The Band’s Robbie Robertson: My life in 12 songs

Robbie Robertson turned 76 in July, and could easily plead exhaustion now, given the startling number of projects coming to fruition for him as 2019 draws toward a close. He also has extended his long-running collaboration with filmmaker Martin Scorsese with songs he’s written and recorded for the director’s latest feature, “The Irishman,” and is the subject of “Once Were Brothers,” a new biographical documentary directed by Daniel Roher and largely based on Robertson’s 2016 autobiography, “Testimony.” He also has overseen a forthcoming 50th anniversary box set of the Band’s widely regarded second album, simply titled “The Band,” due Nov. 15. It comes on the heels of last year’s expanded edition of the group’s 1968 debut album, “Music From Big Pink.” Those recordings formalized the collaboration among Robertson and bandmates Levon Helm, Richard Manuel, Rick Danko and Garth Hudson, who previously had backed Bob Dylan — and were known then as the Hawks — on his plugged-in, scorched-earth tours of the U.S. and England in 1965 and 1966. Chuck Berry, “Brown Eyed Handsome Man” “At the beginning of rock ‘n’ roll, ‘Brown Eyed Handsome Man’ stopped me in my tracks. This was no longer Irving Berlin; this was somebody now writing ‘Solitary Man.’ ” The Band in 1971, from left: Levon Helm, Richard Manuel, Robbie Robertson, Rick Danko and Garth Hudson.