Music & Culture

Robbie Robertson On His Creative And Symbiotic Relationship With Martin Scorsese

"Joni Mitchell is still the Queen Mother of singer-songwriters," Robbie Robertson says. Mitchell appeared in The Last Waltz, the first of his collaborations with Martin Scorsese.
"Joni Mitchell is still the Queen Mother of singer-songwriters," Robbie Robertson says. Mitchell appeared in The Last Waltz, the first of his collaborations with Martin Scorsese. Don Dixon / Courtesy of the artist

Robbie Robertson is a very busy guy. This year alone, he released a new album, Sinematic, re-released The Band's self-titled sophomore album (celebrating its 50th anniversary) and worked with pal Martin Scorsese on two different projects. He scored The Irishman, starring guys like Robert De Niro, Joe Pesci and Al Pacino and helped with the documentary Once Were Brothers: Robbie Robertson and The Band, which talks about his group's seminal work and the band members' relationships with one another.

In other words, there's a lot to talk about, including getting booed every night backing Bob Dylan's first electric tour. "It was a bit of the ritual," he says. "People came to the concert knowing they were going to boo." We also chat about making music at Big Pink, Neil Diamond showing up for The Last Waltz and oh-so-much more. So let's get into it — listen in the player above.

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