Remembering Rick Danko – ‘It Makes No Difference’

It was a sad day 16 years ago today when word came out that The Band bassist Rick Danko passed away at his home near Woodstock of heart failure. Since rock’s early days many bassists have played their instrument and sang, but for our money no one approaches the Canadian product’s ability to convey emotion through both his voice and four-string. Danko’s lead and harmony vocals could make a grown man or woman cry and were a driving force in the success of The Band.

One of Rick’s signature songs was the incredibly sad tale of love lost “It Makes No Difference,” which appeared on The Band’s 1975 studio album Northern Lights – Southern Cross. Robbie Robertson may have penned the tune, but it was Danko’s haunting vocal delivery that’s at the heart of “It Makes No Difference.” Watch a standout version of “It Makes No Difference” performed by The Band shortly after they regrouped, without Robertson, in 1983: