Here’s another worthy addition to my “Mood Indigo” music collection: The Band’s “It Makes No Difference”. You want to talk about a torch song? This is about as good as it gets, a song called by a YouTube commenter as the saddest, most ‘rode hard and put up wet’ song ever written. I’ll talk about the performance in a sec, but check out these lyrics (my boldings):

It makes no difference where I turn
I can’t get over you and the flame still burns
It makes no difference, night or day
The shadow never seems to fade away

And the sun don’t shine anymore
And the rains fall down on my door

Now there’s no love
As true as the love
That dies untold
But the clouds never hung so low before

It makes no difference how far I go
Like a scar the hurt will always show
It makes no difference who I meet
They’re just a face in the crowd on a dead-end street

And the sun don’t shine anymore
And the rains fall down on my door

These old love letters
Well, I just can’t keep
‘Cause like a gambler says
Read ’em and weep and the dawn don’t rescue me no more

Without your love I’m nothing at all
Like an empty hall it’s a lonely fall
Since you’ve gone it’s a losing battle
Stampeding cattle, they rattle the walls

And the sun don’t shine anymore
And the rains fall down on my door

Well, I love you so much
It’s all I can do
Just to keep myself from telling you
That I never felt so alone before

Pretty devastating stuff, huh? I can tell you – anyone who has ever loved, who has ever poured ever fiber of their being into a relationship and had it all gone to sh*t can understand exactly the sentiments of this classic. The link is from Martin Scorcese’s film The Last Waltz, the group’s last concert on November 25, 1976 – to my mind, one of the best rock concert movies ever filmed; it’s right up there with Neil Young’s “Rust Never Sleeps”.

In my view, the live performance far outweighs the studio version both in terms of emotion and quality. Whereas the studio version kinda plods along, Scorcese’s live version crackles with passion and intensity. You can hear it in Rick Danko’s vocals and Robbie Robertson’s lead guitar solo – live, both are just so much better. And just when you think it can’t possibly get any better… Garth Hudson steps up and sends it into the stratosphere with a bluesy sax solo that oozes longing and emotion. Then there’s Robbie again. And then there’s Garth again to close it all out. It’s hard to think how it gets a whole lot better than this. Whaddaya think?

Two more great cuts from the concert film: Evangeline, with Emmylou Harris, and Out Of The Blue, just a hauntingly beautiful love song and Band classic. Love this particular set of lyrics:

Well, it’s in the cards
It’s written in the stars
It’s in the wee-wee hours
In some lonely bar

If she don’t stay up all night
And walk the floor
She knows damn well
I’ll be coming back for more

Wow. I’ve been there. Almost worth a post all by itself.