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Insomnia by Robbie Robertson (book review)

The late Robbie Robertson left us a gift: his story of his work in the movies and his friendship with director Martin Scorsese, wrapped around the Band’s The Last Waltz film that Scorsese directed and Robertson produced. I knew that Robertson and Scorsese worked together on a few films, but I didn’t realize that their…

Mike Miller
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The late Robbie Robertson left us a gift: his story of his work in the movies and his friendship with director Martin Scorsese, wrapped around the Band’s The Last Waltz film that Scorsese directed and Robertson produced.

I knew that Robertson and Scorsese worked together on a few films, but I didn’t realize that their friendship and creative partnership ran as deep as the book describes. The two were from different experiences and cultures, but found the arts to be a major connection. They traveled the world together, sought out opportunities to blend their creative skills and developed a brotherhood of shared friends, family and life experiences. These two men had a lot in common despite their cultural and artistic differences.

I read Robertson’s previous memoir, Testimony (2016), learning a great deal about the man. My impression of him changed with the reading of that book, and it changed again while reading Insomnia. Robertson led a very complicated life; the seventies were like that. Complicated home life, complicated relationships with Band members, unknown future, new romantic interests, etc.

The Last Waltz is the spine of this story. It drew Scorsese and Robertson together, so much so that Robertson moved into Scorsese’s house when Robertson’s wife kicked him out, and Scorsese’s wife left. These two emotionally rudderless men had work and the search for good times to guide them.

Scorsese was supervising the editing, and Robertson was handling other post-production duties for The Last Waltz. Concurrently, The Band was imploding, the experience of the film only fueled the flames of dissection and personal issues within the group. Some fingers pointed directly at Robertson as the cause.

Insomnia (2025, Crown Publishing) is a literate and thoughtful book, just like Testimony was. You don’t have to be a fan of The Band to appreciate this book, there are plenty of Hollywood stories, wild tales of seventies life, and the kind of reflective self-analysis of anyone going through significant life changes. My only criticism, I could do without the name-dropping of women he hooked up with during his separation from his wife. They reconciled to spend many more years together, so the roster of actresses he slept with is really unfortunate.

Not only does Robertson talk about The Last Waltz, but also his film Carny and Scorsese’s pre-production of Raging Bull. I highly recommend this book.

5 responses to “Insomnia by Robbie Robertson (book review)”

  1. greenpete58 Avatar
    greenpete58

    Sleeping with actresses? One wonders how much Robertson’s memoir was tinkered with (for sensationalism) after his death two years ago. I might end up reading his first memoir (don’t care much about his Hollywood years). I thought the documentary Once Were Brothers was really good, and it was unfortunate that he and Helm had a falling out.

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    1. Mike Miller Avatar
      Mike Miller

      Testimony was also a good read. Thankfully, Robertson and Helm were able to close that wound before Helm died, too bad it wasn’t sooner.

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      1. Hanne Jeppesen Avatar
        Hanne Jeppesen

        I definitely recommend this book. I’m a huge Robbie fan. Robbie’s first book gave us an insight into his childhood, how he hooked up with Ronnie Hawkins, Dylan The Band, but it also gave us an insight into the sixties and part of the seventies.

        Insomnia picks up where Testimony left off. It is true that there’s a lot of Hollywood in there, but in the end, it is about Robbie and Scorsese, it is about friendship, it is obvious from both books that Robbie valued friendship, and family. Robbie was an only child as I am, friendship are very important to us.

        For all the drugs, partying and beautiful actresses, it is clear what Robbie really valued was his family, his children, wife and mother and his friends, and his art.

        I love his ex-wife’s Dominque’s afterword, very touching.

        Liked by 1 person

      2. Mike Miller Avatar
        Mike Miller

        Thanks for your comments. It’s a very thoughtfully written book and like you said, a good companion to his first book.

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    2. Hanne Jeppesen Avatar
      Hanne Jeppesen

      As for Levon and Robbie making up, I don’t know if you can call it that. When Levon was dying his daughter or wife called Robbie. Robbie flew from LA to New York, by the time he got there Levon was not conscious. Robbie said in an interview he sat by his side and thought about all the wonderful times they had shared and the music they made together. Joe Forno Jr. in his book “Levon’s Man”, wrote I knew Levon’s bitterness toward Robbie ran deep and he would take it too the grave with him.

      Joe Forno was a Woodstock native he managed the remainder of The Band from about the mid-eighties until 1994.

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