Music / Studio Albums / Jubilation

Jubilation

Released September 15, 1998, on River North Records, to coincide with the 30th anniversary of Music from Big Pink. Recorded in the spring of 1998 in a converted barn at Levon Helm's Woodstock property. The tenth and final Band studio album. Produced by Aaron Hurwitz. The reunion years are covered more broadly in Reunion Years (1983–1999); this page covers the record itself.

Track listing

Eleven tracks, mostly original, a reversal of the covers-heavy approach of the two previous albums. Confirmed songs include:

• Book Faded Brown, opening track, lead vocal Danko
• High Cotton, lead vocal Danko
• If I Should Fail, lead vocal Danko, the only track to feature all of the touring lineup playing together at once
• Last Train to Memphis, lead vocal Helm, featuring Eric Clapton on slide and rhythm guitar, recorded while Helm was undergoing treatment for the throat cancer that would later take his voice
• White Cadillac, a tribute to the group's original bandleader, Ronnie Hawkins
• Kentucky Downpour
• Don't Wait, written by Helm
• French Girls, a solo instrumental closer written and performed by Garth Hudson, the last piece of music released under the Band's name

The album also features a co-write and guest vocal from John Hiatt, and contributions from Bobby Charles and Allen Toussaint.

Personnel

• Rick Danko: acoustic and electric bass, double bass, acoustic guitar, vocals
• Levon Helm: drums, percussion, harmonica, mandolin, acoustic guitar, vocals
• Garth Hudson: keyboards, organ, accordion, piano, synthesizers, vocoder, saxophones
• Jim Weider: guitar
• Richard Bell: keyboards
• Randy Ciarlante: drums, vocals
• Eric Clapton: guest guitar, "Last Train to Memphis"
• John Hiatt: guest vocal and co-write

This is the only Band studio album with no contribution at all from Richard Manuel, who had died in 1986.

Critical standing

The best-reviewed of the three reunion-era studio albums. The Music Box gave it four out of five stars, praising Helm's vocals and the guest contributions. No Depression called the songwriting more heartfelt than on the previous two records, while noting nothing on it quite matched the impact of Jericho's cover of "Blind Willie McTell."

Notes

By the time of release the group was reportedly already working on a follow-up. It never happened. Rick Danko died in his sleep the following December, ending the group for good, which makes Hudson's closing instrumental, "French Girls," the actual final piece of music the Band ever released.