<P> `` The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down '' is a song written by Robbie Robertson and originally recorded by the Canadian - American roots rock group the Band in 1969 and released on their eponymous second album . Levon Helm provided the lead vocals . The song is a first - person narrative relating the economic and social distress experienced by the protagonist , a poor white Southerner , during the last year of the American Civil War . Frequently appearing on lists of the best rock songs of all time , it has been cited as an early example of the genre known as roots rock . </P>
<P> `` The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down '' is a song written by Robbie Robertson and originally recorded by the Canadian - American roots rock group the Band in 1969 and released on their eponymous second album . Levon Helm provided the lead vocals . The song is a first - person narrative relating the economic and social distress experienced by the protagonist , a poor white Southerner , during the last year of the American Civil War . Frequently appearing on lists of the best rock songs of all time , it has been cited as an early example of the genre known as roots rock . </P>
who wrote the night they drove old dixie down lyrics
who wrote the night they drove old dixie down lyrics
Robbie Robertson
Robbie Robertson