Jon Pareles is reporting in The New York Times, Levon Helm, the drummer and singer for the Band, died Thurs., Apr. 19, in Manhattan. Helm, 71, was a resident of Woodstock. Helm's "drumming, muscle, swing, economy and finesse were inseparably merged. His voice held the bluesy, weathered and resilient essence of his Arkansas upbringing in the Mississippi Delta," writes Pareles. Following the breakup of the original Band in 1976, Helms continued to perform as a musician, and later enjoyed a career as an actor, as well. Beginning in 2004, his barn in Woodstock was the venue for a series of concerts called Midnight Rambles. Read the full story in The New York Times.

On Thursday afternoon a message at the Levon Helm Studio Web page read:

Levon Helm passed peacefully this afternoon. He was surrounded by family, friends and band mates and will be remembered by all he touched as a brilliant musician and a beautiful soul.