Gregg Allman: A world-class, Hall of Fame talent. Great singer. Powerful singer.
A Long Live the ABB playlist
Gregory Lenoir Allman đ The High Cost of Low Living
A Long Live the ABB playlist
I put a 34-song Gregg playlist together a few years back. I included songs from across his catalog, from the ABBâs 1969 debut album1 to 2017âs Southern Blood2
Gregg is a world-class, Hall of Fame, great singer, powerful singer. In the Allman Brothers, Greggâs voice was but one instrument in a rock & roll orchestra. It was his vocals set them apart as their songsâeven extended jams like âWhipping Postââare built on strong chord progressions, good melodies, and movement.
Greggâs solo records are a downshift. So much so that each one I encounteredtook time to grow on me. At Fillmore East and Eat a Peach are how I prefer my Allman Brothers, loud and jammy.
Laid Back and Southern Blood are the opposite tack. Greggâs solo work is a fun way to hear his artistry. Thatâs where you can hear his preference for rhythm and blues. Itâs a lighter, slower paced music.
And in full transparency, I was long frustrated with Gregg that he didnât record more. He toured constantly in my entire time as an Allman Brothers fan, but I would have loved more records like Low Country Blues and Southern Blood. Iâm aware that those are my expectations for him as an artist, which are completely unfair. Gregg gave us everything he had.
âStatesboro Bluesâ - At Fillmore East. Thereâs nothing I donât love about this song. From Fillmore Eastâs Michael Ahrenâs deadpan intro to Gregg wailing and Duaneâs fierce slide. The Allman Brothers at their finest.
âDonât Want You No More>âItâs Not My Cross To Bearâ - The Allman Brothers Band. The first two songs on the debut album. Note that it is Gregg, not Duane or Dickey, who takes the first solo on an Allman Brothers record. âCross to Bearâ was one of two songs he brought with him from L.A. when he joined the band.
âDreamsâ - The Allman Brothers Band. âDreamsâ was the other song of Greggâs the band adopted immediately. This has been my theme song for decades now. Some of the most devastating lyrics Gregg ever wrote, heâd not yet turned 21. Next to âMountain Jam,â itâs my favorite Allman Brothers song.3
âThe High Cost of Low Livingâ - Hittinâ the Note. Iâm struck how much this song from the bandâs final album bookends âDreams.â Here he is 35 years later (a cowrite with Warren Haynes and two others.)4 Thereâs a world-weariness here, a look back at the life he lived in the years between the existential crisis of âDreams,â and this stage in his life. Of note, this is the only song from this album they played at the final Beacon show October 28, 2014.
âMulti-Colored Ladyâ - Laid Back. Gregg was at heart a ballad guy. Laid Back is full of them.
âMelissaâ - Eat a Peach. The first song Gregg completed and didnât throw away. Duane was a big fan of the song, which Gregg sang at his brotherâs funeral.
âCome and Go Bluesâ - Brothers and Sisters. My favorite song on this album and in my top 3 favorite Gregg songs of all-time.
âTurn on Your Love Lightâ - The Gregg Allman Tour. In the repertoire since the days of the Allman Joys (and probably even the Escorts), this is a fun take from the Laid Back tour.
âMidnight Riderâ - Idlewild South. Why Capricorn didnât release this as a single in 1970 is beyond me. This is a certified BANGER, timeless, a song for the ages. Greggâs lead vocals are from the first take.
âNobody Knowsâ - Shades of Two Worlds. Dickey wrote this one for Gregg. Itâs in the vein of âWhipping Post,â which is one reason it left the setlist for good when Dickey left the band in 2000. A quintessential Warren & Woody era jam.
âTrouble No Moreâ - The Allman Brothers Band. The one that started it all. The song Duane challenged Gregg with when he walked into his first Allman Brothers rehearsal. Note: Duaneâs playing slide in standard tuning here. He didnât learn open-E until November 1969. (This record recorded August 69.)
âDonât Keep Me Wonderinââ - Idlewild South. Another song from Idlewild that couldâve been a radio hit.
âEnd of the Lineâ - An Evening with the Allman Brothers Band: First Set. Gregg wrote this with Warren & Woody, a cautionary tale of lessons Gregg spent his first 50 years learning.
âStormy Mondayâ - At Fillmore East and âGet on with Your Lifeâ - An Evening with the Allman Brothers Band: First Set. Weâve entered the slow blues portion of the set. Another bookend look at Greggâs ABB work (1971 to 1991).
âSouthbound (Live at Winterland/1973)â - Wipe the Windows, Check the Oil, Dollar Gas. Another Dickey song for Greggâone that Gregg simply OWNED.5
âJust Another Riderâ - Low Country Blues. A cowrite with Warren Haynes, the only Gregg original on his penultimate album.
âThese Daysâ - Laid Back. The Jackson Browne original that Gregg released before Browne even got a chance to. Browne credited Gregg with the arrangement. Greggâs final line is an adaptationââPlease donât confront me with my failures. Iâm aware of them.â Browneâs line was âI have not forgotten them,â which isnât as powerful.
âAinât Wastinâ Time No Moreâ - Eat a Peach. The song that kicks off Eat a Peach, Duaneâs final album, was Greggâs paean to his late brother. This, âDreams,â and âCome & Go Bluesâ are my triumvirate of Gregg songs.
âSoulshineâ - Where It All Begins. A Warren Haynes song that was tailor-made for Gregg. It was a showpiece throughout the 90s and remained in the setlist until the very end.
âWill the Circle Be Unbrokenâ - Laid Back. The Carter Family standard that Duane quoted in âMountain Jamâ was the final track on Greggâs first solo album.
âDesdemonaâ - Fox Theatre, Atlanta, September 2004. A gorgeous slow blues from Gregg & Warren, I included this particular version because of the vamp in the middle, which quotes John Coltraneâs âMy Favorite Things.â
âJust Ainât Easyâ - Enlightened Rogues. This oneâs autobiographical. Greggâs only original on the album. Thereâs a great live version from 1979 on the Dreams box set that segues into âIn Memory of Elizabeth Reed.â
âGamblerâs Rollâ - Seven Turns. This is a Haynes/Johnny Neel cowrite and my favorite song on this record and itâs not even close. One reason Iâm so fond of it: the ABB played the first time I saw them live.6
âQueen of Heartsâ - Laid Back. Greggâs entire solo career began with this song, which hâd worked on it for months. When he took it to the Allman Brothers, they rejected it with prejudice. In response, Gregg started making Laid Back.
âGoing Going Goneâ - Southern Blood. The only Dylan tune Gregg ever recorded. In the Gregg documentary, Don Was said heâs who brought the song to Gregg.
âAll My Friendsâ - Laid Back. A song by Cowboyâs Scott Boyer. The song was the namesake for the Gregg tribute show in 2014 at the Fox Theatre. Another tune Gregg made his own.
âDone Somebody Wrongâ - At Fillmore East and âOne Way Outâ - Eat a Peach. Canât get enough of Greggâs voice and Duaneâs slide together on these blues.
âWasted Wordsâ - Brothers and Sisters. This one kicked off shows throughout the Brothers and Sisters era, with Gregg on guitar. A rollicking slide blues romp.
âWhippinâ Postâ - Searching for Simplicity. Story goes that roadie Red Dog Campbell challenged Gregg to rework this classic just as Eric Clapton had done with âLaylaâ for his MTV Unplugged album/session. I imagine this is what the song sounded like when Gregg brought it to the ABB, before Berry changed the time signature to 11/8.
âPlease Call Homeâ - Laid Back. One of two Allman Brothersâ songs Gregg recorded on Laid Back. I much prefer this take to the original.
âOncoming Trafficâ - The Gregg Allman Tour. This one only exists in the world as a live track. Just Gregg on piano and a string section. Itâs simply gorgeous, one of his best songs.
âMy Only True Friendâ - Southern Blood. Greggâs only writing credit on his final album follows the tradition of some of his greatest road songs, including âMidnight Riderâ and âJust Another Rider.â In this case, Greggâs saying goodbye for good. And he knows it.
âWhipping Postâ - At Fillmore East. Enough said.
PLAYLIST
For paid members of Long Live the ABB, a link to the playlist is below.
