Dickey Betts R.I.P.

[loveless]

www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/dickey-betts-allman-brothers-band-dead-727523/

"Hard livin' member of famously mortal band dies at 80" might not be the hugest shocker in rock obits, but...undeniable talent, by any metric.

Responsible for the breezy pop sweetness of their one big hit:

[osgood]

As official ABB fan on Preludin, this is really sad news for me. Have to say that Ramblin' Man is one of my least fave songs from them, and if fact is the major sample of a direction he was responsible for that I didn't like, an opinion apparently shared by his mates in the band (according to their website they never played it again after his dismissal).

But he was also responsible for a number of classics like Liz Reed, Revival, Les Bres in A minor, or Jessica. He also wrote some fine tunes for their 90s albums, Kind of Bird comes to mind. As a guitarrist, though never as inventive as Duane or Warren Haynes, he had a distintive sense of melody in his solos that transmited a lot to the audience.

So, RIP, Dickey, and thanks for the good times.

Only Jaimoe left from the original lineup.

[rayge]

I was never a huge fan of the Allmans, but this joyous track, largely his doing, is just beautiful, and got played a lot in my house in the 70s.



RIP

[sloopjohnc]

Apr 18, 2024 17:32:58 GMT rayge said:

I was never a huge fan of the Allmans, but this joyous track, largely his doing, is just beautiful, and got played a lot in my house in the 70s.



RIP

This has to be one of the first taught songs by guitar teachers once you master rudimentary chords.

[Sneelock]

it seems like Betts was a big reason "brothers and sisters" came out the way it did.
that mother was Ha-YOOOGE.

I'm more of an "Eat a Peach" guy but any popularity bias I had against that era of the band has long since dissipated.

R.I.P.

[Charlie O.]

I hated "Ramblin' Man" when it was a hit. (It was almost certainly the first Allmans song I heard.) At some indeterminate point, I found I loved it. Music can be like that, sometimes.

Even if he was in Duane's shadow, I thought they made a terrific team, kinda like Green and Kirwan in Fleetwood Mac. And like Kirwan, Betts carried a lot of extra weight after The Big Guy "left," with some at least sporadically excellent results. I won't pretend to be as au fait with his/their whole career as osgood is, but I know that much.

I saw him once in a medium-sized club after he got booted from the ABB. He was coasting on past glories to a large degree, unsurprisingly, but... he still played great.

R.I.P.




(another Betts tune that I kinda had to "come around to" over time)

[osgood]

I take the chance to recommend the excellent and often overlooked live set Wipe the Windows, Check the Oil, Dollar Gas, featuring the same lineup as Brothers and Sisters (and half the material). Dickey being the only guitar player shines thoroughly, sure with the stellar contribution of Chuck Leavell.