The Band: S/T and/or Music from the Big Pink

Interesting stuff indeed. I ordered the MFSL Big Pink today. Will soon compare it to my early pressing of Big Pink. I believe mine is a second run, since it's NOT the rainbow Capitol. As I mentioned above, it's a shade of purple to me.

Absolutely. Over-playing was rampant in '69 (actually, it still is)---I have no doubt that's the first thing Clapton heard, the economy and taste with which all members of The Band played, the opposite of Cream (Jack Bruce and Ginger Baker may have had talent, but economy and taste were not in their vocabularies).

And then there are the songs. Bands like Cream used the "song" merely as a platform from which to take off, to display their virtuosity. The Band (and other "good" musicians of that and every era) play in a musical style, their parts created and designed to make the song sound better, not make themselves sound better. That ability is required and expected of studio musicians, but is very rare in Rock Bands.

Last, but certainly not least, is the singing. Three unique singers, all with very different voices, whose parts circle each other, weaving in and out, rather than blending into two and three part chords. Totally unlike any other Group I've ever heard. God I love The Band!

FWIW, and I'm sure my opinion isn't worth that much.. I bought my first copy of "The Band" (the RL mastered, green label Capitol) around a year ago at a record show. It was not the best copy, far away from a 1A, but was a purchase in order to make an ultimate conclusion later on. I recently received my MFSL version. If you're like me and want to have a very good copy but are unwilling to pay top dollar for the best, get the MOFI. For $30.00, it's really a no brainer compared to anywhere close to what I'd perceive a 1A copy to be, (which I heard at an a MF event around a year ago.)