Levon

* Popularity and Influence of The Band: The official band Facebook page has 491,731 followers. Martin Scorcese’s 1978 documentary “The Last Waltz” about The Band is considered one of the most important and successful music documentaries of all time. The Band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1989. They were given a lifetime Grammy award in 2008.

* Connection to Bob Dylan: Books related to Bob Dylan are always in demand, and a substantial part of the book is devoted to the story of how Dylan recruited Levon and the rest of the Hawks to back him on the road. There are vivid and detailed passages about these years that saw the birth of what would later become The Band.

* The Significant Musical Influence of Levon Helm: A drummer who played mandolin, guitar, and bass, Levon was listed by Rolling Stone magazine as one of the top 100 greatest singers, and has influenced Eric Clapton, Elvis Costello, Elton John, Ringo Starr and George Harrison, all who make an appearance in Sanda B. Tooze’s book. Many of these artists also gave exclusive interviews for this biography.

* First Major Biography of Levon Helm: Sandra B. Tooze spent several years and hundreds of hours interviewing the most important figures in Levon’s life. The book builds on Levon’s autobiography This Wheel’s on Fire, which was published in 1993, offering insights/perspectives absent from his own book.

* Reviews, Foreword, and Blurbs: For author’s previous book on Muddy Waters, she got a foreword by Eric Clapton, blurbs from Mick Jagger and Levon Helm himself, plus outstanding reviews.

* Includes 30 Black-and-White Photographs