Duane Allman
John Hammond, Jr.
With a career that spans over three decades, John Hammond is one of handful of white blues musicians who was on the scene at the beginning of the first blues renaissance of the mid-'60s. That revival, brought on by renewed interest in folk music around the U.S., brought about career boosts for many of the great classic blues players, including Mississippi John Hurt, Rev. Gary Davis, and Skip James. Some critics have described Hammond as a white Robert Johnson, and Hammond does justice to classic blues by combining powerful guitar and harmonica playing with expressive vocals and a dignified stage presence. Within the first decade of his career as a performer, Hammond began crafting a niche for himself that is completely his own: the solo guitar man, harmonica slung in a rack around his neck, reinterpreting classic blues songs from the 1930s, '40s, and '50s. Yet, as several of his mid-'90s recordings for the Pointblank label demonstrate, he's also a capable bandleader who plays wonderful electric guitar. This guitar-playing and ensemble work can be heard on Found True Love and Got Love If You Want It, both for the Pointblank/Virgin label.
Born November 13, 1942, in New York City, the son of the famous Columbia Records talent scout John Hammond, Sr., what most people don't know is that Hammond didn't grow up with his father. His parents split when he was young, and he would see his father several times a year. He first began playing guitar while attending a private high school, and he was particularly fascinated with slide guitar technique. He saw his idol, Jimmy Reed, perform at New York's Apollo Theater, and he's never been the same since.
After attending Antioch College in Ohio on a scholarship for a year, he left to pursue a career as a blues musician. By 1962, with the folk revival starting to heat up, Hammond had attracted a following in the coffeehouse circuit, performing in the tradition of the classic country blues singers he loved so much. By the time he was just 20 years old, he had been interviewed for the New York Times before one of his East Coast festival performances, and he was a certified national act.
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When Hammond was living in the Village in 1966, a young Jimi Hendrix came through town, looking for work. Hammond offered to put a band together for the guitarist, and got the group work at the Cafe Au Go Go. By that point, the coffeehouses were falling out of favor, and instead the bars and electric guitars were coming in with folk-rock. Hendrix was approached there by Chas Chandler, who took him to England to record. Hammond recalls telling the young Hendrix to take Chandler up on his offer. "The next time I saw him, about a year later, he was a big star in Europe," Hammond recalled in a 1990 interview. In the late '60s and early '70s, Hammond continued his work with electric blues ensembles, recording with people like Band guitarist Robbie Robertson (and other members of the Band when they were still known as Levon Helm & the Hawks), Duane Allman, Dr. John, harmonica wiz Charlie Musselwhite, Michael Bloomfield, and David Bromberg.
As with Dr. John and other blues musicians who've recorded more than two dozen albums, there are many great recordings that provide a good introduction to the man's body of work. His self-titled debut for the Vanguard label has now been reissued on compact disc by the company's new owners, The Welk Music Group, and other good recordings to check out (on vinyl and/or compact disc) include I Can Tell (recorded with Bill Wyman from the Rolling Stones), Southern Fried (1968), Source Point (1970, Columbia), and his most recent string of early- and mid-'90s albums for Pointblank/Virgin Records, Got Love If You Want It, Trouble No More (both produced by J.J. Cale), and Found True Love.
He didn't know it when he was 20, and he may not realize it now, but Hammond deserves special commendation for keeping many of the classic blues songs alive. When fans see Hammond perform them, as Dr. John has observed many times with his music and the music of others, the fans often want to go back further, and find out who did the original versions of the songs Hammond now plays.
Although he's a multi-dimensional artist, one thing Hammond has never professed to be is a songwriter. In the early years of his career, it was more important to him that he bring the art form to a wider audience by performing classic -- in some cases forgotten -- songs. Now, more than 30 years later, Hammond continues to do this, touring all over the U.S., Canada, and Europe from his base in northern New Jersey. He continued to release albums into the new millennium with three discs on the Back Porch label, including Ready for Love in 2002, produced David Hidalgo of Los Lobos, In Your Arms Again in 2005, and Push Comes to Shove in 2007. Whether it's with a band or by himself, Hammond can do it all. Seeing him perform live, one still gets the sense that some of the best is still to come from this energetic bluesman.
~ Richard Skelly, All Music Guide
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THE ALLMAN BROTHERS BAND
The southern American mega-group, The Allman Brothers boast over 40 years in the music industry and are considered a classic rock staple with a mix of blues, rock and a unique approach to jamming.
The founding members were Gregg Allman and Duane Allman with original supporting members in the form of Dickey Betts, Berry Oakley, Butch Trucks and Jai Johanny Johanson. The band has been awarded eleven gold and 5 platinum albums between the years of 1971 and 2005.
The band’s first self-titled album was a critical success but with the southern rock genre being such an underground phenomenon, it didn’t reach mainstream attention. The opposite was true for its second album Idlewild South in 1970 which produced an Allman Brother’s classic, Midnight Rider which was more radio-friendly and remains so to this day.
In 1971, the band released the recording of its performance at the Fillmore East. It highlighted the bands’ finesse at improvisation and Gregg’s coarse vocals on songs like the 23 minute version of Whipping Post and 13 minute In the Memory of Elizabeth Reed. It was a massive success.
Tragedy struck the band when Duane was killed in a motorcycle accident shortly after this legendary Fillmore performance. The group decided to carry on and Betts filled Duane’s role while recording their third album, Eat a Peach.
Ironically, another member, Oakley, died due to injuries sustained in a motorcycle injury. This happened shortly before the band finished its fourth album, Brothers and Sisters. This became another one of must-have Allman Brothers albums with tracks, Ramblin’ Man and Jessica.
By 1973, The Allman Brothers could claim to be one of the best loved festival and concert acts. Their success led to other southern acts, like Lynyrd Skynrd, rising through the charts.
Like many successful rock acts, drug use, personal conflicts and differing musical directions produced cracks in the group. 1975’s album, Win, Lose or Draw didn’t feature all the members of the band.
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By 1979, The Allman Brothers were all but non-existent in the charts but still had a committed following. The band officially broke up in 1982 when Gregg formed the uniquely titled Gregg Allman Band. Other dominant member, Betts joined forces with Trucks and other latter Allman additions David Goldflies and Chuck Leavell to form the short-lived and equally novel band named, Betts, Hall, Leavell and Trucks. Both fledging bands toured small venues.
During the next few years, Gregg and Betts moved in a parallel fashion, releasing solo material and performing one-off reunions. Gregg’s solo success prompted an official reunion with Betts, Jaimoe and Trucks. They added Warren Haynes, Johnny Neel and Allen Woody to the line up.
The band was signed to Epic Records and released three new albums. In 1995, the band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. At the cusp of the new century, more line up transformations ensued including the addition of the young but insanely talented guitar player, Derek Trucks (the nephew of Butch Trucks). Betts was painfully forced out of the band for “personal and professional reasons”. This was indicative of the tenuous relationship that Betts and Gregg experienced in the past. The Allman Brothers continue to perform live.
Group has included Howard Duane Allman, born November 20,1946, Nashville, TN, died in a motorcycle accident October 29, 1971; Gregg Allman, born December 8, 1947, Nashville; Duane and Gregg's mother's name was Géraldine Allman; Dicky Betts (guitar); Warren Heynes (guitar); Jai Johanny Johanson (drums); Chuck Leavell (piano); Johnny Neel (harmonica and keyboards); Berry Oakley (bass), deceased, 1972; Dan Toller (guitar); Butch Trucks (drums); Lamar Williams (bass); Allen Woody (bass).
Band formed c. 1968.
Addresses: Record company—Epic (Sony Music Distribution), Sony Music Entertainment, P.O. Box 4450, New York, NY 10101.
"Duane was the father of the band," said Gregg in Guitar Player. "He had a lot to do with the spontaneity of the whole thing. He was like the mother ship. Somehow he had this real magic about him that would lock us all in, and we'd take off." Although he is hardly ever mentioned in the same breath as his contemporaries, Duane was as equally inventive and skillful as Jeff Beck, Jimi Hendrix, or Jimmy Page. His work on Clapton's Layla LP prodded the Englishman to new heights and created one of the finest rock albums of all time.
The Allman Brothers band took a devastating blow on October 29,1971 when Duane was killed in a motorcycle crash at the age of 24. A tight-knit family, the Allman Brothers band continued on without replacing Duane and issued Eat a Peach in 1972. One half of the LP consisted of live cuts from their Fillmore dates and the studio side included the hit "Melissa." Betts took control of the band's direction and continued in his instrumental vein with "Jessica" on their next album, Brothers and Sisters. They had their biggest hit, "Ramblin' Man," but were also struck again by tragedy when Berry Oakley died just 13 months after Duane in an eerily similar accident.
Albums:
The Allman Brothers Band, Atco, 1969.
Idlewild South, Atco, 1970.
Live at the Fillmore East, Capricorn, 1971.
Eat a Peach, Capricorn, 1972.
Brothers and Sisters, Capricorn, 1973.
Win, Lose or Draw, Capricorn, 1975.
The Road Goes on Forever, Capricorn, 1975.
Wipe The Windows, Check the Oil, Dollar Gas, Capricorn, 1976.
Enlightened Rogues, Capricorn, 1979.
Reach for the Sky, Arista, 1980.
Brothers of the Road.
Dreams (retrospective box set), Polydor, 1989.
Seven Turns, Epic, 1990.
Live At Ludlow Garage, Polygram, 1990.
Shades of Two Worlds, Epic, 1991.
An Evening with the Allman Brothers Band: First Set, Epic, 1992.
Where It All Begins, Sony, 1994.
An Evening with the Allman Brothers Band: 2nd Set, Epic, 1995.
Peakin' at the Beacon, Epic, 2000.
Hittin' the Note, Sanctuary, 2003.
Sources: Juanita Appleby; Calen D. Stone
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