The Allman Brothers Band

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The Allman Brothers Band
The Allman Brothers Band in May 1969. From left to right, (back) Duane Allman, Gregg Allman; (front) Butch Trucks, Dickey Betts, Berry Oakley, and Jaimoe.
Background information
Origin	Jacksonville, Florida, U.S.
Genres	Southern rock blues rock jazz rock[1] jam band[2]
Years active	1969–1976 1978–1982 1989–2014
Labels	Capricorn PolyGram Arista Epic Sanctuary
Spinoffs	Sea Level Great Southern Gregg Allman Band Gov't Mule Tedeschi Trucks Band Les Brers The Allman Betts Band
Past members	Duane Allman Gregg Allman Dickey Betts Jaimoe Berry Oakley Butch Trucks Chuck Leavell Lamar Williams David Goldflies Dan Toler Mike Lawler David "Frankie" Toler Warren Haynes Johnny Neel Allen Woody Marc Quiñones Oteil Burbridge Jack Pearson Derek Trucks Jimmy Herring
Website	allmanbrothersband.com

The Allman Brothers Band was an American rock band formed in Jacksonville, Florida, in 1969.^[3] Its founding members were brothers Duane Allman (slide guitar, lead guitar) and Gregg Allman (vocals, keyboards, songwriting), as well as Dickey Betts (lead guitar, vocals, songwriting), Berry Oakley (bass), Butch Trucks (drums), and Jai Johanny "Jaimoe" Johanson (drums). Subsequently based in Macon, Georgia, they incorporated elements of blues, jazz and country music and their live shows featured jam band-style improvisation and instrumentals.

The band's first two studio albums, The Allman Brothers Band (1969) and Idlewild South (1970), both released by Capricorn Records, stalled commercially but their 1971 live album At Fillmore East was an artistic and commercial breakthrough. It features extended versions of their songs "In Memory of Elizabeth Reed" and "Whipping Post", showcasing the group's jamming style.

Group leader Duane Allman was killed in a motorcycle accident later that year – on October 29, 1971 – and the band dedicated Eat a Peach (1972) to his memory, a dual studio/live album that cemented the band's popularity and featured Gregg Allman's "Melissa" and Dickey Betts's "Blue Sky". Following the motorcycling death of bassist Berry Oakley one year and 13 days later on November 11, 1972, the group recruited keyboardist Chuck Leavell and bassist Lamar Williams for 1973's Brothers and Sisters. The album included Betts's hit single "Ramblin' Man" and instrumental "Jessica", which went on to become classic rock radio staples and placed the group at the forefront of 1970s rock music. Internal turmoil overtook them soon after as the group dissolved in 1976, reforming briefly at the end of the decade with additional personnel changes and breaking up again in 1982.

The band re-formed once more in 1989, releasing a string of new albums and touring heavily. A series of personnel changes in the late 1990s was capped by the departure of Betts. The group found stability during the 2000s with bassist Oteil Burbridge and guitarists Warren Haynes and Derek Trucks (the nephew of Butch) and became renowned for their month-long string of shows at New York City's Beacon Theatre each spring. The band retired for good in October 2014 after their final show at the Beacon Theatre.

Butch Trucks died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound on January 24, 2017, in West Palm Beach, Florida at the age of 69. Gregg Allman died from complications arising from liver cancer on May 27, 2017, at his home in Georgia, also at 69. Betts died on April 18, 2024, at age 80, from cancer and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, leaving Jaimoe as the only living original member. The band was awarded seven gold and four platinum albums by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA),^[4] and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1995. In 2010, Rolling Stone magazine ranked the band 52nd on its list of the "100 Greatest Artists of All Time".^[5]