Is special era in Macon coming to an end?

It’s hard not to notice the passing of another musician who helped put Macon on the musical map. There was of course Otis Redding whose plane crashed in Lake Monona, Wisconsin almost 50 years ago. And there’s Little Richard, who is still going strong at 84, but something about Gregg Allman’s passing at 69 signals the end of a special era in Macon’s history.

It could be the tragedies that took his brother Duane and bandmate Berry Oakley. It could be that members of the Allman Brothers Band were accessible — seen around town for everyone to see. They lived and breathed Macon when they could have — and were encouraged to — live anywhere else. They represented a different time and space, and while some residents were probably a bit uncomfortable with their long hair, blue jeans and other aspects of their lives — and maybe even their music — they enjoyed the notoriety the band brought the area. With Gregg’s passing, some of the glow of that golden age, has dimmed.

What hasn’t dimmed is the music Gregg and the Allman Brothers Band created here, from the jam sessions to the live performances to the numerous songs that sing in our heads. It’s also good to remember the many spinoffs from the band from Derek and the Dominoes to Sea Level. Musicians can’t live forever, but their music, if good enough, will play on forever.

This story was originally published June 3, 2017 at 9:00 PM with the headline "Is special era in Macon coming to an end?."