The Allman Brothers Band: Live at the Beacon

I had the great pleasure a couple of Friday’s ago to see the Allman Brothers at The Beacon Theatre in NYC. The Allmans have played this venue every year since 1989 (except last year as they were supplanted by Circ du Soleil), basically camping out there every March for the entire month. This was my third time seeing the band- the second at The Beacon and their 200^th show there.

Recently restored, The Beacon Theatre is an optimal place to see The Allman Brothers these days. It is where Martin Scorcese filmed his documentary of  The Rolling Stones, “Shine A Light”. Originally built as a silent movie palace in the late 20’s and acoustically designed for the live accompaniment silent movies required, the neo-Grecian interior includes thirty-foot-tall goddesses flanking the stage, a huge, ornate thing hanging down from the ceiling and cool murals on either side depicting exotic trade ships, camels and turbaned Arabs.  The location is Broadway at 74^th St, across from the Beaux-Arts Ansonia Hotel, itself one of New York’s architectural and historical marvels.

With seating for 2900, The Beacon is similar in size to Bill Graham’s legendary Fillmore East, New York’s greatest rock venue, which closed in June ‘71. The Allman Brothers played the Fillmore East so many times they were considered the house band, honing their skills and broadening their audience in that final year before Duane Allman, their charismatic, slide guitar playing leader, died in a motorcycle accident. Their third album recorded in March of  ‘71, The Allman Brothers Band: At Fillmore East is arguably one of the greatest live albums of all time. In later years, the original double LP has been augmented by other material from these gigs. For me, the two-hour-plus deluxe CD version, including the live stuff which ended up their next album Eat A Peach, is the optimal way to hear this record.  It’s the best example of why they were among America’s best bands in the early Seventies.

Although long guitar solos were de rigueur when the Allman Brothers formed in 1969, two lead guitar players were virturally unheard of. But then Blind Faith, Eric Clapton’s band with Steve Winwood, released their only album, which opened with Had To Cry Today, a song in which the two guitarists played different lead solos at the same time. Duane Allman and Dicky Betts followed with the concept of playing the same lead lines in harmony, inventing the twin-lead concept.

The delta blues material they drew from in ’69, still largely unknown to young white audiences, was beginning to cross over big time and this was largely due to Clapton but also by the advent of Led Zeppelin that year. Authentic black blues artists were discovering white college audiences were a better market for them than playing blues clubs. In a few years the fired up jazzy blues rock the Allmans provided would have a huge influence, unintentionally inventing the Southern Rock idiom by spurring a host of southern boogie bands like The Marshall Tucker Band, The Charlie Daniels Band, Lynyrd Skynyrd and The Outlaws.

Like most great rock music, what the Allmans created was an amalgamation, and their particular thing was to mash up delta blues with the elongated melodic improvisations inspired  by Miles Davis and John Coltrane.  The guitar interplay between Duane Allman and Dicky Betts provided the focus, as they played over the rhythm bed provided by twin drummers (very rare) bass and organ.  This is true today with current guitarists Derek Trucks and Warren Haynes.  Each man an amazing player and band leader in his own right when they aren’t playing Allman gigs, these guys are really something to see- especially when they are together. Underneath these two soaring guitars is still an intense supporting bed of sound provided by Greg Allman’s Hammond B3 organ, bass and three (count them, three) drummers. Greg and drummers, Jaimo and Butch Trucks (Derek’s uncle) remain from the original band. Original bass player Berry Oakley was killed a year after Duane in yet another tragic motorcycle accident. Although these guys are in their mid-sixties now Butch “freight train” Trucks still puts out 110%.

In 1970 the local NYC PBS station filmed a few concerts at the Fillmore East, and the eventual TV broadcast gave high school kids like me who lived far from NYC a rare taste of what the Fillmore was about. I was blown away by the chance to see Albert King, Van Morrison and The Byrds on this show. What we couldn’t know at the time was The Allman Brothers were filmed, but cut from the final program, perhaps because they were largely unknown. Luckily this footage is available on YouTube. Here is the original band with Duane (sunburst Gibson Les Paul), Dicky Betts (red Gibson SG) and Berry Oakley on bass:

A month after the the classic third album was recorded, I made my one pilgrimage to The Fillmore East. Procol Harem was playing the night I was there. Attempts to see the Grateful Dead the week before were unsuccessful, their four nights a sell out. Too bad as these April ‘71 shows were amazing.

Coming off this latest Allman Brothers show, which was incredible, I have spent the past few weeks saturating myself with The Allman Brothers, Derek & The Dominos and The Derek Trucks Band.  To have a saner family life, Derek put his main band down and regrouped with his wife Susan into the Tedeschi-Trucks Band. I urge any of you to see these guys when they come around this summer. I saw them open for Jeff Beck last June and am enjoying their work from DVD’s of the Clapton Crossroads Guitar Festivals from 2007 and 2010. Derek’s solo material ranges from Derek and the Dominos and Delaney and Bonnie tunes circa 1970 to John Coltrane songs like Afro Blue to original material with Pakistani and East Indian influences.

Here is a 9 minute version of “Dreams” from a Beacon show in 2003 which shows in long form how Derek crafts a solo. They did a killer version of this the night I saw them.

Here is Derek’s solo on a Greg Allman-Warren Haynes song “Rockin’ Horse” played at the Beacon in 2003.

Here is The Tedeschi Trucks Band along with Warren Haynes doing a smokin’ version of the old Delaney and Bonnie song “Comin’ Home” a the Crossroads Festival in Chicago 2010:

Here is kid prodigy Derek opening for The Allman Brothers when he was 13! This clip is not to be missed.

Finally, here is the set list from March 25th, the next to last night of this years Beacon run. . .

1.  Trouble No More
2.  Midnight Rider
3.  Who to Believe
4.  Rocking Horse
5.  Statesboro Blues
6.  Sailin’ ‘Cross The Devil’s Sea
7.  Egypt
8.  Turn On Your Love Light (with Col. Bruce Hampton, vocals; Duane Trucks,drums)
9.  Leave My Blues at Home

Set II
10.  Dreams
11.  Come and Go Blues
12.  Worried Down With The Blues
13.  Anyday (with Susan Tedeschi, vocals)

14.  In Memory of Elizabeth Reed (with Oz Noy, guitar)
Encore
15.  Into The Mystic

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