Search - Allman Brothers :: Essential Allman Brothers Band: The Epic Years

Hard to Go Wrong

GP | Seattle, WA | 09/09/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This CD chronicles the remarkable resurgence of the Allman Brothers Band in the 1990's. It had been nearly two decades since the band's initial peak under the leadership of Duane Allman. While the Allmans found a way to carry on, surprising nearly everyone with the superb albums Eat a Peach and Brothers and Sisters, the band languished during the late 1970's and early 1980's. When the Allmans resurfaced in 1989, they added guitarist Warren Haynes and bassist Allen Woody, creating a combination that had the ability to finally bring the band forward, with the potential to meet, or even exceed, the heights reached by the original members.



Going into this effort, Warren Haynes was a young, extremely talented guitarist with a penchant for slide guitar that warmed the hearts of Duane Allman fans and provided a challenge to Dickey Betts that made for fantastic interplay between the two. That interplay is possibly the best element of this new collection. Of course today, Warren is regarded as one of the finest guitarist of the day and has recently returned to re-envigorate the Allmans once again.



This collection is an excellent overview of this, one of the most exciting periods in the band's history. Having seen them live many times during the 1990's, I was constantly impressed by how the Allmans kept pushing the music forward while staying true to their original vision. In doing so, they achieved the most rare of all rock achievements, a "comeback" that was not an overly nostalgic event, but rather a dedicated and successful journey with one foot in tradition and one foot in the present. The Allmans have been, and continue to be, without equal in their ability to create this magic.



Of course I would recommned that you buy this CD. You will not be disappointed. The remastering is excellent and the song selection provides a great representation of some of the band's highlights during this time. I would quibble, though, over just a few things. I guess one cannot be an honest reviewer without doing that. Nobody Knows is an absolutely daring, fantastic, menacing song. The live version on An Evening with the ABB is even better than the studio version here. It rivals anything on Fillmore East (I know to some that is heresy). Kind of Bird from Shades of Two Worlds should have been included. It shows an entirely different side of the band, proficiently focused on jazz, as the title implies. Anyway, there are a number of excellent tunes from this time and I would encourage anyone who likes this set to check out Shades of Two Worlds, An Evening with the Allman Brothers Band and Second Set. All are excellent and well worth exploring. Finally, I should just note that the current version of the ABB, featuring Haynes and Derek Trucks is bringing the band to even greater heights. If you don't have them already, Hittin' the Note and the most recent live set, One Way Out, demontrate that today the Allmans have no equal."

Tremendous music. Do NOT buy this!

Docendo Discimus | Vita scholae | 03/23/2009

(2 out of 5 stars)

"Well, this is an odd one. Just seven of these eleven tracks are actually from the Allmans' three studio albums for Epic Records...well, there are four now, but there weren't when this came out. The rest are live recordings of earlier material.



And while there is no faulting the music - really, there isn't, this is fabulous, scorching electric blues rock - the very idea behind this compilation boggles the mind a little bit. Why would anyone want this? It's not a career-spanning compilation, far from it. Only seven songs are actually from the Epic period, and the Allman Brothers' last and possibly best Epic record, 2003's "Hittin' the Note", isn't represented.

And besides, the three albums from which these seven (seven!) studio numbers have been culled are all just as good as any compilation.



Again, this is tremendous music. The thundering hard-edged rock of "Good Clean Fun" and "No One To Run With". The beatiful "Soulshine". But this presentation is ridiculous. Stay the hell away from it, and get the original albums instead."