Sometimes something in a post I read here on O/S will set my mind off on a tangent that leads to a post of my own. Todays post is thanks to The Chicken man.
In the late sixties rock began to change a bit. Less of the psychedelic and more of a grass roots (no pun intended) sound. More American in its flavor with a strong reference to the Blues in general. One band is an outstanding example of that sweeping change to the music, the Allman Brothers Band. In particular the brother team of Greg and Duane Allman.
There are far to many things that are part of the genesis of the band for me to undertake a bigraphic look at them so I will just point out a bit of the changes not just in music but in the way American rock sounded in the early seventies.
To me, Duane Allman was maybe the only guitarist to rival Eric Clapton for the best blues/rock player of the golden age of rock 'n' roll. As a matter of fact, the two of them formed a "supergroup" known as Derek and the Dominoes that was responsible for a couple of all time classic tunes. The earliest of them is "Let it Rain"
The next one is a bit of a strange one since it is a love song written to a girl who was at the time Claptons best friend George Harrison's wife. He titled it with her nickname (why I do not know) and most fans of classic rock know it by this name"Layla"
This wasn't the first go round for Duane or Greg, they were recording before the Clapton collaberation. The Allman Joys were semi-famous and also showed a light of what was to come.
Not long after the dissolution of the Joys and Derek and the Dominoes Duane and Greg decided to start their own band. The Allman Bothers Band was an unheard of kind of group. With twin drummers and twin lead guitars, not to mention the addition of a percussionist they set out to take the world by storm with an almost jazz like quality to their decidedly blues influenced Southern rock.
One of their first outings in the new configurations was at Bill Graham's Fillmore East. They recorded a seminal live album by that name too. Here is a cut from that that shows the amazing work that this group of people were capable of. They were a jam band before the term had ever been coined, here, for your enjoyment is "In Memory of Elizabeth Reed"
They were on the way to suergroup status on their own when tragedy struck the band. While riding his motorcycle on October 29th 1971, Duane Allman ran into a truck and was killed. The band was recording what was soon to be declared a tour de force double album titled "Eat a Peach", contrary to the popular myth this was not because Duane hit a peach truck but in an interview the year before he was asked about the revolution and he replied, "ain't no revolutution, just evolution but every time I'm in Georgia, I eat a peach for peace"
Most of us were introduced to the Allman Brothers with this tune that was recorded at the Fillmore East but released on "Eat a Peach".
Barely a year later on November 11th 1972, another co-founder of the band died in another motorcycle accident, three blocks from where Duane Allman had died, Berry Oakly the founding bassist had been despondent since Duane's death and hit a city bus. Which brings me to the end of this tale. I'm including this track since it was the one that led me here by way of Matt's post. Covered also by Molly Hachett, here is "Dreams I'll Never See" by the Allman Brothers.
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