Graphic created by Bill Underhill
The Allman Brothers Band 6/17/01
Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville, Kentucky is situated in some of the more lushly forested parts
of the country that Tina and I have yet visited. Dense woods one can barely
see ten feet into line either side of the highway in this largely as yet unspoiled
portion of our nation.
Well-marked signs guided us to the Louisville Motor Speedway on this warm
Sunday afternoon. A single entryway allowed us access to the interior of the
venue which was no more and no less than what it claimed to be: a speedway.
This particular race track is shaped as a figure eight, tip the eight on it’s side,
place the stage in the center facing one of the long sides where the bleachers
are located and you have an idea of what we saw as we entered the Speedway
proper. Two tear shaped pieces of lawn grace either end of the stage and Tina
and I set our blanket and ourselves on the rightmost of these and set out in search
of water, Coca-Cola and tee shirts. All were very easy to find.
Settling in, we watched as the crowd began to assemble around us, and soon
began to pick up on some of the chatter from other concert attendees. One
conversation was interesting enough to get me note taking a lot earlier than I
had expected to do and so I shall reproduce it here:
A Fan: “Think Gregg will be here tonight?”
Drunkabilly: “Yup, they’re all gonna be here tonight, Gregg, Dickey, Butch,
all of ‘em.”
Me: “No, Dickey will not be here tonight.”
Drunkabilly: “That’s right, Dickey quit and now he’s got 5 solo albums out.”
A Fan: “Really?”
Drunkabilly: “Yup. And Gregg sits behind a big black box and plays. It’s not
up there yet, but he sits behind a big black box and plays. I seen ‘em before.
Gregg sits behind a big black box. That’s what he plays.”
Me: (Silently staring in disbelief) “………………”
A Fan: “Who’s gonna play first?”
Drunkabilly: “Some local band, then Black Bandana, then The Allmans.”
In a little way, I felt like I was tied to the whipping post….
Soon enough, “the local band”, Ohio based Dallas Moore, kicked off the
show with enough country flavored Southern Rock guitar mashing to get Drunkabilly
to give the band the finger and yell “HAHWW!!” as Mr. Moore asked us to do
eight or ten times.
Next up was Deep Banana Blackout, an eight-piece band hailing from Bridgeport,
Connecticut. This is one hot ensemble, kids. With a funky, jazzy sound, reminiscent
of Tower of Power, this group came out, got groovy, and stayed that way. Without
a setlist for their piece of stage time I’ll just give you some highlights I noted: first song,
great trombone solo from B. Smith, second song had their guitarist, Fuzz, struttin’
his stuff, third song, Ian Anderson licks from their flautist/saxophonist/singer, Hope
Clayburn. Their entire set was smoky, upbeat and very groovin’. Definitely a must-see
act should they play your area. They even managed to get the twirlers started early.
7:55 and a group we like to call The Allman Brothers Band took the stage. The
first thing I noticed was that Derek was sporting the SG again, my favorite.
The ABB opened with Don’t Keep Me Wondering to the approval of the
crowd, nothing like a vintage tune to get the audience moving, right? With that,
they swung into Trouble No More just to keep us happy. Third song up Gregg
informs the crowd that there will be some new material played and Tina and
I happily heard the opening strains of Warren’s Rockin’ Horse. Derek took the
first lead on this one, first fretting, then sliding. Warren and Derek bounced
some calls back and forth then Warren worked the frets as the percussion trio
dieseled the backbeat. The more I hear this song, the more I like it. It may be a
Gov’t Mule song, but The ABB seem to have laid claim to it.
Next played was Good Clean Fun, another power tune I always enjoy hearing.
Following was the second new song for the evening, Desdemona with it’s jazzy
mid-piece, making the lyrics seem almost incidental to the song. Gregg played
electric piano on this one, reminding us that he’s not JUST the singer. Derek
again started with finger work, then moved to the slide, with Warren following
with his own frenetic fretting. Another personal favorite was played next, Black
Hearted Woman. It was this song that made it clear just how crisply the current
lineup plays, the punch that this band delivers is outstanding, especially on numbers
that have the drive and slam built into them as this one does. Derek and Warren
played a bit with some call and response before taking us out of the song with its l
ocomotive ending.
Next served was the first big crowd pleaser of the night: Midnight Rider. Derek’s
play on this song has gotten especially sweet; I think this one will grace the setlists
quite often this tour.
We were next treated to some guitar improvs from a certain Warren Haynes. This
was responded to with some slide improvs from a Mr. Derek Trucks. Mr. Haynes
followed with more of his own improv work, and was answered again by Derek’s slide.
Warren then provided a final answer before the band slammed us into Hoochie Coochie
Man with its gritty vocals and rolling drum work. The Allman Brothers worked the
lead- in to this tune long enough for me to recommend garnering a copy of this
show for yourself if only for this song alone.
Another new song followed, The High Cost of Low Living. Derek’s slide
work on this medium tempo tune has me wondering if the song wasn’t written
to showcase the young Mr. Trucks talents on slide guitar.
The hot Kentucky evening was finally beginning to cool as the sun set at
our backs, but The Allman Brothers Band kept the heat up onstage as they
took us into their Dreams. Derek took first lead again, first on the frets and then
on slide. As Warren fretted his guitar following the second verse, I noticed Gregg’s
participation on B3 seems to have increased. Whether this was a result of his being
up in the mix lately, or just that he was enjoying his role in the song doesn’t matter
much to me, I loved hearing his counterpointing. Warren finally began his slide run,
playing it just as hard as ever, sending his eagle’s scream into the French vanilla sunset
behind us. It is this song that epitomizes Allman Brothers shows
for me, and with both Derek and Warren playing slide, the song moves me so much that
I even forget to smile.
All during this song, I had noticed a family a short distance from us who seemed to
be enjoying the show as well as any of us. A father and his young daughter danced
together for the entire song, twirling and holding hands as the guitars rang into the dusk.
During a pause between songs, I approached them to learn that Bob and Mary Liz from
Lexington, KY had brought their seven year old Emily to see the ABB once again.
I was pleased to learn that Emily has an autograph of Derek Trucks, and that all three
see the Allman Brothers whenever they get the chance. It seems that they can’t keep
Emily from dancing at the shows, and that’s just as it should be.
Warren sang next as the band served up Loaded Dice to the crowd.
End of the Line was the next offering. Gregg is in fine voice these days, and this
song displays how good his vocal talents are. Derek and Warren worked some
call and response on this one making us appreciate their tandem guitar prowess.
Done Somebody Wrong was the following number, and again I noticed how
much punch this lineup has, very clean and powerful phrasing is coming from the
group. The horn section from Deep Banana Blackout was called up to the stage,
and Jaimoe was introduced to the crowd as the band played I’ve Been Lovin You
Too Long. Warren’s vocals really shine on this one, and the horns are just right.
From Deep Banana again, their guitarist, Fuzz, hooked up with the ABB for a
big band rendition of Southbound. Is this song any better with horns? Nah, I don’t
think so. Is it any worse? Nope, I don’t think so; it’s just different. Don’t like horns
with your ABB? Then this would be the perfect opportunity to get that beer refill
you’ve been wanting for the last twenty minutes. BUT, you’d be missing a fine sax
solo from Hope Clayburn, a fine trombone solo from B. Smith, and more great
sax with Rob Somerville. Just a thought… The sun finally dipped below the horizon,
allowing the Brothers of Light to display their quality graphics. They seem to have
added some elements to their offerings, something to watch for, unless of course
you’ve got your own private light show happening… The lighting came up just in
time for Mountain Jam. I was especially interested in hearing this tune, as I wanted
to compare this lineups rendition to the astounding play from Jimmy Herring’s stint with
the band last year. We were not disappointed. Although the play wasn’t the jazz jam
oriented pyrotechnics we heard in 2000, the 37-minute jam was replete with scorching
guitar, scatty keyboard, and thunderous drumming just as it always has. It kept Bob and
Emily dancing, that’s for sure. Oteil funked up the bass solo and the band brought it all
back together.
The encore was the perfect cap to the night: a volcanic version of Whipping Post,
with Warren providing the lava with a blistering lead to close the nights proceedings.
All in all, this was The Allman Brothers Band, friends, and as fine a show as I have
ever seen from them. Tina and I can hardly stand the wait until the Ogden show.
Oh well, I guess we’ll just have to make do with Eric Clapton in a month or so…
‘Bye for now,
Cliff Lake
6/19/01
Copyright © 2001 Clifford Lake
