March 26, 1969

If you're a fan of the original line-up of the Allman Brothers Band, you may have heard the story of how the band started.

After several Sunday jam sessions in a park in Jacksonville, Duane set up a private jam session. As Butch Trucks recalls it, "We set up at Berry Oakley's house. Duane was there, so was Dicky and Jaimo and Berry and myself. We played three or four hours without stopping."

As recounted in Randy Poe's Duane Allman biography "Skydog", Duane kicked off the proceedings with a shuffle - a shuffle that lasted for hours. "We got into this jam and it went here and here and here", said Butch Trucks. "Dicky and Duane were really having a good time with each other."

Duane later recalled it this way: "We set up the equipment and whipped into a little jam. It lasted two-and-a-half hours. When we finally quit, nobody ever said a word, man. Everybody was speechless. Nobody'd ever done anything like that before - it really frightened the shit out of everybody. Right then I knew. I said, 'Man, here it is - here it is!"

Duane Allman then walked to the open doorway, stood in front of it, and said, "Anybody in this room not gonna play in my band, you're gonna have to fight your way outta here!" And then he added, "The only thing is, we need a singer - and my baby brother's the only one who can do it."

Gregg Allman recalls (as do the other surviving members who were there that day) that he arrived in town three days later, on March 26th. According to Gregg, "We all got together in the same room for the first time...and I was the last one to get there. And there were all these guys I didn't know looking at me. It was heavy."

Gregg stood and listened to the musicians tear through Muddy Waters "Trouble No More". According to Dickey Betts, "Gregg put his hands against the wall and said 'I can't play in this fucking band!'"

That set Duane off. Using the same tactics he always used with his brother, he "coerced" Gregg into reluctantly singing the song.

Gregg explained, "I never heard or sung the song before, but by God, I did it. I shut my eyes and sang, and at the end of that there was just a long silence. At that moment, we knew what we had."

Just as the other members of the band had realized three days earlier, Gregg knew he was now in perilously unexplored musical territory. He also realized that he had to write new songs that would fit within the context of the band. He already had "Dreams" and "It's Just Not My Cross To Bear". Within the next five days Gregg recalls he wrote "Whipping Post", "Black Hearted Woman" and a couple of others. "I got on a real roll there", said Gregg.

Master Class: Music Business 101

This should be mandatory viewing for anyone who ever wants to get into the music business.

Going Mobile

According to new research by NPD Group on automotive connectivity. Devices and ways to connect them have become a serious focus for the auto industry. 79% of car owners are using a digital device in their cars, while almost 40% of people who own smartphones have used them to listen to streaming music in their cars. That’s despite the fact that for most drivers, it’s not very easy yet.

Car makers like Ford (Sync system), Chevy (MyLink) and Toyota (Entune) are working overtime on that. The NPD study finds that 18% of users are plugging into an auxiliary input (not the most elegant solution). 11% are using USB ports (available on only the newest models), and 56% are using Bluetooth technology. The fact that consumers are so interested in developing workaround ways to use their connected devices in their cars, is a huge indicator that as consumers move from CD's toward digital and streamed content, there is a desirability for a more connected dashboard.

“The key is for auto makers and traditional audio manufacturers to facilitate consumer use of connected devices in the vehicle, allowing content from the smartphone, tablet, or digital media player to easily stream or be controlled through the deck mounted in the dashboard,” Arnold said. “We’re only going to see greater consumer attachment to social media, streaming audio and video, and other services as content options grow.”

Allman Brothers Band Receives Lifetime Achievement Grammy

The Allman Brothers Band received the prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award at Los Angeles’ Staples Center during this year's Grammy ceremonies. All seven members of the current band attended the ceremony, along with former keyboardist Chuck Leavell and the families of late band co-founders Duane Allman and Berry Oakley.

The Allman Brothers Band’s acceptance speech was not part of the broadcast on CBS. The group’s extended, 22-minute acceptance speech included reflections from all of the current band members, as well as Chuck Leavell, Duane Allman’s camera-shy daughter Galadrielle Allman (pictured in the photo at right with her uncle Gregg) and Berry Oakley’s children Brittany and Berry.

Drummers Jaimoe and Butch Trucks both delivered fun, story-filled speeches. “I was on my way to New York to become a starving jazz musician when I met Duane Allman,” Jaimoe joked. “[My friend] told me, you should go make some money by playing with those white boys.” Trucks, whose stories make watching the whole acceptance speech worthwhile, also described his first conversation with Jaimoe and explained Duane Allman's huge influence on his career path.

To watch the entire sequence of acceptance speeches, click here.

Lilly Winwood

Most kids would cringe in horror if their dad offered to back them up playing keyboards at their club gig. But, most kids' dads aren't Steve Winwood!

16 year-old Lilly Winwood, who appears to be following in her famous dad's footsteps, recently performed at "Music City Roots" in Nashville. She's still finding her voice and stage presence, but Lilly's impressive just the same. After two acoustic tunes, with just a fiddle playing along with her guitar, Lilly brought on her drummer and her dad. The fiddler moved over to electric bass and Lilly made the transition from mod folkie to R&B singer.

We were most impressed with "Could've Fooled Me", which appears to be an original song accented by her dad's understated electric piano work. Lilly's final song, "Makes Me Want To Pray" had dad switching over to piano, adding a familiar riff we were "Glad" to hear.

Lilly's performance of "Could've Fooled Me" begins 45 minutes into the video below.

Watch live streaming video from musiccityroots at livestream.com

Booker T & the DBT's

Booker T, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame keyboardist for Booker T & the MGs, recorded his 2009 album "Potato Hole" with the Drive-By Truckers as his band. The DBT's are an alternative country/Southern rock band co-founded by Patterson Hood (son of bassist David Hood of the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section).

While the DBT's did a few live shows with Booker T, most of the tour supporting "Potato Hole" went on without them. However, we located an April 23, 2009 performance at the Ogden Museum of Southern Art (New Orleans, LA) captured on the syndicated TV show "Live From The Artists Den".

Live from the Artists Den: Booker T & the DBT's from Artists Den on Vimeo.

Happy Birthday, Al!

It's become traditional for Al Kooper to celebrate his birthday with a live performance at B.B. King's in New York (and before that at The Bottom Line). Here are five original members of Blood, Sweat & Tears (Randy Brecker, Fred Lipsius, Lew Soloff, Steve Katz and Al) captured during a show at The Bottom Line celebrating Al's 50th in 1994.