Review of Allman
Brothers - The Allman Brothers Band At Fillmore East
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(This may not be actual album art)
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A lot of 70's bands released albums of self-indulgent, endless jamming that was as masturbatory as it was boring. The Allman Brothers Band, however, didn't jam aimlessly. On a good night, they would leave the Grateful Dead and even some jazz bands in the dust. At the Fillmore East documents a number of great jams along with more concise readings of their more famous material.
Guitarists Duane Allman and Dickey Betts push and prod each other toward new musical peaks, pulling clean, searching lines out of their guitars. Only in his early twenties, organist and lead singer Gregg Allman possess an anguished howl of a voice: his moans echo the melancholy sting of his older brothers slide guitar. A total restructuring of "In Memory Of Elizabeth Reed" follows a jazzy path while a twenty minute version of "Whipping Post" extends the Allmans' down and dirty blues to the breaking point before winding up in polyrhythmic release. With two drummers, Jai Johanny Johanson and Butch Trucks, the Allmans have no problem matching melodic proficiency with a powerful back beat that propel the jams to lofty heights. For the entire 75 minute CD, there is not a wasted note anywhere.
In 1988, Rolling Stone magazine rated At the Fillmore East as the greatest live recording of all time.
Released Date: 1994
PolyGram
Japan
Tracks:
Statesboro Blues
Done Somebody Wrong
Stormy Monday
You Don't Love Me
Hot 'Lanta
In Memory Of Elizabeth Reed
Whipping Post
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