I attended The Last Waltz concert at Winterland Arena in San Francisco that Thanksgiving. The promoter, Bill Graham, supplied everybody with a complete turkey dinner before the show started. I danced with my girlfriend in a special roped-off area near the stage to waltzes played by the San Francisco Symphony ballet orchestra. Scorsese was there filming the concert which was edited into The Last Waltz movie. Winterland only held about 5,000 people, so I've often marveled at how lucky I was to have been able to attend this historic event. My undying gratitude goes to Bill Graham, The Band, and the overwhelming array of superstars who played that night. I was touched by an angel.
$25. I think was the ticket price, $50. with dinner if I remember right? It's been awhile but I was there too. First time seeing EC, Woody, Ringo, Butterfield, The Band, Dylan, Joni, 2nd time seeing Neil Young, & Van, numerous times seeing Bill who was the best guy & did so much for music.
No, there was no premium ticket price for the turkey dinner. It would have been impossible to keep track of who did and who didn't. Trucks pulled up outside the main entrances on Steiner Street and runners carried the dinners inside through the main lobby and into the main arena. The whole thing was brilliantly handled and dinner only took about 40 minutes to complete. Then everybody took their paper plates and utensils to the nearest provided trash cans. Nobody wanted to slow anything down because we knew there were gonna be so many star performers and we wanted to get the show on the road. I'd seen all the various performers before and each had signed off on being in the subsequent movie, so there was no holding back. They were all on their game that night and it was magical. Winterland was the greatest place in the world for rock music. Everybody played there at one time or another except the Beatles, who did two separate shows at the Cow Palace, and their last commercial show ever at Candlestick Park (a combination baseball and football stadium - 49ers and Giants). I was at all three and never heard a note because of all the girls screaming. Winterland and Candlestick have since been torn down.
Came back just to hear him tell this story again. RIP Robbie. You inspired so many and will continue that tradition for generations. Hope you and Rick Danko are jamming up there.
@@lucasoheyze4597 Rick and Robbie go way back, before The Band - so I would like to think of anyone, they would be okay. Keep your negativity in your own space. It does no-one any good.
Hmmm all the people on here knocking his playing.. maybe you should sit down and watch the Last Waltz, and turn it up! Great unique style all his own. Also listen to all the incredible songs he was a part of writing. So he doesn't shred, but he's an incredibly important guitarist/musician and songwiter in history. The line up of the Last Waltz alone, shows his and his band's influence. Cool guitar!
Mark Whitelaw I agree Robbie is a wonderful player and song writer. I loved when Robbie and Clapton are playing solos on the same song during the movie. It was a very special movie.
Robbie is the man. No one who knows music for real doubts that. I just heard from talking about Roy Buchanan in a video and how he met Roy for the first time and was amazed at how good he was and the tricks and volume swells he did and here he is doing volume swells 40 yrs later still clearly influenced by Roy as the rest of us are. But Robbie is the man and a great player and song writer
Love the guitar and loved the Band especially Robbie. What a loss. May he "Rest in Peace". His playing will live on forever. He's still playing looking down on us.
My wife and I were dating when this movie came out and we watched it at a drive in theater. That guitar caught my attention that night...and, of course, Robbie's playing. His playing is often so understated; minimal. I can listen to Robbie all day long...such an extraordinary person, musician, and storyteller. R.I.P.
@@whoarethebrainpigs Robbie had produced his last album, and they became friends. Robbie liked all kinds of music, Neil Diamond was in the Tin Pan Alley group.
So is this Robbie being reunited with the guitar that he hasn't played in years and years or is it him becoming acquainted with the limited edition replica of his old guitar ?
Goodbye RR...you reached me at age 24 and 30 yrs later I see how your music took me to my next phase in life as i no longer was listening to kids stuff but real music.
Seriously, is this Fender's best people? Even soldering to the pots without any protection on the finish or pickguard of the guitar? No wonder the custom shop stuff isn't what it used to be.
@@davidcarter1917 Exactly, when I saw that soldering process my jaw dropped.I was an electronic tech for Air Force and DoD for 30 years. Did a lot of soldering, ya gotta worry about the electronic components still connected to area that 100W iron is touching. I dug my foxhole before commenting so fire away critics.
The thing is encased in bronze, it'll be OK. Besides, that's nothing to what that very guitar experienced on tour I'm sure. If the fuckin shattered when he did that then it wouldn't be a very well made guitar now would it.
Robbie Robertson has something of the same kind of thing that players like Neil Young and Keith Richards have in their playing. There's a rough, primal feel to it, and not a speck of guitar store wankery to be found. But it's magic in a track. Ask a pro how rare a quality that is.
I sort of agree, basically they have the 'feel' of the early (or even late) blues guitarists. Not sure whether thats something that can be taught, but its weird, considering we're talking about two canadians and a brit. But they say Peter Green gave BB king the chills, if you can't trust BB King, who can you?
Mike Archibald Didn’t Peter Green have a Les Paul that had a unique sound because of one of the coils having a peculiar winding . It was one of those manufacturing flaws that turned out to be a strength in what it created .
sassulusmagnus I mentioned that in a post when I talked about Trex’s Marc Bolan . I asked if I was delusional or is Marc an unjustly underrated Guitarist like Neil Young and John Fogerty . Guy wrote back and said he definitely fits in the same class like Neil Young etc. simple and rough around the edges but what comes out is pure magic . I interpret the rough around the edges comment is that that Guitarists in that class aren’t going to spend hours studying music theory and practicing their modes , pentatonics etc. to machine calibrated precision . They learn , go with what they like reach into their Soul . Of course they all have to have sensitivity to tone .
The Last Waltz is the greatest live band movie ever. The Band along with all the guests that Thanksgiving was truly amazing. That was one special night. Those of you criticizing Robbie’s playing I ask you to go watch the Last Waltz and you will see one of the great guitar players play. The Band used to be Bob Dylan’s back up band in the 60’s. I grew up in the Valley and I believe Norm’s guitar shop was on Tampa Avenue back in the 70’s. I would love to have that guitar.
I agree with you - his playing on The Last Waltz is wonderful - he certainly gave Clapton a run for his money when they played Further On Down The Road
Would love to sit down with RR if I ever make it as the tones and feel he has are so authentic and amazing. That guitar is a beauty and of great historical importance. I hope if it's ever sold it still gets played.
According to a book I read, Robbie gave the guitar to the RnR Hall of Fame. I live in Cleveland and I've only been there once and I didn't get a chance to look for it. Now I have a mission.
I certainly hope that Robbie Robertson’s family kept the original version of his 1954 Strat, because that guitar was used on probably the greatest concert ever.
Robertson mentions in this video how he first found the guitar and it was red. Didn't like the colour, but loved the feel. Somewhere else, Robertson is on video saying how dipping the guitar in bronze made it really heavy, to the point where during "The Last Waltz" concert he had to change guitars...
Yep, if you go watch the Last Waltz performance with Joni Mitchell, Eric Clapton or Neil Young for example, you can see that he has a 50s Strat in normal sunburst finish but with the same pickup arrangement as the bronze Strat
Robertson had to switch guitars mid concert because one of strings snapped on the bronze strat. Another funny thing is that he plays a les Paul on Acadian Driftwood but it wasn’t featured on the concert film
I'm here because I guess some of you haven't heard,ROBBIE ROBERTSON has passed away at age 80.He has officially joined RICK DANKO,LEVON HELM,and RICHARD MANUEL.I will miss him terribly he was such a great storyteller as well as a magnificent songwriter and guitarist.now GARTH HUDSON is the last man standing,R.I.P ROBBIE.
As others have said, the Frankenstrat is the epitome of an iconic mod. Wild inspiration and thinking out of the box that broke so many traditional mindsets about what was acceptable.
I am using someone elses computer to write this comment my name ia John Carruthers and I was the one who put the original guitar together. We had the body electroplated, the same process as bronzing baby shoes. I built the original pickguard. It was a bear to wire because the bronze plating caused the pickups to short out. The guitar was very heavy because of the plating. I also worked on Rick Dankos Ampeg bass, I installed a Fender P Bass pickup in place of the stock one.
I traded that original 54 Stratocaster to Norman Harris for a dot ES335 about 1973. The original red paint job was laid on by Wayne Felky in Sacramento. Anyway Robbie had it customized to his specifications.
I am not a strat guy..but that thing is beautiful. It is amazing how much of a change it makes to the look of a strat when you change the pickup configuration and pickguard.
I always wondered about that guitar from the first time I watched the concert, I was like "when did fender put out that finish?"..and It seems obvious they didn't...and the pickup configuration had me kinda stumped too, very cool guitar fer sure...
I bought a squier contemporary strat with a similar configuration. 3 single coils but, the bridge and middle are together and in series like a humbucker. Such a unique sound imo.
Did not know the start had been dipped in bronze...I remember having to move back to my mums for a few months,roundabouts when LW was released on dvd.. I drove my belated Mother round the bend the amount of times I watched the Last Waltz,,,within the 1st week she couldn’t stop singing the Night they drove ol Dixie down...🖤
El Sin Un Nombre The dude's fucking volume swells and the shit he attempts to play, sounds like a kid who just picked up the guitar for the first time and realized what a volume knob does. Come on. Fuck nostalgia.
Are you really that ignorant? He's just walked in off the street for this promo video and mucked around for a couple minutes. It's not like it's a rehearsed live set or anything serious. He's not trying to shred a solo to impress you or anyone else.
I'm always interested in unique pickup and control setups. The S1 switching in my strat is pretty good for a wide variety of options that can be accessed quickly.
I was there thanksgiving 1976. Actually very close to the 40th anniversary of that date. It is to me one of the most important guitars of rock and roll. Two pickups one turned around. Similar to p bass pickup but more output. It’s a chimyer sound. The wear is under the finish.
His solo on “ Further on up the Road” in The Last Waltz film was brilliant regardless of his history from yesterday and today. He had passion and tone blazing out of that guitar. I wish he would of explored that part of playing in his solo career.
@@williammcdonough2291 NO, he played his bronze strat. But as the night wore on, the extra 10 lbs that the guitar weighed started to wear him out so he switched to a (ironically) red strat without the extra weight.
I was wrong. He started the concert with his bronze Strat, but by the time Clapton played, he had switched to his regular sunburst because the Bronze one was 10 lbs heavier. the confusion was that I forgot that the songs in the movie weren't in chronological order.
Great to see this ! I noticed that in the last Waltz film Robbie also played a sunburst strat with the middle pickup moved to beside the bridge pickup. On the track with Clapton
If u look even closer u recognize the white pickguard with the same pickup configuration as the bronze one. Two different guitars. I think that sunburst was his backup guitar: m.th-cam.com/video/91Eg95vF72k/w-d-xo.html&pp=ygUcVGhlIGxhc3Qgd2FseiBzdW5idXJzdCBzdHJhdA%3D%3D
Always love the vintage tuners, so simple but so classy. The only thing that looks better is the white pearl gold, but even then only on certain colors.
The Man is responsible for some of the most instantly recognizable guitar work in history, but no; the youtube comments section pisses on him as being 'mediocre' and 'overrated'. Sure. You think he's an asshole? - Cool. Don't buy the guitar in protest. To belittle his work is childish. Personally, I think this is the first artist copy Strat since Eric Clapton's to be worth the investment - it's not just another Stratocaster in the form of every other Stratocaster.
He is a rather mediocre guitarist, but that's beyond the point. I still greatly appreciated a lot of music he has made - but I'm not blind to the fact that he isn't a great guitarist.
There are different opinions about that. Some say his style is never too much or too little. I don't think Dylan would have hired him were he just mediocre.@@johnyeremian2899
Ah yes...lets all judge Robbies lifetime career as a guitarist on a few seconds of footage. Jeez wake up people. Plenty of back catalogue there to choose from. He's not out there prove his chops to anyone and he's not self conscious about his playing, something which most of you are.
@@loganwhite9814 you do understand Levon’s book doesn’t even really dispute that Robbie wrote almost all the songs right? He may have been a jerk but we don’t know that. Hard to make judgements when you are talking about a group with several heroin addicts…
I read Robbie's book, I read Barney Hoskyns biograhy of The Band, and Joe Forno's book that is mostly about Levon from 1986 to 1994. None of them were perfect, what I gathered is that although Robbie did drugs, but not heroin, he was probably more ambitious than the other guys, he also had a wife and small children that kept him more grounded. Levon is the only one who really bashed Robbie, and he did it years later, after he had spend his money on expensive hotels, and building a new house after his old one burned down. He got insurance money, but he wanted something elaborate like a man made lake, other stuff. Levon's motto was "don't let your bank account dictate your lifestyle", even his own father scolded him for how he handled money. But it is all Robbie's fault. I think not.@@IronGolem2009
Robbie's mother was Mohawk Cayuga, Robbie was born in and grew up in Toronto. His real father was Jewish, he died before Robbie was born, his stepfather was very physically abusive to both Robbie and his mother. When Robbie was young he was indcriedible good looking and full of charm.@@ToddSauve
Edward Galloway Haha! He could of told us a lot about the actual making of the guitar. The specs and stuff. Instead we have to listen to Robbie babble on..
Robbie is pretty dull. I have frankly never understood people's enthusiasm for The Band. It may be because they were before my time but to me they were just a fairly white bland blues band.
BadgerVito Robbie is pretty dull until he starts playing. Have u even bothered to listen to anything apart from the band stuff. the man is a premier league player.
Lyqwld Andylsonz u love all black music but hate guitar blues music. WTF. U win the most contradictory and dumbest comment on any TH-cam comment section anywhere. I’m sorry if u are only 10 but that is just plain dumb dumb dumb dumb
Robbie's Last Waltz strat is, to me, the most iconic modified strat ever. I was always fixated on the pickup config., i thought it was some humbucking custom mod, but from watching this its interesting to finally get an answer to that. #FenderProSweepstakes
By the way.. just a quick follow up, I did check with my friend and he said that Robbie did grab all the publishing rights and left the rest penniless.
So then , where are the classic songs Levon wrote with his amazing talent? Instead we have bunch of great and timeless songs written by Robbie Robertson. Levon, Rick and Richard were fantastic singers and The Band was a great unit together but Robbie's writing made The Band stand out from the rest. When Levon wrote his biography he was obviously bitter but also spread a lot of lies in it, blaming Robertson for everything. Lame.
There’s a great book about the town of Woodstock that came out a few years ago, with a lot of stuff about the Band from people who knew them well back in the day. The general consensus was that Levon, Richard and Rick generally just partied the 70’s away, while Robbie was the workhorse who would actually spend the time and energy to write, plan albums and tours, and take care of business- all the stuff that’s actual work and not just having fun. I used to buy into Levon’s take that Robbie was greedy and ripped them off, but I think the bottom line is that in general he simply worked harder and partied less, had the more stable relationship and home life, and yeah- he actually wrote all the songs. Doesn’t matter if he got the inspiration from Levon, it’s what he did with it. And that’s the way the biz was set up- the songwriter got the bigger share. Same with Townshend vs the other Who members. Sorry for Levon. He was great, but if he didn’t like the financial setup he should have picked up a pen and written timeless classics like Robbie did. Or maybe he couldn’t?
If you watch the Last Waltz there is the Bronze Strat with the dual pickups in the rear. There also is a sunburst Strat with the dual pickups in the rear. Robbie is playing it on Further on up the Road. Dueling with Clapton.
This wood sound warmer than this wood, this neck is the same radius as the "legendary" '62 ergo you'll sound like hendrix, blah blah bloody blah. If you can play guitar well, a piece of shit with one string will sing like a Greek Siren , but if you cant play to save your life then a '59 Les Paul through a Mark V boogie wont help you.
I agree with you. I gig every weekend playing modded Squier's, Boss pedals and a Peavey amp and it sounds fine to me. Nobody's come up to me at a gig and complained about my guitar sound. Had more expensive guitars which I enjoyed but I learned a long time ago that it isn't the gear it's the player and that's saved me wasting a lot of money chasing tone. Are you Paul Torrisi from the Apprentice btw ? :)
@@bigtorrisi Its true. So much jargons and this and that when they recreate a guitar., Special wound pickups to recreated this and that sounds.. blah blah.. Sounds like an Apple Keynote event at times that borders to absolute cringe. Custom Shop has their history cemented, but i would not give two shits about a Fender Custom shop. Considering the prices and that they have fallen totally down the relic rabbit hole of late. Maybe good guitars, but a standard USA Strat does it for me.
Craig Usselman I bet all that money from the last waltz he stole from everyone else in the band makes him smile more. Though the piece of shit definitely regrets the way he treated them, since everyone from the band openly hates him, still didn't regret it enough to pay them their money or cut them in on rights! Fuck this asshole
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Will you make me a lefty model @Fender ?
Good thing I can make one with a Squier.
I attended The Last Waltz concert at Winterland Arena in San Francisco that Thanksgiving. The promoter, Bill Graham, supplied everybody with a complete turkey dinner before the show started. I danced with my girlfriend in a special roped-off area near the stage to waltzes played by the San Francisco Symphony ballet orchestra. Scorsese was there filming the concert which was edited into The Last Waltz movie. Winterland only held about 5,000 people, so I've often marveled at how lucky I was to have been able to attend this historic event. My undying gratitude goes to Bill Graham, The Band, and the overwhelming array of superstars who played that night. I was touched by an angel.
How lucky !!
What a great story! Hold that memory forever, man.
$25. I think was the ticket price, $50. with dinner if I remember right? It's been awhile but I was there too. First time seeing EC, Woody, Ringo, Butterfield, The Band, Dylan, Joni, 2nd time seeing Neil Young, & Van, numerous times seeing Bill who was the best guy & did so much for music.
No, there was no premium ticket price for the turkey dinner. It would have been impossible to keep track of who did and who didn't. Trucks pulled up outside the main entrances on Steiner Street and runners carried the dinners inside through the main lobby and into the main arena. The whole thing was brilliantly handled and dinner only took about 40 minutes to complete. Then everybody took their paper plates and utensils to the nearest provided trash cans. Nobody wanted to slow anything down because we knew there were gonna be so many star performers and we wanted to get the show on the road. I'd seen all the various performers before and each had signed off on being in the subsequent movie, so there was no holding back. They were all on their game that night and it was magical. Winterland was the greatest place in the world for rock music. Everybody played there at one time or another except the Beatles, who did two separate shows at the Cow Palace, and their last commercial show ever at Candlestick Park (a combination baseball and football stadium - 49ers and Giants). I was at all three and never heard a note because of all the girls screaming. Winterland and Candlestick have since been torn down.
wow that was one of the best concerts of all time
Came back just to hear him tell this story again. RIP Robbie. You inspired so many and will continue that tradition for generations. Hope you and Rick Danko are jamming up there.
They weren't jamming when they were down here, so it seems unlikely
@@lucasoheyze4597 Rick and Robbie go way back, before The Band - so I would like to think of anyone, they would be okay. Keep your negativity in your own space. It does no-one any good.
Rest In Poetry, Robbie.........Canada and the world will always remember you and The Band ♥️
Robbie was a natural storyteller….in song and in conversation….a true loss. Rest easy.
when I spent yrs working with Robbie it was impossible to not hold and play that guitar, just to have it around all the time was an amazing vibe
Did he have unusually large hands?
Hmmm all the people on here knocking his playing.. maybe you should sit down and watch the Last Waltz, and turn it up! Great unique style all his own. Also listen to all the incredible songs he was a part of writing. So he doesn't shred, but he's an incredibly important guitarist/musician and songwiter in history. The line up of the Last Waltz alone, shows his and his band's influence. Cool guitar!
Mark Whitelaw I agree Robbie is a wonderful player and song writer. I loved when Robbie and Clapton are playing solos on the same song during the movie. It was a very special movie.
Robbie is the man. No one who knows music for real doubts that. I just heard from talking about Roy Buchanan in a video and how he met Roy for the first time and was amazed at how good he was and the tricks and volume swells he did and here he is doing volume swells 40 yrs later still clearly influenced by Roy as the rest of us are. But Robbie is the man and a great player and song writer
That's crap. If you watch them, they all take the lead from him. That's a band!
I dislike Robbie as a person, but he’s a world class player. That cannot be denied
Clapton was doing his stock Freddie King imitation, lost his strap, at which point RR stepped in and ate him alive.
Love the guitar and loved the Band especially Robbie. What a loss. May he "Rest in Peace". His playing will live on forever. He's still playing looking down on us.
My wife and I were dating when this movie came out and we watched it at a drive in theater. That guitar caught my attention that night...and, of course, Robbie's playing. His playing is often so understated; minimal. I can listen to Robbie all day long...such an extraordinary person, musician, and storyteller. R.I.P.
can anyone explain why Neil Diamond was in the last waltz concert???what was his connection to The band???
@@whoarethebrainpigs Robbie had produced his last album, and they became friends. Robbie liked all kinds of music, Neil Diamond was in the Tin Pan Alley group.
How amazing would it have been if he opened the case and was like "Man, what a piece of shit."
THAT made me laugh out loud!
Hahahhaha💀🔥
RIP Mr. Robertson your playing,songs and legacy will forever inspire. Thank you for your fantastic contributions to music.
Hands down one of the most beautiful kustomized Strats ever!
Total musical talent miss you Robbie Robertson RIP God Bless
Robbie has forgotten more life experiences than most of us will ever have.
He sniffed a lotta Thompson shit.
So is this Robbie being reunited with the guitar that he hasn't played in years and years or is it him becoming acquainted with the limited edition replica of his old guitar ?
So true. Here he has clearly forgotten how to play the electric guitar at all.
It's great that Fender documents artists and their guitars for now and for future generations.
5:15 "I would never want this guitar and I gotta have it"
I feel the same about it too
That Fender Sound is the story of my life .
Rest in peace, Robbie Robertson
Goodbye RR...you reached me at age 24 and 30 yrs later I see how your music took me to my next phase in life as i no longer was listening to kids stuff but real music.
Fascinating video by Fender depicting The Robbie Robertson "Last Waltz" Stratocaster - Fender and Robbie made some wonderful history together!
This last waltz strat blew me away when I first saw The Last Waltz in the cinema in 1977. The most beautiful electric guitar ever!
Not as nice as a classic Les Paul
It's a beauty and iconic! It's amazing how an instrument can be as inspirational as the guitarist.
Robbie has the most amazing speaking voice.
lol love how he just slammed it on the table
Seriously, is this Fender's best people? Even soldering to the pots without any protection on the finish or pickguard of the guitar? No wonder the custom shop stuff isn't what it used to be.
To pro's guitars aren't precious. They're merely tools. Hammers to express themselves. We're all dead soon anyway. Use it. Enjoy it.
@@davidcarter1917 Exactly, when I saw that soldering process my jaw dropped.I was an electronic tech for Air Force and DoD for 30 years. Did a lot of soldering, ya gotta worry about the electronic components still connected to area that 100W iron is touching. I dug my foxhole before commenting so fire away critics.
@@scottnathanphoto It was cloudy in Los Angeles.
The thing is encased in bronze, it'll be OK. Besides, that's nothing to what that very guitar experienced on tour I'm sure. If the fuckin shattered when he did that then it wouldn't be a very well made guitar now would it.
Robbie Robertson has something of the same kind of thing that players like Neil Young and Keith Richards have in their playing. There's a rough, primal feel to it, and not a speck of guitar store wankery to be found. But it's magic in a track. Ask a pro how rare a quality that is.
I sort of agree, basically they have the 'feel' of the early (or even late) blues guitarists. Not sure whether thats something that can be taught, but its weird, considering we're talking about two canadians and a brit. But they say Peter Green gave BB king the chills, if you can't trust BB King, who can you?
His entire story is wankery. Reinventing the guitar?? I mean it’s worse than fret wanking.
Hes quite the humble guy. He always thought of himself of the least talented in the group really.
Mike Archibald Didn’t Peter Green have a Les Paul that had a unique sound because of one of the coils having a peculiar winding . It was one of those manufacturing flaws that turned out to be a strength in what it created .
sassulusmagnus I mentioned that in a post when I talked about Trex’s Marc Bolan . I asked if I was delusional or is Marc an unjustly underrated Guitarist like Neil Young and John Fogerty . Guy wrote back and said he definitely fits in the same class like Neil Young etc. simple and rough around the edges but what comes out is pure magic . I interpret the rough around the edges comment is that that Guitarists in that class aren’t going to spend hours studying music theory and practicing their modes , pentatonics etc. to machine calibrated precision . They learn , go with what they like reach into their Soul . Of course they all have to have sensitivity to tone .
The Last Waltz is the greatest live band movie ever. The Band along with all the guests that Thanksgiving was truly amazing. That was one special night. Those of you criticizing Robbie’s playing I ask you to go watch the Last Waltz and you will see one of the great guitar players play. The Band used to be Bob Dylan’s back up band in the 60’s. I grew up in the Valley and I believe Norm’s guitar shop was on Tampa Avenue back in the 70’s. I would love to have that guitar.
I agree with you - his playing on The Last Waltz is wonderful - he certainly gave Clapton a run for his money when they played Further On Down The Road
Would love to sit down with RR if I ever make it as the tones and feel he has are so authentic and amazing. That guitar is a beauty and of great historical importance. I hope if it's ever sold it still gets played.
Jack Ladd I'd love to sit down and ask him to his face whats it like to be such a scheister shithead
@@loganwhite9814 you need to sit down in a corner somewhere
According to a book I read, Robbie gave the guitar to the RnR Hall of Fame. I live in Cleveland and I've only been there once and I didn't get a chance to look for it. Now I have a mission.
I certainly hope that Robbie Robertson’s family kept the original version of his 1954 Strat, because that guitar was used on probably the greatest concert ever.
5:00 "[the weight] of it"
Talented songwriter, Fender Master Builders always do excellent work.
Now I want to learn about Danko's bass.
Oh yes! All of them! The fretless Ampeg bass, the Fender Jazz bass and the Gibson Ripper
Robertson mentions in this video how he first found the guitar and it was red. Didn't like the colour, but loved the feel. Somewhere else, Robertson is on video saying how dipping the guitar in bronze made it really heavy, to the point where during "The Last Waltz" concert he had to change guitars...
Yep, if you go watch the Last Waltz performance with Joni Mitchell, Eric Clapton or Neil Young for example, you can see that he has a 50s Strat in normal sunburst finish but with the same pickup arrangement as the bronze Strat
@@oskarileikos The Clapton guitar duel, he's still on the Bronze strat. Later on in the concert he did switch.
@@Ignats75 Nope, check the video on youtube. It's clearly a sunburst Strat with a white pickguard, not the bronze Strat with a black pickguard.
@@oskarileikos you’re right. I watched The Last Waltz Saturday. He had already switched to the sunburst guitar.
Robertson had to switch guitars mid concert because one of strings snapped on the bronze strat. Another funny thing is that he plays a les Paul on Acadian Driftwood but it wasn’t featured on the concert film
I'm here because I guess some of you haven't heard,ROBBIE ROBERTSON has passed away at age 80.He has officially joined RICK DANKO,LEVON HELM,and RICHARD MANUEL.I will miss him terribly he was such a great storyteller as well as a magnificent songwriter and guitarist.now GARTH HUDSON is the last man standing,R.I.P ROBBIE.
As others have said, the Frankenstrat is the epitome of an iconic mod. Wild inspiration and thinking out of the box that broke so many traditional mindsets about what was acceptable.
Robbie your my hero buddy!! Peace brother Nia wen kowa!
He got the idea of volume swells from the late great, Roy Buchanan.
Ismael Flores yep! They played together for a time with Ronnie Hawkins.
I'll stick with my volume pedal.
And squeezed harmonics!
Werner Voss Roy was beyond great
Volume swells are sick!!!
Thank you for all you gave us during you’re lifetime. Hopefully you’re ripping it up in heaven !
I would say dipping your guitar in copper ranks up there with the most iconic modification! Loved Last Waltz special!
I am using someone elses computer to write this comment my name ia John Carruthers and I was the one who put the original guitar together. We had the body electroplated, the same process as bronzing baby shoes. I built the original pickguard. It was a bear to wire because the bronze plating caused the pickups to short out. The guitar was very heavy because of the plating. I also worked on Rick Dankos Ampeg bass, I installed a Fender P Bass pickup in place of the stock one.
I traded that original 54 Stratocaster to Norman Harris for a dot ES335 about 1973. The original red paint job was laid on by Wayne Felky in Sacramento. Anyway Robbie had it customized to his specifications.
you saying you owned the original Robbie played
Yes.
why not? Somebody owned it before Robertson.....cool story, Dan..
I gave jimi hendrix herpes
old meme gold meme - Looked at yr youtube profile and there's nothing there. Just because you've got nothing doesn't mean everyone's the same.
I am not a strat guy..but that thing is beautiful. It is amazing how much of a change it makes to the look of a strat when you change the pickup configuration and pickguard.
The beauty of the bronze is that he and Scorsese could cut a rail of blow on the back of it
ha ha good one. Kendall Clukey what a great name where dya dig that up ?
"cut a rail of blow" Hahahaaaa! Man, I have not heard that expression since the late seventies!
hihi
If only I could afford one! Truly missed!... RR. RIP.
my favorite rock artist of all time....
It definitely has a unique sound.
To me, this is the most beautiful Strat I've ever seen...! Need to get one of this...:)
I always wondered about that guitar from the first time I watched the concert, I was like "when did fender put out that finish?"..and It seems obvious they didn't...and the pickup configuration had me kinda stumped too, very cool guitar fer sure...
I dig Robbie's rhythm playing on the Weight . Robbie defines great Americana.
Awe cool.... He mentions Normans rare guitars! I love there channel!
I bought a squier contemporary strat with a similar configuration. 3 single coils but, the bridge and middle are together and in series like a humbucker. Such a unique sound imo.
Norms Rare Guitars represent!
Did not know the start had been dipped in bronze...I remember having to move back to my mums for a few months,roundabouts when LW was released on dvd..
I drove my belated Mother round the bend the amount of times I watched the Last Waltz,,,within the 1st week she couldn’t stop singing the Night they drove ol Dixie down...🖤
Guitar Fender! Number One👏😱👍
As a guitar player , and a Band freak this is beautiful.
✌💀👍🎸🎼🎵🎶🇺🇸🇨🇦🌹❤
Proof once again that the best Stratocasters are partscasters. (Clapton, Gilmour, Robertson, Stevie Ray Vaughan, etc.)
Rock In Paradise, Sir. 🙏
easily one of my favorite stats. so individual and personal yet so fender! love it
Sometimes I have my faith restored in humanity by a comment section. And then there's this comment section.
Jealous peasants
El Sin Un Nombre this is one of the worst I’ve seen. Full of assholes
El Sin Un Nombre If you could actually play or had an ear for tone, instead of dead nostalgia, you would probably understand this comment section.
El Sin Un Nombre The dude's fucking volume swells and the shit he attempts to play, sounds like a kid who just picked up the guitar for the first time and realized what a volume knob does. Come on. Fuck nostalgia.
Are you really that ignorant? He's just walked in off the street for this promo video and mucked around for a couple minutes. It's not like it's a rehearsed live set or anything serious. He's not trying to shred a solo to impress you or anyone else.
Love you Robbie! Sounds great!
RIP Robbie. One of the all-time greats.
I'm always interested in unique pickup and control setups. The S1 switching in my strat is pretty good for a wide variety of options that can be accessed quickly.
Probably the most underrated guitarist ever
I was thinking most over-rated.
Rolling Stone put him at 59 out of a 100.@@richsackett3423
nice shoutout to Norm
I was there thanksgiving 1976. Actually very close to the 40th anniversary of that date. It is to me one of the most important guitars of rock and roll. Two pickups one turned around. Similar to p bass pickup but more output. It’s a chimyer sound. The wear is under the finish.
His solo on “ Further on up the Road” in The Last Waltz film was brilliant regardless of his history from yesterday and today. He had passion and tone blazing out of that guitar. I wish he would of explored that part of playing in his solo career.
Didn't he play a brown sunburst on that song. II wonder what songs he used the bronzed guitar for during Last Waltz.
@@williammcdonough2291 NO, he played his bronze strat. But as the night wore on, the extra 10 lbs that the guitar weighed started to wear him out so he switched to a (ironically) red strat without the extra weight.
I was wrong. He started the concert with his bronze Strat, but by the time Clapton played, he had switched to his regular sunburst because the Bronze one was 10 lbs heavier. the confusion was that I forgot that the songs in the movie weren't in chronological order.
@@Ignats75 He broke a string and switched to the sunburst. The bronze one is not 10 pounds heavier than any other Strat.
@@jamesfetherston1190 He said himself that it was too heavy. That's real bronze metal, not just paint.
RIP, Robbie!!
Great to see this ! I noticed that in the last Waltz film Robbie also played a sunburst strat with the middle pickup moved to beside the bridge pickup. On the track with Clapton
He gave that one to Scorsese.
Look closer. That's not a sunburst. That's the lights shining off of the bronze.
If u look even closer u recognize the white pickguard with the same pickup configuration as the bronze one. Two different guitars. I think that sunburst was his backup guitar: m.th-cam.com/video/91Eg95vF72k/w-d-xo.html&pp=ygUcVGhlIGxhc3Qgd2FseiBzdW5idXJzdCBzdHJhdA%3D%3D
Fender Pro Sweepstakes!! Moving the pickups back was a pretty iconic move on the Fender.
I could listen to him jam on that thing all day man
CammojoDragon97 I would've loved to hear him jam on it.
Always love the vintage tuners, so simple but so classy. The only thing that looks better is the white pearl gold, but even then only on certain colors.
I enjoyed this ! :)
For me the most iconic modification is George Harrison's rosewood Telecaster, after seeing that on the rooftop concert I have dreamed of having one.
Always remember that story of George's Les Paul being stolen back in the 70's
The Man is responsible for some of the most instantly recognizable guitar work in history, but no; the youtube comments section pisses on him as being 'mediocre' and 'overrated'. Sure. You think he's an asshole? - Cool. Don't buy the guitar in protest. To belittle his work is childish.
Personally, I think this is the first artist copy Strat since Eric Clapton's to be worth the investment - it's not just another Stratocaster in the form of every other Stratocaster.
He is a rather mediocre guitarist, but that's beyond the point. I still greatly appreciated a lot of music he has made - but I'm not blind to the fact that he isn't a great guitarist.
There are different opinions about that. Some say his style is never too much or too little. I don't think Dylan would have hired him were he just mediocre.@@johnyeremian2899
Dipped in molten bronze? I'd like to see how it was done, one would think the metal would have a hard time adhering to the flaming wood.
Its not molten Bronze.. its either Electroplated the way Chrome and Nickel is plated on Car Bumpers etc or painted with Bronze laden paint.
Sam
Sam Iam not painted, it was dipped
Good thing they didn't get the order confused and dip robbie into the vat of molten bronze!
Flaming Robbie...No bueno!
Everything time they talk about it they say "dipped in bronze" like it's completely normal and I get totally confused with molten metal in my mind.
RIP
big fan of The Band and RRs guitar playing style.
I speed read the title as Robbie rotten
Andy Ake now look at this fret
This fuckhead gets as much respect from me as Al Franken. Wait, has anyone actually seen a photo of them together? Al Franken looking and liking it.
Andy Ake That guitar would have been number one!
The Band is one of the greatest Rock band in history show some respect plz uncommon sense
David Allen yeah but come on, we can still take the piss out of his name
So cool they are finally making this.
nahh I'm not the kind of guy who plays a red guitar
*paint it in bronze*
Great video. RIP Robbie.
Ah yes...lets all judge Robbies lifetime career as a guitarist on a few seconds of footage. Jeez wake up people. Plenty of back catalogue there to choose from. He's not out there prove his chops to anyone and he's not self conscious about his playing, something which most of you are.
MartialDriscoll he stole all the publishing rights to the last waltz and fucked over the band, literally. Fuck this asshole
@@loganwhite9814 useless comment
@@loganwhite9814 you do understand Levon’s book doesn’t even really dispute that Robbie wrote almost all the songs right? He may have been a jerk but we don’t know that. Hard to make judgements when you are talking about a group with several heroin addicts…
I read Robbie's book, I read Barney Hoskyns biograhy of The Band, and Joe Forno's book that is mostly about Levon from 1986 to 1994. None of them were perfect, what I gathered is that although Robbie did drugs, but not heroin, he was probably more ambitious than the other guys, he also had a wife and small children that kept him more grounded. Levon is the only one who really bashed Robbie, and he did it years later, after he had spend his money on expensive hotels, and building a new house after his old one burned down. He got insurance money, but he wanted something elaborate like a man made lake, other stuff. Levon's motto was "don't let your bank account dictate your lifestyle", even his own father scolded him for how he handled money. But it is all Robbie's fault. I think not.@@IronGolem2009
Robbie could've made a fortune in voice-overs with that voice anyhow.
I'm convinced the most iconic guitar mod is David Gilmour's black strat. Legendary.
This qualifies as the most iconic modification that I've seen. Wow.
He looks and sounds like he's from Biddilyboing, Odo, Idaho. Isnt it pretty. What a guy.
He's actually a Canadian Indian--Mohawk if I recall correctly. And he must be getting into his late 70s. How will you look at that age?
Robbie's mother was Mohawk Cayuga, Robbie was born in and grew up in Toronto. His real father was Jewish, he died before Robbie was born, his stepfather was very physically abusive to both Robbie and his mother. When Robbie was young he was indcriedible good looking and full of charm.@@ToddSauve
Greatest concert movie ever !!
the big guy looked bored shitless listening to Robbie !
Edward Galloway Haha! He could of told us a lot about the actual making of the guitar. The specs and stuff. Instead we have to listen to Robbie babble on..
Robbie is pretty dull. I have frankly never understood people's enthusiasm for The Band. It may be because they were before my time but to me they were just a fairly white bland blues band.
BadgerVito Robbie is pretty dull until he starts playing. Have u even bothered to listen to anything apart from the band stuff. the man is a premier league player.
I love all the black music , and I hate guitar blues music.
And I think the Band was great, because they did black things in a white way.
Lyqwld Andylsonz u love all black music but hate guitar blues music. WTF. U win the most contradictory and dumbest comment on any TH-cam comment section anywhere. I’m sorry if u are only 10 but that is just plain dumb dumb dumb dumb
Robbie's Last Waltz strat is, to me, the most iconic modified strat ever. I was always fixated on the pickup config., i thought it was some humbucking custom mod, but from watching this its interesting to finally get an answer to that. #FenderProSweepstakes
First time bob Dylan hasn't been mentioned around this guy lol
The rest of the Band called Robbie "The Barnacle" because he clung himself so close to Dylan's coatsleeves.
Dylan and Robbie were close buddies in the early days Robbie was best man at his wedding.
6:37 Oh! that's an eye popper of a strat! Incredible looking.
It's the same guitar the entire video???
Yeah but you get a really nice shot of it at 6:37 mate and with the amp there as well, a nice tweed in the background.
By the way.. just a quick follow up, I did check with my friend and he said that Robbie did grab all the publishing rights and left the rest penniless.
If only Robbie had a quarter of the talent of Levon. Lord knows he got away with most of the money.
So then , where are the classic songs Levon wrote with his amazing talent? Instead we have bunch of great and timeless songs written by Robbie Robertson. Levon, Rick and Richard were fantastic singers and The Band was a great unit together but Robbie's writing made The Band stand out from the rest. When Levon wrote his biography he was obviously bitter but also spread a lot of lies in it, blaming Robertson for everything. Lame.
You mean all the other guys that are dead don't get any of the money?
There’s a great book about the town of Woodstock that came out a few years ago, with a lot of stuff about the Band from people who knew them well back in the day. The general consensus was that Levon, Richard and Rick generally just partied the 70’s away, while Robbie was the workhorse who would actually spend the time and energy to write, plan albums and tours, and take care of business- all the stuff that’s actual work and not just having fun. I used to buy into Levon’s take that Robbie was greedy and ripped them off, but I think the bottom line is that in general he simply worked harder and partied less, had the more stable relationship and home life, and yeah- he actually wrote all the songs. Doesn’t matter if he got the inspiration from Levon, it’s what he did with it. And that’s the way the biz was set up- the songwriter got the bigger share. Same with Townshend vs the other Who members. Sorry for Levon. He was great, but if he didn’t like the financial setup he should have picked up a pen and written timeless classics like Robbie did. Or maybe he couldn’t?
If you watch the Last Waltz there is the Bronze Strat with the dual pickups in the rear. There also is a sunburst Strat with the dual pickups in the rear. Robbie is playing it on Further on up the Road. Dueling with Clapton.
Wonder if he used this when he overdubbed all the guitar parts.
Thanks for the history lesson sir.
They should dip his wig in bronze and put it in the case.
adam imberti 😂😂😂😂
Dead. 😂😂😂😂😂😂
I don't think it's a wig. Native Americans(erm, Canadians)never go bald man.
its his hair man
adam imberti 😂😂😂
That is a beautiful strat.
Dude says guitar is special... slams it on the bench
I love Robbie so much
There is an awful lot of BS in the custom shop guitar business, an awful lot.
You've peaked my curiosity. tell me more.
This wood sound warmer than this wood, this neck is the same radius as the "legendary" '62 ergo you'll sound like hendrix, blah blah bloody blah. If you can play guitar well, a piece of shit with one string will sing like a Greek Siren , but if you cant play to save your life then a '59 Les Paul through a Mark V boogie wont help you.
I agree with you. I gig every weekend playing modded Squier's, Boss pedals and a Peavey amp and it sounds fine to me. Nobody's come up to me at a gig and complained about my guitar sound. Had more expensive guitars which I enjoyed but I learned a long time ago that it isn't the gear it's the player and that's saved me wasting a lot of money chasing tone. Are you Paul Torrisi from the Apprentice btw ? :)
@@bigtorrisi Its true. So much jargons and this and that when they recreate a guitar., Special wound pickups to recreated this and that sounds.. blah blah.. Sounds like an Apple Keynote event at times that borders to absolute cringe. Custom Shop has their history cemented, but i would not give two shits about a Fender Custom shop. Considering the prices and that they have fallen totally down the relic rabbit hole of late. Maybe good guitars, but a standard USA Strat does it for me.
wow making robbie smile good job.
Craig Usselman I bet all that money from the last waltz he stole from everyone else in the band makes him smile more. Though the piece of shit definitely regrets the way he treated them, since everyone from the band openly hates him, still didn't regret it enough to pay them their money or cut them in on rights! Fuck this asshole
Looks like Robbie is wearing a hair pc.
i'm digging that bridge pickup