Jan Haust, Hudsons longtime friend and colleague, confirmed his death toRolling Stone.
Hudson was a prodigy who once disassembled his fathers old pump organ and rebuilt it.
Hudson was part of the draw.
Hudson performing with the Band at the Royal Albert Hall in London, 1971Michael Putland/Getty Images
Hudsons ornamented fills magnified the folk singers poetry.
The wonderful thing in working with Dylan was the imagery in his lyrics, Hudson told an interviewer.
I was allowed to play with these words.
Hudson found the area magical, and it would become a home base for much of his life.
The song especially the extended introduction would become Hudsons signature performance.
In 1978, a brushfire destroyed the home they were renovating.
The deal was made.
It was a good job.
And I got out of it alive, he told an interviewer.
And the music never stopped.
If anything, his playing only got better after the Band ended.
Writing in 2001 about a performance, Greil Marcus observed Hudsons playing to be everywhere at once.
As soon as you thought you caught a tune Home Sweet Home, Shenandoah it vanished.
