Allman Brothers Band wraps up after 45 years
The Allman Brothers Band officially ended its 45-year run last week with a show at the Beacon Theatre in New York City that lasted into the wee hours of Oct. 29 -- also the 43rd anniversary of guitarist Duane Allman’s death.
Here are 10 key moments in the band’s history. Like the band itself, these moments contain both high points and low points, but help provide the framework for one of the founding bands of the Southern rock genre.
1. ORIGINS
In 1969, music promoter Phil Walden -- who had just created Capricorn Records with his brothers -- traveled to Muscle Shoals, Alabama, to recruit a gifted young guitarist named Duane Allman for his new label. Allman went to his native Florida and put together a band, consisting of his brother Gregg as a vocalist and keyboardist; guitarist Dickey Betts; bassist Berry Oakley; and drummers Butch Trucks and Jai Johanny “Jaimoe” Johanson.
Walden convinced the group to move to Macon, where they shared an apartment at 309 College St. During the initial years, the band subsisted on the disability checks of roadie Joseph “Red Dog” Campbell and free meals at the H&H Restaurant, courtesy of Mama Louise Hudson. The band often played free shows at Central City Park and other venues in Macon and Atlanta.
2. FAME
In the early years, the band would play about 300 shows a year across the country. The first two albums, “The Allman Brothers Band” (1969) and “Idlewild South” (1970), had modest sales but between the two included such classic songs as “Dreams,” “Whipping Post,” “Midnight Rider,” “In Memory of Elizabeth Reed” and “Please Call Home.”
In 1970, Duane missed some shows to record with Eric Clapton’s band, Derek and the Dominos, to create one of rock’s seminal albums, “Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs.” Allman ultimately turned down an offer from Clapton to join that band full time and returned instead to The Allman Brothers Band.
During that year, Linda Oakley, Berry’s wife, found a house on Vineville Avenue for their family and Duane’s. “The Big House,” as it came to be known, became the band’s unofficial headquarters.
In 1971, the band -- which had been gaining attention for its live performances -- recorded “At Fillmore East” during three live shows from March 11-13. It became the band’s first album to earn a gold record, reaching No. 13 on Billboard Magazine’s Top Pop Albums chart.
The album, which is listed at No. 49 on Rolling Stone’s “500 Greatest Albums” chart, brought The Allman Brothers Band overnight success and wealth. That summer, the band was one of the top acts at the Atlanta Pop Festival, held near Byron.
With fame, however, came problems. Oakley and Duane Allman both checked into drug rehab centers.
3. TRAGEDY
On Oct. 29, 1971, the band suffered its first major tragedy when Duane Allman, then 24, was killed while riding his motorcycle at Hillcrest Avenue and Bartlett Street while swerving to avoid a flatbed truck that had stopped suddenly. He died a few hours later after undergoing emergency surgery.
In her book, “Please Be with Me,” Galadrielle Allman, who was 2 at the time of her father’s death, describes how the band played at Carnegie Hall just a month after Duane’s death, with his Les Paul Gibson guitar on a stand on stage.
“It was one of Duane’s dreams to play there with his band, and it was devastating to everyone to contemplate playing without him,” she wrote. “The only thing worse would be not playing at all. They knew they had come too far to let their band die with Duane. He would be the first to demand they continue. In the end, it wasn’t a choice. They had to play to survive the pain.”
The band managed to weather the storm, issuing one of its most successful albums, “Eat a Peach,” in February 1972. The album, which went platinum, featured such hits as “Melissa,” “One Way Out” and “Blue Sky.”
Oakley, who had become the band’s de facto leader after Duane Allman’s death, never quite recovered from the loss of his friend, and in an eerie twist of fate, suffered his own fatal motorcycle crash on Nov. 11, 1972, when he struck a bus about three blocks from where Duane was killed. Oakley declined to go to the hospital and later died of cerebral swelling.
Oakley was buried at Allman’s side at Rose Hill Cemetery.
4. DESCENT
While the band soldiered on, things began to fray, and drugs continued to be a problem.
Initially, the band added keyboardist Chuck Leavell and bassist Lamar Williams to replace its fallen members. The new lineup jelled quickly, producing the album “Brothers and Sisters” in 1973. Songs such as “Jessica” and “Ramblin’ Man” helped propel the album to more than 7 million sales worldwide.
Betts and Gregg Allman both recorded successful solo albums, and the band still found success on tour, but things started to come apart, according to the book “One Way Out: The Inside Story of The Allman Brothers Band” by Alan Paul.
Gregg Allman moved to Los Angeles to be with his then-girlfriend Cher. Band members feuded during the making of the next album, “Win, Lose or Draw,” in 1975. While the album did well commercially, it failed critically.
In 1976, Allman testified in a drug trial against bodyguard Scooter Herring, who was convicted on five counts of conspiracy to distribute cocaine.
This led to Allman receiving death threats, and it took tensions with his band mates to their highest levels. Herring was later given a reduced sentence.
With Capricorn Records facing financial difficulties, the band released the compilation album “Wipe the Windows, Check the Oil, Dollar Gas” in 1976 to little fanfare. The band finally split up at that point.
5. REVIVAL
In 1978, Walden helped convince band members to start anew, and several members appeared in a New York concert that featured Betts’ band, Great Southern.
Guitarist Dan Toler and bassist David Goldflies replaced Leavell and Williams, who decided to stick with their own band Sea Level. In 1979, the band released its reunion album “Enlightened Rogues,” which spawned the Top 40 hit “Crazy Love.” With Capricorn Records going into bankruptcy, the band signed with Arista Records.
The band recorded two albums for the label, “Reach for the Sky” (1980) and “Brothers of the Road” (1981). Neither album was particularly successful, and the band frequently clashed with the label.
The behind-the-scenes strife and drug use was still there. The band had a falling out and replaced Johanson in 1980 with Frankie Toler, Dan’s brother.
In 1982, following an appearance on “Saturday Night Live,” the band called it quits once more.
6. REUNITED
To celebrate its 20th anniversary in 1989, The Allman Brothers Band reunited, adding new members Warren Haynes (guitar), Johnny Neel (piano) and Allen Woody (bass). Johanson also returned, and the band signed with a new label, Epic.
An acoustic show on MTV’s “Unplugged” in 1990 introduced The Allman Brothers Band to a new generation of fans.
The band began what became an annual spring event by playing 10 shows in New York’s Beacon Theatre in 1992.
The band knocked out a few albums, including “Seven Turns” (1990), “Shades of Two Worlds” (1991), “An Evening With The Allman Brothers Band” (1992) and “Where It All Begins” (1994), which produced the hit “Soulshine.”
Before long, again fueled in part by drugs and alcohol, the band split once more in 1996 amid tensions between Allman and Betts.
7. LEGACY
The Allman Brothers Band cemented its legacy in 1995 when it was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
The band also is represented in the Georgia Music Hall of Fame several times. Duane Allman was among the earliest inductees, enshrined in 1982, while Gregg joined him as an inductee in 2006. The band itself was inducted in 1998, and Leavell earned his spot in 2004.
In addition, Capricorn executives Phil Walden (1986) and Frank Fenter (2014), without whom the band may have never found success, also have been enshrined.
The Allman Brothers Band ranks 52nd on Rolling Stone’s “100 Greatest Artists” list, while its original “100 Greatest Guitarists” list published in 2003 ranks Duane Allman as the No. 2 greatest guitarist, as well as Haynes (No. 23), Betts (No. 58) and later member Derek Trucks (No. 81). (A revised list in 2011 ranked Allman at No. 9, Trucks at No. 16 and Betts at No. 61).
8. TOGETHER AGAIN
The band brought on guitar prodigy Derek Trucks in 1999 to play when the band reunited for its 30th anniversary in 1999. Trucks, the nephew of Butch Trucks, was 20 at the time.
Relationships among the band members continued to ebb and flow, which led to a split between most of the band members and Betts, who was informed by letter in 2000 that he wouldn’t be part of the group’s summer tour. Betts, in turn, sued the band and eventually received an undisclosed settlement.
The band released “Hittin’ the Note” in 2003 with its final lineup of Allman, Johanson, Butch Trucks, Derek Trucks, Haynes, Marc Quinones (percussion) and Oteil Burbridge (bass). The album earned two Grammy nominations and critical praise.
9. HOME
In 2009, an effort spearheaded by former Big House owners Kirk and Kirsten West turned the residence into an Allman Brothers Band museum.
Fans of the band made the museum possible thanks to financial donations as well as offering their time and skills in fixing up and converting the house.
The museum features a wide variety of memorabilia not only from the band but also from the solo efforts of its members. Betts wrote two of the band’s greatest hits, “Blue Sky” and “Ramblin’ Man,” inside the house. In the 1990s, Haynes’ band, Gov’t Mule, took up residence in the house.
10. FINALE
While the band has split apart and reunited in the past, its final performance at the Beacon Theatre last week carried a tone of finality.
The shows during the final run featured no guest performers. During their last show, which included three sets and an encore of “Whippin’ Post,” the band members stood together to take a final bow.
Writing for Rolling Stone, reviewer David Fricke noted that Gregg Allman gave a short speech to the audience:
“Gregg cited the precise date, March 26th, 1969, then said, in a low, worn voice, ‘Never did I have any idea it could come to this.’ He gazed gratefully at the crowd, still on its feet, clapping and cheering, at nearly 1:30 a.m. ‘Now,’ Gregg added, ‘We’re gonna do the first song we ever played.’
“The Allmans got back in position and tore into ‘Trouble No More,’ the Muddy Waters rumble from Side One of the group’s 1969 debut album, ‘The Allman Brothers Band.’ It sounded nothing like goodbye: tight and gnarly, Derek and Haynes riding the triple-drum-kit surf with avenging poise. But it was.”
To contact writer Phillip Ramati, call 744-4334.
This story was originally published November 2, 2014 at 12:00 AM with the headline "Allman Brothers Band wraps up after 45 years ."