robbie robertson wrote the day they drove old dixie down.
robbie robertson wrote the day they drove old dixie down.
who wrote the day they drove old dixie down?
robbie robertson
hits: greatest and others









































hits: greatest and others was a 1973 compilation vanguard put together at the end of joan baez' association with their label. in addition to her hit cover of the band's "the night they drove old dixie down", songs by the beatles and kris kristofferson were also included. unlike previous compilations, this one skipped over most of baez' earlier traditional material almost entirely, in favor of her more recent singer-songwriter material and covers.









































section::::track listing.









































bullet::::1. "the night they drove old dixie down" (robbie robertson)









































bullet::::2. "dangling conversation" (paul simon)
hits: greatest and others
hoskyns states that the song appears to be set in a "one-horse town" common to western movies, but that the "harvest moon" and riverside described in the lyrics place the song within the american south, like other songs from the album such as "the night they drove old dixie down" and "king harvest (has surely come)." the link with "the night they drove old dixie down" was emphasized in many concerts in which "across the great divide" was often played immediately following "the night they drove old dixie down." hoskyns also sees a link with "up on cripple creek," since "cripple creek" is also a "good ol' boy classic" narrated by a "devil-may-care drunkard." the reference to a harvest moon provides a more direct link to the theme of harvest which runs through "the band" and especially "king harvest (has surely come)," which is the last song on "the band" and so helps bring thematic unity to the album. to harris, this link helps define the journey undertaken in "the band", from the "idealism" of "across the great divide" to "stark reality" of "king harvest." ward describes the song as sounding "old as the hills," and representing what the band does best, creating a "rustic, down-home narrative coupled by organic, acoustic instrumentation." band organist garth hudson plays saxophone in addition to organ on the song.
across the great divide (the band song)