I told yesterday that Amy Helm, daughter of Levon Helm, the late legendary drummer and singer-songwriter from The Band, has been ousted from the business her father started in 2004, Levon Helm Studios.
I haven’t spoken to Amy but I’ve done a little research about what’s going on. I’ve seen this kind of thing before with the Friars Club and other institutions when outsiders make a play to take the place over.
(Sadly all the members of The Band are now gone. The only musician left who close to them is Bob Dylan.)
Earlier today, a man named Brian Parillo brazenly posted to Instagram that he was in charge now, and Amy was out. He said in the post, “LHS is not a birthright. It is Levon Helm’s legacy.” (See below.)
So, that’s pretty funny. Actually, it is a birthright.
Anyway.
It turns out that Amy and her stepmother, Levon’s widow named Sandy, each have 40% stakes in Levon Helm Studios. There are two other 10% portions. As if this was “Dallas,” and this was a fight for Ewing Oil, Parillo thinks he’s rounded up Sandy’s share plus the smaller ones so he can grab advantage at the conference table.
Evidently, there was a meeting about all this at the end of May where “shoving” was reported, but not enough to rouse the police’s attention.
When I called the studios yesterday, I spoke to a man who said he was Jonathan, the new general manager. That would make him Jonathan Skurnick, 31, who has a hand in this game. His father, Michael Skurnick, is actually Parillo’s partner and has been in other local ventures in Woodstock. The two of them were involved in the takeover of a place known as Pinecrest that they named The Lodge. It didn’t work out well for them. The Lodge is now closed, after Skurnick sold it to new owners who turned around sued him.
So now Parillo, and the Skurnicks have set their sights on Levon Helm Studios. It’s been reported that 76 year old Sandy Helm, the stepmother, has been confused in her dealings with Parillo. She may not know about the Skurnicks and their relationship to each other or to Parillo.
Woodstock — a place I’ve never been — always seemed like Twin Peaks to me, regardless of the famous concert. It’s a small town in rural New York. Amy Helm has been cast in the story as the brave young woman who must stand her ground to keep the family farm. She certainly has strong grassroots support in the area. The people out there love her and want her back in charge. Read the comments on Parillo’s Instagram post below.
The way things stand, Amy was attracting in cool artists — like her stepfather Steely Dan’s Donald Fagen — for Midnight Rambles jam sessions. They are now suspended. Will other name artists want to perform at Levon Helm Studios without the famed drummer’s daughter at the, er, helm? That’s the burning question. Already an act featuring Tim O’Brien has canceled its two night booking in August. I guess it will have to be sorted out in the courts.
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