Martin Scorsese over the years that I have used music. I used to be a big admirer of Krzysztof Penderecki's composing. So years ago we were pen pals for a while. I was writing to Penderecki and saying I make music, it' a different kind of music but I loved your "Threnody to the Victims of Hiroshima." He would write me back and say, "Oh my goodness, I listened to your record, these songs and everything, I love this music." For a while there we were sending things. Then in Shutter Island I said to Marty, "I think Penderecki's music could be a centerpiece in this." And it was.
Me: I love the song "I Heard You Paint Houses" from the new album "Sinematic." And I have to tell you, I'm sure I told you before, "Music From Big Pink" is one of my favorite albums ever. I need to get it on vinyl. So, with the song "The Weight" with the opening line "I pulled into Nazareth, was feeling 'bout half past dead. I just need some place where I can lay my head." What do you remember about writing that first verse?
Robbie: Gee, it reminds me of the story of Jesus. My goodness, I never thought of that before.
Me: "The Weight" reminds you of the story of Jesus?
Robbie: Well, "I pulled into Nazareth, and there's no room at the inn"? Hello! That did dawn on me. It came from I'm sitting there thinking I've got to write something. Was am I going to write about? We talk about this in the Once For Brothers documentary. I look inside the guitar and it says "Nazareth." And I think I like the sound of that word. Nazareth. How about if I pulled into Nazareth? So all of these elements just started to come together and fit together, The song took when I was 16 and I went from Toronto and I took a train and went down to the Mississippi Delta to join up with Ronnie Hawkins and the Hawks that impression of me going to the holy land of rock and roll, this is where blues and gospel and rockabilly and New Orleans music, all of this grow out of the ground. Whoa! I'm going there. My dream is to go to this fountainhead of rock and roll. So when I got there all of these characters and all of these things started to gather in the place of my imagination. Then some years later when I was writing this song I reached into that attic of all those memories and all of those characters. They just started to our out in this song.
Me: I interviewed Bernie Taupin once who said that they wore songs about America and he said that they wrote about America the way America is seen as opposed to the way it actually was. America really loved the way they wrote about it as fans of America. Did you ever feel like that?
Robbie: Ummm. I don't feel like that. Bernie and Elton coming into this distant world for me it was just down the river. I didn't feel that distant but I do remember Bernie and Elton bringing me the first copy of a record they made and saying this is in honour of the Band. Our music inspired this. They wanted to give it to us so we didn't think they were ripping us off. They made two albums which was "Tumbleweed Connection" and another one which they said was completely inspired by the Band. A lot of groups back then did that.
Me: A lot of groups now, my friend. Did you feel a responsibility telling story of the members of the Band that are no longer with us in this film?
Robbie: I felt like I'm a storyteller and it's one of the great stories that I have to tell. It was directly inspired by my book, Testimony. All of these things, its like one thing leads to another leads to another. Just because my story is a big part of that is this brotherhood and this experience with the band. So, if they were going to tell my story, that's got to be part of it.
Me: What's your and Garth's relationship now? Are you guys okay?
Robbie: Oh, yeah. But Garth has always been a very secluded type of character. He lives in his own world, that's the way he is. He doesn't want to be disturbed. He is even to this day one of the world's usual most extraordinary improvisor musician that ever walked the earth. He is amazing. He took the Band's music to another level. I have so much respect and so much love for Garth. Daniel wanted him in the film and everything but he's very hard to capture. Also I think at this stage too there's probably some health issues that play into this too. It doesn't make him feel that he has to get out more often.
Me: Was he "weird" when he was in the Band?
Robbie: Oh, yeah. He was weird before he even met the Band.
Me: Haha. So, do you think the Band ended because of drugs and alcohol?
Robbie: There was an affect from it, there's no doubt about that. We were living in a time period where experimenting with drugs was so common. I din't know if we knew anybody that wasn't on the same wavelength. In the late 60s and in the 70s it was just the way it was. It's easy now to say whoa, maybe that wasn't the right thing to do or something, While we were in it... it was very difficult to point any fingers. There were struggles in the group, because of the effects and the distraction that drugs can bring into something. It affected the relationship and it affected the music. It affected my writing because I can write for this group when everybody was present. This was a very particular group of five members and every member played such a pivotal role. If somebody drifted off, it wasn't the same. It was difficult and it took me some time to actually gravitate to a place where I thought "you know what, I'm just going to accept everything. I'm not going to take it personal."
Me: Did you have some assessment at first? Maybe a little bit?
Robbie: I felt bad because I know when we're in this thing together when the gang is really, really supportive of one another, we can make magic. And when it's not like that, we're trying but we can't be successful because there's something in the way. When that got deeper and everything I thought what am I writing for? Why am I killing myself over here when somebody is not even going to show up? Or when they do show up they're not going to be in a condition to do our best work. So that offended me in a certain way. Then over a long period of time, by the time we got to making "Northern Lights-Southern Cross" I was like if they show up they show up and if they don't they don't. I'm going to hit it and try to hit it out of the park one more time and I'm gong to force these guys to make some magic. Everybody came together and I did some work that I'm very proud of. "Ophelia" was one of those songs and "Acadian Driftwood" and "It Makes No Difference." It was a joyous experience and everybody did rise to the best of their ability to that occasion. It wasn't a lasting thing and because it wasn't a lasting thing we had to resort and wonderfully so to The Last Waltz.
Me: So many musicians and stand up comedians and people that are so creative went down that "dark path." Why do you think that is?
Robbie: Well, a lot of people who aren't creative went down the dark path too. But there's something in human nature that there is a need to walk on the wild side. There's a need to play with danger. There is something about walking that close to the edge and really, really challenging almost falling off. I went to some of those places too, but I never had, there was something I didn't have whatever that chip is that would make me say who cares. I just wasn't a true addict. I wasn't a true alcoholic. I was just someone that was "chippy" with ideas.
Me: The director of the film, Daniel Roher wasn't even alive when the Band was together. A lot of people who are going to watch the film are gonna be young and discover the Band. Is that overwhelming to you?
Robbie: The discovery process for people is so fantastic in the idea that young person can say, "Whoa. I never herd that before." They don't even know what affect they had on the culture and the music and all of those things. When this might've been the most untrendy group in rock and roll history we weren't cut from that cloth of like here's what's happening, let's go in that direction. We weren't trying to do something just to be different, We just weren't on the wavelengths, we weren't in touch with that thing. We were together for several years before we made "Music From Big Pink." We were honing our craft in woodshedding and gathering musics, gathering musicalities in the Chitlin' Circuit everywhere we went from the deep south all the way up to Canada. This was part of our education. Part of our discovery process. So when someone says they just heard this song by the Band or this is very cool or they're going to see this film or hear this new record that I make, whatever it is that discovery process is something that gives me a little chill inside.
Me: Robbie, thanks again for being on the Phile. You're one of my favorite guests and I hope you'll come back for a fourth time. Stay safe.
Robbie: Thank you, Jason, I'm sure I will.
That's about it for this entry of the Phile, Thanks to Robbie Robertson for another great interview. The Phile will be back tomorrow with Phile Alum Salman Rushdie. Spread the word, not the turd... or the virus. Don't let snakes or alligators bite you. Bye, love you, bye.
I don't want you, cook my bread, I don't want you, make my bed, I don't want your money too, I just want to make love to you. - Willie Dixon
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