Oteil Burbridge Do you recall the first time you heard Gregg and the music of the Allman Brothers Band?
The funny thing is, I didn’t really know the Allman Brothers stuff at all. I was at this party in high school, and I heard what I thought was Tony Williams Lifetime because the organ was screaming like Larry Young. Plus, there was the sound of Duane’s guitar, and there was the double drums, which sounded like Tony Williams. I stopped dead in my tracks, and I was like, “Who is that?” And my buddy Claude said, “Dude, you don’t know who that is? That’s the Allman Brothers Band.” What I was really keying in on was the drums, and the organ and the guitar. It was in the jam part of “Whipping Post.” And I was like, “Allman Brothers Band. Wow, those are some badasses.”
Can you talk about being inside the belly of the beast when you started finding your way within that music back in ‘97?
It was so crazy because I had never been in a really big band, and I had never been in a band that was really dysfunctional like that. The whole dynamic between Dickey and Gregg and Butch—I didn’t know what to think. It was just overwhelming. The drummers had their own bus, Dickey had his own bus and then me, Jack Pearson and Gregg were all on one bus. It was a very welcoming environment, and they left me out of their dysfunctional dynamic, but it was definitely a tumultuous time when I joined. I honestly didn’t expect it to last longer than the summer because Warren and Allen Woody had just quit. I thought, “They’re bringing us in to try to save it, but it’s probably going down.” Seventeen years later, they were still going.
The music was intense. I’ll never forget the very first two songs I learned were “Don’t Want You No More” and “Cross to Bear.” That’s also how it started out that very first night, and I remember that, for whatever was going on offstage, when we’d get onstage, there’s was some very intense mystical stuff going on. It made my hair stand up.
How would you characterize Gregg’s musical legacy?
Any artist hopes to make something that will stand the test of time—that will outlive them. He really tapped into it. Those first five records? It’s timeless music. There are lots of people who are trapped by their hits, but his songs never get old. He left the world a more beautiful place than he found it. There are people that haven’t even been born yet that are going to get inspiration from what he did. And for Butch and Jaimoe and Dickey and Duane and Berry and Lamar and Chuck, and everybody that’s ever contributed to this, it was the inspiration for so much yet to come. You’re going to hear Gregg and his music and his whole essence in other people’s music. I’m sure pieces of it are going to be in the music that I write in the future. I’m also really glad that he made it as far as he did, when so many of his brothers didn’t.
Comments
Do you recall the first time you heard Gregg and the music of the Allman Brothers Band?
The funny thing is, I didn’t really know the Allman Brothers stuff at all. I was at this party in high school, and I heard what I thought was Tony Williams Lifetime because the organ was screaming like Larry Young. Plus, there was the sound of Duane’s guitar, and there was the double drums, which sounded like Tony Williams. I stopped dead in my tracks, and I was like, “Who is that?” And my buddy Claude said, “Dude, you don’t know who that is? That’s the Allman Brothers Band.” What I was really keying in on was the drums, and the organ and the guitar. It was in the jam part of “Whipping Post.” And I was like, “Allman Brothers Band. Wow, those are some badasses.”
Can you talk about being inside the belly of the beast when you started finding your way within that music back in ‘97?
It was so crazy because I had never been in a really big band, and I had never been in a band that was really dysfunctional like that. The whole dynamic between Dickey and Gregg and Butch—I didn’t know what to think. It was just overwhelming. The drummers had their own bus, Dickey had his own bus and then me, Jack Pearson and Gregg were all on one bus. It was a very welcoming environment, and they left me out of their dysfunctional dynamic, but it was definitely a tumultuous time when I joined. I honestly didn’t expect it to last longer than the summer because Warren and Allen Woody had just quit. I thought, “They’re bringing us in to try to save it, but it’s probably going down.” Seventeen years later, they were still going.
The music was intense. I’ll never forget the very first two songs I learned were “Don’t Want You No More” and “Cross to Bear.” That’s also how it started out that very first night, and I remember that, for whatever was going on offstage, when we’d get onstage, there’s was some very intense mystical stuff going on. It made my hair stand up.
How would you characterize Gregg’s musical legacy?
Any artist hopes to make something that will stand the test of time—that will outlive them. He really tapped into it. Those first five records? It’s timeless music. There are lots of people who are trapped by their hits, but his songs never get old. He left the world a more beautiful place than he found it. There are people that haven’t even been born yet that are going to get inspiration from what he did. And for Butch and Jaimoe and Dickey and Duane and Berry and Lamar and Chuck, and everybody that’s ever contributed to this, it was the inspiration for so much yet to come. You’re going to hear Gregg and his music and his whole essence in other people’s music. I’m sure pieces of it are going to be in the music that I write in the future. I’m also really glad that he made it as far as he did, when so many of his brothers didn’t.
Read more: https://www.relix.com/articles/detail/all_my_friends_part_i_warren_haynes_derek_trucks_and_oteil_burbridge_remember_gregg_allman#ixzz4pIuJDEOs