The quote above is from Dickey Betts in Alan Paul’s excellent book One Way Out. Dickey was talking about the shared musical ethos between the Allman Brothers and the Grateful Dead. I cited it in Play All Night, and reference it often.

Here’s the full quote:

“The Dead’s philosophy, which is very similar to ours. We sound very different, because were from different routes. There from my folk music, jug band, and country thing. We’re from an urban blues/jazz bag. We don’t wait for it to happen; we make it happen. But we’ve always had a similar fan base in philosophy—keeping music honest and fun and trying to make it a transcendental experience for the audience.”

The Allman Brothers, the Dead, Tedeschi Trucks Band all share this ideal—that music is an experience with and for the audience.

As Dickey noted above, the Dead pull it from folk music, which is participatory. The Allman Brothers pull from the blues, also a participatory form. Each adds elements of gospel and rhythm & blues and soul and rock & roll. Both bands carry the jazz impulse deep in their bones.

And they share one more thing.

The audience matters.

You are part of the experience.

We are drawing energy from you.

I could be a Pollyanna about this with Tedeschi Trucks, but I genuinely have always felt that at their shows.

It’s never been, “We’re up here just doing our thing.” It has always been, “We’re trying to let you have a really great time. That’s our goal. We want you to boogie your ass off and forget the bullshit for just a little while. We want you to focus on higher causes.”

And they’re improvising like motherfuckers all the time.

It’s mind blowing.

The kind of transcendental experience I dig the most.

Video excerpted from “There is a rabbit dissipating into thin air and coming back as an elephant running down the highway.” The magic of music and the community it conjures. Conversation from the Crossroads with Adam Choit:

🍄Play All Night! Duane Allman & the Journey to Fillmore East🍄

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Jimmy Carter reppin’ the ABB July 4 weekend 1976.

Ad for ABB’s March 1971 run at Fillmore East. Here’s the original ad—with Johnny Winter at top of the bill.

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