Ronnie Hawkins RIP

Ronnie Hawkins, who has died at the age of 87, was a true giant of rock and roll - as the Monument LP pictured below clearly states. Born in Arkansas, he formed his band The Hawks in 1957, including drummer Levon Helm, but made his name in Canada where new members joined. These included Robbie Robertson, Rick Danko, Richard Manuel and Garth Hudson who, together with Levon Helm, went on to become The Band when they split from Ronnie in 1964. Ronnie's early records on Roulette were rowdy covers of R and B hits such as 'Hey Bo Diddley', 'Forty Days' (a version of Chuck Berrys' 'Thirty Days') and 'Mary Lou' and I particularly liked his wild cover of Bo Diddley's 'Who Do You Love', released in 1963. Other singles included 'Southern Love', 'Clara', 'Down In The Alley' (for Cotillion) and 'Cora Mae' (for Monument). Ronnie settled in Canada and continued to record excellent material, including the 'Ronnie Hawkins' LP (pictured above), which was recorded at Muscle Shoals. Ronnie discovered guitarist Pat Travers in the early seventies and was cast as Bob Dylan in Dylan's film 'Renaldo and Clara'. He took part in The Band's farewell concert - 'The Last Waltz' - which was recorded on film and record. He celebrated his 6oth birthday in 1995 with a show in Toronto with Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins and the Band which was documented as 'Let It Rock'. Rockin' Ronnie was one of the greats of rock and roll and it's sad that he has passed on. RIP.