257 - Celebrating Garth Hudson 🪗
To celebrate the life and legacy of London’s Garth Hudson—who passed earlier this week at the age of 87—we’ve reached out to a handful of local musicians for their favourite performances from The Wizard himself. So take a load off, and turn it up! ⬆️
Up On Cripple Creek, 1969(?) 😌
London’s favourite arborist/musician, Fraser Teeple, suggests this take of Up on Cripple Creek for “Garth’s smile while he works the clav :)”
-
The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down, 1976 ❤️🔥
Singer-songwriter Marty Kolls loves how The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down has “always reeked of passion and grit—both in the song’s performance and its lyrics. And Garth’s riffing is pretty great too!”
-
The Weight, 1976 🔊
Musician/Producer/Music London Development Officer, Richard Gracious, goes with this performance of The Weight for “that classic organ sound featuring those Leslie speakers from Garth!”
-
The Weight, 1969 🪄
Should we share another version of The Weight? The always-rock-and-roll Taylor Holden thinks so: “….I feel like I’ve heard The Weight way too many times, but every time that video from Woodstock pops up, it's just magic!”
-
It Makes No Difference, 1976 🎷🎸
Editor’s pick: To wrap it up, we’re going wit the The Band’s performance of It Makes No Difference from The Last Waltz for the legendary back-and-forth between Garth’s sax and Robbie’s guitar!
-
Bonus: The Genetic Method, 1971 🍾
We couldn’t find video, but we’re including the audio from this New Year’s Eve performance1 from Garth for his nod to another famous Londoner toward the end 😉!
Last week: Stay Cozy 🥶
Our Sponsors:
📍CityMatch / 🌲 BLUE Forest Realty Inc. / 🚲 London Bicycle Café
Our Patrons: Sameer Vasta / Mike Donachie / web.isod.es / Joan Sam / Black Coffee / Earmark / Rachel Berdan / Dan Hall / Paul Seale / Alexis Dowell / Kelly Ziegner / Ellen Husk / Sidetrack: A Wortley Café / Erin Naylor / Ethan Halko / Phronk / Alex Jaworiwsky / Pat Dryburgh / Jennifer Wain / Amanda DeVries Editors emeriti: Jon Clemens / Titus Ferguson / Steve MacDouell / Rebecca Minielly / Kevin Van Lierop / Kendra Perera
Editor: James Kingsley
To ensure the ongoing development, growth, and delivery of this publication:
👉 Become a Patron and/or share with a friend 💌!
© 2025 The Localist • Archives 🎹
Kudos to Esquire writer Charles P. Pierce for unearthing this gem! 💎