Across the Great Divide (album)

Infobox Album
Name = Across the Great Divide
Type = Compilation album
Longtype =
Artist = The Band


Released = November 15, 1994
Recorded = January 1963 - January 1986
Genre = Rock
Length = 131:57
Label = Capitol
Producer = John Simon and The Band
Reviews = *Allmusic Rating|3.5|5 [http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:0ifoxqyhldde link]
Last album = Jericho
(1993)
This album = Across the Great Divide
(1994)
Next album = Live at Watkins Glen
(1995)

"Across The Great Divide" was the name of a November 1994 box set that attempted to paint a portrait of Canadian-American rockers The Band.

A three-disc affair, its first two discs were condensed versions of the group's albums à la 1989's "To Kingdom Come", except for the fact they possessed no rarities. The selections chosen were a bit predictable- seven tracks from their first album and eight from their second, four each from their third and fourth, five from their 1972 live effort, only two from their sixth album and three each from their 1975 and 1977 albums. Obviously, the belief was that the group did their best work in their early days, as later albums feature fewer tracks. The songs chosen tend to be those which were most well-known, though such notable tracks as "Georgia On My Mind", "4% Pantomime", "Sleeping", "Ain't Got No Home" and "(I Don't Want To) Hang Up My Rock and Roll Shoes" were missing. One source of controversy was the inclusion of "The Moon Struck One", one of the most critically-panned songs the original group ever put on tape.

The third disc carried the rarities, many live recordings among them. The first few tracks were taken from their days before being signed to Capitol Records. Beginning with a version of Bo Diddley's "Who Do You Love", recorded with Ronnie Hawkins on lead vocals and Roy Buchanan on bass, and going into two tracks recorded as Levon and the Hawks, it also featured one track from their Woodstock performance, one from a concert in St. Louis, a 1967 demo, two tracks from "The Basement Tapes", and five tracks supposedly from their 1973 set at the legendary Summer Jam at Watkins Glen festival (see "Live at Watkins Glen" for details.) A solo Richard Manuel performance ("She Knows", from January 1986) and their non-LP single "Twilight" were also present. Rounding out the disc were five of six tracks taken from "The Last Waltz Suite", licensed from Warner Bros. Records.

The box set has fallen out-of-print, and will most likely remain so. A five-CD/one-DVD box set was released in September 2005, and a massive anthology of their pre-Capitol days was released in 2006.

Track listing

Disc one

# Tears of Rage (B. Dylan and R. Manuel, 5:19)
# The Weight (R. Robertson, 4:35)
# I Shall Be Released (B. Dylan, 3:12)
# Chest Fever (R. Robertson, 5:13)
# In a Station (R. Manuel, 3:30)
# To Kingdom Come (R. Robertson, 3:19)
# Lonesome Suzie (R. Manuel, 4:01)
# Rag Mama Rag (R. Robertson, 3:03)
# The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down (R. Robertson, 3:31)
# King Harvest (Has Surely Come) (R. Robertson, 3:38)
# Rockin' Chair (R. Robertson, 3:39)
# Whispering Pines (R. Manuel and R. Robertson, 3:56)
# Up On Cripple Creek (R. Robertson, 4:31)
# Across the Great Divide (R. Robertson, 2:54)
# The Unfaithful Servant (R. Robertson, 4:16)
# The Shape I'm In (R. Robertson, 4:01)
# Daniel & The Sacred Harp (R. Robertson, 4:13)
# All La Glory (R. Robertson, 3:34)
# Stage Fright (R. Robertson, 3:44)

Disc two

# When I Paint My Masterpiece (B. Dylan, 4:18)
# The Moon Struck One (R. Robertson, 4:08)
# Life Is a Carnival (R. Danko, L. Helm and R. Robertson, 3:57)
# The River Hymn (R. Robertson, 4:37)
# Don't Do It (B. Holland, L. Dozier and E. Holland, 4:42)
# Caledonia Mission (R. Robertson, 3:21)
# The W. S. Walcott Medicine Show (R. Robertson, 3:52)
# Get Up, Jake (R. Robertson, 3:16)
# This Wheel's on Fire (R. Danko and B. Dylan, 3:54)
# Share Your Love with Me (A. Briggs and D. Malone, 2:54)
# Mystery Train (H. Parker, Jr. and S. Phillips, additional lyrics by R. Robertson, 5:40)
# Acadian Driftwood (R. Robertson, 6:40)
# Ophelia (R. Robertson, 3:29)
# It Makes No Difference (R. Robertson, 6:32)
# Livin' in a Dream (R. Robertson, 2:50)
# The Saga of Pepote Rouge (R. Robertson, 4:13)
# Right as Rain (R. Robertson, 3:54)

Disc Three

# Who Do You Love (E. McDaniel, 2:40)
# Do the Honky Tonk (D. Robey, 2:58)
# He Don't Love You (R. Robertson, 2:36)
# Katie's Been Gone (R. Manuel and R. Robertson, 2:46)
# Bessie Smith (R. Danko and R. Robertson, 4:18)
# Orange Juice Blues (Blues for Breakfast) (R. Manuel, 3:18)
# Ain't No Cane on the Brazos (Traditional, arr. The Band, 4:26)
# Slippin' & Slidin' (R. Penniman, 3:13)
# Twilight (R. Robertson, 3:15)
# Back to Memphis (C. Berry, 5:58)
# Too Wet to Work (G. Hudson, 2:30)
# Loving You Is Sweeter Than Ever (I. J. Hunter and S. Wonder, 3:25)
# Don't Ya Tell Henry (B. Dylan, 3:23)
# Endless Highway (R. Robertson, 5:09)
# She Knows (J. Griffin and R. Royer, 3:22)
# Evangeline (R. Robertson, 3:11)
# Out of the Blue (R. Robertson, 3:11)
# The Weight (R. Robertson, 4:35)
# Last Waltz Refrain (R. Robertson, 1:31)
# Theme from the Last Waltz (R. Robertson, 3:26)

Group members and other participants

Producers

*The Band - producers (disc one, tracks 16-19, disc two, tracks 1-17 and disc three tracks 2, 4-5, 8-14)
*John Simon - producer (disc one, tracks 1-15)
*Robbie Robertson - producer (disc three, tracks 16-20)
*Henry Glover - producer (disc three, track 1)
*Eddie Heller - producer (disc three, track 3)
*Albert Grossman - producer (disc three, track 6)
*Eric Blackstead - producer (disc three, track 7)
*Garth Hudson - producer (disc three, track 15)
*See individual albums for engineering credits.

Band members

*Rick Danko - bass, rhythm guitar, fiddle, trombone, vocals
*Levon Helm - drums, mandolin, rhythm guitar, bass, percussion, vocals
*Garth Hudson - organ, piano, synthesizers, clavinet, accordion, wind instruments
*Richard Manuel - piano, organ, drums, clavinet, harmonica, baritone saxophone, dobro, vocals
*Robbie Robertson - guitars, autoharp, vocals

Other participants

*John Simon - electric piano, tuba, baritone horn and tenor saxophone on disc one, tracks 1, 4, 8, 10, 14-15, string arrangements on "Theme From The Last Waltz"
*Allen Toussaint - horn arrangements on "Life Is A Carnival", "Don't Do It", "Caledonia Mission" and "The W. S. Walcott Medicine Show"
*Billy Mundi - drums on "Mystery Train"
*Byron Berline - fiddle on "Acadian Driftwood"
*Ronnie Hawkins - vocals on "Who Do You Love"
*Roy Buchanan - bass on "Who Do You Love"
*Jerry Penfound - tenor saxophone on "Do The Honky Tonk"
*Larry Packer - violin and viola on "She Knows"
*Frank Luther - string bass on "She Knows"
*Jason Myles - harp emulation and programming on "She Knows"
*Emmylou Harris - guitar and vocals on "Evangeline"
*Roebuck "Pops" Staples - guitar and vocals on "The Weight" (disc three)
*Mavis Staples - vocals on "The Weight" (disc three)
*Cleotha and Yvonne Staples - harmony vocals on "The Weight" (disc three)