‘Richard Manuel' Review: The Band's ‘Mournful, Soulful' Voice
Almost four decades after his death at age 42, the pianist and singer Richard Manuel, whose voice was an essential element of the influential rock group the Band, remains an enigma today. He may be better remembered for the sad circumstances of his death than for his contribution to the fusion of rock, country, blues and folk music that is now called Americana. The Band was renowned for the three-part harmonies produced by Manuel, Rick Danko and Levon Helm, yet the group's members viewed Manuel as the lead singer. His performances on songs such as 'I Shall Be Released' illustrate why Eric Clapton called Manuel's voice 'the most mournful, soulful thing I'd ever heard.'
The story of how a group fronted by Canadians almost single-handedly established Americana as a genre has been told before. In 'Richard Manuel,' the music writer and podcaster Stephen T. Lewis aims to shift our focus, placing Manuel at the center of the Band's fascinating history. For Mr. Lewis, Manuel's talents and weaknesses were linked: 'Richard's ability to receive and transmit through song was his gift,' the author writes. 'His inability to control his gifts, his downfall.'
Born in 1943, Manuel grew up in Stratford, Ontario, about 150 miles northeast of Detroit. Though he loved singing in church, his first and only formal musical instruction came in the form of piano lessons when he was around 8 years of age. Those lasted until the teacher slammed the lid on his fingers for, he said, playing 'a note that wasn't on the paper.' He continued playing on his own, inspired by late-night blues and gospel broadcasts crackling through the air from Nashville's WLAC, radio shows that young Richard and his future bandmates treated, as Mr. Lewis writes, 'like an underground club for renegade youth.'
By the time Richard was 16, his first band, the Revols, was playing several gigs a week, and he was eagerly experimenting on his piano to make it more audible through primitive sound systems. On stage, the shy, big-nosed teen transformed, singing Jerry Lee Lewis and Bobby Bland songs with gripping authenticity. When the Revols shared a bill with rockabilly singer Ronnie Hawkins in 1961, Manuel's aching version of 'Georgia on My Mind' prompted Hawkins to offer him a job.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
I Took My Compton A** To Toronto For The Kendrick Lamar Concert. Here's What Happened
Considering Kendrick and Drake's epic 2024 feud, I thought it would be poignant for a fellow Compton native, someone who walked the same streets as Kendrick, to pound the pavement in Toronto as he brings over a decade's worth of hits to the city, one year after obliterating Drake via their rap battle. Does obliterate sound too strong? Maybe it is, considering Drake was still the highest-selling rapper of 2024, despite the narrative surrounding his L in the K. Dot battle. But are we really going to lie and say that King Kunta didn't come out on top? In addition to sharing my perspective as a West side native, I wanted to see how Toronto the city reacts to Kendrick in person. Is there still animosity? Was there ever animosity, or was this 'beef' purely between the artists? Was the battle as big a deal in Toronto as it was perceived to be by the rest of the world? I can tell you one thing, Compton took full pride in Dot's triumph, as demonstrated in the 'Not Like Us' music video that brought the whole city out. However, there is no true document of how that feud was perceived by Drake's fellow countrymen. Yes, some folks in Vancouver pressed Rick Ross for playing 'Not Like Us' during the initial back-and-forth, but then Toronto sold out two massive shows at Rogers Centre to see the man who called their savior a pedophile do so live. This is not to downplay singer SZA's ability to draw a crowd, as the tour's co-headliner also has a massive fan base, many of whom don't give AF about Dot and Drizzy's 2024 tussle either way. Still, it was the talk of the year and continues to stir conversation. I'm not here to give you a peek inside of the concert itself, as VIBE dropped our official review of the GNX show following Lamar's Los Angeles stint. Instead, I'm here to share my own observations regarding the crowd before and after the show, as I was fortunate enough to chop it up with – and eavesdrop on – Toronto natives as they discussed Kendrick, Drake, and why they did – or didn't – choose to pay top dollar to see Mr. Duckworth tear down the stage in Aubrey's hometown. My first observation was that I was far from the only Californian to cross the border in support of Kendrick, with many Los Angeles natives making their presence known IRL and on social media. Two couples who seemingly traveled together – one rocking matching Dodgers jerseys and the other wearing Shaq & Kobe Lakers jerseys – spotted me in my Compton fitted and threw up the W ('Four fingers up, two twisted in the middle' – Mack 10) as they entered the building via Gate 3, with plenty others also making it known that they came a long way to show up for Dot. It was also evident that several New Yorkers, Bostonians, and other American North-easterners made the trek for the show. While this is a sign of Kendrick's immense lock on the culture, it may also be comforting for those taking issue with the idea of Torontonians 'betraying' Drake with their attendance. While residents undoubtedly made up the majority of attendees – as would be the case in any city – it was by no means a night fueled purely by local support. As for the Torontonians that did show up, I observed a distinction that women of the city, quite frankly, couldn't care less about a rap beef, with Camille, a young woman who drove down from Markham, telling me, 'I was playing 'Nokia' on the way here. I love them both. But thinking I'm not going to see Kendrick out of loyalty to someone I've never met is kind of silly to me. Doesn't mean I don't like or respect Drake and what he's done, but Kendrick has, like, a bunch of hits that have nothing to do with that.' This echoes the sentiment of a young woman whose day-of interview went viral on social media, where she stated, 'These are two grown men. Their beef has nothing to do with me. I didn't start it, I didn't have nothing to do with it, it doesn't change my life any which way, I'm still gonna come to this concert.' This isn't to say that only women felt this way, as Jameson, a young man from Toronto, told me, 'Music goes beyond rap beef. I came for a good show from a great artist.' 'The internet and podcasts make that sh*t seem deeper than it is,' added Chris, another attendee and Toronto resident. 'In real life, people are not clocking the beef that closely. It's summertime, people want to be outside, one of the biggest rappers ever comes, you buy a ticket and you go. All this trying to shame people for enjoying themselves is dumb. High school sh*t.' This was the overall vibe of both nights outside of Rogers Centre. Fans, essentially, just wanted to see two of the world's biggest artists hit the stage live, and refused to let a year-old rap battle — and all the drama it spawned — stop them from doing so. As far as they're concerned, the 'they' of 'they not like us' are Hip-Hop 'culture vultures' and OVO specifically, not the whole city. That's not to say that there weren't some straight-up Drake haters in the building, with one concert goer being spotted in his own custom 'Real Canadiens Hate Drake' shirt during both concert nights. There were also plenty of Toronto attention seekers going out of their way to rub Dot's victory in Drizzy's face, busting out the most trash crip walks I've ever seen. The majority, however, attended out of sincere interest and fandom, not to spite the $ome $exy $ongs 4 U artist. Drake did, however, have more than a few loyalists show up on his behalf, with one group, The 6 Takeover, attempting to organize a party outside the venue, bumping Drake classics while handing out free pizza and hoodies. As you may have heard, things didn't quite work out, as venue security immediately broke up anything resembling a mob forming both nights. Still, the few who showed up before the rebellion was shut down proudly rocked their OVO and Drake merch while lambasting their fellow Toronto natives for 'crossing' the man who put the city on. These loyalists have a sports team mentality when it comes to Drake. You root for the home team, period. I don't care how sh*tty the season was, you don't switch up the first year they don't bring home a chip. And you damn sure don't pay to see their biggest rival host an All-Star game in your city. And to this I say, fair! However, I think the disconnect happens when you expect an entire culture (or city) to abide by this expectation, especially one year removed from the peak of their rivalry. This isn't a LeBron James situation where Drake has every right to feel betrayed due to their personal relationship. And yes, while hearing Rogers Centre go off to 'Not Like Us' might feel personal, it was also an undeniable hit, meaning it will get the hit-treatment when performed live. Now, as for the fans in the crowd begging for an encore? Tough break, kid. At no point did I feel uncomfortable or out of sorts in my Compton garb. In fact, hospitality was on ten my entire trip. Even those who spoke in passionate defense of Mr. Graham did so with an undercurrent of respect. One question I can't answer, however, is how exactly Drake will be received when he finally makes his way out west again. Los Angeles is a far more unpredictable environment, so it's trickier to assess. It's also important to distinguish Compton from Los Angeles (proper), two different cities that will likely react to Drake's presence differently. As for Toronto, however, the beef simply isn't as serious to the average resident as it seems on the 'net, and that might just be the biggest takeaway from Dot's time in the city. More from Clipse, Pharrell Preview Kendrick Lamar's Highly Anticipated "Chains & Whips" Verse Drake Accompanying Morgan Wallen At Houston Show Yields Big Internet Reaction Lil Wayne's Son Claims Rapper Ghostwrote "Most" Of Drake's Music: "On God" Best of 10 Rap Albums Snubbed Of The Grammys' Album Of The Year Award 21 Black Entertainers Who Are Almost EGOT Winners 11 Black-Owned Games To Play At The Next Function Or Kick Back
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
T-Pain Calls Drake Out For Not Living Up To His Word Of 'Gracefully' Leaving Music Behind
Drake has been discussing his inevitable retirement for almost a decade, yet, for a variety of reasons, has continued to release music to much success and critique. T-Pain recently called him out for not living up to his word of 'gracefully' leaving music behind. 'The one thing I learned from Drake, here's the crazy thing, the one thing I learned from but one thing he hasn't followed, his own words. Drake said 'I want to be one of those people that gracefully bows out and not get kicked out,'' the 40-year-old singer said on a recent episode of the Crash Dummies podcast. Teddy was referencing Drizzy's 2023 interview 'A Moody Conversation' with Lil Yachty. 'I have ever since said, 'Thank y'all, I appreciate y'all. I'll see y'all when I drop—don't worry about it, I'll just drop something. Let me know if you heard it,'' Pain said with a joking tone. 'Drake is like, 'No, listen, OK, I got another one. Hold on, check this out. Y'all ain't like that one? OK, real quick, just one more. Let me try one more.'' The 'Buy U A Drank' singer claimed that in just two years, the Toronto superstar has become the person that he 'didn't want to be.' He expounded on that point and how it related to his career: 'Like, when he said that 'I wanna gracefully bow out and not get kicked out,' I was like, 'You know what? I'm out this bi**h.' I'm out this motherf**ker. I'm not trying to impress y'all ni**as. Y'all ni**as don't give a f**k if I live or die. Why the f**k would I keep trying to impress y'all? I'm out. I'm done. I did everything that I'm trying to do. I changed the game. I made a sound. What else?' The five-time Grammy winner did that interview with Yachty in February 2023, just under five months before his It's All A Blur tour with 21 Savage. In October 2023, he released For All The Dogs and followed up with a deluxe version in November. That following February, he extended the It's All A Blur tour and incorporated the Big As The What? edition co-starring J. Cole. Of course, in the middle of that tour, he was targeted by Kendrick Lamar, Future, Metro Boomin, and more, setting off the biggest rap beef in Hip-Hop history. He released several diss songs from April to May, and followed up with a few singles and features that summer. This past February, he released a joint album, $ome $exy $ongs 4 U, with PARTYNEXTDOOR while on the Anita Max Win tour in Australia. Drake is set to hit the road with PND for the $ome $pecial $hows 4 U tour in the United Kingdom and Europe from July to September, and has been teasing his next solo album. With all of that said, T-Pain wasn't wrong in saying that Drake hasn't lived up to his word, but only if his perception of that statement was that the father of one planned to gracefully bow out that year. The 'Nokia' artist has been a high volume act throughout his career, and is also the same man who rapped 'The most successful rapper 35 and under/ I'm assumin' everybody's 35 and under/ That's when I plan to retire, man it's already funded' on the 2016 Views cut 'Weston Road Flows.' More from French Montana Immediately Exits Interview When Asked About Drake And Rick Ross Drake Accompanying Morgan Wallen At Houston Show Yields Big Internet Reaction I Took My Compton A** To Toronto For The Kendrick Lamar Concert. Here's What Happened
Yahoo
3 hours ago
- Yahoo
LL Cool J to host hip-hop docuseries for Paramount+
June 27 (UPI) -- Paramount+ announced Friday that LL Cool J is soon to helm a fresh music docuseries for its platform that will provide a deep dive into everything hip-hop. LL Cool J, born James Todd Smith, is an MC and performer with two Grammy Awards under his belt. He is also a Kennedy Center honoree and a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, among other achievements. For Paramount's Hip Hop Was Born Here five-episode series, LL Cool J will take on the role of host, and chat with other hip-hop notables and icons. Intended to show how hip-hop was born, grew and continues to evolve both as a musical genre and a culture, LL Cool J is slated to chat with fellow classic rap stars such as Big Daddy Kane, Doug E. Fresh, Grandmaster Caz, Marley Marl, Rev Run, Roxanne Shante and Method Man. He'll also spend time with newer artists, such as Crystal Caines and Lady London, among others. LL Cool J is also a co-executive producer of the series, a responsibility he shares with a group that also includes NFL Hall of Fame quarterback Peyton Manning. Hip Hop Was Born Here will premiere on Paramount+ on July 22 in the United States, Canada, Brazil and across Latin America before showing up on the streaming service across Britain, France, Germany, Switzerland, Austria and Australia the next day. The program's trailer is available to view via the Paramount+ YouTube channel.
