I think that set list may be the show. Looks like the right number of songs. And in 1989 they did some songs off Pattern Distruptive and maybe Just Before The Bullets Fly.

I remember Epic wanted the ABB to get back together but some of the members were skeptical about
whether the band should try it again as some members felt the last lineup and album hurt their legacy and I remember Butch Trucks was especially skeptical.

Chuck Leavell was asked to return but Chuck said it would have to have Jaimoe and not either of the Toler Brothers if he were to do it. Chuck and Butch were especially convinced the chemistry of the 1981 and 1982 band just wasn't right. Chuck had rejoined in late 1981 and stayed until they decided to back the band out in 1982 and he just didn't think it was the ABB. Chuck stayed with Dickey and Butch then and helped found BHLT. The Tolers went with Gregg.

Warren Haynes was asked to join for the 1989 tour and be the slide player and Warren suggested they go back to square one and get things as close to the original lineup as possible. But Gregg didn't want to be the sole keyboard player so Johnny Neal was asked to join because Chuck decided not to do it afterall even though the Toler's were out.

So they auditioned for a bass player and decided to try it in 1989 using the excuse they were promoting the Dreams box set. They refused to record for Epic. But everybody felt the old ABB vibe was back and it felt similar to the original band so they went in and did Seven Turns.

But to me Johnny Neal surprisingly wasn't a good fit either. Man o man did they have the energy and power. Dickey and Warren were really blowing and the ABB drum sound was back but when I hear my tapes of 1989 and 1990, Johnny Neal sounds out of sync often with the others and his solos go way outside the time signature of the song. I really like Seven Turns though. Much better album than the two Aristar releases.

Johnny Neal sounds out of sync often with the others and his solos go way outside the time signature of the song.

Agreed, been saying this for 20 years.

Clarification on Leavell....he did not rejoin the Brothers in 1981...and only very briefly for rehearsals in 1982. After their final performance in 1982 on SNL with Lawler, they got together with Chuck instead of Lawler. They rehearsed for a couple of days, took two cool pictures (the one under the big tree that served as the cover of "Legendary Hits" ironically), and then disbanded. They never did a gig with that lineup, which made the album cover that much stranger....

I loved what Johnny Neel added to the Seven Turns album and the MTV Unplugged performance but his synthesizer solos on the 1989 tour and his piano solos on the 1990 tour (the synth solos went away by then), are definitely out of place on the tapes. I honestly didn't notice it at the one show I saw in 1990.....great show.

Same with me. Saw the 1989 show in Charlotte and 5 shows in 1990 and the band had so much energy I didn't notice anything out of sync with Johnny. But you hear it on every tape I've heard. I guess that is why they didn't renew his 2 year contract in 1991.

Thanks for straightening out the Chuck thing. I only saw 3 shows in 1981 and Chuck wasn't on any of them. But I read he rejoined in two publications in the 90's that he rejoined in 1981. I saw the SNL performance but can't remember if Chuck was on it. It must have been David Lawler. I do remember they played I'm Leavin. I wasn't excited about the 1981 lineup either. No Jaimoe and it seemed the band was more a combination of the Gregg Allman and Dickey Betts bands than the ABB. The 1981 band didn't have an ABB vibe to me. It was Gregg and Dickey solo merged.

And clearly remember Chuck being invited according to several press reports to join the band in 1989 and he said he wouldn't do it if the Toler Brothers were in it. He didn't like the chemistry. He did play the two 1986 shows and Danny Toler was the other guitar player but Jaimoe was back on drums.

Didn't Chuck decide to tour with the Rolling Stones in 1989 when he passed on joining the ABB?