Martin Scorsese’s 1978 documentary about The Band’s final concert is titled The Last Waltz. The concert took place at San Francisco’s Winterland Ballroom on Thanksgiving Day, November 25, 1976, and marked The Band’s last performance as a touring group in its original form.
Scorsese filmed the event with multiple cameras and combined the concert footage with studio performances and interviews. The guest musicians included Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell, Neil Young, Van Morrison, Eric Clapton, Neil Diamond, Ringo Starr, and Dr. John. The movie presents The Band’s music within a broader story about touring, friendship, and the changing music industry.
The Last Waltz premiered in 1978 and became one of the most influential concert films. Its title comes from the farewell character of the Winterland event, not from a conventional fictional plot. The documentary is also notable for bringing Scorsese’s visual direction to a live-music setting, years before his later music documentaries about artists such as George Harrison and the Rolling Stones.