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One Way Out Lib/E: The Inside History of the Allman Brothers Band
One Way Out is the powerful biography of The Allman Brothers Band, an oral history written with the band's participation and filled with original, never-before-published interviews as well as personal letters and correspondence. This is the most in-depth look at a legendary American rock band that has meant so much to so many for so long.
For twenty-five years, Alan Paul has covered The Allman Brothers Band, conducting hundreds of interviews, riding the buses with them, attending rehearsals and countless shows. He has interviewed every living band member for this book as well as managers, roadies, and contemporaries, including Gregg Allman, Dickey Betts, Jaimoe, Butch Trucks, Warren Haynes, Derek Trucks, Oteil Burbridge, the late Allen Woody, Jimmy Herring, Eric Clapton, Bob Weir, and many others.
Tracking the band's career from their 1969 formation to today, One Way Out is filled with musical and cultural insights, riveting tales of sometimes violent personality conflicts and betrayals, drug and alcohol use, murder allegations and exoneration, tragic early deaths, road stories, and much more, including the most in-depth look at the acrimonious 2000 parting with founding guitarist Dickey Betts and behind-the-scenes information on the recording of At Fillmore East, Layla, Eat a Peach, Brothers and Sisters, and other classic albums.
For twenty-five years, Alan Paul has covered The Allman Brothers Band, conducting hundreds of interviews, riding the buses with them, attending rehearsals and countless shows. He has interviewed every living band member for this book as well as managers, roadies, and contemporaries, including Gregg Allman, Dickey Betts, Jaimoe, Butch Trucks, Warren Haynes, Derek Trucks, Oteil Burbridge, the late Allen Woody, Jimmy Herring, Eric Clapton, Bob Weir, and many others.
Tracking the band's career from their 1969 formation to today, One Way Out is filled with musical and cultural insights, riveting tales of sometimes violent personality conflicts and betrayals, drug and alcohol use, murder allegations and exoneration, tragic early deaths, road stories, and much more, including the most in-depth look at the acrimonious 2000 parting with founding guitarist Dickey Betts and behind-the-scenes information on the recording of At Fillmore East, Layla, Eat a Peach, Brothers and Sisters, and other classic albums.
Audio CD
First published May 21, 2012
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About the author
Alan Paul
28 books103 followersAlan Paul's last two books have been instant New York Times bestsellers: One Way Out: The Inside History of the Allman Brothers Band, and Texas Flood: the Inside Story of Stevie Ray Vaughan. The latter has been optioned and is being developed for both documentary and feature films. His first book, Big in China: My Unlikely Adventures Raising a Family, Playing the Blues, and Becoming a Star in Beijing, is about his experiences raising an American family, forming a band and becoming an unlikely rock star in Beijing.
He also founded Friends of the Brothers, the premier celebration of the music of the Allman Brothers Band, featuring members of the Dickey Betts, Jaimoe and Gregg Allman bands. He is a regular guest on radio shows and a frequent contributor to The Wall Street Journal, Guitar World, and other publications. He lives in New Jersey with his wife, Rebecca Blumenstein. They have three children.
Please visit www.alanpaul.net or www.facebook.com/alanpaulauthor.
He also founded Friends of the Brothers, the premier celebration of the music of the Allman Brothers Band, featuring members of the Dickey Betts, Jaimoe and Gregg Allman bands. He is a regular guest on radio shows and a frequent contributor to The Wall Street Journal, Guitar World, and other publications. He lives in New Jersey with his wife, Rebecca Blumenstein. They have three children.
Please visit www.alanpaul.net or www.facebook.com/alanpaulauthor.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 164 reviews
June 12, 2023
The Allman Brothers is one of those bands with just a handful of songs I like, but has an extremely interesting backstory. Imagine a band launched in the sixties fronted by two brothers that finally hits the big time only to lose their most important member, lead guitarist and unquestioned leader Duane Allman, to a motorcycle accident at the age of twenty-four. Surviving brother Gregg Allman is the keyboardist/organist, lead singer and songwriter, but has no desire whatsoever to lead/make any major decisions for the band. Just a year later the band is struck again by an eerily similar tragedy with the motorcycle accident death of treasured bassist and founding member Berry Oakley. This is when remaining lead guitarist Dickey Betts stepped up, becoming the band's defacto leader, even while retaining the band name "The Allman Brothers".
The band survived for decades, well into the 2000s with a revolving door of band members, but with mainstays Gregg Allman, drummers Butch Trucks and Jaimoe, and the amazing inclusion of Butch Truck's nephew Derek Trucks who was a child prodigy on lead guitar, often reminding Gregg Allman so very much of his late brother Duane. Derek joined the band at the tender age of 19.
The book is written in oral history format, where the band members, friends and business personnel tell the story in their own words, with a Foreward by drummer Butch Trucks and an Afterward by the other drummer Jaimoe. This was a truly excellent biography by author Alan Paul. I often stopped to sample Allman Brothers songs such as "Melissa", "Blue Sky", "Midnight Rider" and "Jessica" as their song creations were described in the book.
The band survived for decades, well into the 2000s with a revolving door of band members, but with mainstays Gregg Allman, drummers Butch Trucks and Jaimoe, and the amazing inclusion of Butch Truck's nephew Derek Trucks who was a child prodigy on lead guitar, often reminding Gregg Allman so very much of his late brother Duane. Derek joined the band at the tender age of 19.
The book is written in oral history format, where the band members, friends and business personnel tell the story in their own words, with a Foreward by drummer Butch Trucks and an Afterward by the other drummer Jaimoe. This was a truly excellent biography by author Alan Paul. I often stopped to sample Allman Brothers songs such as "Melissa", "Blue Sky", "Midnight Rider" and "Jessica" as their song creations were described in the book.
April 24, 2019
Please note that all reviews posted here are for a different book. The Ebook edition was a shell of what is being released by St. Martin's on February 18.
The new book is five times longer and will have 150 photographs.
The new book is five times longer and will have 150 photographs.
December 11, 2014
I have never listened to the Allman Brothers, having come of age musically in the early 90s with the Seattle scene, but I often enjoy music biographies, and found this one to be a very informative and enjoyable read.
I was aware that tragedy had surrounded the band over the years, and also knew that 'Almost Famous', the Cameron Crowe film, was based on his experiences touring as a journalist with the Allman Brothers, but the extent to which death and demons associated with drug and alcohol abuse have blighted the band is frightening. The fact that they lasted 45 years, before playing their last show in October 2014 (after the book was published), albeit in many different forms and with a massive change in pace in the latter years, is phenomenal.
I doubt, despite having the entire back catalogue of the band available on Spotify, that reading the book will encourage me to listen to the band, but I'm glad that I took the chance with this Audible Daily Deal, and would recommend this book to anyone with an interest like mine in the musical biography genre.
I was aware that tragedy had surrounded the band over the years, and also knew that 'Almost Famous', the Cameron Crowe film, was based on his experiences touring as a journalist with the Allman Brothers, but the extent to which death and demons associated with drug and alcohol abuse have blighted the band is frightening. The fact that they lasted 45 years, before playing their last show in October 2014 (after the book was published), albeit in many different forms and with a massive change in pace in the latter years, is phenomenal.
I doubt, despite having the entire back catalogue of the band available on Spotify, that reading the book will encourage me to listen to the band, but I'm glad that I took the chance with this Audible Daily Deal, and would recommend this book to anyone with an interest like mine in the musical biography genre.
May 19, 2020
People are a little surprised that I like reading books about rock stars. I am largely into classical literature and biography, but I also am very interested in the entertainment industry. Not so much as a screaming fan, although I'm not above that, but because I like to get inside what makes a musician tick, how do they write their music, how did they arrive at national, international success.
I think people, or maybe just me, think of rock musicians as uneducated people that got discovered at a bar. That has not really turned out to be true with most of the biographies I've read, so far, maybe with the exception of the Sex Pistols, who literally were taken off the streets of East London. They didn't last long either, except Johnny Rotten, who showed himself to be both intelligent and creative.
The Allman brothers could easily be dismissed the same way: just a bunch of good ol'boys from the South. Actually these were a group of highly intelligent, highly creative young men who worked their rear ends off. They practiced countless hours every day, honing their craft. They knew their cultural history, the history of the blues.
They were also progressive for their time. They played what back then was considered "black" music and had black members in their band.
It was very interesting to me to read how they wrote their music and put the sounds together on their instruments, how they learned to play off of each other, take turns with the solos.
It is also interesting, though tragic, how drugs were such an ingrained part of the group's culture. The mastermind behind the group was Duane Allman. Success was short for him, dying from a motorcycle wreck at the age of 24. The next year the bassist also died in a motorcycle wreck.
We read about the struggle Gregg Allman and Dickey Betts had with drugs and alcohol. Dickey was eventually booted from the band. Gregg struggled with his demons until after several rehabs, a liver transplant, and finally a live in nurse later, he seemed to conquer them for a few years before he finally died in 1917 of liver cancer. But he was still giving concerts until shortly before his death.
Maybe he couldn't imagine doing anything else. Rock on till you can't.
The band forged on. They had their peaks, their declines, but still they marched on. I cannot believe how much energy these guys had, performing even into their sixties, not only with each other, but they had their own side bands they also toured with. It made me tired just to read about it.
This book is largely based on first hand interviews and reports, each member and others associated with the band, telling their life and history of the Allman Brothers from their own personal experience and perspective.
I think people, or maybe just me, think of rock musicians as uneducated people that got discovered at a bar. That has not really turned out to be true with most of the biographies I've read, so far, maybe with the exception of the Sex Pistols, who literally were taken off the streets of East London. They didn't last long either, except Johnny Rotten, who showed himself to be both intelligent and creative.
The Allman brothers could easily be dismissed the same way: just a bunch of good ol'boys from the South. Actually these were a group of highly intelligent, highly creative young men who worked their rear ends off. They practiced countless hours every day, honing their craft. They knew their cultural history, the history of the blues.
They were also progressive for their time. They played what back then was considered "black" music and had black members in their band.
It was very interesting to me to read how they wrote their music and put the sounds together on their instruments, how they learned to play off of each other, take turns with the solos.
It is also interesting, though tragic, how drugs were such an ingrained part of the group's culture. The mastermind behind the group was Duane Allman. Success was short for him, dying from a motorcycle wreck at the age of 24. The next year the bassist also died in a motorcycle wreck.
We read about the struggle Gregg Allman and Dickey Betts had with drugs and alcohol. Dickey was eventually booted from the band. Gregg struggled with his demons until after several rehabs, a liver transplant, and finally a live in nurse later, he seemed to conquer them for a few years before he finally died in 1917 of liver cancer. But he was still giving concerts until shortly before his death.
Maybe he couldn't imagine doing anything else. Rock on till you can't.
The band forged on. They had their peaks, their declines, but still they marched on. I cannot believe how much energy these guys had, performing even into their sixties, not only with each other, but they had their own side bands they also toured with. It made me tired just to read about it.
This book is largely based on first hand interviews and reports, each member and others associated with the band, telling their life and history of the Allman Brothers from their own personal experience and perspective.
September 2, 2014
First, a personal anecdote: On 3/20/14, on the eve of the release of Alan Paul's masterful oral biography of the Allman Brothers Band, "One Way Out," I attended a book signing and interview at NYC's 82nd St. Barnes & Noble (just eight blocks north of the band's home away from home, the Beacon Theatre), with both the author and ABB drummer/co-founder Jaimoe in attendance. After a fascinating talk by the two, I waited in line to get my book signed, and in short order was standing in front of Jaimoe himself. "You know," I said to him, "I've been a fan of the band for around 45 years and have seen you in concert over a dozen times, but this is the first time I've ever heard you talk." Jaimoe then gave me a slow smile and responded, "You weren't listening." I must have looked a mite confused, as Alan Paul quickly explained, "He's referring to his drumming." I relate this story to illustrate the rather jazzlike notion that Jaimoe was conveying that night; the idea of communicating thoughts nonverbally through one's chosen instrument. And indeed, the ABB has always, if one thinks back, taken the theories of jazz and applied them to its distinctive "Southern rock" (a term that ABB guitarist Dickey Betts apparently hates, the book reveals) sound; as longtime ABB producer Tom Dowd puts it, "They swing like they're playing jazz when they play things that are tangential to the blues, and even when they play heavy rock."
As I mentioned, Paul's book takes the form of an oral biography, and Jaimoe, Betts and Dowd are only three of the 60 people--band members past and present, crew, friends, managers, fellow musicians--who the author interviewed during its preparation. Thus, the long and complicated history of the band is related by these five dozen folks, with each paragraph comprised of a comment of one or the other. It is a very effective and compelling way to move the story along; the reader compulsively turns page after page, wanting to know what each person says next. Memory, of course, is a tricky and elusive thing, especially after four decades of drug-addled touring, and so, when one anecdote contradicts the words of another interviewee, Paul wisely juxtaposes the two (or sometimes three) conflicting tales, "Rashomon" style, and lets the reader make up his or her own mind. (As Jaimoe says somewhere, "...hindsight ain't always 20/20. History is complicated and everyone sees it differently....") Thus, we get competing stories regarding Gregg Allman's method of journeying from California to initially join the band, and the manner in which Betts managed to create his classic instrumental "Jessica." (Fortunately, these conflicting tales do not arise too often!) Paul is anything but sensationalistic in his book, and seems to only include details and stories that further his history of the band itself; the details of the personal lives of the band members are only included insofar as they affect that story. For example, Gregg's relationship with and four-year marriage to Cher is given a one-sentence passing reference; those wishing to know the "juicy" facts might be advised to pick up Gregg's autobiography "My Cross to Bear." Thus, it comes as something of a shock when, on page 316, a mention is made of Gregg's sixth wife; we'd never even been told of wives one through five! Still, the book is hardly a dry affair, and contains stories that the most imaginative of novelists could hardly have dreamed up. The ABB, of course, has had any number of setbacks and triumphs during its legendary career, and Paul's biography clues us in on them all, from the mouths of the folks who lived them. The book covers the ABB's earliest beginnings in Jacksonville, details the group's first successes, tells the tragic tales of the back-to-back losses of Duane Allman and Berry Oakley, and proceeds to the band's enormous mid-'70s popularity, drug problems, dissolution, reunions, personnel changes and so on...all the way to the March 2013 residency at the Beacon. In addition to all the truly remarkable anecdotes (would you believe that the two artists from Wonder Graphics who created the psychedelic interior gatefold spread for the "Eat a Peach" album did so in a single day?!?!), there are any number of priceless quotes that the reader will likely want to highlight; for example, I love Duane's comment to the band, just before its first flush of popularity: "Boys, we're going to be farting through velvet underwear." And howzabout these words from Gregg, regarding his performance philosophy: "You want to come out and get the audience in the palm of your hand right away...You can't be namby-pamby; you can't be milquetoast with the audience." I love it! The entire book is like that, one wonderful quote or anecdote after another, interspersed with commentary or sidebars from the author himself (who writes extremely well, as these sidebars reveal). The book is undoubtedly a complete success, a mother lode of fascinating information for all fans of this great music institution, and its author (a genuinely nice man, if my short conversation with him is any indication, and a decades-old fan of the band himself) is to be congratulated on a job well done.
Usually, with these lengthy biographies, I somehow manage to discern, through a careful and nitpicking perusal, some errors of fact, but in Paul's book, happily, such errors are at a minimum, and mostly confined to the type of mistake that a good proofreader or copy editor should have caught. For example, the Coricidin bottle that Duane used as a slide is repeatedly spelled "Coricidian." The song "Sailin' 'Cross the Devil's Sea" is given here as "Sailing Across the Devil's Sea"; likewise, "Rockin' Horse" is presented as "Rocking Horse." Several place names are misspelled (it is Owings Mills, Maryland, not "Mill," and Horseheads, NY, not "Horsesheads"); artist Hieronymus Bosch did not spell his name "Hieronymous"; and Dicky Betts' mentor is given as both "Stuart" Etsitty and "Stewart" Etsitty (don't ask ME which is correct!). Also, the Great Woods Amphitheatre was not in Boston, but rather in Mansfield, a good 35 miles away. Perhaps more egregious, though, is the photo of Derek Trucks on page 355 with the photo caption listing him as Butch Trucks, and the fact that, although Paul provides his readers with the invaluable service of rating and ranking every one of the ABB and side-project albums at the book's conclusion, one ABB item has been curiously omitted: the 1979 reunion album "Enlightened Rogues." Still, as I say, this is mere nitpicking, and these minor flubs should in no wise detract from anyone's appreciation for or enjoyment of this heartfelt labor of manifest love.
As I write these words, the 45-year history of the ABB would seem to be drawing to a close, with the October 2014 shows at the Beacon, supposedly, the final hurrah for the band. As Derek says in the book, "...this lineup is the way it's going to go out, whenever that time comes." After so many breakups, reunions and personnel changes, though, the future of this particular band is certainly never written in stone. But if this year really SHOULD mark the end of the Allman Brothers Band, a reading of Paul's biography would seem to be the perfect way to both celebrate and examine its glorious career. It is truly a must-read for all fans. And, oh...one other thing...does anybody out there have a spare ticket in the loge for any of the Beacon shows?
As I mentioned, Paul's book takes the form of an oral biography, and Jaimoe, Betts and Dowd are only three of the 60 people--band members past and present, crew, friends, managers, fellow musicians--who the author interviewed during its preparation. Thus, the long and complicated history of the band is related by these five dozen folks, with each paragraph comprised of a comment of one or the other. It is a very effective and compelling way to move the story along; the reader compulsively turns page after page, wanting to know what each person says next. Memory, of course, is a tricky and elusive thing, especially after four decades of drug-addled touring, and so, when one anecdote contradicts the words of another interviewee, Paul wisely juxtaposes the two (or sometimes three) conflicting tales, "Rashomon" style, and lets the reader make up his or her own mind. (As Jaimoe says somewhere, "...hindsight ain't always 20/20. History is complicated and everyone sees it differently....") Thus, we get competing stories regarding Gregg Allman's method of journeying from California to initially join the band, and the manner in which Betts managed to create his classic instrumental "Jessica." (Fortunately, these conflicting tales do not arise too often!) Paul is anything but sensationalistic in his book, and seems to only include details and stories that further his history of the band itself; the details of the personal lives of the band members are only included insofar as they affect that story. For example, Gregg's relationship with and four-year marriage to Cher is given a one-sentence passing reference; those wishing to know the "juicy" facts might be advised to pick up Gregg's autobiography "My Cross to Bear." Thus, it comes as something of a shock when, on page 316, a mention is made of Gregg's sixth wife; we'd never even been told of wives one through five! Still, the book is hardly a dry affair, and contains stories that the most imaginative of novelists could hardly have dreamed up. The ABB, of course, has had any number of setbacks and triumphs during its legendary career, and Paul's biography clues us in on them all, from the mouths of the folks who lived them. The book covers the ABB's earliest beginnings in Jacksonville, details the group's first successes, tells the tragic tales of the back-to-back losses of Duane Allman and Berry Oakley, and proceeds to the band's enormous mid-'70s popularity, drug problems, dissolution, reunions, personnel changes and so on...all the way to the March 2013 residency at the Beacon. In addition to all the truly remarkable anecdotes (would you believe that the two artists from Wonder Graphics who created the psychedelic interior gatefold spread for the "Eat a Peach" album did so in a single day?!?!), there are any number of priceless quotes that the reader will likely want to highlight; for example, I love Duane's comment to the band, just before its first flush of popularity: "Boys, we're going to be farting through velvet underwear." And howzabout these words from Gregg, regarding his performance philosophy: "You want to come out and get the audience in the palm of your hand right away...You can't be namby-pamby; you can't be milquetoast with the audience." I love it! The entire book is like that, one wonderful quote or anecdote after another, interspersed with commentary or sidebars from the author himself (who writes extremely well, as these sidebars reveal). The book is undoubtedly a complete success, a mother lode of fascinating information for all fans of this great music institution, and its author (a genuinely nice man, if my short conversation with him is any indication, and a decades-old fan of the band himself) is to be congratulated on a job well done.
Usually, with these lengthy biographies, I somehow manage to discern, through a careful and nitpicking perusal, some errors of fact, but in Paul's book, happily, such errors are at a minimum, and mostly confined to the type of mistake that a good proofreader or copy editor should have caught. For example, the Coricidin bottle that Duane used as a slide is repeatedly spelled "Coricidian." The song "Sailin' 'Cross the Devil's Sea" is given here as "Sailing Across the Devil's Sea"; likewise, "Rockin' Horse" is presented as "Rocking Horse." Several place names are misspelled (it is Owings Mills, Maryland, not "Mill," and Horseheads, NY, not "Horsesheads"); artist Hieronymus Bosch did not spell his name "Hieronymous"; and Dicky Betts' mentor is given as both "Stuart" Etsitty and "Stewart" Etsitty (don't ask ME which is correct!). Also, the Great Woods Amphitheatre was not in Boston, but rather in Mansfield, a good 35 miles away. Perhaps more egregious, though, is the photo of Derek Trucks on page 355 with the photo caption listing him as Butch Trucks, and the fact that, although Paul provides his readers with the invaluable service of rating and ranking every one of the ABB and side-project albums at the book's conclusion, one ABB item has been curiously omitted: the 1979 reunion album "Enlightened Rogues." Still, as I say, this is mere nitpicking, and these minor flubs should in no wise detract from anyone's appreciation for or enjoyment of this heartfelt labor of manifest love.
As I write these words, the 45-year history of the ABB would seem to be drawing to a close, with the October 2014 shows at the Beacon, supposedly, the final hurrah for the band. As Derek says in the book, "...this lineup is the way it's going to go out, whenever that time comes." After so many breakups, reunions and personnel changes, though, the future of this particular band is certainly never written in stone. But if this year really SHOULD mark the end of the Allman Brothers Band, a reading of Paul's biography would seem to be the perfect way to both celebrate and examine its glorious career. It is truly a must-read for all fans. And, oh...one other thing...does anybody out there have a spare ticket in the loge for any of the Beacon shows?
July 5, 2019
ONE WAY OUT: THE INSIDE HISTORY OF THE ALLMAN BROTHERS BAND by Alan Paul is an extensively researched biography of the legendary band that covers the entire history from Duane and Gregg’s beginnings and early bands until 2014 when this book was published.
Every aspect of the band in it’s tumultuous existence is covered here in a unique approach that the author also used in his excellent biography Texas Flood: The Inside Story of Stevie Ray Vaughan where he has multiple quotes from different band members and others closest to the subject covered from interviews used side-by-side that either support specific events in the band’s history, or present different takes on them, thus making it possible for the reader to absorb the information presented rather than being given one specific point of view that mirrors the opinion of the author.
One aspect of this author’s biographies that I particularly value is his knowledge of musicians in terms of technical aspects, equipment, and life as musicians on the road, in the studio, or down time and their personal lives that gives the reader a feeling of having an inside window into the lives of all the members of the band.
Excellent selected discography is included with the author’s personal ratings of all the albums, including the splinter bands of Gregg Allman & Dickey Betts, as well as Warren Haynes & the late Allen Woody in Gov’t Mule.
Particularly of interest for me was the portion of the book detailing the importance of Warren Haynes and Allen Woody in the resurgence of the band beginning with the “Seven Turns” album through the “Hittin’ The Note” album with the Haynes/Trucks duo in the wake of the Dickie Betts exit, and all of the turmoil within the band (even at the height of it’s successful and legendary run at the Beacon).
I can’t say enough good things about this book, and I reread several portions of it over before completing it so as not to miss the most important events contained within.
Highly recommended to any interested in the band, and the best writing I’ve read on the Allman Brothers Band that includes technical information on the players and their development, style, influences, and equipment in a way that fits seamlessly with the chronological history of the band as presented by the author.
5 stars.
Every aspect of the band in it’s tumultuous existence is covered here in a unique approach that the author also used in his excellent biography Texas Flood: The Inside Story of Stevie Ray Vaughan where he has multiple quotes from different band members and others closest to the subject covered from interviews used side-by-side that either support specific events in the band’s history, or present different takes on them, thus making it possible for the reader to absorb the information presented rather than being given one specific point of view that mirrors the opinion of the author.
One aspect of this author’s biographies that I particularly value is his knowledge of musicians in terms of technical aspects, equipment, and life as musicians on the road, in the studio, or down time and their personal lives that gives the reader a feeling of having an inside window into the lives of all the members of the band.
Excellent selected discography is included with the author’s personal ratings of all the albums, including the splinter bands of Gregg Allman & Dickey Betts, as well as Warren Haynes & the late Allen Woody in Gov’t Mule.
Particularly of interest for me was the portion of the book detailing the importance of Warren Haynes and Allen Woody in the resurgence of the band beginning with the “Seven Turns” album through the “Hittin’ The Note” album with the Haynes/Trucks duo in the wake of the Dickie Betts exit, and all of the turmoil within the band (even at the height of it’s successful and legendary run at the Beacon).
I can’t say enough good things about this book, and I reread several portions of it over before completing it so as not to miss the most important events contained within.
Highly recommended to any interested in the band, and the best writing I’ve read on the Allman Brothers Band that includes technical information on the players and their development, style, influences, and equipment in a way that fits seamlessly with the chronological history of the band as presented by the author.
5 stars.
March 21, 2021
I’ve known Alan since our days at The Michigan Daily, and I have a vague memory of him breaking out an acoustic guitar in the old senior office. I don’t know that I knew then he could really play – his “Big in China” days were still far off – but I do know that he already had a sense of how popular culture can reverberate. Like a lot of my Daily friends, he sensed that long before I did; the music and movies we got excited about were helping to shape the politics that a few of us nerds (I raise my hand, there) thought was the real point of it all.
I can’t pretend to neutral reviews of books by friends old or new, but what can I say? I know a lot of talented people.
What Alan does here is not so much give a history of the Allman Brothers Band – even a modest fan of the band like me knows the highlights – but to rehearse it. He goes through the landmarks of what the band went through: their formation, the making of each album, the release of Live at the Fillmore, the deaths of Duane Allman and some of the others, and then the off-again/on-again reunions. In each chapter, he allows the voices of the different band members and adjacent folks to come together with their different versions.
Like the band’s music, sometimes those voices harmonize, and sometimes they play off each other. Either way, it works. Alan ties it all together into a group oral history, just as the subtitle promises.
I’m impressed at the way he draws so much out of so many. Some of the quotes seem a bit playing-to-the-camera; they come from guys used to playing instruments rather than using words, and they’re a bit too cleaned up, a bit too self-conscious. But that’s a kind of success, too. It’s pushing the members out of their comfort zone and into a space of reflection.
A few others are articulate and insightful. Butch Trucks, maybe most of all, opens up about some of the challenges and highlights. He may have been the drummer in the back, but he plays lead here – lead in the relative way that is for the Allmans.
But the real test for me with a book on music is whether it makes me hunger to listen to more. And, with that, Alan more than passes.
I’ve enjoyed the Allman Brothers’ biggest songs since at least the time I first met Alan. “Whipping Post,” “Sweet Melissa,” “Rambling Man,” and a lot of the others – mostly the Dickey Betts numbers, I learn now – taught me to appreciate “southern rock” (even if, as Alan shows me, Betts hated that label) and I’m grateful for it.
When I read the passages about a young Duane Allman (OK, all Duane Allman’s work is young since he died so far before his time) talking with Otis Redding about his cover of “Hey Jude,” I had to hear it. That gave me a fresh appreciation for the way both men’s music crossed presumptive racial boundaries.
And when I read about Duane sweating the solo on “Dreams,” I had to listen to the song again. I think it starts out a bit flat with Greg’s vocals straining, but when that solo comes, wow. Alan’s work teaches me how to listen for it in a new way. It’s heartbreaking as it is, and it’s heartbreaking for the way it augurs that imminent death.
And then I had to give “Live at the Fillmore” another listen. I knew it, or thought I knew it, but I heard it in a fresh way after the way Alan frames it, and I think it was a borderline religious experience. I knew to listen to the interplay of Duane’s slide with Dickey’s more melodic lines, and it both made more sense to me than ever and blew me away all the more.
Throughout this I’m struck with the sense that the Allman’s are as great and enduring a band as the U.S. has produced. (As I’ve gone on about elsewhere, I can’t help noticing that the U.K. seems to produce the great bands, while we produce the great front-men and solo performers.) There’s the Jefferson Airplane, the Grateful Dead, the Band, and R.E.M. – most of the others splinter off major solo performers – and there’s the Allman’s.
It’s good to have Alan give the band the collective voice to tell their story. And, hearing that story, it’s even better to have a fresh way into the music.
I can’t pretend to neutral reviews of books by friends old or new, but what can I say? I know a lot of talented people.
What Alan does here is not so much give a history of the Allman Brothers Band – even a modest fan of the band like me knows the highlights – but to rehearse it. He goes through the landmarks of what the band went through: their formation, the making of each album, the release of Live at the Fillmore, the deaths of Duane Allman and some of the others, and then the off-again/on-again reunions. In each chapter, he allows the voices of the different band members and adjacent folks to come together with their different versions.
Like the band’s music, sometimes those voices harmonize, and sometimes they play off each other. Either way, it works. Alan ties it all together into a group oral history, just as the subtitle promises.
I’m impressed at the way he draws so much out of so many. Some of the quotes seem a bit playing-to-the-camera; they come from guys used to playing instruments rather than using words, and they’re a bit too cleaned up, a bit too self-conscious. But that’s a kind of success, too. It’s pushing the members out of their comfort zone and into a space of reflection.
A few others are articulate and insightful. Butch Trucks, maybe most of all, opens up about some of the challenges and highlights. He may have been the drummer in the back, but he plays lead here – lead in the relative way that is for the Allmans.
But the real test for me with a book on music is whether it makes me hunger to listen to more. And, with that, Alan more than passes.
I’ve enjoyed the Allman Brothers’ biggest songs since at least the time I first met Alan. “Whipping Post,” “Sweet Melissa,” “Rambling Man,” and a lot of the others – mostly the Dickey Betts numbers, I learn now – taught me to appreciate “southern rock” (even if, as Alan shows me, Betts hated that label) and I’m grateful for it.
When I read the passages about a young Duane Allman (OK, all Duane Allman’s work is young since he died so far before his time) talking with Otis Redding about his cover of “Hey Jude,” I had to hear it. That gave me a fresh appreciation for the way both men’s music crossed presumptive racial boundaries.
And when I read about Duane sweating the solo on “Dreams,” I had to listen to the song again. I think it starts out a bit flat with Greg’s vocals straining, but when that solo comes, wow. Alan’s work teaches me how to listen for it in a new way. It’s heartbreaking as it is, and it’s heartbreaking for the way it augurs that imminent death.
And then I had to give “Live at the Fillmore” another listen. I knew it, or thought I knew it, but I heard it in a fresh way after the way Alan frames it, and I think it was a borderline religious experience. I knew to listen to the interplay of Duane’s slide with Dickey’s more melodic lines, and it both made more sense to me than ever and blew me away all the more.
Throughout this I’m struck with the sense that the Allman’s are as great and enduring a band as the U.S. has produced. (As I’ve gone on about elsewhere, I can’t help noticing that the U.K. seems to produce the great bands, while we produce the great front-men and solo performers.) There’s the Jefferson Airplane, the Grateful Dead, the Band, and R.E.M. – most of the others splinter off major solo performers – and there’s the Allman’s.
It’s good to have Alan give the band the collective voice to tell their story. And, hearing that story, it’s even better to have a fresh way into the music.
April 4, 2016
If you are an electric guitar player and you are NOT an Allman Brothers Band fan - then you really aren't a guitar player.
This is the Allman Brothers Band book that i've been waiting over 25 years for (ever since Warren Haynes made the Pattern Disruptive album with Dickie Betts back in 1989 - when I bought it.)
This book was so exciting I didn't even need a bookmark. Everytime I picked it up I knew exactly where i had left off the time before.
I'm a Warren Haynes fan, so those are the stories I most wanted to hear - and they're all here. It's awesome!
I do have to say,
As much as I love the music: this book is filled with the endless debauchery, drugs/alcohol, drama, and over the top stupidity of human corruption and greed. So sad what bits of fame and success do to people. I used to assume that if Duane Allman were still alive he wouldn't have tolerated most of this crap...but he would. This book shows how he was in the thick of his own endless abuse and bad relationships (not to mention what his x-wives, girlfriends, and poor children went through). It's a shame that few musicians seem to respect exactly what music is and IS NOT. It isn't a license to crap on all that is sacred in humanity. Oh well! Sex, Drugs, and Rock n Roll indeed...and then the wreckage and death. Don't blame the music.
On the positive side:
This book is made of quotes from everyone involved in the history of the band. And we get those stories from the players we hear so little about. Great comments by Zakk Wylde, Jack Pearson, David Grissom, and my favorite bassist who ever lived "Allen Woody".
It even mentions a fair bit about Gov't Mule and friendships with the Grateful Dead. Jamming and making music should be something that brings people together. This is something i've come to cheerish about Warren Haynes and Garcia and company. Seeing Haynes and Phil Lesh jamming is always a joy. Warren seemed to take the good from all of these strange experiences and build on it - there's nobody I admire more musically, and this book shows how important he was.
The weirdest thing about this book is the album ratings at the end (by the author Alan Paul). He gives Shades Of Two Worlds and Where It All Begins 3 and a half stars??? I thought you were an Allman fan? Those albums endlessly inspired my musical life - both get 5 stars. Then he gives Laid back by Gregg Allman 5 stars? Hmmmm...? And Bett's Pattern Disruptive gets 2 stars? Are you deaf? Apparently. And to end it off: Tedeschi Trucks Band's Revelator gets only 3 stars? WHAT!? Did you play these on an old Mickey Mouse record player that skips?. But other than that the author put together a great book. Thanks.
I sure would love to jam with Jaimoe. He would be one cool Grandpa to have.
This is the Allman Brothers Band book that i've been waiting over 25 years for (ever since Warren Haynes made the Pattern Disruptive album with Dickie Betts back in 1989 - when I bought it.)
This book was so exciting I didn't even need a bookmark. Everytime I picked it up I knew exactly where i had left off the time before.
I'm a Warren Haynes fan, so those are the stories I most wanted to hear - and they're all here. It's awesome!
I do have to say,
As much as I love the music: this book is filled with the endless debauchery, drugs/alcohol, drama, and over the top stupidity of human corruption and greed. So sad what bits of fame and success do to people. I used to assume that if Duane Allman were still alive he wouldn't have tolerated most of this crap...but he would. This book shows how he was in the thick of his own endless abuse and bad relationships (not to mention what his x-wives, girlfriends, and poor children went through). It's a shame that few musicians seem to respect exactly what music is and IS NOT. It isn't a license to crap on all that is sacred in humanity. Oh well! Sex, Drugs, and Rock n Roll indeed...and then the wreckage and death. Don't blame the music.
On the positive side:
This book is made of quotes from everyone involved in the history of the band. And we get those stories from the players we hear so little about. Great comments by Zakk Wylde, Jack Pearson, David Grissom, and my favorite bassist who ever lived "Allen Woody".
It even mentions a fair bit about Gov't Mule and friendships with the Grateful Dead. Jamming and making music should be something that brings people together. This is something i've come to cheerish about Warren Haynes and Garcia and company. Seeing Haynes and Phil Lesh jamming is always a joy. Warren seemed to take the good from all of these strange experiences and build on it - there's nobody I admire more musically, and this book shows how important he was.
The weirdest thing about this book is the album ratings at the end (by the author Alan Paul). He gives Shades Of Two Worlds and Where It All Begins 3 and a half stars??? I thought you were an Allman fan? Those albums endlessly inspired my musical life - both get 5 stars. Then he gives Laid back by Gregg Allman 5 stars? Hmmmm...? And Bett's Pattern Disruptive gets 2 stars? Are you deaf? Apparently. And to end it off: Tedeschi Trucks Band's Revelator gets only 3 stars? WHAT!? Did you play these on an old Mickey Mouse record player that skips?. But other than that the author put together a great book. Thanks.
I sure would love to jam with Jaimoe. He would be one cool Grandpa to have.
March 20, 2014
***** This is a First Reads, Thank You Goodreads ******
Mr. Paul has gathered every surviving member of the band, past and present, to give an honest, raw account of the band, each other, the music, what was, and what happened. Duane Allman's demons come into account, the drugs, the fame, the brilliance that died too soon. The darkness that fell over them and yet through it they continued, they made music.
I love how this is told and weaved - the stories from different perspectives at the same time making a whole picture, developing a multi-dimensional history lesson, a vortex of sorts. The illusion is gone, the men now stand before the reader and their story has truly been told.
This is not for the faint of heart, or the reader that only wants the glossy Teen Beat version or even the Rolling Stone, this is for the reader looking for the truth - or the many variations that give the reader insight into where the truth is.
Read
July 16, 2023One Way Out: The Inside History of the Allman Brothers Band is Alan Paul’s thorough and thoroughly absorbing story of one of rock’s greatest bands. One Way Out is mostly oral history told in direct quotes from band members and others in their orbit with insightful cameos by those who witnessed or participated in certain events. The Allman Brothers Band was a rowdy bunch of characters and that comes through in their voices in this book. Beyond that, they were brilliant musicians who approached being in a rock band in ways that were not standard practice. The discussions of music are reason enough to read One Way Out. Paul places all of these narratives in chronological order with clarifying and illuminating context. What Duane Allman accomplished by age twenty-four is astonishing. The back matter includes a subjectively annotated discography that can guide readers in listening to the Allman Brothers Band and their legacy.
October 13, 2023
What a spectacular book. The material is almost entirely an oral history of the band as presented through interviews with an incredible array of people in and involved with the history. Band members, road crew members, managers, friends, family... all of them are here, given the opportunity to tell their side of the stories and thus allowing the reader to form their own opinion of what the "truth" is. The integrity of this approach is obvious; the author has no agenda other than to present the facts as they are and be the conduit of the stories of the people who lived them.
I cannot recommend this book enough. It's so well presented that I would recommend it to people who aren't fans of The Allman Brothers Band because it is simply a well crafted, fascinating book about music history.
I cannot recommend this book enough. It's so well presented that I would recommend it to people who aren't fans of The Allman Brothers Band because it is simply a well crafted, fascinating book about music history.
March 24, 2014
I am a long time fan of the Allman Brothers Band. Their music has appealed to me since late in high school when I began to lose interest in harder rock, metal, and pop music and became more interested in music like theirs and Eric Clapton's. The emotion and the varied influences drew me in and with the Allman Brothers Band, so did the sound. It was blues, jazz, rock, and country all stewed together. Drums crashing like waves on a beach, a rhythm section that was rolling and artistic instead of just keeping time, guitars soaring harmonically and weaving in and out of the rhythm sections foundation and finally the Hammond B3 - what a sound! When I saw One Way Out: The Inside History of the Allman Brothers Band on Amazon for Kindle, I knew it was a book I had to read.
"Alan has a way with narrative that just draws you in without using the single-level story-line used by other writers who have attempted telling the Allman Brothers Band's story. He gets right to the hows and whys that give his narrative real substance." - Butch Trucks in the Foreward
Alan Paul has written this book in much the same way that James O'Connell wrote another book I've recently read - Three Days in June. He doesn't try to tell the story himself, he lets those that were there and lived it tell the story. This book is an oral history. Paul has interviewed the surviving members of the band, surviving members of the crew, managers, producers, wives, significant others, family members, fellow musicians and more and has pieced interview segments together roughly chronologically to tell not only what happened by why it happened. You may get multiple versions of what happened but that's normal - everyone sees everything differently but as with everything in life you get the idea that what actually happened falls somewhere in the middle.
Getting the story from sources both inside the Allman Brothers Band and observers on the outside looking in, the reader gets a very thorough and complete (as possible given the deaths of some important figures) view of the band's history. Most importantly, Paul doesn't see to try to judge any members or influence the reader's interpretation of the interviews; it simply tells what happened in the words of those who were there. One Way Out tells the story of the formation and rise of the band through multiple triumphs and multiple tragedies. It's clear how not only the force of Duane Allman's personality and musical ability but also his emphasis and family and teamwork - his selfless approach to the music - made the band what it was and laid the foundation for 45 years of musical magic. It's amazing how the band survived the deaths of Duane Allman and Berry Oakley, rising like a phoenix multiple times. It illustrates the effect of drug and alcohol abuse on lives of the band and crew as well as their effects on the music. It tells the story of how musical styles and backgrounds of the members blended to create the band's sound and how new members were encouraged to bring their own styles and sound when they joined. It tells the story of personalities clashed and meshed to bring the band both to the points brink of failure and the heights of brilliance.
"Duane was a natural-born leader. His philosophy was 'Get on my back. Follow me.'"
Particularly towards the end of the book, one could easily get the idea that it's "pile on Dickey Betts" time but I wouldn't agree with that assessment. Betts' side of the story is told and each of the other band members and observers have slightly different stories of how the final separation went down. One of the most compelling elements of the book to me is how Duane Allman was a natural leader of the team that was the Allman Brothers Band and how Dickey Betts tried to pick up the mantle of leadership but wasn't as natural at it. Over time I think he lost the team concept of the band and that's what eventually led to him being fired or quitting depending upon your interpretation of events.
One of the most compelling personalities in the books is Jaimoe, his observations are possibly the most balanced of all. Of all the band members (with the exception of Duane Allman), I think I learned more about him by reading One Way Out. I think he put it best in his Afteward:
"One thing I've learned in life is hindsight ain't always 20/20. History is complicated and everyone sees it differently, understands it in his or her own way. The Allman Brothers Band history involves a lot of people and there are as many versions of what happened as there are people involved in making it happen. That's why this book gets the history as right as possible; Alan Paul spoke to everyone he could, let them have their say - tell their version of the truth - and then laid it out. You can't try to escape the shit you did in life."
When I first started reading One Way Out, I tweeted that I thought it was going to be a hard book to put down. It was. I frequently found myself with the Kindle in hand, iPod beside me, and headphones on my head. I'd read about an album, song, or performance and if I had it stop reading then listen to it before picking the Kindle back up and reading on. I honestly think reading it that way enhanced my experience of the book. If you are a fan of the Allman Brothers, this book should be at the top of your list. It certainly enhanced my knowledge of the band any my appreciation of their music. It may just be the Allman Brothers Band fan deep within me, but I see no reason not to give One Way Out: The Inside History of the Allman Brothers Band a five star rating.
"Alan has a way with narrative that just draws you in without using the single-level story-line used by other writers who have attempted telling the Allman Brothers Band's story. He gets right to the hows and whys that give his narrative real substance." - Butch Trucks in the Foreward
Alan Paul has written this book in much the same way that James O'Connell wrote another book I've recently read - Three Days in June. He doesn't try to tell the story himself, he lets those that were there and lived it tell the story. This book is an oral history. Paul has interviewed the surviving members of the band, surviving members of the crew, managers, producers, wives, significant others, family members, fellow musicians and more and has pieced interview segments together roughly chronologically to tell not only what happened by why it happened. You may get multiple versions of what happened but that's normal - everyone sees everything differently but as with everything in life you get the idea that what actually happened falls somewhere in the middle.
Getting the story from sources both inside the Allman Brothers Band and observers on the outside looking in, the reader gets a very thorough and complete (as possible given the deaths of some important figures) view of the band's history. Most importantly, Paul doesn't see to try to judge any members or influence the reader's interpretation of the interviews; it simply tells what happened in the words of those who were there. One Way Out tells the story of the formation and rise of the band through multiple triumphs and multiple tragedies. It's clear how not only the force of Duane Allman's personality and musical ability but also his emphasis and family and teamwork - his selfless approach to the music - made the band what it was and laid the foundation for 45 years of musical magic. It's amazing how the band survived the deaths of Duane Allman and Berry Oakley, rising like a phoenix multiple times. It illustrates the effect of drug and alcohol abuse on lives of the band and crew as well as their effects on the music. It tells the story of how musical styles and backgrounds of the members blended to create the band's sound and how new members were encouraged to bring their own styles and sound when they joined. It tells the story of personalities clashed and meshed to bring the band both to the points brink of failure and the heights of brilliance.
"Duane was a natural-born leader. His philosophy was 'Get on my back. Follow me.'"
Particularly towards the end of the book, one could easily get the idea that it's "pile on Dickey Betts" time but I wouldn't agree with that assessment. Betts' side of the story is told and each of the other band members and observers have slightly different stories of how the final separation went down. One of the most compelling elements of the book to me is how Duane Allman was a natural leader of the team that was the Allman Brothers Band and how Dickey Betts tried to pick up the mantle of leadership but wasn't as natural at it. Over time I think he lost the team concept of the band and that's what eventually led to him being fired or quitting depending upon your interpretation of events.
One of the most compelling personalities in the books is Jaimoe, his observations are possibly the most balanced of all. Of all the band members (with the exception of Duane Allman), I think I learned more about him by reading One Way Out. I think he put it best in his Afteward:
"One thing I've learned in life is hindsight ain't always 20/20. History is complicated and everyone sees it differently, understands it in his or her own way. The Allman Brothers Band history involves a lot of people and there are as many versions of what happened as there are people involved in making it happen. That's why this book gets the history as right as possible; Alan Paul spoke to everyone he could, let them have their say - tell their version of the truth - and then laid it out. You can't try to escape the shit you did in life."
When I first started reading One Way Out, I tweeted that I thought it was going to be a hard book to put down. It was. I frequently found myself with the Kindle in hand, iPod beside me, and headphones on my head. I'd read about an album, song, or performance and if I had it stop reading then listen to it before picking the Kindle back up and reading on. I honestly think reading it that way enhanced my experience of the book. If you are a fan of the Allman Brothers, this book should be at the top of your list. It certainly enhanced my knowledge of the band any my appreciation of their music. It may just be the Allman Brothers Band fan deep within me, but I see no reason not to give One Way Out: The Inside History of the Allman Brothers Band a five star rating.
October 6, 2021
So great: this fine history in oral history format illustrates the greatness of this band.
Highly recommended.
Highly recommended.
April 4, 2014
If you dig the Allman Brothers, this is a must. If you don't, well, what's the point? Most or all of the book is culled from interviews with the band members or folks that were there when it all went down. I usually have little or no patience for anecdotes about fighting and dysfunctional musicians but the Abros and this book raise it to an art form. Maybe it passes muster with me just because I'm such a fan of the music. There aren't many or any of this type left and these guys are wrapping up the tent this summer. They may seem a little hairy and anachronistic to today's young folk but that's not me. These guys were at the peak musically and yet their talent is dwarfed by their egos. They make what passes as popular music today seems so incredibly antiseptic as not to be worth the effort to even allow it to prattle on as background music. I can't imagine the guys in Coldplay walk around with switchblades in their boots. If Chris Martin and one of his roadies got into it someone might leave with hurt feelings. When Dickey Betts and Butch Trucks had a disagreement everyone started raiding the hotel rooms for towels to mop up the blood. To the right reader, this book is a treat beyond compare.
August 8, 2020
One Way Out: The Inside History of the Allman Brothers Band by Alan Paul (St. Martin's Press 2014) (782.42) (3450).
I am a long time fan of the Allman Brothers Band. Of all the music I have ever owned, the Allman Brothers Live at the Fillmore recording is my all-time favorite. Over the years I have worn out two copies of the vinyl record album, three CD's of the original recording, and one CD of the expanded reissue version.
This is the third book I have read about the Allman Brothers Band; this is by far the most thorough and unbiased. Author Alan Paul's skills as an interviewer served this book and the reading public very well.
Hardcore fans of the ABB will recall the unknown and unnamed audience member who spoke for all fans of the band when he yelled a request during a quiet moment in the middle of the unforgettable version of the song “You Don't Love Me” on the Live at the Fillmore recording. Whoever he was, the recording memorialized the wish of all fans of the Brothers. The fan yelled these words to the musicians: “Play all night!”
My rating: 8/10, finished 8/7/20 (3450). I purchased my used HB copy in like-new condition from McKay's Books for $5.00 on 6/28/20.
HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
April 16, 2014
If you are from the South, love Southern Rock music, and are a "baby boomer," then you know and love those boys from Florida - The Allman Brothers Band. Their music is legendary, their lives are legendary and now the tales of everything we've always "heard of" are related in a brilliant biography, "One Way Out: The Inside History of the Allman Brothers Band," by Alan Paul.
Paul has gathered interviews with all the players, all the families and friends, and all the hangers-on to make this book one of the most fascinating collections of memories I've had the pleasure to read.
There is pretty much no stone left unturned in this intimate and uniquely presented book. Paul lays out the story of the Allman brothers, Duane and Greg, and their band mates with blended interviews with everyone who was around the band at it's start and at it's current state.
Fans of the band will eat this book up. Fans of Southern rock music will love it as well. And fans of genuine, from-the-heart music will appreciate it for it's revelations and the respect with which it was compiled.
March 5, 2014
Musicians will have an appreciation for learning how the original lineup was instinctively constructed by Duane, the methods use to come up guitar harmonies, etc. Much of the oral history simply confirms what one who has paid attention to the music and has seen many shows over the years has deduced. It's interesting that personal conflicts and massive substance abuse comes straight through to the music. It's entirely fitting that the band will go out at the end of this year playing the best music ever.
January 17, 2014
I love ABB and the oral history format so of course this was a fun read, but it fell short of what I hoped it would be. I'm not sure if the participants were reluctant to elaborate on certain topics, but many sections felt thin. More input from Gregg would've been nice as well, but since he put his own bio out recently I'm sure his participation was calculated to be minimal. It's worth a read for big fans. (Note: I got an advance copy of the full book)
March 2, 2014
I wanted this to be a great book since I am a huge fan of the band, but it really seemed like a rehash of stuff I already knew from other books, articles, interviews, etc. I think the author did a fine job in compiling the material and organizing it into a good chronological flow, but I came away from this book with very little new information.
April 15, 2014
I loved the details that Mr. Paul put into this book--and that it was told from the perspective of those involved. I always love reading about my all-time favorite band and music, and I even learned a few things I hadn't heard before. For example, even though this was one detail that was kind of glossed over, I didn't know about Gregg needing rehab again in 2012.
November 6, 2014
One of the best "band history" books I've read.
July 9, 2017
This book is a must read for any fan of the Allman Brothers. It presents the history of the band beginning with the childhoods of brothers Duane and Gregg and ends with their final show in 2014. And while the book focuses disproportionately (but appropriately) on the "vintage" history, i.e., before the deaths of Duane and Berry Oakley, it is pretty thorough in the way that it presents the subsequent trials and tribulations, including the impact of those deaths, the search for new musicians, the substance abuse of Gregg and Dicky Betts (which led to him getting "fired" by the band), to the revival of the band in the 21st century with guitarists Warren Haynes and Derek Trucks (of Tedeschi/Trucks Band fame). The author is masterful in the way that he has presented the band's story through the use of scores of interviews with band members, roadies, managers, wives, etc. It must have taken a great deal of time and thought to piece together what were no doubt rambling interviews and create a coherent narrative. In the end, I was left with a new understanding of the inner workings of one of my all-time favorite bands (although I did not see them play until after Duane and Berry had died). A lot of details were filled in and one important "urban myth" was dispelled--Duane Allman was not killed when his motorcycle was hit by a peach truck; there were other origins of the title of the "Eat a Peach" album. I did, however, have a couple of reservations about the book. First of all, for a non-musician like myself, I found myself a bit lost as the band members discussed the intricacies of the band's music, most notably how they blended two drummers and two lead guitarists. After 450 pages, I still have no idea what it means for a guitarist or a bassist to play "in the pocket." But for the readers who are musicians, I'm sure those passages are gold. Secondly, the book got a bit "soap opera-ish" in the second half, as second guitarists came and went, Dicky and Gregg didn't talk to each other, people walked off the stage in the middle of shows, etc. I know that this was part of their history, but it got a bit tedious. And finally I was disappointed (as I often have been with books written about rock bands) that there was so little sense of horror and disappointment among band and family members as people like Duane Allman and Berry Oakley essentially killed themselves with their substance abuse (even though both died on motorcycles). These men had families, children even, but their behavior--to me-- was so irresponsible. There were a lot of comments of what "great guys" they were, but I see a lot of self-indulgence and selfishness that isn't really noted by the observers or the author (and the authors of these types of books tend to be big fans of the people they're writing about). In any event, it is a quick and enjoyable read. My first steady girlfriend gave me "Allman Brothers at Fillmore East" for Christmas the year it came out (1971). She's long gone, but that album remains one of my all-time favorites.
March 30, 2020
As a musician I really found this book to be enjoyable, informative and insightful. Mr. Paul has delivered a valuable contribution in memorializing what is arguably the best American rock band ever. There is no question among musicians that the Allman Brothers contained every important element of a great band: extraordinary musical prowess, a compelling story, dramatic infighting, horrific substance abuse, humor, redemption, acrimony and, again, redemption. Their unique blend of blues, jazz, country and Americana made them the quintessential American band.
Here we see the rise of the ABB: gifted and tragic Duane Allman, with a preternatural talent on the guitar and a personality and drive that catapults his band to the pantheon of American rock royalty. We see his tragic death (in a motorcycle accident at the very zenith of his success), a loss that so profoundly impacts his orbit that bassist Berry Oakley dies just a year later -- in nearly the same place, manner and circumstance. We see the beautiful and flawed Gregg Allman -- gifted and rudderless without his big brother -- sink into an abyss of drugs and alcoholism, all the while maintaining his musical integrity and delivering the most soulful and sweetly gritty performances of any American vocalist. We see the brilliant but mercurial Dickey Betts who, in true blues legend fashion, battles his demons while nurturing his soaring guitar voice. We see the emergence of young Derek Trucks, who in true mythic fashion seems to be the very reincarnation of Duane. It's a tale worthy of fiction -- specifically a melange of American Gothic, Magical Realism and Rock Decadence.
The book is strongest in the beginning, where Mr. Paul, through use of oral history he employs throughout, takes us through the wondrous and often painful journey of the band -- from their Southern working class roots, their embrace of a multi-racial band in the face of Southern hostility, their evolution and precipitous decline, to eventual reemergence and triumph. If I have one criticism, it is that the book begins to lose steam as it gets toward the end of that journey -- perhaps because the ABB do also?
This work, however, fulfills a greater mission: the ABB's story mirrors that of America in the past five decades, from the rise of hippie culture, to racial tensions, to the corruption of business versus the purity of art, to the beautiful and inspiring notion of talent, determination and passion overcoming tragedy and adversity.
What's best about Mr. Paul's work is that one can almost hear the music soaring above the pages -- so much so, that I had to dial up "Live At the Fillmore East" and play it at earsplitting volume, accompanied by some good Southern whiskey, while making my way through this cool tome.
No, it isn't highbrow reading -- but Mr. Paul's workaday prose and thoroughness elevate it to a level of proficiency and even occasional poetry.
Wail on, Skydog.....
Here we see the rise of the ABB: gifted and tragic Duane Allman, with a preternatural talent on the guitar and a personality and drive that catapults his band to the pantheon of American rock royalty. We see his tragic death (in a motorcycle accident at the very zenith of his success), a loss that so profoundly impacts his orbit that bassist Berry Oakley dies just a year later -- in nearly the same place, manner and circumstance. We see the beautiful and flawed Gregg Allman -- gifted and rudderless without his big brother -- sink into an abyss of drugs and alcoholism, all the while maintaining his musical integrity and delivering the most soulful and sweetly gritty performances of any American vocalist. We see the brilliant but mercurial Dickey Betts who, in true blues legend fashion, battles his demons while nurturing his soaring guitar voice. We see the emergence of young Derek Trucks, who in true mythic fashion seems to be the very reincarnation of Duane. It's a tale worthy of fiction -- specifically a melange of American Gothic, Magical Realism and Rock Decadence.
The book is strongest in the beginning, where Mr. Paul, through use of oral history he employs throughout, takes us through the wondrous and often painful journey of the band -- from their Southern working class roots, their embrace of a multi-racial band in the face of Southern hostility, their evolution and precipitous decline, to eventual reemergence and triumph. If I have one criticism, it is that the book begins to lose steam as it gets toward the end of that journey -- perhaps because the ABB do also?
This work, however, fulfills a greater mission: the ABB's story mirrors that of America in the past five decades, from the rise of hippie culture, to racial tensions, to the corruption of business versus the purity of art, to the beautiful and inspiring notion of talent, determination and passion overcoming tragedy and adversity.
What's best about Mr. Paul's work is that one can almost hear the music soaring above the pages -- so much so, that I had to dial up "Live At the Fillmore East" and play it at earsplitting volume, accompanied by some good Southern whiskey, while making my way through this cool tome.
No, it isn't highbrow reading -- but Mr. Paul's workaday prose and thoroughness elevate it to a level of proficiency and even occasional poetry.
Wail on, Skydog.....
May 28, 2025
As a native of Macon, I grew up knowing about the Allman Brothers Band, but outside of "Ramblin' Man" and "Midnight Rider," was never very familiar with their music. (I'm a child of the 80's, which this book marks as not their decade .) I knew their stories, though - I grew up around the corner from the Big House and hung out in Rose Hill, where I have family buried and my little brother was a night guard. (He had stories about people visiting the ABB graves at night.) I was up and down College Street past their first apartment, and got stuck in a traffic jam downtown when Gregg Allman's funeral procession drove to Rose Hill after leaving the downtown mortuary that buried half of the white half of town back in the day. (The other half went across the street, and the black half had their own place across town. The town grew and the mortuary has branches now, but Hart's is still there in the old building across from Snow's and next to Jean and Hall's flower shop.) A childhood friend married Alan Walden, Phil Walden's brother, and another friend has been mourning Skoots. I went to the H&H before it got famous and Mama Louise and Mama Hill's families sold it to the company that owns all the good local non-independent places. It used to be grubbier and the food was good - now it's "Southern shabby chic", but still tasty - just not a meat and three, really. My dad was a cop from 1965 until he retired, and the cops were not then or now fans of the band, if their stories are any guide. The Brothers regularly raised a ruckus, did every drug the city had, drank anything they got, got in fights and tore stuff up, did not truck much with bathing, and were generally hoodlums who continually got bailed out by the record company and later got a pass because they were famous.
So, the book got that part right, respectfully.
What it also gets right is appreciation for the musicianship behind the ABB, which I have come to as an adult who put the hairspray away. There is a certain amount of hero-worship - Duane Allman in particular seems to need wings and a halo - but the author doesn't shy away from the rougher sides of the band even as he gives you the best feeling for what the band accomplished in its 45 years of music. I have been making Alexa play the different songs described through the book, and I'm grateful for the author's knowledge of the skill and talent as much as the humanizing stories about rock legends and hippie druggies.
I also liked how the author weaves his story together - 30 years of interviews are presented as snippets of dialog, with occasional full articles thrown in, and you can HEAR the voices and get all the sides of the stories. He's right - it's as much a marriage as it is music. It's definitely a good read.
So, the book got that part right, respectfully.
What it also gets right is appreciation for the musicianship behind the ABB, which I have come to as an adult who put the hairspray away. There is a certain amount of hero-worship - Duane Allman in particular seems to need wings and a halo - but the author doesn't shy away from the rougher sides of the band even as he gives you the best feeling for what the band accomplished in its 45 years of music. I have been making Alexa play the different songs described through the book, and I'm grateful for the author's knowledge of the skill and talent as much as the humanizing stories about rock legends and hippie druggies.
I also liked how the author weaves his story together - 30 years of interviews are presented as snippets of dialog, with occasional full articles thrown in, and you can HEAR the voices and get all the sides of the stories. He's right - it's as much a marriage as it is music. It's definitely a good read.
April 23, 2019
Alan Paul on halunnut kertoa The Allman Brothers Bandin tarinan mahdollisimman monen bändissä vaikuttaneen soittajan suulla. Tämä vaikutti ensin hyvältä ratkaisulta, koska bändin taipaleella on ollut monia varsin tiukkoja kädenvääntöjä ja bändistä on välillä lähdetty ovet paukkuen. Näistä hetkistä tuntui mielenkiintoiselta kuulla soittajien eriäviäkin näkemyksiä.
Lopputulemana rakenteesta tulee kuitenkin halvan ja laiskan oloinen ratkaisu. Sivu toisen perään suoria lainauksia alkaa pian puuduttaa. Lukijana minulle ei ollutkaan enää väliä, että kuka mitäkin sanoi, koska yhdellä aukeamalla saattoi olla kuuden eri ihmisen näkökulma tai kommentti asiaan. Ja tätä jatkui läpi kirjan viimeistä lukua ja jälkisanoja lukuunottamatta. Ne tuntuivatkin luontevimmilta lukea.
Toki sitaattisillisalaatin lukeminen on nopeaa. Paitsi jos kirjaan ei halua tarttua, kun rakenne ei siihen houkuta. Kirja lojuikin yöpöydälläni kolme kuukautta ennen kuin sain sen tahkottua loppuun.
Alan Paulin kunniaksi on kuitenkin sanottava, että hän on saanut edesmenneitä bändin jäseniä lukuun ottamatta kaikki bändin muusikot ääneen. Asioita todellakin katsotaan eri soittajien näkövinkkeleistä ja se on toki suuri ansio. Kirjassa on myös asiaankuuluva kuvaliite. Pidin myös Alan Paulin ratkaisusta esitellä The Allman Brothersin keskeisimmän diskografian subjektiivisesti eli arvostellen ne lyhyesti ja antaen suositukset, että mistä levyistä kuuntelijan kannattaa lähteä liikkeelle. Tämä oli virkistä lopetus kirjalle ja lopulta käänsi arvosteluni kolmen tähden puolelle :-)
Lopputulemana rakenteesta tulee kuitenkin halvan ja laiskan oloinen ratkaisu. Sivu toisen perään suoria lainauksia alkaa pian puuduttaa. Lukijana minulle ei ollutkaan enää väliä, että kuka mitäkin sanoi, koska yhdellä aukeamalla saattoi olla kuuden eri ihmisen näkökulma tai kommentti asiaan. Ja tätä jatkui läpi kirjan viimeistä lukua ja jälkisanoja lukuunottamatta. Ne tuntuivatkin luontevimmilta lukea.
Toki sitaattisillisalaatin lukeminen on nopeaa. Paitsi jos kirjaan ei halua tarttua, kun rakenne ei siihen houkuta. Kirja lojuikin yöpöydälläni kolme kuukautta ennen kuin sain sen tahkottua loppuun.
Alan Paulin kunniaksi on kuitenkin sanottava, että hän on saanut edesmenneitä bändin jäseniä lukuun ottamatta kaikki bändin muusikot ääneen. Asioita todellakin katsotaan eri soittajien näkövinkkeleistä ja se on toki suuri ansio. Kirjassa on myös asiaankuuluva kuvaliite. Pidin myös Alan Paulin ratkaisusta esitellä The Allman Brothersin keskeisimmän diskografian subjektiivisesti eli arvostellen ne lyhyesti ja antaen suositukset, että mistä levyistä kuuntelijan kannattaa lähteä liikkeelle. Tämä oli virkistä lopetus kirjalle ja lopulta käänsi arvosteluni kolmen tähden puolelle :-)
December 30, 2019
Whatever music you listen to, the Allman Brothers are the real deal and not just a hippie jam band. They incorporated elements of blues, rock, and jazz among other influences to create an enduring legacy of amazing music. They lost many unbelievably talented musicians throughout their years together, like Duane Allman, one of the most phenomenal guitarists of all time (I absolutely love slide guitar) and who still exists as a guardian angel for the band, but they endured. I have probably listened to them, here and there, since high school but they never moved me as much as they have this year when my life became increasingly difficult and unbearable. "Stormy Monday" from Fillmore East saved me from becoming bogged down in my misery. It's practically a religious experience for me to listen to it and the album (or CD or streaming) itself.
The book is an oral history by a long time chronicler of the band who incidentally resides in my hometown. It gives each member equal time to express their thoughts about music they created and events that transpired including the too early tragic and eerily similar deaths of Duane Allman and bassist Berry Oakley. I thoroughly enjoyed the book and gained a greater understanding of what made the band tick and how they rode the highs and lows of the decades without losing their relevance or edge despite drug and alcohol abuse and conflicts between members. This is highly recommended for fans and any music fan who enjoys a book that examines the music as well as the personal dynamics of the band members.
The book is an oral history by a long time chronicler of the band who incidentally resides in my hometown. It gives each member equal time to express their thoughts about music they created and events that transpired including the too early tragic and eerily similar deaths of Duane Allman and bassist Berry Oakley. I thoroughly enjoyed the book and gained a greater understanding of what made the band tick and how they rode the highs and lows of the decades without losing their relevance or edge despite drug and alcohol abuse and conflicts between members. This is highly recommended for fans and any music fan who enjoys a book that examines the music as well as the personal dynamics of the band members.
September 22, 2018
My dad loved The Allman Brothers Band. My interest in the band comes from him, and I’m thankful for that.
So many bands have ended along with the death of a member — Jimi Hendrix, Stevie Ray Vaughan, and Kurt Cobain come to mind — so it is amazing to read the story of a band that survived, and how they did, after the death of two founding members, Duane Allman and Berry Oakley.
It can be easy to miss the details, while enjoying the sound of a jam band. I enjoyed hearing the perspectives of all the artists in this band relative to the fine line between a good jam and a bad one. A favorite quote came when Gregg Allman thought a jam had gotten too out of control and proceeded to ask the band “who’s the fucking Phish fan” after the show ended (note: I don’t mind Phish, but I found it funny that this would be his expression for saying someone had erred).
I’d like to go back and re-read the details of The Allman Brothers Band’s show at Watkins Glenn that the author described as the largest rock concert of all time. The government, debatably, declared the area a disaster zone because so many fans ditched their cars to walk, sometimes in excess of five miles, to go watch the show. A helicopter took the band to the stage rather than trying to fight through the crowds.
The book left me with a sour taste in my mouth towards Dickey Betts.
So many bands have ended along with the death of a member — Jimi Hendrix, Stevie Ray Vaughan, and Kurt Cobain come to mind — so it is amazing to read the story of a band that survived, and how they did, after the death of two founding members, Duane Allman and Berry Oakley.
It can be easy to miss the details, while enjoying the sound of a jam band. I enjoyed hearing the perspectives of all the artists in this band relative to the fine line between a good jam and a bad one. A favorite quote came when Gregg Allman thought a jam had gotten too out of control and proceeded to ask the band “who’s the fucking Phish fan” after the show ended (note: I don’t mind Phish, but I found it funny that this would be his expression for saying someone had erred).
I’d like to go back and re-read the details of The Allman Brothers Band’s show at Watkins Glenn that the author described as the largest rock concert of all time. The government, debatably, declared the area a disaster zone because so many fans ditched their cars to walk, sometimes in excess of five miles, to go watch the show. A helicopter took the band to the stage rather than trying to fight through the crowds.
The book left me with a sour taste in my mouth towards Dickey Betts.
June 20, 2017
For serious Allman Brothers fans, this book is a must! It definitely was for me in the wake of visiting the Macon "Big House" museum & other Brothers' sites recently, and most especially after Gregg's death. Like so many creative artists, many of the the individuals in this band were personally & seriously flawed, and they experienced more than their share of tragedy, especially the motorcycle deaths of founders Duane Allman & Berry Oakley. But when they came together and were "on" (and let's face it: not fighting, too drunk or drugged out), I believe them to have been the best American rock band, period. Of course this is a subjective pronouncement, but if you enjoy their music, you might appreciate the diversity of voices represented in this book. Author Alan Paul interviewed almost everyone involved with the band from its beginnings and placed all the quotes chronologically to tell their story, with very few of his own interpolations. So instead of one author's POV, as in a traditional bio, we get dozens of interpretations on what happened and why during the highs and lows of the Allman Brothers' storied & lengthy career, including the many personnel fluctuations. Highly recommended for all Brothers' fans!
March 11, 2023
Probably the most well-rounded history of the Allman Brothers Band. History and memory are tricky things that are subject to wear and tear as time passes. Paul does a great job presenting perspectives from members of the band, roadies, management, and fellow musical acts so that the reader is left with the closest thing to the truth we can possibly get. It is remarkable that through drugs, alcohol, death, lineup changes, and internal rivalries the band was able to be as productive as they were touring and creating new music. I was left thinking about what the band could have been if Duane hadn't passed but at the same time Duane's desire to live life on the edge and be adventurous was what made him the leader and visionary that he was. Not to mention what allowed him to create an entirely new style of playing the guitar that inspired the likes of Derek Trucks. Whatever the case may be, it is evident that the spirit of Duane followed the band even if his physical body was left behind in Rose Hill cemetary.
January 4, 2021
The Allman Brothers are my favorite band and I loved reading their story again. I read this book when it first came out, but a lot has happened since then and author Alan Paul has provided some updates that include the band's last year and finale in 2014.
Because the people who were there have different memories and perspectives, I enjoyed the multiple quote format. Paul has interviewed everyone he can for the book. He knows all the players, has earned their trust and respect, and has interviewed them mutiple times. So, instead of summarizing and drawing his own conclusions, he simply provides quotes from the individuals describing the event or time period. It's interesting to see who speaks up and says what happened.
So many people who haven't done their homework, will write their interpretion of events on social media. I wish they would just read this book. Paul knows his stuff, and you will too if you read this.
Because the people who were there have different memories and perspectives, I enjoyed the multiple quote format. Paul has interviewed everyone he can for the book. He knows all the players, has earned their trust and respect, and has interviewed them mutiple times. So, instead of summarizing and drawing his own conclusions, he simply provides quotes from the individuals describing the event or time period. It's interesting to see who speaks up and says what happened.
So many people who haven't done their homework, will write their interpretion of events on social media. I wish they would just read this book. Paul knows his stuff, and you will too if you read this.
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