“The Rumour” by The Band
Woodstock is a sparsely-populated, inconspicuous part of New York that is best known for having hosted a musical festival named in its honor in 1969 (which wasn’t actually held in Woodstock, but still). Apparently though, what made Woodstock stand out in that regard in that first place is that a number of top musicians of the late-1960s era, most notably Bob Dylan, spent some quality time there. And that list of musicians includes The Band, who were regular Dylan collaborators.
So reportedly, it is upon their Woodstock experiences that they based “The Rumor”.
At the time this song came out, the population of Woodstock was only around 6,000 people. Anyone who has actually lived in such a setting would probably attest to the fact that where there’s so few individuals in a locality, news – or in this case rumors – tend to spread pretty fast. This is a reality which the vocalist is lamenting for a couple of reasons.
The Reasons
First is that sometimes a rumor, particularly a negative one, may prove untrue. However, lack of validity would not prevent many people from spreading it anyway. So it’s like a person can develop a bad reputation in the ‘hood, even for something that isn’t true.
And secondly, it is upon such rumors that vigilantes may decide to take the law into their own hands. And on that note, the vocalist is like even if a bad rumor is true, it’s better to just forgive the person than to engage in your own negative act in response.
Also he proceeds to lash out against the abuse of personal privacy, upon which many rumors are based or spread. So it’s easy to presume that The Band would not approve of some of the things we’ve grown used to in the 21st century, such as cancel culture and constantly being under surveillance.
What “The Rumour” is all about
Thus all lyrics considered, “The Rumour” is actually a peace song. And that’s because where the thesis sentiment may revolve around the vocalist’s disdain for gossip, conclusively he is encouraging neighborly love as opposed to hating someone based on bad things that may be said about him or her.
The Band and “The Rumour”
The Band was in fact a rock band that managed to come out with a few hits during the early 1970s. This act actually achieved their most notable success serving as instrumentalists for Bob Dylan, particularly on a couple of albums he dropped during the mid-1970s.
But prior to that, “The Rumor” came out as part of their 1970 LP “Stage Fright”, which was the group’s third album. This particular outing, which reached number 5 on the Billboard 200, also marks The Band’s best performing album chart-wise sans Dylan. And to note, whereas The Band may not be amongst their moment in time, they are known to have been very influential on the industry at large.
At the time of this track’s issuance, The Band consisted of the following:
- bassist Rick Danko (1943-1999)
- drummer Levon Helm (1940-2012)
- organist Garth Hudson
- pianist Richard Manuel (1943-1986)
- guitarist Robbie Robertson
And to note, Danko, Helm and Manuel are all listed as the lead vocalists of “The Rumor”.
The entire Band is credited as the producer of this song, as a unit, with its writer being Robbie Robertson.
The Band’s “Stage Fright” Album
“Stage Fright” was released on August 17 of 1970 by The Band, a Canadian-American rock band. It was released as their third studio album.
The album is responsible for the band’s hit song of the same title, “Stage Fright”.
“Stage Fright” (the album) was recorded at the Woodstock Playhouse studio in New York with the band being credited with its production.
It was released through Universal Music Group’s Capitol Records.
“Stage Fright” landed at No.5 on the Billboard 200 and peaked at No.6 in Canada. It was No.15 in the UK, No.2 in Australia, No.5 in the Netherlands and No.9 in Norway. It became the band’s first album to be certified Gold in the United States.
