Rick Danko Memorial A Touching Goodbye
Yahoo! Music, Dec 17, 1999 5:00 pm PST(12/17/99, 5 p.m. ET) - Between 300 and 500 people showed up Wednesday (Dec. 15) at the Bearsville Theatre near Woodstock, N.Y. for a public memorial service for Rick Danko of the Band.
The memorial was an informal gathering that was "celebratory without being festive. It included some performances and a lot of Rick stories," according to Danko's publicist. Singer-songwriter Jules Shear performed "Too Soon Gone," a song he co-wrote for the Band's 1993 album Jericho, on which Danko sang lead vocals. Band member Robbie Robertson took the stage to read an open letter to Danko, punctuated with a favorite saying of the late musician's: "got a minute."
The gathering included family, friends, and fans, allowing those in attendance an opportunity to share personal memories of the late musician. A private funeral was also held last week for close family and friends. Rick Danko died last Friday (LAUNCH, 12/10/99), at the age of 56. The cause of death has not yet been determined, although an Ulster County Medical Examiner said that all indications were that he died a "simple, natural death."
-- Sue Falco, New York
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