The Last Waltz (1978)

Martin Scorsese: Self - Interviewer

Photos 

Quotes 

• Levon Helm - Drums : [Talking about the region around Memphis, Tennessee where Levon grew up]  That's kind of the middle of the country, you know. back there. So, when bluegrass or country music, you know, if it comes down to that area and if it mixes there with rhythm and dances, then you've got a combination of all those different kinds of music. Country. Bluegrass. Blues music.

  Martin Scorsese - Interviewer : The melting pot.

  Levon Helm - Drums : Show music.

  Martin Scorsese - Interviewer : What's it called then?

  Levon Helm - Drums : Rock-n-Roll.

  Martin Scorsese - Interviewer : Rock-n-Roll, yes, for sure, exactly.

• Robbie Robertson - Guitar : We wanted it to be more than just a concert. We wanted it to be a celebration.

  Martin Scorsese - Interviewer : A celebration of a beginning or an end?

  Robbie Robertson - Guitar : Beginning of the beginning of the end of the beginning.

• Martin Scorsese - Interviewer : Listen, when you guys first started playing as The Band, you kind of shied away from publicity a lot. Talk about that, a little?

  Garth Hudson - Organ : That was just part of a life style that we got to love at Woodstock. You know, we got to like it, you know, just being, eh, being able to chop wood or hit your thumb with a hammer. We'd be concerned with fixin' a tape recorder and fixin' a screen door, you know, and stuff like that and getting the songs together.

  Rick Danko - Bass : We always seemed to get a whole lot more done when we didn't have a lot of company around, you know, just, eh, we were more productive. And as soon as company came, of course, you know, we'd start having fun. And you know what happens when you have too much fun.

• Martin Scorsese - Interviewer : [First lines]  Okay, Rick, what's the game?

  Rick Danko - Bass : [At at pool table]  Cut throat.

  Martin Scorsese - Interviewer : What's the object?

  Rick Danko - Bass : Object is to keep your balls on the table and knock everybody else's off.

• Robbie Robertson - Guitar : [Last lines]  The road was our school. At the end it was our sense of survival. It taught us all we know. There's not much left that we can really take from the road. We've had our share of, or, maybe it's just superstitious.

  Martin Scorsese - Interviewer : Superstitious in what way?

  Robbie Robertson - Guitar : No. You can press your luck. The road has taken a lot of great ones. Hank Williams. Buddy Holly. Otis Redding. Janis. Jimi Hendrix. Elvis. Its a goddamn impossible way of life.

  Martin Scorsese - Interviewer : It is, isn't it.

  Robbie Robertson - Guitar : No question about it.

• Martin Scorsese - Interviewer : Now that The Last Waltz is over, what are you doing now, Rick?

  Rick Danko - Bass : Eh, making records. Just makin' music, you know. Trying to stay busy.