by Paul, Alan
Worth Searching For
One More Try (1996, ****) I wrote the liner-note essay and helped compile this collection of outtakes and alternate versions, so color me biased, but it is late night/early morning music at its finest. It’s a true shame that this collection, which so beautifully reveals a hidden side of Gregg—vulnerable, acoustic, aching, soulful—is deeply out of print.
Dickey Betts
Highway Call (1974, ****), credited to Richard Betts, was the guitarist’s chance to fully indulge his love for country and Texas swing. Pedal steel guitar and fiddler Vassar Clements complement Betts’s great songs and sweet, melodic guitar on one of the unsung classics in the ABB musical family.
Dickey Betts and Great Southern (1977, ***) is somewhat inconsistent, but includes several standout tracks, including the galloping “Run Gypsy Run” and “Nothing You Can Do” and the gorgeous “Bougainvillea,” which can stand up to almost anything Betts has written.
Atlanta’s Burning Down (1978, ***) is not as strong as its predecessor, but the title track is a moving ballad about a Confederate soldier’s horror.
Pattern Disruptive (1988, **) is significant because it was the first time Warren Haynes recorded with the ABB family. There’s not too much else to recommend it, however.
Let’s Get Together (2001 ***) was an impressive statement by Dickey. He made clear just a year after he was told he was no longer wanted in the ABB that he was far from done making music. Unfortunately, it sounds like it was recorded in your basement.
The Collectors #1 (2002, ***) was a sweet acoustic follow-up, which included the Irish instrumental “Beyond the Pale,” a swinging take on jazz pianist Horace Silver’s “The Preacher,” and Dickey’s version of Dylan’s “Tangled Up in Blue.” Unfortunately, the sound quality was even worse than on Let’s Get Together. This one sounds like it was recorded in your grandfather’s garage, which is a pity because the tunes are great.
Sea Level
On their self-titled debut, Sea Level (1977, ***), Jaimoe, Lamar Williams, and Chuck Leavell are joined by guitarist Jimmy Nalls for this hard-swinging set. On his own, without partner Butch Trucks, Jaimoe’s diverse work is a revelation and Leavell proves himself to be a solid singer, but the instrumentals carry the day.
Released less than a year after their debut, Cats on the Coast (1977, ***) is less to my taste. Though still solid, the expanded ensemble leans heavily toward fusion. Jaimoe’s role is also reduced to mostly percussion. This album has not aged as gracefully as its predecessor.
Jaimoe was back in the Allman Brothers by the time Sea Level recorded On the Edge (1978, **), replaced by Joe English, and the band seems to be trying to catch some disco grooves. Still plenty of instrumental prowess, of course, and some nice flights of fancy, but not enough of the good stuff here.
Long Walk on a Short Pier (1979, ***) was appropriately titled; it was released just before Capricorn Records went bankrupt and promptly vanished for almost twenty years. That’s too bad, because it was an improvement from its predecessor. Still uneven and sometimes too slick, this album has more high points, and unleashes Leavell’s rollicking piano a bit more.
Gov’t Mule
Gov’t Mule (1995, ***) announced the debut of a dynamic, heavy group. From the opening a capella “Grinning in Your Face” to the last ringing notes of “World of Difference,” this self-titled debut grabbed listeners by the face and didn’t let go.
Live at Roseland Ballroom (1996, ****) captures the original band in their full sonic glory. Delivers what the debut hinted was coming.
Dose (1998, ****) is the Mule’s finest recording, as the band fully finds its sound. Recorded live in the studio, Dose debuted Mule classics like “Birth of the Mule,” “Thelonious Beck,” and “Thorazine Shuffle” and introduced more dynamics, including the power ballad “I Shall Return” and acoustic instrumentation on “John the Revelator” and “Raven Black Night.” It’s a powerful work that has stood the test of time.
Life Before Insanity (2001, ***) fails to match the brilliance of its predecessor, but not by much. Another great album, as the Mule moves away from its trio base, adding some keyboards, harmonica, and overdubbed guitar tracks.
Live … with a Little Help from Our Friends (2001, ****) is the Mule album I go back to over and over. A two-CD set of the original trio powering through fantastic originals like “Thorazine Shuffle” and covers of Black Sabbath’s “War Pigs,” among others. They are joined by friends like Derek Trucks, Jimmy Herring, and Chuck Leavell for “Cortez the Killer” among many great covers, culminating in a 29-minute “Afro Blue.” Nothing makes me miss Woody quite as much as this album, which sums up everything great about the original Mule.
The Deep End, Vol. 1 (2001, ***) is Warren’s response to the passing of his partner in crime, Allen Woody. He rounded up every guest bassist he could think of, from Phish’s Mike Gordon to Deep Purple’s Roger Glover and from Cream’s Jack Bruce to the Family Stone’s Larry Graham to pay tribute. The results are predictably inconsistent, but often great. Woody himself makes a cameo on a previously unreleased cover of Grand Funk’s “Sin’s a Good Man’s Brother.”
The Deep End, Vol. 2 (2002, ***) keeps the Woody tribute going, this time with bassists including Phil Lesh, Billy Cox, George Porter Jr., and Jason Newsted. Again, somewhat inconsistent, but often great, and the plethora of guests is a tribute to how highly regarded both Warren and Woody are.
The Deepest End: Live in Concert (2003, ****) was recorded during the 2003 New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival and it seems as if everyone from the fairgrounds piled into the theater for a five-hour concert that yielded this sprawling tribute to the late Woody. Jack Casady, Les Claypool, Will Lee, George Porter Jr., Karl Denson, and Sonny Landreth are just the tip of the iceberg. It seemed like Warren needed to produce this blowout before Gov’t Mule could resume normal band life without Woody. Long live Cap’n Al!
On Deja Voodoo (2004, ***), Gov’t Mule returns as a quartet with keyboardist Danny Louis on board, along with bassist Andy Hess.
High and Mighty (2006, ***) is good but not essential.
Mighty High (2007, **) is a cool idea—reggae versions of the Mule’s High and Mighty album—that just doesn’t quite work.
By a Thread (2009, ***) includes a guest appearance by ZZ Top’s Billy Gibbons.
Mulennium (Live at the Roxy, Atlanta, GA, December 31, 1999) (2010, ****) is a three-CD collection that made me miss Woody all over again. More special guests, including the late blues great Little Milton, who leads a six-song blues set.
The Georgia Bootleg Box (2012, ****) captures three shows from April 1996 as the Mule was just really learning how to kick. Powerful stuff, raw and ready.
Shout! (2013, ****) is a stirring album, the strongest collection of songs in years. It also includes a fascinating bonus disk of the same songs with guest vocalists (including Steve Winwood, Ben Harper, and Dave Matthews).
Warren Haynes
Tales of Ordinary Madness (1993, ***) was Haynes’s solo debut and much of it holds up twenty years later.
Live at Bonnaroo (2004, ***) is a slightly uneven acoustic collection with some very nice moments, most notably the version of “Soulshine” with South African singer Vusi Mahlasela.
Man in Motion (2011, ****) is Haynes’s soul album, and it’s a good one. Echoes of Traffic and Joe Cocker along with R&B giants. Dual keyboardists Cyril Neville and Ian McLagan create a beautiful bed, where Haynes makes himself at home.
Live at the Moody Theater (2012, ***) is a two-disc, one-DVD live companion to Man in Motion, featuring most of the album, as well as several new Haynes tunes and covers of Jimi Hendrix’s “Spanish Castle Magic” and Sam Cooke’s “A Change Is Gonna Come.” Puts an exclamation point on the fact that no one covers as much ground as well as Warren Haynes.
The Derek Trucks Band
The Derek Trucks Band (1997, ***) announced loud and clear that Trucks was not your average teenaged guitar whiz. The album starts with th
e original, 35-second instrumental “Sarod,” played on the traditional Indian instrument, and goes right into John Coltrane’s “Mr. P.C.”
Out of the Madness (1998, ***) goes a bit more mainstream than Trucks’s debut, with guest vocals by Haynes and Larry McCray and some hot jamming by Jimmy Herring. This is more of a jam session than a cohesive band album, but it is a lot of fun.
Joyful Noise (2002, ****) represented a big leap for the Trucks Band, with the addition of keyboardist/flautist Kofi Burbridge. Some find the juxtaposition of guests to be chaotic but it works for me because the band gels with everyone: salsa star Rubén Blades, soul great Solomon Burke, blues singer and wife-to-be Susan Tedeschi, and Sufi singing master Rahat Fateh Ali Khan.
Soul Serenade (2003, ***) is a more laid-back effort than its predecessor (which it was recorded before). The title track was one of Duane Allman’s favorite tunes, and brother Gregg makes an appearance on Ray Charles’s “Drown in My Own Tears,” delivering one of his best vocal tracks of the new millennium.
Live at the Georgia Theatre (2004, ***) is a very representative live album.
Songlines (2006, ****) kicks off with a blast of righteous slide guitar on “Volunteered Slavery” and never really looks back.
Already Free (2009, ****) is a strong collection of focused, low-key Americana, with Doyle Bramhall II, Trucks’s wife, Susan Tedeschi, and other guests beginning to hint that Derek was looking past his longtime band. There’s a lot to love here, especially the gentle duet “Back Where I Started,” featuring Trucks on sarod and guitar and Tedeschi on vocals. It is a gorgeous love song.
Roadsongs (2010, ***) is a very solid double live album that is the Trucks Band’s swan song, as the guitarist had already moved on to the Tedeschi Trucks Band.
Tedeschi Trucks Band
Revelator (2011, ***) is a strong start for the new group, but the material does not sound fully gelled.
Live: Everybody’s Talking (2012, ***) is a double live from the TTB’s first full-length tour. All the music comes together here, hinting at what a powerful ensemble this group is becoming, though it remains curiously languid, leaving me longing to hear Derek open up and unwind.
On Made Up Mind (2013, ****), the TTB seem to find their groove: Strong, hard-driving R and B and material that feels better suited to the large ensemble.
Jaimoe’s Jassz Band
Double Down Grill, 1/28/06 (***) The Jassz Band was mostly a local Connecticut band at the time, not playing much original music, but highlighting Jaimoe’s swinging drum work and an evolving band with a horn section that alternated between accenting singer/guitarist Junior Mack and taking the melodic lead. The two-disc set starts out heavy on the blues, and then goes deep into jazz on set two, with versions of Wayne Shorter’s “Footprints,” Dizzy Gillespie’s “Night in Tunisia,” and a unique, horn-driven “In Memory of Elizabeth Reed.”
Ed Blackwell Memorial Concert 2/27/2008 (***) More straight-ahead jazz takes the fore at this show dedicated to one of Jaimoe’s jazz heroes, drummer Ed Blackwell, but Mack’s searing take on Curtis Mayfield’s “People Get Ready” is a highlight.
Renaissance Man (2011,****) is a fantastic collection of songs, with guitarist/singer/songwriter Junior Mack really stepping up and riding the groove created by Jaimoe’s swinging drumming, Bruce Katz’s keys, and a surging horn section playing terrific charts. This is a sleeper album in the Allman Brothers Band family tree.
Index
The index that appeared in the print version of this title does not match the pages in your e-book. Please use the search function on your e-reading device to search for terms of interest. For your reference, the terms that appear in the print index are listed below.
Abts, Matt
An Acoustic Evening with the Allman Brothers Band & the Indigo Girls
“Afro Blue”
“Ain’t Wastin’ Time No More”
Air travel
Alabama (State of) v. the Members of the Allman Brothers Band
Alaimo, Steve
Album covers
Allman Brothers Band
Brothers and Sisters
Eat a Peach
At Fillmore East
Win, Lose, or Draw
Albums
An Acoustic Evening with the Allman Brothers Band & the Indigo Girls
Allman Brothers Band
Already Free
American University 12/13/70
Atlanta’s Burning Down
Beginnings
Boston Common—Boston, MA 8/17/71
Brothers and Sisters
Brothers of the Road
Cats on the Coast
The Collectors #1
The Deep End
The Deep End, Vol. 1
The Deep End, Vol. 2
The Deepest End: Live in Concert
Deja Voodoo
The Derek Trucks Band
Dickey Betts and Great Southern
Dose
Double Down Grill, 1/28/06
Dreams
Duane and Gregg Allman
Eat a Peach
Ed Blackwell Memorial Concert 2/27/2008
On the Edge
Enlightened Rogues
An Evening with … Second Set
An Evening with the Allman Brothers Band, First Set
The Fillmore Concerts
At Fillmore East
The Gatlinburg Tapes
The Georgia Bootleg Box
Gov’t Mule
The Gregg Allman Tour
Hell and High Water
High and Mighty
Highway Call
Hittin’ the Note
Idlewild South
I’m No Angel
Joyful Noise
Just Before the Bullets Fly
Laid Back
The Layla Sessions and
Let’s Get Together
Life Before Insanity
Live at Bonnaroo
Live at Ludlow Garage
Live at Roseland Ballroom
Live at the Atlanta International Pop Festival July 3 & 5, 1970
Live at the Georgia Theatre
Live at the Moody Theater
Live at the Regal
Live: Everybody’s Talking
Live it at the Apollo
Live … with a Little Help from Our Friends
Long Walk on a Short Pier
Low Country Blues
Macon City Auditorium: 2/11/72
On Made Up Mind
Man in Motion
Mighty High
Motel Shot
Mulennium
Nassau Coliseum, Uniondale, NY, 5/1/73
One More Try
One Way Out: Live at the Beacon Theater
Out of the Madness
Pattern Disruptive
Peakin’ at the Beacon
Playin’ Up a Storm
Reach for the Sky
Renaissance Man
Revelator
The Road to Escondido
Roadsongs
Sea Level
Searching for Simplicity
Seven Turns
Shades of Two Worlds
Shout
Skydog: The Duane Allman Retrospective
Songlines
Soul Serenade
SUNY at StonyBrook: Stony Brook, NY 9/19/71
Tales of Ordinary Madness
By a Thread
Where It All Begins
Win, Lose, or Draw
Wipe the Windows, Check the Oil, Dollar Gas
Alcohol
Berry Oakley and
Dickey Betts and
Duane Allman and
Gregg Allman and
Ali, Muhammad
Alimony
Aliotta, Angelo
“All Blues”
“All My Friends”
Allman, Donna
after death of Duane Allman
Big House and
child support and
as mother of Duane Allman’s
daughter
separation from
Allman, Duane
Alabama drug bust and
birth of
burial of
death of
drugs and
dual-lead guitars and
leadership of
motorcycles and
rehab and
relationship with Dickey Betts
signing with Atlantic Records
songwriting and
still missing
teamwork and
wife of
Wilson Pickett and
Allman, Galadrielle
Allman, Geraldine
Allman, Gregg
acoustic guitar and
after death of Berry Oakley
after liver transplant
alcohol and
bad advice and
birth of
breakups of band and
Cher and
drugs and
Gregg Allman Band and
hepatitis and
induction into Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and
joining band
liver transplant and
loudness and
“Melissa” and
organ and
overdose of
rehab and
reunions of band and
Scooter Herring and
signing with Epic Records
sobriety and
solo albums of
songwriting and
stage fright and
touring without Dickey Betts and
vocals of
Win, Lose, or Draw and
Allman, Stacey Fountain
Allman, Willis Turner
Allman Brothers Band
Allman Brothers Band Museum
The Allman Joys
Already Free
American University 12/13/70
Amphetamine psychosis
Anastasio, Trey
Anniversary tours
“Anyday”
Aquarium Rescue Unit
Arbitration
Arista Records
Arrests. See also Murder of Angelo Aliotta
At Fillmore East
assessment of
recording of
Southern rock and
succcess of
Atlanta’s Burning Down