Fans of the legendary musician Garth Hudson have shared a video of his final performance and say he "never lost the spark".
The Band's last-surviving member died yesterday (January 21) at the age of 87. Hudson, best-known for his multi-instrumental skills and keyboard work, was called "the greatest organist in rock history" by fans. He had worked with Bob Dylan on his legendary 1974 comeback tour, and also had success releasing studio work with The Band.
But fans are turning to a video of what is believed to be Hudson's final public performance back in 2023. A house concert hosted by musician Sarah Power saw Hudson, then 85, play piano in a video which has since gone viral.
X user @HarryHew wrote: "Garth Hudson's final public performance, in April 2023, at a house concert hosted by musician Sarah Power in Kingston, NY. He never lost the spark."
Fans of The Band thanked the X user for posting the performance, which saw Hudson hammer away on the piano and cover Duke Ellington's Sophisticated Lady. It appears as if Hudson did not forget his other bandmates either, with one user saying they spoke to him at a nursing home he was residing in.
Pictures of fellow members of The Band, including Robbie Robertson, were seen in the room, according to one user. They wrote: "Got to meet him in Lake Katrine last year, spoke to him a bit in the nursing home. I’ll never forget it.
"He told me about Distelfinks, Pennsylvania Dutch good luck charms and how his mom used to make him. His caregiver, Rona, called him Eric. Photos of Richard were everywhere."
Tributes poured in for Hudson after his passing yesterday, with music journalist Steven Hyden saying it was "hard to believe" no members of The Band were alive. He wrote: "RIP Garth Hudson. The greatest organist in rock history? The greatest organist in rock history. Hard to believe that there are no longer any living members of The Band. Gonna go stare into space for a while."
Hudson was a member of The Band, which formed in 1957, and were responsible for hit songs like The Weight, Up On Cripple Creek and The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down. They also feature in The Last Waltz, a Martin Scorsese-directed documentary on their final performance together.
Special guests were frequent at the show billed as The Band's "farewell concert appearance". Legendary musicians appearing at the show to perform with the band included Bob Dylan, Eric Clapton, Van Morrison, Joni Mitchell, Neil Young, The Beatles' Ringo Starr, Neil Diamond, and Ronnie Wood of The Rolling Stones.
Though the performance was filmed, certain artists like Dylan suddenly backed out of being on camera. Reflecting on the performance, Robertson said: "Thank God we got through it."