Who We Are: From Jacksonville to Macon
We're The Allman Brothers Band. Here is how we started, who was in the room and where we went next.
Where did The Allman Brothers Band start?
Jacksonville, Florida, 1969. We held our first rehearsal on March 26, 1969, and a few days later we played our first show at the Jacksonville Armory.
Then Macon, Georgia. That April we moved to Macon, where our manager Phil Walden was launching Capricorn Records. Macon became home, and it stayed that way.
Who were the original six?
- Duane Allman: slide and lead guitar
- Gregg Allman: vocals and keyboards
- Dickey Betts: guitar and vocals
- Berry Oakley: bass
- Butch Trucks: drums
- Jai Johanny "Jaimoe" Johanson: drums
Why two guitars and two drummers?
Twin guitars: Duane on slide and lead, Dickey on guitar, side by side on the same stage.
Twin drums: Butch and Jaimoe each played a full kit, two drummers in one band.
What kind of music is it?
Blues, rock and jazz. People call us Southern rock, and the label never sat well with us. We're known as a jam band and as a live band first: the stage is where the songs grew.
How long did we play?
Three runs: 1969 to 1976, 1978 to 1982 and 1989 to 2014.
The last night: our final show was on October 28, 2014, at the Beacon Theatre in New York, and we closed with "Trouble No More".
The Hall of Fame: we were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1995.
Where do the designs come from?
From that story: our script logo, the Fillmore lettering, the peach, the mushroom, the heart and vintage show posters, on tees, long sleeves, crewnecks and hoodies, with kids' and youth sizes too.
Find yours in the shop.