ALLMAN BROTHERS BAND | 04.07 | NYC

Listen to The Allman Brothers Band on Rhapsody…

Words by: Rich Lieberman :: Images by: Robert Chapman

Allman Brothers Band :: 04.07.07 :: Beacon Theatre :: New York, NY

Trucks & Burbridge – ABB :: 04.07 :: Beacon

When the Fillmore East closed its doors in June 1971, the Allman Brothers Band was the last band to perform. The recording of these shows, At Fillmore East, is one of the greatest live albums to ever be released. For the past 13 years the Allman Brothers have returned to NYC for an annual residency at the Beacon Theatre, a fantastic, art-deco treasure on the upper West Side. Fans from around the world come each March to experience improvisational rock & roll like what the Brothers played in 1971. Step inside the three-tiered 2,300-capacity Beacon’s huge bronze doors and you find incredible murals, 30-foot Greek statues, marble floors, and ornate moldings.

Allman & Haynes – ABB :: 04.07 :: Beacon

This was the 15th show of 16 sold out nights (14 at the Beacon and one special show at Irving Plaza) and my fifth show in the run. The previous evening was Warren Haynes‘ Birthday and they held a great party. Tonight, they were locked in immediately on opener “I Walk on Gilded Splinters” (by Dr. John of course). The set quickly built momentum on “Rocking Horse,” with Derek Trucks and Haynes dueling to a massive crescendo. Haynes has truly taken to his role as stage leader, which has allowed Trucks to really step up and shine.

Trucks & McCray :: 04.07 :: Beacon

Stepping towards the front of the stage, bassist Oteil Burbridge showed some great vocals on Jim Hendrix’s “Manic Depression.” Next, Haynes introduced former New York Yankee All-Star and critically acclaimed musician Bernie Williams. He did a remarkable job on Howlin’ Wolf’s “Who’s Been Talking,” taking two sweet solos before leaving the stage. As he left, Butch Trucks used a drumstick to take a big swing to signify Williams had just hit one out of the park.

Blues guitar master Larry McCray joined the fun for the first set closer. McCray was in town to play with Phil Lesh‘s Friends and lent a nice touch to “Statesboro Blues,” where the three axe men did a round robin of solos that left people shaking their heads.

Haynes, Jaimoe , C. Neville, Nocentelli :: 04.07

After a short break, Haynes said, “We’ve got a treat for you tonight. We’re going to bring out some special guests for a few tunes.” With that, Leo Nocentelli and Cyril Neville of The Meters came out for a mini set backed by Gov’t Mule. That’s right, Haynes, Matt Abts, Danny Louis and Andy Hess. The crowd loved this impromptu jam session. Nocentelli looked fly in his shades as he led the band through “Fiyo On The Bayou” and “Hey Pocky Way.” It was a funky good time that had the Beacon shakin’ like it was Jazz Fest.

Abts, Hess, Randolph, Nocentelli :: 04.07

After the Meters-Mule meltdown, the set continued with the Allman Brothers Band building and building on what had already been an amazing night. Long gorgeous jams and amazing solos wove through “Dreams” and “Mountain Jam,” which mixed jazzy fusion with rocking slide licks. Then, out of nowhere, they flew into a hard version of Led Zeppelin’s “Dazed & Confused.” The band’s ability to move improvisationally is endlessly impressive. Their take on the old Zep classic was breathtaking before swinging back into “Mountain Jam” without missing a beat.

There was a lot of movement by the stagehands before the encore, most notable the addition of a pedal steel guitar to the stage. Robert Randolph joined them for an impressive “Lovelight” encore, adding the proverbial cherry to one hell of a night. From top-to-bottom, after 16 nights in a row, the Allman Brothers Band showed why they own NYC for about three weeks every year.

04.07.07 | Beacon Theatre | New York, NY
Set 1: I Walk On Guilded Splinters, Every Hungry Woman, Rocking Horse, Gamblers Roll, Manic Depression, Who’s Been Talking, Statesboro Blues
Set 2: Fiyo On The Bayou, Hey Pocky Way, Don’t Want You No More, Dreams, Oteil Scat > Derek Bass > Drums, Mountain Jam > Dazed and Confused > Mountain Jam
Encore: Lovelight

Continue reading for JamBase’s exclusive interview with Gregg Allman…

Interview by: Martin Halo

JamBase: What originally made you fall in love with music?

Gregg Allman by Dino Perrucci

Allman: I don’t really know. I guess like it says in the Bible, it soothes the savage beast. Music is a universal language that can take you back to a time that you’d like to go back and remember. You must have heard a song before that reminded you of an old girlfriend or a place that you once were at a time in your life. When you hear a real old song it will take you back. Can you imagine a world without music?

JamBase: It would be a very sad place.

Allman: It really would.

Did you grow up in a musical household?

No.

Then how did you end up getting exposed to music?

I don’t know. All my kids are musically inclined. My dad could sing. My two uncles could sing pretty well, but as far as them playing an instrument, no. I even went back when my grandmother was alive to kind of pick her brain. This was probably in the late ’70s or early ’80s before she died. From what she said, there were people in the Allman Family that preached or what have you, and then there were people who made whiskey [laughs]. No musicians though.

The spirit to make music had to come from somewhere. Some people would say it came from an outlet like the church. Were records significant to you?

Haynes & Allman by Dino Perrucci

It kind of just happened little by little by little. When I first picked up a guitar I had absolutely no inclination whatsoever of being in a band. It never crossed my mind. All I wanted to do was mess with that guitar because it really brought me a lot of happiness. If I was down about something, well, when in doubt play. It’s too bad that everybody doesn’t have that kind of a failsafe mechanism. I could have heartache or I could be bummed out and all I had to do was sit down at the piano or pick up a guitar and play a while and I would be all right. It’s a diversion away from anything that is bothering the heart.

The Allman Brothers are known for taking rock ‘n’ roll out of the three-minute box, opening it up and exploring in a way that all those jazz cats were doing at the time. Can you describe how that styling came about?

It all came down to spontaneity. When you start playing and jamming on a tune things start happening, real magical things. You suddenly are not going to just end the song, you’re going to keep playing it and playing it. From that came the real long jams that the Allman Brothers do and are known for.

Were you listening to jazz artists like Cannonball Adderley, Thelonious Monk, Sonny Rollins or Miles Davis?

Gregg Allman by Dino Perrucci

Absolutely. We had everything from the Father, Son and the Holy Ghost to Stanley Turrentine through a whole lot of Roland Kirk and Leon Thomas. Everybody kind of brought their own music that they liked. So, when we got our first bus – if you could call it a bus – everyone was listening to the same kind of music. We were all trapped in there together [laughs]. On the way to the gig we were listening to all this jazz and everything, and that’s where all the influential stuff started happening.

Was there anything that was particularly appealing to you about the scene in the late ’60s?

The only time that I looked at rock ‘n’ roll and said, “That is what it is not about” was when everybody had teased-up blond hair and black leather pants on. It was like the uniform of the day [laughs]. It has never been a fashion show for us. That’s not part of it. It’s just the music.

Were there any ideals that were important to you personally in the early ’70s? Did you want to have an influence on American music?

There wasn’t much projecting like, “If we keep doing this we’ll wind up on the Billboard Hot 100.” There was never any talk of that because we have never been there or really knew about that stuff. What a lasting musician has going for them is passion. We had passion for the music and we kept that. As long as you got that it will make you want to go out and play. It will make you want to go out and learn new stuff. And, it will make you better yourself. When that stops you’ve had it, you’re finished, you’re done, it’s over, goodbye. That passion hasn’t nearly stopped for us.

Can you describe what the scene in Georgia was in the early days of the band?

Butch Trucks – ABB :: 04.07 :: Beacon

Back then it seemed like everybody that got into the music business and made any headway immediately moved to New York or Los Angeles. So, consequently everybody thought that all the music came out of those two places. I am sure that they didn’t think that all the people were born or raised in New York or L.A. but those were the two hubs of the entertainment world. Most of The Band was from the South. A person figuring them for being New Yorkers was bullshit because half of them were from the South. Levon Helm was from Arkansas. As if you couldn’t tell from just talking to him!

How do you feel the music industry has changed?

A whole bunch of different facets of it have changed. You got your CDs now instead of LPs, so you don’t have any large pictures to look at. Also, a book came with your record, and if not a book at least you had the foldout that you could read the words and liner notes and what have you. They got smaller and smaller and smaller and now it’s the iPod and nobody knows shit about the damn artist. They just download it and that’s it. I really like this cat Ray LaMontagne. Now somebody will download his music and will never know anything about the guy. I have never met him but Warren Haynes knows him and was telling me about him. I would love to meet him and play with him sometime, just work with the guy. I love his voice. I love his attack. It’s not a direct attack, and he kind of comes around and caresses your soul with his lyrics.

Do you feel the iPod actually limits the voice of the artist, especially if people are just going to download a song or two off the record?

Derek Trucks – ABB :: 04.07 :: Beacon

I would like to think in the long run it’s going to be better because there are so many different ways to listen to music these days. It is everywhere and that is a good thing. But, the piracy that is going on is not a good thing. Now it’s getting into films. Where the hell would films be without music? Do you know what film people would say? Where the hell would music be without films? Shit.

Do you feel there is still a standard of integrity in rock ‘n’ roll?

You have to look for it. I am not going to mention any names but if I had to start all over today I think I would take on a different kind of work [and] just play and sing for my own enjoyment. It would depend what other kind of passions I have going on. I was going to be a dentist before all of this started. It really amazed me how many different diseases you could get from yourself just having a tooth that has gone bad. Swallowing all that juice from a bad tooth could give you everything from acne to syphilis.

Really?

Gregg Allman by Tobin Voggesser

You could die from a bad tooth. Great men from long ago, before there were dentists, [died] like Alexander the Great. Didn’t he die of an abscessed tooth or something like that [laughs]?

I was wondering if you felt the ethics of musicians have slipped with each passing generation?

A musician is going to want to go out there and play. Who wants to go out there a lip-sync? Good God, either you want to play or you don’t want to play.

There is a program in Pro Tools that keeps a voice in key. How do you feel about people using studio devices to tune their voice?

No, no, no. You are either hitting the note or you are not. I have heard of some people – and I was kind of disappointed – [using] this machine that keeps you right on key even if you are off, and I think that it’s bullshit.

The major music media outlets like MTV, VH1, and Rolling Stone have lost their credibility for advancing innovative art. Do you feel that media outlets and journalists are doing their job?

Gregg Allman :: 04.07 :: Beacon

No, they are not [referring to Rolling Stone]. They got politics in there and all kinds of shit. I remember when Rolling Stone was really a music magazine. Then they started to get into the clothes, then all the anti-war stuff and now you have to dig around to find some music. They still do some good stuff, don’t get me wrong, but I don’t buy it or read it.

Are there any publications that you do read?

MOJO is a good one. Relix is a good one. There are two or three others I pick up but I don’t have a subscription to any of that crap. The media should think about and be a little bit more considerate to the people that they are talking about because it seems like they are only in it for the buck. Not all media. There is always something that’s an exception to the rule. There is good media and there’s bad media, but a lot of it is bad. It’s like people want to hear bad news.

Do you guys plan to stay on the road and work through the summer?

Far as I know. God willing and the creek don’t rise.

JamBase | NYC
Go See Live Music!