Various Artists – All My Friends: Celebrating the Songs & Voice of Gregg Allman – Red, White and Blue 4LP Box Set

Description

Various Artists – All My Friends: Celebrating the Songs & Voice of Gregg Allman – Red, White and Blue 4LP Box Set

All My Friends: Celebrating the Songs & Voice of Gregg Allman captures an extraordinary gathering at Atlanta’s Fox Theatre on January 10, 2014. Conceived as a living tribute rather than a memorial, the concert places Gregg Allman among musicians whose work intersects with his own across Southern rock, blues, soul, country and American roots music. Don Was served as musical director, and a house band built around Chuck Leavell, Jack Pearson, Audley Freed, Rami Jaffee and Kenny Aronoff provided continuity as the guest list changed. Across twenty-six performances, the songbook becomes the central character.

The opening record moves quickly through different interpretations. Warren Haynes brings his deep familiarity with Allman’s writing to “Come and Go Blues,” then joins Derek Trucks for “End of the Line.” Trucks and Susan Tedeschi approach “Stand Back” with the chemistry of their own band, while Devon Allman, Jimmy Hall and Robert Randolph turn “You Can’t Lose What You Ain’t Never Had” into a multigenerational exchange. Sam Moore’s “Please Call Home” connects Allman’s music to classic Southern soul, and Keb’ Mo’ brings conversational ease to “Just Another Rider.” These are individual readings, but the arrangements keep them inside one coherent concert.

The second LP ranges from Dr. John’s rolling New Orleans feel on “Let This Be a Lesson to Ya” to John Hiatt’s direct treatment of “One Way Out.” Gregg Allman enters beside Taj Mahal for “Statesboro Blues,” joining two performers whose relationships with the blues are distinctive and hard-earned. Widespread Panic then gives “Just Ain’t Easy” and “Wasted Words” a muscular ensemble treatment, the latter with Derek Trucks. Trace Adkins’s “I’m No Angel” and “Trouble No More” emphasize how comfortably these songs can cross into country without losing their blues foundation.

The emotional center arrives on the third and fourth records. Vince Gill handles “Multi-Colored Lady” with restraint, Martina McBride sings the title song, and Eric Church takes on “Ain’t Wastin’ Time No More” and “Win, Lose or Draw.” Gregg Allman’s performances with Jackson Browne on “These Days” and “Melissa” bring the concert into a more intimate space; both songs carry decades of friendship, travel and reflection without requiring elaborate staging. “Midnight Rider,” shared with Gill and Zac Brown, expands outward again before the Allman Brothers Band takes over for “Dreams” and “Whipping Post.”

“Will the Circle Be Unbroken” gathers the ensemble for a fitting close, acknowledging the traditions behind Allman’s music and the community that continued through it. Rounder issued this concert on vinyl for the first time as a red, white and blue four-LP box set. The format gives the complete program room to breathe and preserves the deliberate progression from guest interpretations to Allman’s own appearances and the Allman Brothers Band finale. It is both a generous survey of a remarkable catalog and a rare document of the people around its creator honoring the songs in his presence.

Brand new, never played and still sealed in the factory plastic

Track Listing

LP 1 – Side A
Come and Go Blues — Warren Haynes
End of the Line — Derek Trucks and Warren Haynes
Stand Back — Derek Trucks and Susan Tedeschi

LP 1 – Side B
You Can't Lose What You Ain't Never Had — Devon Allman, Jimmy Hall and Robert Randolph
Please Call Home — Sam Moore
Just Another Rider — Keb' Mo'
Before the Bullets Fly — Brantley Gilbert

LP 2 – Side A
Let This Be a Lesson to Ya — Dr. John
Queen of Hearts — Pat Monahan
One Way Out — John Hiatt
Statesboro Blues — Gregg Allman and Taj Mahal

LP 2 – Side B
Just Ain't Easy — Widespread Panic
Wasted Words — Derek Trucks and Widespread Panic
I'm No Angel — Trace Adkins
Trouble No More — Trace Adkins

LP 3 – Side A
Multi-Colored Lady — Vince Gill
All My Friends — Martina McBride
Can You Fool — Martina McBride and Pat Monahan

LP 3 – Side B
Ain't Wastin' Time No More — Eric Church
Win, Lose or Draw — Eric Church
These Days — Gregg Allman and Jackson Browne
Melissa — Gregg Allman and Jackson Browne

LP 4 – Side A
Midnight Rider — Gregg Allman, Vince Gill and Zac Brown
Dreams — The Allman Brothers Band

LP 4 – Side B
Whipping Post — The Allman Brothers Band
Will the Circle Be Unbroken — Full Ensemble