Garth Hudson, the last surviving member of the Band, has passed away at 87. According to the Toronto Star, Hudson died peacefully in his sleep at a nursing home in Woodstock. A classically trained pianist and organist, Hudson left his formal music studies behind to pursue a career with bands. In 1961, he became a member of the Hawks, who were backing Ronnie Hawkins at the time, after the other band members agreed to pay him an extra $10 per week for music lessons.
The group parted ways with Hawkins in 1963, eventually joining forces with Bob Dylan during his transition to electric music in 1965, marking the formation of the Band. Although Hudson initially joined as an organist, his role within the group expanded to include playing keyboard, accordion, woodwinds, and brass instruments. He was particularly known for his preference for the fully electronic Lowrey organ, featured prominently in the opening of the 1968 track “Chest Fever,” as opposed to the more commonly used Hammond organ of the era.
On Northern Lights-Southern Cross (1975), his lush saxophone work elevated the poignant ballad “It Makes No Difference.”
Hudson, alongside Rick Danko, was one of the longest-serving members of the Band. Following the group’s dissolution after Danko’s death in 1999, Hudson released a solo album, The Sea to the North, in 2001, and a live album with his wife Maud in 2005. As a session musician, he worked with a range of artists including Elton John, Neko Case, the Sadies, and the Lemonheads.
Hudson’s contributions to music were recognized with numerous honors, including induction into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame in 1989, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994, and a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2008.
