Join The JWF and your favorite Portland musicians this month at The Next Waltz, celebrating the Golden Anniversary of the Last Waltz.
The Next Waltz Finale, 2025
Photo by Norm Eder
Get your tickets to The Next Waltz 2026 here.
By Claire Levine
The movie documenting The Band’s 1976 Last Waltz has been called the best rock concert film ever made.
And the show itself will go down in history as a phenomenal farewell to an amazing band as well as a joyous celebration of the musical and cultural trends of the 1970s.
The event, like the hosting band, was indescribable.The best way to understand what we’re celebrating is to watch the Martin Scorsese film, then come to the Alberta Rose to hear your favorite contemporary musicians interpret this iconic event in the annual Next Waltz: Nov. 20, 21, 28 and 29th.
The Next Waltz 2025
Photo by Norm Eder
The Band.
After years of backing others, The Band emerged as its own entity in 1968, with its first album Music from the Big Pink.
And the album and the band were stunning. The music was beyond categorization.
The famed music journalist Al Aronowitz (who introduced Bob Dylan to the Beatles), called it “country soul ... a sound never heard before.”
Their songs drew from Levon Helms’ southern roots, their collective years of backing Rockabilly musician Ronnie Hawkins, Garth Hudson’s academic musical knowledge and expertise, and their experience infuriating folk audiences as the backup band in the “Dylan goes electric” period.
They had acoustic and electric guitars. They had horns. They had a mandolin. They had keyboards. They had three of the most powerful voices in rock history. And their songwriting was completely free of commercial constraints.
Every song had a different tempo, a different theme and widely different arrangements. And the dynamic energy and authenticity of their musical senses infused every note.
Very few songs mourn lost loves. Some of the ones about old flames are upbeat and joyful. The bulk of their lyrics covered the range of human and social conditions – working, farming, leaving, staying, coming home, stage fright, Spike Jones, post-Civil War poverty and dozens of fabulously ambiguous topics.
There was just nothing like them. George Harrison cited them as an influence. Eric Clapton wanted to join them.
The Next Waltz 2025
Photo by Norm Eder
The grand finale.
When they got together, Robbie Robertson was only 16, Rick Danko was 17. By the time they had graced the cover of Time Magazine (only the second band after The Beatles to do so), they had been performing, recording and touring together in different configurations for 12 years, and they continued for another six.
It had been both an exciting and tumultuous period. The sixties and seventies were years of great experimentation and fusion of new musical themes and ideas. It was also a time of great experimentation with drugs. And, as with many bands, there were power struggles.
By 1976, Richard Manuel had been in a serious accident. There was friction among the artists. Robertson was tired of touring and wanted to call it quits. At his instigation,The Next Waltz was born.
On Thanksgiving Day, 1976, The Wonderland Ballroom fed turkey dinners to an audience of 5,000. From there came Beat Poetry, a waltz, and three hours of super-high-energy music.
Many songs were from The Band’s seven albums. Others were hits by the best-known musicians of the time: Dylan, Van Morrison, Neil Young, Joni Mitchell, Muddy Waters, Dr. John and so many more.
Again, there’s simply no adequate way to describe the event or its impact. It was joyous and exuberant. And filled with great music.
The Next Waltz 2025
Photo by Norm Eder
Join us.
If you’re reading this, you probably know about The JWF. You may know someone who received help managing bills during an illness or who got invaluable guidance through the Byzantine world of health care from the organization’s navigation professionals.
And you probably also know that in 2027, cutbacks will present even more challenges to people in the musical community needing medical care.
So, there’s never been a better year than this one to come out to have an exceptional time – for an exceptional cause. A portion of your ticket price – and all of your additional contributions – will support The JWF’s work.
We hope to see you on Nov. 20, 21, 28 or 29 at The Alberta Rose Theater to celebrate the 50th anniversary of The Last Waltz.
The Next Waltz 2025
Photo by Norm Eder
