The annual celebration of an Arkansas-born American music legend is coming to Marvell, Ark., and a Batesville musician will be onstage for the festivities.
The Levon Helm Jubilee will be held Saturday, Oct. 22, in the heart of Marvell, a community a little over two hours southeast of Batesville.
The restored childhood home of Helm, the drummer and vocalist for The Band and a legendary musician whose artistry continues to influence and inspire audiences to this day, is located in Marvell.
Local musician Danny Dozier (pictured above) helped start the Jubilee in 2015 when the Marvell mayor told him about efforts being made to restore and move Helm’s childhood home from its original location in nearby Turkey Scratch to Marvell.
Dozier, a widely respected guitarist who regularly performs throughout the region and state, met Helm in 2000 when Helm drove to Batesville from his Woodstock, N.Y. home to perform at the Melba Theater with Dozier and fellow Arkansas musicians, The Cate Brothers, during The Ozark Foothills Film Festival. The performance was part of a festival tribute to Helm, who was also an actor with appearances in films such as “Coal Miner’s Daughter,” “Shooter,” the Arkansas-shot “End of the Line,” “The Right Stuff,” and “The Last Waltz,” the classic documentary by Martin Scorsese that chronicled the final concert of The Band’s original line-up.
Dozier told White River Now he first met a welcoming Helm at Helm’s room at the Batesville Ramada Inn and even took the drummer’s shirt to his mother’s house for quick pre-show ironing.
Also before the Ozark Foothills FilmFest appearance, Helm introduced Dozier to “Anna Lee,” a lifelong friend of Helm’s who made the trip from Turkey Scratch to the festival and who also makes an appearance in The Band’s song, “The Weight.”
“Well, Luke, my friend, what about young Anna Lee?”
He said, “Do me a favor, son, won’tcha stay and keep Anna Lee company?”
— Lyrics from “The Weight,” by The Band
“I met her and more friends showed up, and he asked me if I could drive him around town,” Dozier said. “I was walking in tall cotton now, not only meeting him, but hanging out all day and night with him. After the show, he said he wanted to leave for Memphis and wanted me to get him on the right road out of town. As I watched the taillights disappear on his Saab convertible, I pinched myself to make sure I wasn’t dreaming.”
Helm continued to stay in touch with Dozier through the years, even inviting him backstage to his performances when he was touring in the region. Levon Helm died in 2012.
The first Levon Helm Jubilee was held in 2015 with The Lockhouse Orchestra and The Cate Brothers as part of the lineup. Musicians from the region began to make the pilgrimage to Marvell each year for the Jubilee, performing to audiences in tribute to Helm’s legacy.
AMY HELM / Image by Ebru Yildiz via Aunt Management
The 2022 edition of the Levon Helm Jubilee will feature Levon’s daughter, acclaimed singer/songwriter/multi-instrumentalist Amy Helm, who will perform alongside singer-songwriter David Lynn Jones from Hardy; the Crouch brothers, Tim and Dennis; Amy’s son, Lee Collins; and Dozier and The Lockhouse Orchestra.
Amy Helm’s third studio album, “What the Flood Leaves Behind,” was released in 2021. Rolling Stone Country said a single from the LP, “Breathing,” was “… part urgent plea, part mysterious flirtation carried by Helm’s soulful voice and the spacious production from Josh Kaufman.” (Click here to read the review from Rolling Stone Country, and click here to read a Rolling Stone interview with Helm regarding the album.)
In addition to Dozier, the line-up for The Lockhouse Orchestra includes Sarah Joe Sample, Penny Wolfe, John Parks, Jerry Bone, Jason Moser, and Mike Foster.
Performances will be held on the main stage at the Marvell ball field beginning at 2:30 p.m. At 4 p.m., Amy Helm and friends will perform a set nearby on the front porch of the home. Following the porch performance, music will kick back off on the main stage with The Arkansas Brothers. Lee Collins’ Grateful Dead tribute band, The Young and Grateful, will perform at 6 p.m. And at 7 p.m., Dozier and the Lockhouse Orchestra will play the main stage, performing songs from Levon Helm’s solo career and songs from The Band. Amy Helm will join the Lockhouse Orchestra, performing songs from her albums, as well as songs by The Band.
Food trucks, games and rides for the kids, and more will be available, and admission to the Levon Helm Jubilee is free. Attendees are encouraged to bring lawn chairs.
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