"The Weight"
Single by The Band
from the album Music from Big Pink
Released	June 26, 1968
Format	45'
Recorded	January 1968
Genre	Folk-Rock
Length	4:34
Label	Capitol
Writer(s)	Robbie Robertson
Producer(s)	John Simon

"The Weight" is the title of a 1968 song by The Band. It is one of the group's best known songs and among the most popular songs of the late 1960s counterculture. The Band's version is an excellent example of a silent title record, one in which the title never appears in the lyrics. While the names of the five members of The Band appear on the record label, "The Band" does not. The song was composed by The Band's Robbie Robertson and appears originally on The Band's first album, Music from Big Pink. Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (600x655, 93 KB)[edit] Licensing This image is of a cover of an audio recording, and the copyright for it is most likely owned by either the publisher of the album or the artist(s) which produced the recording or cover... A collection of various CD singles In music, a single is a short recording of one or more separate tracks. ... For other uses, see Band. ... Music From Big Pink is the 1968 debut album by folk-rock band The Band. ... is the 177th day of the year (178th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1968 (MCMLXVIII) was a leap year starting on Monday (link will display full calendar) of the 1968 Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1968 (MCMLXVIII) was a leap year starting on Monday (link will display full calendar) of the 1968 Gregorian calendar. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Folk rock is a musical genre, combining elements of folk music and rock music. ... This does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Capitol Records is a major United States-based record label, owned by EMI. // The Capitol Records company was founded by the songwriter Johnny Mercer in 1942, with the financial help of movie producer Buddy DeSylva and the business acumen of Glenn Wallichs, (1910-1971) (owner of Music City, at the... A songwriter is someone who writes the lyrics to songs, the musical composition or melody to songs, or both. ... Jaime Robert Robertson (born July 5, 1943 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada) is a songwriter, guitarist and singer, best known for his membership in The Band. ... In the music industry, a record producer (or music producer) has many roles, among them controlling the recording sessions, coaching and guiding the musicians, organizing and scheduling production budget and resources, and supervising the recording, mixing and mastering processes. ... John Simon (b. ... Year 1968 (MCMLXVIII) was a leap year starting on Monday (link will display full calendar) of the 1968 Gregorian calendar. ... For other uses, see Band. ... This article needs additional references or sources to facilitate its verification. ... Jaime Robert Robertson (born July 5, 1943 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada) is a songwriter, guitarist and singer, best known for his membership in The Band. ... Music From Big Pink is the 1968 debut album by folk-rock band The Band. ...

It is #41 in Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Songs of All Time list.^[1] This article is about the magazine. ... ...

Song theme

"The Weight" takes the folk music motif of a traveler, who arrives in Nazareth in the Lehigh Valley region of Pennsylvania. Once there, he encounters various residents of the town, the song being a story of these encounters. Folk music can have a number of different meanings, including: Traditional music: The original meaning of the term folk music was synonymous with the term Traditional music, also often including World Music and Roots music; the term Traditional music was given its more specific meaning to distinguish it from the... Nazareth is a borough in Northampton County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. ... Counties comprising the Lehigh Valley region of eastern Pennsylvania The Lehigh Valley (also known simply as The Valley) is a region in eastern Pennsylvania, in the United States. ... Capital Harrisburg Largest city Philadelphia Area  Ranked 33rd  - Total 46,055 sq mi (119,283 km²)  - Width 280 miles (455 km)  - Length 160 miles (255 km)  - % water 2. ...

The residents include a man who cannot direct the traveler to a hotel, Carmen and the Devil walking side by side, "Crazy Chester," who offers a bed in exchange for the traveler taking his dog, and Luke who has gone out to wait for the apocalypse, leaving his young bride neglected. Satan frozen at the center of Cocytus, the ninth circle of Hell in Dantes Inferno. ... Look up Apocalypse in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...

The traveler refers to "Miss Fannie," who has sent him on his journey to Nazareth, and "the weight" of the song is a reference to the burden of travel, of giving a message to the town, and of sin. The chorus refers to taking a load off of Fannie and putting it on the singer. The numerous Biblical allusions in the character names and incidents in the song are allegorical, referring to a purgatorial experience. In Levon Helm's autobiography "This Wheel's on Fire," Helm explains that the people mentioned in the song were based on real people the Band knew. The "Miss Anna Lee" mentioned in the lyric is Helm's longtime friend Anna Lee Amsden^[2]. Sin is a term used mainly in a religious context to describe an act that violates a moral rule, or the state of having committed such a violation. ... This Gutenberg Bible is displayed by the United States Library. ...

Robertson on "The Weight"

According to Robertson, "The Weight" was somewhat inspired by the films of Luis Buñuel, about which Robertson once said: Luis Buñuel Portolés (February 22, 1900 – July 29, 1983) was a Spanish-born filmmaker who worked mainly in Mexico and France, but also in his native country and the United States. ...

He did so many films on the impossibility of sainthood, people trying to do good in Viridiana and Nazarín, and it's impossible to do good. In "The Weight" it's the same thing. Someone says, "Listen, will you do me this favor? When you get there will you say 'hello' to somebody or will you pick up one of these for me?" "Oh, you're going to Nazareth, do me a favor when you're there." So the guy goes and one thing leads to another and it's like, "Holy shit, what has this turned into? I've only come here to say 'hello' for somebody and I've got myself in this incredible predicament." It was very Buñuelish to me at the time.

Viridiana is a 1961 film directed by Luis Buñuel and produced in Spain by Gustavo Alatriste. ... Nazarín is a 1959 film by director Luis Buñuel. ...

Musical construction

"The Weight" is sung primarily by Levon Helm, The Band's drummer. Rick Danko, the bassist, sings the fourth verse, and joins Helm in singing the fifth verse. The chorus is sung by all three of The Band's singers. Mark Lavon Helm (born May 26, 1940), better know as Levon Helm, is an American rock musician most famous as the drummer for the rock group The Band. ... Richard Clare Rick Danko (December 29, 1942-December 10, 1999) was a Canadian musician and singer, probably best known as a member of The Band. ...

Each verse follows the format of:

• Chords:A, C# minor, D, A
• Lyrics: I pulled into Nazareth, was feelin' about half past dead";

The chorus then takes the format of:

• Chords: A, E, D, A, E, D
• Lyrics: Take a load off Fannie, take a load for free;

The easily identifiable bass run between the final verse and the chorus is up the A major pentatonic scale (that is, A,B,C#,E,F#,A).

Film and commercial play

"The Weight" has featured prominently in many films and television shows, including such movies as Hope Floats; Igby Goes Down (in a cover version by rock band Travis); The Big Chill; Easy Rider; Girl, Interrupted; Patch Adams; and Starsky & Hutch (as a parody of the scene in Easy Rider); and on television in The Sopranos (Episode 4 of Season 4 is titled "The Weight" and features the song in the end credits) and also on My Name Is Earl. It also shows up in the show Scrubs where the song is peformed by Zach Braff and his friends as part of a skit. It has also been used in commercials for Diet Coke and Cingular/AT&T Wireless, an American telecommunications company. Hope Floats is an American romantic drama film from 1998, directed by Forest Whitaker. ... Igby Goes Down is a 2002 film that follows the life of Igby Slocumb. ... In popular music, a cover version, or simply cover, is a new rendition (performance or recording) of a previously recorded song. ... Travis are a Scottish Britpop band from Glasgow, comprising Fran Healy (lead vocals, guitar, piano), Dougie Payne (bass, backing vocals, occasional lead vocals), Andy Dunlop (lead guitar, banjo, keyboards, backing vocals) and Neil Primrose (drums, percussion). ... The Big Chill is a 1983 film that tells the story of several University of Michigan college friends who reunite after many years for the funeral of one of their friends who commits suicide. ... Wyatt, Mary (Toni Basil), Billy and Karen (Karen Black) wandering the streets of a parade filled New Orleans. ... Girl, Interrupted book cover Girl, Interrupted is an Academy Award-winning film adapted by the memoir by Susanna Kaysen. ... Patch Adams is a 1998 film directed by Tom Shadyac and based on the life of Hunter Patch Adams and the book Gesundheit: Good Health is a Laughing Matter by Adams and Maureen Mylander. ... Starsky & Hutch is a 2004 American comedy/action film directed by Todd Phillips. ... The Sopranos is an American television drama series created by David Chase and originally broadcast on the HBO network. ... My Name Is Earl is an Emmy Award-winning American sitcom created by Greg Garcia. ... Scrubs is an Emmy- and Peabody Award-winning American situation comedy/dramedy that premiered on October 2, 2001 on NBC. It was created by Bill Lawrence, who also co-created Spin City. ... Diet Coke (sometimes known as Diet Coca-Cola) or Coca-Cola Light (sometimes known as Coke Light) is a sugar-free soft drink produced and distributed by The Coca-Cola Company. ... Cingular Wireless is the largest United States mobile phone company, with headquarters in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. ... AT&T Wireless Services, Inc. ... Telecommunication involves the transmission of signals over a distance for the purpose of communication. ...

The song was also included on the Easy Rider Soundtrack, but was performed by the band Smith because of contractual problems preventing use of The Band's version. The cult classic 1969 film Easy Rider, starring Peter Fonda, Dennis Hopper, and Jack Nicholson, is not only remembered for the movie itself, but for the epic late 1960s rock soundtrack. ... Smith was a one-hit wonder American rock band from St. ...

"The Weight" is one of three songs performed by The Band featured in the 2003 documentary film, Festival Express. Poster from the movie Festival Express The Festival Express was a 1970 tour of Canada by several musical acts, including The Grateful Dead, Janis Joplin, and The Band. ...

"The Weight" was one of three songs the Band's 1990s lineup performed for "LET IT ROCK!", a birthday concert/tribute for Ronnie Hawkins. Ronnie Hawkins, born January 10, 1935 in Huntsville, Arkansas, United States, is a pioneering rock and roll musician and cousin to fellow rockabilly pioneer Dale Hawkins. ...

A fan favourite, "The Weight" is also in two post-Last Waltz concert videos: "The Band Is Back" (1984) and "The Band Live At The New Orleans Jazz Festival" (1998). The Last Waltz was a concert by the Canadian-American rock group, The Band, held on Thanksgiving Day, November 25, 1976, at Winterland Ballroom in San Francisco. ... The New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, often known as Jazz Fest, is an annual celebration of the music and culture of New Orleans and Louisiana. ...

Don Imus liked this song and frequently played it on his show. The Levon Helm Band appeared frequently. Imus was fired from CBS Radio on April 12, 2007, in the midst of his charity radiothon. The Radiothon continued on Friday, April 13, 2007 with Imus's wife and newscaster hosting in his place, and the broadcast concluded with the Levon Helm Band performing "The Weight" live. John Donald Don Imus, Jr. ... Mark Lavon Helm (born May 26, 1940), better know as Levon Helm, is an American rock musician most famous as the drummer for the rock group The Band. ...

Played by other musicians

"The Weight" has been covered by many other acts, including the North Mississippi Allstars, moe., Aaron Prichett, The Staple Singers, Travis, The Grateful Dead, The New Riders of the Purple Sage, O.A.R., Edwin McCain, Spooky Tooth, Hanson, Stoney LaRue, Old Crow Medicine Show, Aretha Franklin, Joan Osborne, John Denver, Cassandra Wilson, Shannon Curfman, Al Kooper and Mike Bloomfield, and Dionne Warwick did as well. Ratdog and Bob Weir are also know to cover this song from time to time (notably shows in Pennsylvania). Additional notable versions are by Lee Ann Womack, the band Smith, and a joint effort by Diana Ross & the Supremes, The Allman Brothers Band, Joe Cocker, and The Temptations. In The Band's concert film, The Last Waltz, The Staples and The Band perform the song together. The indie-rock band Decemberists recruited Mavis Staples to sing the song with them during their performance at the Bonnaroo music festival in June 2007. In popular music, a cover version, or simply cover, is a new rendition (performance or recording) of a previously recorded song. ... North Mississippi Allstars is a country blues band from Hernando, Mississippi. ... moe. ... The Staple Singers were a United States gospel, soul, and R&B singing group. ... Travis are a Scottish Britpop band from Glasgow, comprising Fran Healy (lead vocals, guitar, piano), Dougie Payne (bass, backing vocals, occasional lead vocals), Andy Dunlop (lead guitar, banjo, keyboards, backing vocals) and Neil Primrose (drums, percussion). ... Jerry Garcia later in life The Grateful Dead was an American rock band, which was formed in 1965 in San Francisco from the remnants of another band, Mother McCrees Uptown Jug Champions. ... New Riders of the Purple Sage was a 1970s Country rock band from Marin County, California. ... Of A Revolution (or O.A.R.) is an American rock band consisting of Marc Roberge (lead vocals & guitar), Chris Culos (drums), Richard On (lead guitar), Benj Gershman (bass), and Jerry DePizzo (saxophone and guitar). ... Edwin McCain (born January 20, 1970 in Greenville, South Carolina) is an alternative and indie rock guitar player. ... Spooky Tooth was an English progressive rock band from the late 1960s. ... Hanson may refer to: Hanson (band), American pop band Hanson plc, British international building materials company Hanson Records, former recording label Hanson Baronets, either of two baronetcies in the United Kingdom Hanson Bay, in the Chatham Islands Hanson Brothers, ice hockey playing siblings from the 1977 movie Slap Shot The... Stoney LaRue Stoney LaRue, a singer, songwriter and part of the Red Dirt music movement, is releasing his first solo album in August of 2005, appropriately titled the Red Dirt Album. ... , self-titled album Old Crow Medicine Show is a folk/country group from Nashville, Tennessee. ... Aretha Louise Franklin (born March 25, 1942) is an American soul, R&B, and gospel singer, songwriter, and pianist. ... Joan Elizabeth Osborne (born July 8, 1962) is an American singer-songwriter, known chiefly for her song One of Us. Originally from the Louisville suburb of Anchorage, Kentucky, she moved to New York City in the late 1980s, where Osborne formed her own record label, Womanly Hips, to release... John Denver (December 31, 1943 – October 12, 1997), born Henry John Deutschendorf, Jr. ... Cassandra Wilson (born December 4, 1955) is an American jazz musician, vocalist, songwriter, and producer from Jackson, Mississippi. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... For the astronaut, see Michael J. Bloomfield Michael Bernard Bloomfield (July 28, 1943 – February 15, 1981) was an American musician, guitarist and composer, born in Chicago, Illinois, into a well-off Jewish family on Chicagos North Side. ... Marie Dionne Warrick (born December 12, 1940 in East Orange, New Jersey), known professionally as Dionne Warwick, is an African-American singer best known for her work with Hal David and Burt Bacharach as songwriters and producers. ... Ratdog, also known as Bob Weir and Ratdog, is an American rock band. ... Robert Hall Weir (October 16, 1947–) is an American guitar player, most recognized as a founding member of the Grateful Dead. ... This biographical article needs additional references for verification. ... Reissue album cover showing The Supremes in 1966. ... The Allman Brothers Band is a band from Macon, Georgia, labeled by the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as the principal architects of Southern rock. ... Joe Cocker OBE (born John Robert Cocker, 20 May 1944, Sheffield) is an English rock/blues singer who came to popularity in the 1960s, and is most known for his gritty voice and his cover versions of popular songs. ... “Temptations” redirects here. ... The Last Waltz was a concert by the Canadian-American rock group, The Band, held on Thanksgiving Day, November 25, 1976, at Winterland Ballroom in San Francisco. ... This article is about the indie rock band The Decemberists. ... Mavis Staples (born July 10, 1939 in Chicago, Illinois) is an American rhythm and blues singer. ... ...

Levon Helm and Rick Danko also performed the song with Ringo Starr and his All-Starr Band. Josh Kelley and his backing band, The Weight, also perform this song at live shows.^[3] Richard Starkey Jr, MBE (born 7 July 1940), known by his stage name Ringo Starr, is an Academy Award and Grammy Award winning English musician, singer, songwriter and actor, best known as the drummer of The Beatles. ... To date, Ringo Starr has toured with nine versions of his All-Starr Band, where everybody on stage is a star in their own right [1]. // Dallas, 23 July 1989 [2] It Dont Come Easy / No No Song / Yellow Submarine / Such A Night (Dr. John) / The Weight (Levon Helm...

Australian artists Jimmy Barnes and The Badloves covered this song in 1993, which charted well.^{[citation needed]} Jimmy Barnes is a popular Australian rock singer. ...

In 1994, the Staple Singers performed this song again, with country singer Marty Stuart on the country-R&B collaborative album Rhythm, Country and Blues, produced by Don Was. Year 1994 (MCMXCIV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display full 1994 Gregorian calendar). ... Marty Stuart (born John Marty Stuart September 30, 1958 in Philadelphia, Mississippi) is an American country music singer, known for both his traditional style, and eclectic merging of rockabilly, honky tonk, and traditional country music. ... Don Was (born Don Fagenson on September 13, 1952 in Detroit, Michigan) is an American musician and a music and record producer. ...

Along with Britney Spears' "Toxic", Radiohead's "(Nice Dream)" and the traditional song "The House Carpenter", Nickel Creek performed a cover of "The Weight" at Lollapalooza 2006. Britney Jean Spears (born December 2, 1981) is a Grammy Award-winning[1] American pop singer, dancer, actress, author and songwriter. ... Audio sample Toxic is a dance-pop song written by Bloodshy & Avant, Cathy Dennis, and Henrik Jonback for Britney Spears fourth studio album In the Zone (2003). ... Radiohead are an English rock band that formed in Oxfordshire in 1986. ... (Nice Dream) is a song of the album The Bends by alternative rock band Radiohead. ... The Daemon Lover, also known as James Harris, James Herries, or The House Carpenter (Roud 14, Child 243) is a popular ballad from Britain. ... Nickel Creek is a Grammy Award-winning American acoustic music trio with roots in bluegrass, which is now sometimes described as progressive bluegrass or progressive acoustic. ... Lollapalooza is an American music festival featuring rock, alternative rock, hip hop, and punk rock bands, dance and comedy performances, and craft booths. ...

The Allman Brothers Band began to cover this song during their annual Beacon run in 2006, presumably in tribute to Duane Allman, who played on the Aretha Franklin version. The original Allman Brothers Band The Allman Brothers Band is a pioneering and innovative Southern rock group from Macon, Georgia originally popular in the 1970s, described by Rolling Stones George Kimball in 1971 as the best . ... Howard Duane Allman (November 20, 1946 – October 29, 1971) was an American lead guitarist and noted session musician. ...

Also, the song was played live in a joint performance by Sheryl Crow and The Wallflowers (whose lead singer is Jakob Dylan, the son of Bob Dylan, a frequent collaborator with The Band). Sheryl Suzanne Crow (born February 11, 1962) is an American blues rock singer, guitarist, bassist, and songwriter. ... The Wallflowers are a Grammy Award-winning rock band from Los Angeles, California. ... Jakob Luke Dylan, born December 9, 1969 in New York City, is the lead singer and songwriter of the rock band The Wallflowers. ... Bob Dylan (born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter, author, musician, and poet who has been a major figure in popular music for five decades. ...

"The Weight" is a hit for Canadian singer/songwriter Aaron Pritchett.^{[citation needed]}Panic! At The Disco covered the song at the Virgin Festival on 5 August, 2007. This article or section is not written in the formal tone expected of an encyclopedia article. ... Panic! at the Disco is an alternative rock band from Las Vegas, Nevada. ... For the original rock festival held in England, see V Festival Virgin Festival is a rock festival held in the United States and Canada. ...

Bands named for the song

There are three bands named after this song. The lead singer of the Athens, Georgia country band "The Weight" is Joseph Plunket, and the band's first full length album, Compass, was released in 2002 on the now-defunct 12-Volt Records. The record has been followed by several more releases to date, including 2004's Sabot Productions release, Ten Mile Grace. Plunket has since moved to New York City and re-formed the band. Athens-Clarke County is a unified city-county in Georgia, U.S., in the northeastern part of the state, at the eastern terminus of Georgia 316. ... Also see: 2002 (number). ... Year 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... New York, New York and NYC redirect here. ...

A second band, normally the backing band of Josh Kelley and Curtis Peoples, is also called "The Weight" and consists of Dave Yaden, Darwin Johnson, Slim Gambill, Micheal Miley, and Donald Barret.^[3] The band released their debut album "Home" in July 2006.

The Scottish band Nazareth also took their name from the first line of this song ("I pulled into Nazareth/Was feelin' about half past dead...").^{[citation needed]} Nazareth is a Scottish rock band that had several hard rock hits, as well as scoring with the Felice and Boudleaux Bryant penned ballad, Love Hurts, in the middle of the 1970s. ...

References

1. ^ The RS 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. RollingStone.com. Retrieved on 2007-06-02.
2. ^ Jacques Steinberg, "New Generation Hops the Mystery Train." New York Times (Online) July 9, 2007.
3. ^ ^{a b} The Weight

Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era. ... is the 153rd day of the year (154th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

External links

• "The Weight" lyrics
• An interpretation of "The Weight"'s lyrics by Peter Viney
• Full song chords and lyrics