Love Butch (RIP) and always appreciated his honesty. His death really hit me hard as it was so unexpected and another Brother gone.

I do agree with him that the Warren Haynes/ Derek Trucks band was the best since the original.

That was a band of equals just like the original and had a very easy organic relaxed sound for me.

I was watching a highlight DVD tonight from the 2009 Beacon run and the chemistry between Warren and Derek was just so natural and Gregg just seemed so happy and into the music during that Beacon run.

@bill_graham  The Chuck Leavell/ Larmar Williams version of the band was just as good as the last lineup in 1973 and indeed became the most successful commercially by far. Album at number 1 for 5 weeks ( the band's only number 1 album) and sold out coliseums.  In 1973 they became as big as the Stones and Pink Floyd. Gregg talks about how good they were in 1973. But according to Butch,  becoming millionaires and being so successful brought in rock star egos, drugs and alcohol to the point they couldn't keep it together and it fell apart. 

Warren Haynes often identifies the 1989 to 1992 period as a very hot period for the band. 

As to the last lineup, Butch has said it wasn't as creative as the originial. Indeed nobody in the last lineup ever came up with a Whipping Post,  Jessica, Blue Sky, Dreams  etc.

• Obviously, none of the subsequent lineups equaled the original, but for my money, the early 90’s version with Dickey, Warren & Woody was as good as it could get. I remember seeing a show where the Radiators opened and played really well, then Little Feat came out and kicked major ass. I wondered to myself if the Allmans could top what I’d just heard. Well, I shouldn’t have doubted them because they came out and tore the roof off that outdoor shed. Still one of the best shows I’ve ever experienced. The Warren/Derek lineup never made me walk away from a show feeling how I did that night in the early 90’s. 

@robertdee,  It is all a matter of opinion and what you  prefer and while the 1973 and other versions of the  band were excellent, and have something special to offer, I prefer the organic cohesiveness of the final version of the band. 

Just like the original they were a true band of brothers and equals which I found lacking in the Dickey Betts dominated post Duane / Berry bands.

I do appreciate what Betts did for the post Duane bands, as without his leadership I don't think the ABB would have survived, but still prefer the special mojo the final band had when playing live together.

I do wish that final band would have created more  original music as the talent was there as can be seen in the music and heard on the Govt Mule, Tedeschi/ Trucks albums and Greg's solo material. But as far as live shows the final band is tops for me as far as band performances from post Duane/Berry versions.

Everyone hears things differently so there is no right or wrong opinion and YMMV of course.

@bill_graham Well Bill you are right that the last lineup had a great vibe and nobody was drunk or blasted on something else and nobody was trying to bully the other guys and be a dictator. So it was a relaxed and fun experience for everyone. 

Apparently after they let Butch talk them into continuing 5 more years beyond 2009, things began to get a little strained apparently between Gregg and Butch. Gregg announced they would do another new album after Butch said they would not do anymore new albums. And Gregg said they would do it without Butch Trucks is necessary.  I thought that wasn't a good sign that things were still smooth in the band. Then a couple years later some reporter asked Gregg why did the band reject his wonderful Queen of Hearts for Brothers and Sisters and Gregg said " That was a long time ago so I don't want to mention any names but his initials are Butch Trucks.  So apparently Gregg and Butch were having trouble staying on the same page. Another tidbit was Gregg wanted to vote Otiel out of the band and Warren said he would quit if they did. Not sure how accurate the details are on that. 

Then when the five years rolled by, Butch got cold feet again and lobbied for them to keep going but Derek and Warren turned in their departure notices making it clear thry would not continue after 2014. 

But Warren came back in 2001 when Jimmy Herring turned down being Dickey's permanent replacement and the band was relaxed and was stable the longest of their time as a band. From 2001 to 2014. 13 years. And Warren and Derek were top shelf players. It took a few years for me to get use to NO originials on the front line standing up. ( Gregg was seated on most songs). And Gregg said about 2003 that if Warren had not agreed to come back he was going to quit. Gregg didnt want to hire just anybody to play guitar. Gregg said both Warren and Derek played with Dickey and Dickey of course played with Duane from day one so those two made it feel right. Of course Danny Toler and Jack Pearson would also qualify if you look at it that way. 

But Warren and Derek both are great musicians. I also really liked the two Eric Clapton shows I saw with Derek Truck in Eric's band. Derek Trucks adds to any band he is in. 

As to gems like Whipping Post,  Dreans, Midnight Rider, Melissa,  Ain't Waisting Time No More, Jessica, Elizabeth Reed, Les Brer in A minor, Blue Sky,  Southbound etc, Gregg and Dickey were not coming up with songs of that caliber either. Seven Turns,  Shades of Two Worlds and Where It All Begins did have some good original songs and one, Soulshine, is by Warren Haynes. Soulshine became a lasting member of the ABB catalog.  I thought Firing Line would too off their last new studio album but it didnt. 

Well it is all nice memories now. It great we have the albums and tapes.  

I didnt really think about my all time favorite song until a few years ago but realized it is Blue Sky. To me that is the best song ever written.  It makes me feel uplifted and good everytime I hear it all the years later. 

If the last lineup would have been more creative like the original lineup they could have brought it full circle by 2014. 

I also agree with Mean Dean that some of the shows from 1989 to about 1993 with Dickey,  Warren and Allen Woody were smoking hot! As hot as you could stand. When Dickey was in good shape and having a good night, Dickey Betts could really bring it with energy and with a style and tone that was all Dickeys. Nobody sounded like Dickey when he was having a good night. 

And apparently Dickey could have come back if he had checked in to get off the bottle and coke.  Gregg Allman was having bad shows in the mid 90's just like the mid 70's because of drugs and booze. Gregg though admitted it and finally got help. But Gregg struggled in the last lineup in the latter years from ill health from his previous demons. 

Butch was right in his interview here. Drugs and too much booze have been the undoing of a lot of great musicians. Butch mentioned Janis, Hendrix and Jim Morrison but the list is very long.  Lowell George was a favorite of mine in Little Feet. 

Posted by: @robertdee

@bill_graham Well Bill you are right that the last lineup had a great vibe and nobody was drunk or blasted on something else and nobody was trying to bully the other guys and be a dictator. So it was a relaxed and fun experience for everyone. 

Apparently after they let Butch talk them into continuing 5 more years beyond 2009, things began to get a little strained apparently between Gregg and Butch. Gregg announced they would do another new album after Butch said they would not do anymore new albums. And Gregg said they would do it without Butch Trucks is necessary.  I thought that wasn't a good sign that things were still smooth in the band. Then a couple years later some reporter asked Gregg why did the band reject his wonderful Queen of Hearts for Brothers and Sisters and Gregg said " That was a long time ago so I don't want to mention any names but his initials are Butch Trucks.  So apparently Gregg and Butch were having trouble staying on the same page. Another tidbit was Gregg wanted to vote Otiel out of the band and Warren said he would quit if they did. Not sure how accurate the details are on that. 

Then when the five years rolled by, Butch got cold feet again and lobbied for them to keep going but Derek and Warren turned in their departure notices making it clear thry would not continue after 2014. 

But Warren came back in 2001 when Jimmy Herring turned down being Dickey's permanent replacement and the band was relaxed and was stable the longest of their time as a band. From 2001 to 2014. 13 years. And Warren and Derek were top shelf players. It took a few years for me to get use to NO originials on the front line standing up. ( Gregg was seated on most songs). And Gregg said about 2003 that if Warren had not agreed to come back he was going to quit. Gregg didnt want to hire just anybody to play guitar. Gregg said both Warren and Derek played with Dickey and Dickey of course played with Duane from day one so those two made it feel right. Of course Danny Toler and Jack Pearson would also qualify if you look at it that way. 

But Warren and Derek both are great musicians. I also really liked the two Eric Clapton shows I saw with Derek Truck in Eric's band. Derek Trucks adds to any band he is in. 

As to gems like Whipping Post,  Dreans, Midnight Rider, Melissa,  Ain't Waisting Time No More, Jessica, Elizabeth Reed, Les Brer in A minor, Blue Sky,  Southbound etc, Gregg and Dickey were not coming up with songs of that caliber either. Seven Turns,  Shades of Two Worlds and Where It All Begins did have some good original songs and one, Soulshine, is by Warren Haynes. Soulshine became a lasting member of the ABB catalog.  I thought Firing Line would too off their last new studio album but it didnt. 

Well it is all nice memories now. It great we have the albums and tapes.  

I didnt really think about my all time favorite song until a few years ago but realized it is Blue Sky. To me that is the best song ever written.  It makes me feel uplifted and good everytime I hear it all the years later. 

If the last lineup would have been more creative like the original lineup they could have brought it full circle by 2014. 

I also agree with Mean Dean that some of the shows from 1989 to about 1993 with Dickey,  Warren and Allen Woody were smoking hot! As hot as you could stand. When Dickey was in good shape and having a good night, Dickey Betts could really bring it with energy and with a style and tone that was all Dickeys. Nobody sounded like Dickey when he was having a good night. 

And apparently Dickey could have come back if he had checked in to get off the bottle and coke.  Gregg Allman was having bad shows in the mid 90's just like the mid 70's because of drugs and booze. Gregg though admitted it and finally got help. But Gregg struggled in the last lineup in the latter years from ill health from his previous demons. 

Butch was right in his interview here. Drugs and too much booze have been the undoing of a lot of great musicians. Butch mentioned Janis, Hendrix and Jim Morrison but the list is very long.  Lowell George was a favorite of mine in Little Feet. 

Great post RD and agree with much of what you said. Warren and Derek just had that unspoken selfless synergy that made the Duane/ Dickey so special.

I thought the last band peaked with the 2009 tour live and it is too bad they never got it together to make new music.  Based on the concerts I saw in that time period , and the couple of dozen Instant live CD's I bought I don't they were ever bad after 2009 but Gregg's health and energy level made some shows better than others.

Like most bands who have been together for a long time the well runs dry and I would not have expected an album to equal the bands creative golden era in the early to mid 70's but it would have been interesting to see what the final lineup would have come up with had they made some new music.

The Butch interview was great and thanks for posting.  I never knew exactly how the "firing" of Dickey went down but now I do.

@robslob When Dickey hired a lawyer rather than getting into a rehab and it was certain Dickey wasn't coming back, Butch offered Dickey's spot to Jimmy Herring. According to Jimmy's interview,  Jimmy was very uncomfortable replacing a still living member of the Allman Brothers so turned it down. Also Dickey said he was being impersonated that summer. That many people thought that was him playing Jessica etc. Jimmy had no interest getting involved plus Dickey was a hero to Jimmy in Jimmy's early years. 

Gregg said if Warren had not agreed to come back he was done with the Allman Brothers.  So they came close to ending it after the summer 2000 tour. 

The gospel according to Butch

Would you expect anything less from a man nicknamed Freight Train? 😉 

Trying to peg the date on this --- guessing mid to late 00s?

@islalala. Most likely mid '00s. Butch talks about how it's fun again with Dickey gone and everyone likes playing together and they all get along just like the original band. 

Apparently after 2009 things began to get strained a bit because just after it ended in 2014, Butch was saying in interviews that he is trying to get the Freight Train band to take chances and jump into the deep end with no concern if it becomes a train wreck and play some stuff we never dreamed we could play like the original Allman Brothers would do. 

Then Butch in those interviews would complain Warren and Derek were too afraid they would make a mistake or get a train wreck started and the originial Allman Brothers NEVER worried about that and took chances every night.  Butch said in the last years they were not giving him a challenge and taking him somewhere new. That it had become so predictable in the ABB and Butch knew what Derek and Warren were going to play before they played it. 

So this interview couldn't be after about 2009 because in this interview Butch is the happiest with the band since the original lineup. 

Posted by: @bill_graham

I do appreciate what Betts did for the post Duane bands, as without his leadership I don't think the ABB would have survived, but still prefer the special mojo the final band had when playing live together.

I wouldn't try to argue with that. I still prefer the best Dickey/Warren years (91-94) to the best Derek/Warren years (2004-06, 2009). There are a lot of things the Derek/Warren lineup did better, and they have 14 years of shows to pull from, but they missed Dickey's melodic guitar voice (especially 2001-2003). Obviously that wasn't possible during that period, so I'm glad we still got a beast of an ABB for as long as we did.

The description from the Youtube page says it's from 2009.

Archive #28 goes back to 2009 when The Allman Brothers Band were celebrating their 40th anniversary with 15 shows at The Beacon Theater in NYC. Butch Trucks (R.I.P) was also launching Moogis (live performance streaming website) around that time and was doing promotion for it.

I was kinda sad as I listened to the whole file digging this archive as Butch told me at some point (not included here) that he had the plan to retire in France (more specifically to a house he bought in the Languedoc area) where he could just ride horses, write books, play music with some people and just take it easy…tragic he took his own life in 2017 and heartbreaking to listen to those words nowadays…

The Moogis part of the interview is now a bit irrelevant so I decided only to include here the part in which Butch talks about the inception of The Allman Brothers Band, his best memories and to the opposite dealing with Duane Allman’s death and Dickey Betts demons. We also talked about why the band chose to play with 2 drummers and the chemistry he had doing so with Jaimoe.

R.I.P Butch Trucks, Gregg Allman, Duane Allman, Berry Oakley, Allen Woody, Dan Toler and David Toler. The Allman Brothers Band music lives on forever !

Full article (in french) was featured on Rock Hard France magazine (Rock Hard is currently having financial issues due to the Covid-19 pandemic, you can support the magazine here : https://www.leetchi.com/c/rockhard208

He used to share the progress on that house in France here and on his blog. Really looked like a fantastic place to retire to...

I'm trying to square Butch's frustrations about Derek and Warren being the sources of resistance on risking a train wreck with the infamous Gregg comment about whose the fuckin' Phish fan and wondering if those frustrations are a bit misguided.... meaning it was Gregg and not the string section?

I remember those comments by Butch as well. I wonder if the original 6 had been playing those songs for 12 or 14 years like the final lineup did would he feel the same? 

Another thing I think about is the affect of whatever they may have been indulging in might have something to do with that too. 

They certainly had a different sound and of course they would have with different personnel involved. 

Just my 2 cents. 

@steved Yes @steved I was surprised when Butch began ragging on Warren and Derek a little.  And he did on Gregg too saying Gregg wasn't playing and singing well in the last portions of the band, his liver is the size of a basketball and Butch indicated Gregg still a druggie but later he suggested he was talking about all the prescription drugs Gregg was taking. 

I think Butch was in a tough spot from apparently not watching what he owed the IRS from his personal businesses and Gregg, Derek and Warren refused to keep the band going just when Butch needed a big tour or two. Butch even said he hoped they would do one more big long summer tour before they hung it up as they had been cutting back on summer shows so Derek, Warren and Gregg could give the kind of time they wanted for the other bands so this time let's go out all summer with the Brothers.  

But in defense of Gregg, Warren and Derek, they all including Butch agreed that 2009 and the 40th anniversary would be it for the Allman Brothers Band but when 2009 rolled around Butch pressed for 5 more years which would move the ball to 2014. 

I haven't a clue about this, maybe A. Paul would know,  but I wonder if Butch told everyone about needing another tour or two to get his finances and tax bill addressed in 2014 when he asked to keep the band going again. I assume Gregg, Warren and Derek were not that excited to keep going after 2009 but they did for Butch with the apparent understanding the would do the Beacon in March but the summer schedule would be cut back to a short tour. 

Whatever were the particulars of those years not getting his finances and taxes addressed obiviously was the reason Butch couldn't continue in this old world. 

Great drummer and a devoted original Allman Brother. May in R.I.P.  There is so much about my favorite band that makes me sad and this with Butch, Duane and Berry and Gregg's death and to a lesser degree the Dickey situation are all sad things.  Dickey's guitar playing when he was in good shape and the songs he wrote....well it just wouldn't have been the band we all love without Dickey. 

Most of my favorite bands from the old days were dysfunctional wrecks.  The fan expectations were as numbing as the dope.  The press needing scuttlebutt fueled it.  The record companies wanting sales and volume.  Songwriters being the dog by non writing bandmembers.  And in current times, the depressing website forum postmortem dissecting.  Remembrances from people barely there at the time in documentaries.  Fed pablum of endless cutting room scraps called expanded editions.   I take reading anyone's interview with a plate of salt and National Enquirer level seriousness.  I think the real meal deal floated away long ago.  Give me the tapes, records, and artifacts of what they truly were great at.  Leave wandering the empty circus tent to others.

Posted by: @bird72

Most of my favorite bands from the old days were dysfunctional wrecks.  The fan expectations were as numbing as the dope.  The press needing scuttlebutt fueled it.  The record companies wanting sales and volume.  Songwriters being the dog by non writing bandmembers.  And in current times, the depressing website forum postmortem dissecting.  Remembrances from people barely there at the time in documentaries.  Fed pablum of endless cutting room scraps called expanded editions.   I take reading anyone's interview with a plate of salt and National Enquirer level seriousness.  I think the real meal deal floated away long ago.  Give me the tapes, records, and artifacts of what they truly were great at.  Leave wandering the empty circus tent to others.

Agree with a lot of what you said.  I don't know about the "National Enquirer" level but I've learned over the years not to take books by musicians and artists too seriously.  Being ABB fans, a lot of us still want to think and feel it was about the brotherhood ALL the time but we've found out it's much more complex and that goes for all bands.  Like you said, the bottom line is the music, recordings, gigs, shows and the good times related.  To many more!  The road goes on forever...

@stratdal Back to the Butch Trucks interview up top, did you notice Butch said the Allman Brothers first came together at his house in March of 1969. They had worked up Trouble No More and Don't Want You No More then Gregg FLEW in and they went to work on Dreams. 

Gregg would always say he caught a ride from Los Angeles to Jacksonville,  Florida with a bass player. Someone dropped Gregg off at the airport but didnt see Gregg board the plane so it's possible he ran into the bass player at LAX.