Levon Helm remembered by Bob Dylan, Sheryl Crow, Elton John and more

On Thursday, a great musical voice was silenced.

Drummer and vocalist Levon Helm died at the age of 71 after a long battle with throat cancer.

Helm played as part of Bob Dylan's backing band in 1965 and 1966. Years later, The Band, featuring Helm, Robbie Robertson, Garth Hudson, Rick Danko and Richard Manual, performed with Dylan on a series of recordings known as "The Basement Tapes."

Helm, founding member of The Band, shared the stage with countless musicians, especially in recent years as part of The Levon Helm Band.

A day after his death, the outpouring of support symbolizes the lasting influence Helm will have on the music world.

Click through the following slides to see how Helm's friends, including Bob Dylan, Jane Fonda, Martin Scorsese and Jeff Tweedy, will remember the man behind such classic songs as "The Weight" and "The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down."

Levon Helm remembered by Bob Dylan, Sheryl Crow, Elton John and more

Bob Dylan

"He was my bosom buddy friend to the end, one of the last true great spirits of my or any other generation," Dylan wrote on his website. "This is just so sad to talk about. I still can remember the first day I met him and the last day I saw him. We go back pretty far and had been through some trials together. I'm going to miss him, as I'm sure a whole lot of others will too."

Levon Helm remembered by Bob Dylan, Sheryl Crow, Elton John and more

Robbie Robertson

"Last week I was shocked and so saddened to hear that my old band mate, Levon, was in the final stages of his battle with cancer," Robertson wrote in a post. "It hit me really hard because I thought he had beaten throat cancer and had no idea that he was this ill. I spoke with his family and made arrangements to go and see him."

"On Sunday I went to New York and visited him in the hospital. I sat with Levon for a good while, and thought of the incredible and beautiful times we had together. It was heartwarming to be greeted by his lovely daughter Amy, whom I have known since she was born. Amy's mother, Libby Titus, and her husband, Donald Fagen, were so kind to help walk me through this terrible time of sadness. My thoughts and prayers are with his wife Sandy."

"Levon is one of the most extraordinary talented people I've ever known and very much like an older brother to me. I am so grateful I got to see him one last time and will miss him and love him forever."

-Robbie Robertson

Levon Helm remembered by Bob Dylan, Sheryl Crow, Elton John and more

Garth Hudson

"LEVON HELM LEFT US TODAY AT 1:30 PM, THURSDAY, APRIL 19, 2012. I AM TERRIBLY SAD," Garth Hudson wrote on his website. "THANK YOU FOR 50 YEARS OF FRIENDSHIP AND MUSIC. MEMORIES THAT LIVE ON WITH US. NO MORE SORROWS, NO MORE TROUBLES, NO MORE PAIN. HE WENT PEACEFULLY TO THAT BEAUTIFUL MARVELOUS WONDERFUL PLACE. HE WAS BUDDY RICH'S FAVORITE ROCK DRUMMER ... AND MY FRIEND. LEVON, I'M PROUD OF YOU."

-Garth

Levon Helm remembered by Bob Dylan, Sheryl Crow, Elton John and more

Elton John

"When I heard the Band's Music from Big Pink, their music changed my life," Elton John told Entertainment Weekly. "And Levon was a big part of that band. Nigel Olson, my drummer, will tell you that every drummer that heard him was influenced by him. He was the greatest drummer and a wonderful singer and just a part of my life that was magical. They once flew down to see me in Philadelphia and I couldn't believe it. They were one of the greatest bands of all time. They really changed the face of music when their records came out. I had no idea he was sick so I'm very dismayed and shocked that he died so quickly. But now my son [Zachary Jackson Levon Furnish-John] has his name."

Levon Helm remembered by Bob Dylan, Sheryl Crow, Elton John and more

Sheryl Crow

Levon Helm remembered by Bob Dylan, Sheryl Crow, Elton John and more

Jane Fonda

"I got to know Levon personally because he played my husband in the ABC movie 'The Dollmaker," Jane Fonda wrote on her website. "He was kind and deep and devoted to music, as a singer and playing not only drums, but harmonica, fiddle, mandolin, you name it."

"All you have to do is rent 'The Last Waltz,' the documentary that Martin Scorsese made of The Band's last performance together to be reminded what an astonishing drummer Levon was," Fonda wrote." He gave the Band it's powerful, driving force, a wall of pulsating rhythm. And his voice--singing 'The Weight'-all deep soul. I am so sad."

Levon Helm remembered by Bob Dylan, Sheryl Crow, Elton John and more

John Cusack

Levon Helm remembered by Bob Dylan, Sheryl Crow, Elton John and more

Slash

Levon Helm remembered by Bob Dylan, Sheryl Crow, Elton John and more

Billy Bragg

Levon Helm remembered by Bob Dylan, Sheryl Crow, Elton John and more

Jeff Tweedy of Wilco

"Levon was the glue, not just in The Band, but in all of what people think of when they think of North American music," Jeff Tweedy wrote in a post. "He was a great unifier; a great glue. He unified blues and country, rural and city, and even North and South. Luckily he showed us all the way to keep it together and let it swing."

- Jeff Tweedy

Levon Helm remembered by Bob Dylan, Sheryl Crow, Elton John and more

Martin Scorsese

"The late Jim Carroll once said that Levon Helm was the only drummer who could make you cry, and he was absolutely right," Martin Scorsese, who directed The Band's film "The Last Waltz," told Indie Wire. "Levon's touch was so delicate, so deft, that he gave you more than just a beat - he gave the music a pulse. And his high, ringing voice was just as soulful. His bandmate Robbie Robertson wrote "The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down" for Levon to sing, and I'll never forget how moving it was to watch him sing it during their final performance at Winterland, which is one of the high points of the movie we made from that show, The Last Waltz. Levon was a gentleman, a consummate artist (and, I might add, a wonderful actor - his performance as Loretta Lynn's father in Coal Miner's Daughter is rich, understated, and very moving), and he loved music as deeply and truly as anyone I've ever met. I consider myself fortunate to have worked with Levon, and I am one among many, many people who will miss him."