Just read the great little anecdote in the Phish tix thread where Gregg accused Derek and Jimmy of being Phishy . . . got me wondering, wow if Gregg thinks Phish is brutal he must have been in hell back in the days when the Allman Brothers and the Grateful Dead were thrown together by fans who loved both groups. I've always thouvht Phish was "Dead Lite" without any of the flow that the Dead had, so the Grateful Dead must have been killing Gregg. The jams where both groups joined at the end of some of those 1973 double bills are three chord fishbowls, exercises in frustration.
Wondering how this unlikely pairing occurred?
Duane, presumably, and im sure Bill Graham.
Dickey has gone on record as being a Jerry Garcia fan. He said he had to avoid listening to too much Jerry to avoid being too influenced by him.
Listen to the guitar solo in the studio version of "Touch of Grey" and then "Ramblin Man." You can hear some shared vision.
One thing for sure is Betts and Garcia were hands down the workhorses of rocknroll, just slaving and cranking for hours night after night, I've never seen that kind of stamina since. We always got our money's worth, and enough time to climb down from the treez.
I'm sure Graham had a lot to do with the ABB and the Dead being booked together.
I don't think Gregg was much of a Dead fan, I think I have even read interviews where he has said that. At times he wasn't even much of fan of his own band when the jams got to far out.
I've never liked a Phish/Dead comparison beyond maybe their fan bases. Phish has never had the songwriting that the Dead had. Even if you don't like their jamming, the Grateful Dead had some great songs. Phish are good instrumentalists, but songwriting isn't their strong point.
I've read Gregg doesn't dig the jamming as well, and Dickey is the Jerry fan, considering he honors him every time he played "Franklin's Tower" as the intro to "Blue Sky" after Jerry passed away. Gregg's own band is pretty tight and really only stretches out the solos on "Dreams". I recall reading (paraphrasing) that while recording Hittin the Note, Warren and Derek were working out a guitar harmony run, Gregg asked why they needed that. Someone responded, "because it's the Allman Brothers".
Here is that "Mountain Jam" Derek is referring to, in case anyone is interested:
Probably has a lot to do with Bill Graham, Dickey. Jerry respected Duane a lot
and, they were both hard working (the hardest working?) bands who in their own way stretched things out improvisationally
Thanks for the link to the "Mountain Jam" in question PCBob !
Gregg is on record somewhere as commenting on the Grateful Dead - "I just don't get it."
I would guess it was a Bill Graham deal. However back when GD and ABB toured when Duane was alive it was GD had more less the same fan base. ABB were starting out and GD was already big so it was a good move to get a following going. Things went well so I would guess it just continued after Duane's death.
I think most of the ABB people today are Brothers and Sisters and after.
During Duane's time ABB were a hippie band. Natural alliance.
Park concerts, Great Speckled Bird, counterculture. First park show Dead in Piedmont in '69 following Atlanta Pop I.
"Jerry Garcia, he walks on water, man.". Duane quote.
Same tribe, same vibe.
I go with Duane, Dickey, and Jerry.
Not trying to offend just calling it as I see it as one from '69.
n Gregg is on record somewhere as commenting on the Grateful Dead - "I just don't get it."
I have been in this "group" since the very first song I ever heard. "You're just not listening to the right stuff"...Dead heads would tell me...so I listened & listened some more...
"You gotta see 'em live" they would say...So I went, in the 70s, 80s and 90s
Being a guitar player, I was told "You need to learn some Jerry & Bobby stuff"...so I did.
I still do not get it. Can't sing in key & out of tune
....so the Grateful Dead must have been killing Gregg...
This ^...I understand.
I enjoy the music from both bands.
This is a link to a site with a collection of essays/writings about this topic.
http://deadessays.blogspot.com/2009/08/allmans-dead.html
Apparently the Allmans and the Dead with Garcia apparently had a falling out in 1973.
[Edited on 12/31/2016 by The_Newt]
July 16, 1972. Dillon Stadium in Ct. My first ABB concert; my first Gateful Dead Concert. Still remember Dickie sitting in with the Dead on Johnny B Goode
For this 16 year old it all seemed to work
Berry loved the dead. Pictures are from Allman Brothers Band at City Park Stadium in New Orleans, LA. July 21, 1972. Photos by Sidney Smith. Have a safe and happy new year and 2017 everyone. 
Jerry was decent, but Duane blew him out of the water on "Beat It on Down the Line":
Billastro
Jerry was decent, but Duane blew him out of the water on "Beat It on Down the Line":
Billastro
it's not a competition.
They had very different & distinct styles-both were outstanding.
It is very much a competition, fierce and ugly.
Duane was a bluesman, from an extremely competitive musical tradition. "Headcutting" is what these players do. All pro musicians of any genre are brutally competitive. They have to be or they won't be noticed at all.
Garcia acted laid back, but he got to the top of his field tbrough fierce competition, and being a merciless taskmaster to his band and crew.
Duane Allman led the Allman Brothers, standing side by side with Dickey Betts and Berry Oakley. Was his goal to defeat them or to work in tandem with them to co-create beautiful music?
I'm sure the Allmans strove to blow other bands off the stage, but it seems like when they shared the stage WITH someone, they understood the shared musical mission.
[Edited on 1/3/2017 by JimSheridan]
[Edited on 1/3/2017 by JimSheridan]
I believe a joint tour was in the works when both bands were with Arista (early 80s) but poor response scrapped it.
Two of my favorite Duane moments are with the Grateful Dead. I love his playing on that Sugar Magnolia, Hurts Me Too and especially Beat It On Down The Line Fillmore show. I also love his playing on that Spanish Jam, Love Light Fillmore show. He Nails the Sugar Mags show. His lead at the end of Spanish Jam is amazing to listen to because you can hear him develop a really energetic and exciting lead as he is hearing the progression for the first time. I wish he had gotten to play that with them a few more times. I bet it could have been a hurricane. His lead on Love Light is vintage Duane too. The whole band basically stops playing and he just rips though a red hot lead. You could make a case that everyone stopped playing because they couldn't keep up. Barry's bass line on Love Light is also a treat.
Here is the "Lovelight":
and here is the "Spanish Jam" :
especially Beat It On Down The Line (4-26-71) @ the Fillmore.
Possibly his best slide solo ever.....
