Levon Helm, a Kitchen in Woodstock

Levon Helm died on Thursday. In February, I was overwhelmed by his generosity when I had the privilege of interviewing him for PBS Sound Tracks presents Quick Hits.

Helm didn’t typically eat dinner before “the Rambles” — the concert and hootenanny he started in the early 2000s — and would then proceed to hammer out a two-hour set, sustained by water.

As a potluck that was taken seriously by its guests, a Ramble offered plenty of great food to tempt even the most hesitant appetite.

That night though, Helm agreed to wait to eat dinner until we had finished our interview with him, in other words, after midnight.

Nevertheless, he was the perfect host and gentleman, and made me feel completely at ease in his Woodstock, NY kitchen. Not for a second did he make me feel as if I was putting him out.

Aside from a host of great songs and a voice that accompany various chapters of my life, I will always be grateful for the time you shared with me that evening, Levon Helm.