Review by Shawn Perry
In December, most of the concerts in Nashville carry a holiday theme. However, another tradition around this time of the year is to celebrate the music of the Allman Brothers Band. For the last eight years, The Allman Betts Family Revival has landed in Music City with an all-star cast to take you through the highlights of the legendary Southern Rock band’s catalog.
Once again, the sons of Allman Brothers Band co-founders Gregg Allman and Dickey Betts, Devon Allman and Duane Betts, respectively, and their own Allman Betts Band — guitarist Johnny Stachela, bassist Justin Corgan, keyboardist John Ginty, percussionist David Gomez, drummers John Lum and Alex Orbison (son of rock and roll pioneer Roy) — were joined by a cornucopia of guitar slingers, a fountain of veteran and aspiring singers, and other practitioners of the Blues, Americana, Country and Rock persuasion for a three-hour plus show.
For one of the last of a month-long tour, tonight’s show in Nashville (where both Duane and Gregg Allman were born) was the crown jewel of the whole run. In addition to the Allman Betts Band, Luther Dickinson, Cody Dickinson, Jimmy Hall, Anders Osborne, Larry McCray, Lindsay Lou, Jackie Greene, Lamar Williams, Jr., Robert Randolph, and Sierra Green, the Nashville roster was filled out by Sierra Hull, Jake Shimabukuro, Grace Bowers, Donovan Frankenreiter, John Moreland, Maggie Rose, and Slash.
It all began with a short warm-up by the Allman Betts Band, which segued into Devon Allman taking his place a Hammond organ to sing one of his father’s early songs, “It’s Not My Cross to Bear,” from the Allman Brothers Band’s 1969 self-titled debut album. It set a striking poignancy to the rest of the night. The first set focused primarily on the 1970s; the second more on the later years, with more than a few exceptions here and there.
A virtual assembly line of musicians joined or left the stage. Jimmy Hall, the Wet Willie singer who spent recent years touring with Jeff Beck, came up to sing and blow the harp on a wailing “Statesboro Blues.” Duane Betts took the reins on his father’s “Blue Sky,” handling the vocals and guitar, and trading a few licks with Luther Dickinson during the extended jam. This is first Allman Betts Family Revival tour since Dickey Betts passed away earlier this year on April 18. For his son to perform such a riveting tribute was something no one inside the Ryman would soon forget.
It being a rainy Monday night prompted Devon Allman to call an “audible” and bring out Blues veteran Larry McCray to sing T‐Bone Walker’s “Call It Stormy Monday (But Tuesday Is Just as Bad),” a frequent part of the Allmans’ repertoire. Jackie Greene came out to sing “Melissa,” then the players shifted around again with Nashville singer and songwriter Lindsey Lou, ukulele virtuoso Jake Shimabukuro, and 18-year-old Blues prodigy Grace Bowers armed with a Gibson SG all contributing to “Southbound.” California-based surfer-folkster-turned-country-singer Donovan Frankenreiter sang a buoyant “Jessica” to end the set.
It was during the second set where things started to heat up. McCray returned for rousing run throughs of “Good Clean Fun” and the crowd-pleasing “Soulshine,” which featured a ripping, albeit brief solo from Bowers. Then came time for some major guitar workouts. “In Memory Of Elizabeth Reed,” one of the Allmans’ most epic instrumentals found Betts and Luther Dickinson once again stretching out on every measure. Slash casually ambled up via stage left (most everyone else entered from stage right). As expected, the floor surged in anticipation of what was about to happen next.
Without so much an attitude, a wink or a smile, the Guns N’ Roses guitarist melded right in, first finding his way on Muddy Waters’ “Trouble No More.” With a guitar-wielding Devon Allman and pedal steel master Robert Randolph in tow, the three went for broke on “Dreams.” Once Randolph started jumping up and down on his instrument, Slash and Allman couldn’t help but throw their own lot into the fire as they peeled away the notes with reckless abandon. Seeing this and “Whipping Post,” this time Slash and Duane Betts working off each other while Jimmy Hall delivered a powerful vocal, couldn’t have been more a more appropriate to end the second set.
For the encore, singer Maggie Rose, who was out earlier for “No One to Run With,” returned to the stage for a moving duet with Damon Allman of Jackson Browne’s “These Days.” Covered by Gregg Allman on his 1973 debut solo album, Laid Back, the song was cut by Rose and Damon in 2022 as a tribute to the latter’s father. It might have been the night’s most beautiful number, a sobering splash to the face after a whirlwind of Southern-style guitar antics.
All the players assembled on stage for the grand finale of “Midnight Rider.” The room was buzzing with excitement as each musician responded to a shout-out with a lick, a kick or a wave to the crowd. Even Slash joined in on the fun. Having seen past Allman Betts Family Revival get-togethers, tonight in Nashville was one for the books. Imagine the possibilities if other Allman Brothers Band alumni had been on the bill. There’s always next year.
