Sunrises and Sunsets:

Howard Duane Allman - lead guitar

     Born Nov. 20, 1946 in Nashville, Tennessee
     Died Oct. 29, 1971 in Macon, Georgia

Raymond Berry Oakley - bass guitar

     Born April 4, 1948 in Chicago, Illinois
     Died Nov. 11, 1972 in Macon, Georgia

Forrest Richard "Dickey" Betts - lead guitar

     Born Dec. 12, 1943 in West Palm Beach, Florida

Jai Johanny Johanson "Jaimoe" - percussion

     Born July 8, 1944 in Ocean Springs, Mississippi

Claude Hudson "Butch" Trucks - percussion

     Born May 11, 1947 in Jacksonville, Florida

Gregory Lenoir Allman - keyboards, lead vocals

     Born December 8, 1947 in Nashville, Tennessee

Back Where It All Began:

Duane told interviewer Tony Glover that at the start of the '60s "One year
Gregg got a guitar for Christmas and I got me a Harley 165 motorcycle. I
tore that up and he learned to play. He taught me and I traded the wrecked
bike parts for another guitar." By 1961, Duane and Gregg were playing at
teen dances around Daytona Beach, where they had lived since 1959. In 1963
they were in the House Rockers before organizing the Allman Joys. The
Allman Joys toured bars in the SE and made their first single, a remake of
"Spoonful" by Willie Dixon.

In the late '60s they moved to Los Angeles and became part of a group
called Hourglass, that put out two albums, "Hour Glass" and "Power of
Love". The band had no control over their material. As Duane said, "They'd
send in a box of demos and say, 'Okay, pick out your next LP.' We'd try to
tell them that wasn't where it was at. Then they'd get tough."

Disgusted, Duane returned to Florida where he hooked up with the drummer
from the 31st of February, Butch Trucks. On many occasions they crossed
paths with a band led by Dickey Betts that included bassist Berry Oakley.
They also jammed with a drummer who toured with a number of bands, Jaimoe.

At the same time, Duane's reputation as a session man was growing. Among
the artists he backed up were Wilson Pickett, Aretha Franklin and King
Curtis.

Still, he kept going back to jam with his friends in Florida and during one
memorable jam in the Green House, the nucleus of the Allman Brothers Band
was formed. A call to Gregg, who was still in California, to "come home"
was all that was needed to complete the group.

Within months the Allman Brothers Band was being handled by Phil Walden,
who encouraged them to move from Jacksonville to Macon, Georgia

Their debut album on Capricorn Records, "The Allman Brothers Band" was
recorded in 1969 and won excellent reviews. The band began their first
national tour in support of the record

By 1970, the ABB were gaining a reputation as one of the best blues and
rock bands in the country. Their second LP, "Idlewild South" also sold well
and the band continued to tour endlessly across the country. They also
appeared at the British Isle of Wright Festival in 1970.

The ABB were a favorite of promoter Bill Graham and in their December 1970
appearance at his Fillmore East, they were in such rare form that they
played encore after encore, not giving up the stage to headliner Canned
Heat until 3:30 a.m. During their next Fillmore gig, in March 1971, tapes
were made for their third album, "The Allman Brothers Live At Fillmore
East". This album easily reached gold status.

The band seemed on the way to galactic heights when they were rocked by the
death of Duane. He lost control of his motorcycle on a Macon street while
trying to swerve to avoid a tractor-trailer in October of 1971. Another
motorcycle accident took the life of Berry Oakley, not three blocks from
the scene of Duane's collision, in November 1972.

                              Roadies and Crew


Biography

The Allman Brothers Band has long had the philosophy that "The Band" was
not just the guys playing instruments, but everyone who worked together to
put the show on every night. The crew, the roadies -- the ABB first honored
them publicly on the back of the Fillmore East album.

We'll start putting together the names and faces for you here ... like all
parts of Hittin' the Web, this is a work in progress ... meaning it ain't
complete, so we don't have all the pix and all the family represented yet.
Contributions are welcome, help us get these hard working guys the
recognition they deserve.


        Red Dog during the Peaches and Dreams tour

        Red Dog has been with the band since the beginning. He "does it
        all" but his primary focus is on percussion.
        Joe Dan Petty on Peaches and Dreams tour

        Joe Dan is another long-time roadie and familiar face gliding
        around the equipment and keeping the guitar scene straight.



