Levon Helm

In The News

The 10 Best The Band Songs - A collection of peerless musicians with jazz skills and roots instincts, they honed their craft backing Hawkins in juke joints and small halls for nearly five years, and then had their first fateful… Read More

Open Photo Gallery

Levon Helm News

More News

Levon Helm Sings 'Kingfish' in 'Ain't in It for…

Apr 17, 2013

Ain't in It for My Health , a new documentary about the Band's late drummer and…

Levon Helm documentary due for release in America…

Apr 04, 2013

A documentary about Levon Helm is due to air in America later this month.

Levon Helm Documentary Premiering in April

Apr 01, 2013

A Film About Levon Helm will make its U.S. theatrical debut on April 19th, the…

SXSW Day Four: Feelin’ About Half Past Dead

Mar 17, 2013

Steve Earle leads Amy Helm, left, Eleanor Whitmore and a number of guest stars…

Levon Helm Biography

source: WikiPedia

This entry is from Wikipedia, the user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors and is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. If you find the biography content factually incorrect, defamatory or highly offensive you can edit this article at Wikipedia.

Mark Lavon "Levon" Helm (May 26, 1940 – April 19, 2012) was an American rock musician and actor who achieved fame as the drummer and frequent lead and backing vocalist for The Band. Helm was known for his deeply soulful, country-accented voice, multi-instrumental ability, and creative drumming style highlighted on many of the Band's recordings, such as "The Weight", "Up on Cripple Creek", and "The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down". He also had a successful career as an actor, appearing in such films as ''Coal Miner's Daughter'' and ''The Right Stuff''. In 1998, Helm was diagnosed with throat cancer, which caused him to lose his singing voice. After undergoing treatment for the disease, his cancer eventually went into remission, which allowed him to gradually regain use of his voice. His 2007 comeback album ''Dirt Farmer'' earned the Grammy Award for Best Traditional Folk Album in February 2008, and in November of that year, ''Rolling Stone'' magazine ranked him No. 91 in the list of The 100 Greatest Singers of All Time. In 2010, ''Electric Dirt'', his 2009 follow-up to ''Dirt Farmer'', won the first Grammy Award for Best Americana Album, a category inaugurated in 2010. In 2011, his live album ''Ramble at the Ryman'' was nominated for the Grammy in the same category and won. On April 17, 2012, his wife and daughter announced on Helm's website that he was "in the final stages of his battle with cancer" and thanked fans while requesting prayers. Two days later, Helm died at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York City.

Wikipedia This entry is from Wikipedia, the user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors and is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. If you find the biography content factually incorrect, defamatory or highly offensive you can edit this article at Wikipedia.