By Sam Hastings
Once a one-off concert at The Fillmore in San Francisco in 2017 organized by Devon Allman to celebrate the birthday of his late father, the Allman Betts Family Revival has taken on a life of its own, touring more than a dozen cities annually across the U.S. from November-December.
For Nashville, Tennessee, the star-studded tour honoring Gregg Allman and the legacy of the Allman Brothers Band returns to the Ryman Auditorium on Monday, Dec. 16 with a particular emphasis on the 1970s era of which his brother Duane played a crucial role, as well as the band’s comeback era of the 1990s.
“We put some work and care into that,” Duane Betts, son of late Allman Brothers Band guitarist Dickey Betts, said. “I think the real hardcore fans really will appreciate that.”
The tour, originally known as the Allman Family Revival, began to be billed as the Allman Betts Family Revival last year, a change made to acknowledge the Betts family name as part of the legend of the Allman Brothers Band. “We just thought it was appropriate, especially with him reaching the end of his life,” Betts said. “I was all for it, and everybody agreed. It made sense to do that.”
Now in its eighth year, the traveling Allman Betts Family Revival is a celebration of all the musicians who have come before and what they left behind, which is a massive catalogue of music. “It’s some of the greatest music ever made,” Betts said. “We enjoy playing the music, and the music should be celebrated.” With more and more musicians joining the lineup each year, the tour has evolved into its own while staying true to the reason why it started in the first place.
In “The Last Waltz” fashion, this year’s stop at the Ryman will include guest appearances from Sierra Hull, Jake Shimabukuro, Grace Bowers, Sierra Green, Robert Randolph, Larry McCray, Jackie Green, Alex Orbison, Maggie Rose, Lamar Williams Jr., John Moreland, Donovan Frankenreiter, Lindsay Lou, Jimmy Hall and brothers Cody and Luther Dickinson, as well as Slash.
Led by Allman and Betts, the Allman Betts Band will set the anchor as the house band as these guests filter on and off the stage throughout the evening.
“All the guests are phenomenal,” Betts said. “Some of us play together a lot, but there’s some new guests that have never done it. The ones that are new kind of get the hang of it really quick. They kind of learn what it’s about and they get in the groove.”
These new guests include Sierra Green, Lindsay Lou and Slash. “The rest of us are just kind of old dogs at this point with it,” Betts said, adding that the addition of Slash to the Ryman show is a big thrill for everyone involved. Betts said, “I’m really looking forward to playing with him.
“He’s a great guitar player in his own right. When “Appetite for Destruction” came out, all of us were pretty taken aback by it as young kids. It still stands today as one of the greatest rock and roll records. That band is a great rock and roll band. There’s no disputing that. I’m pretty jazzed to play with him.”
While the setlist pulls from various eras of the Allman Brothers Band, some of the guests also have a say in what they want to play. “It’s kind of an open book,” Betts said. “Is there anything you wanna play specifically?” Betts said, “We’re pretty much open to anything with that.
“I mean, if Slash is coming in, first and foremost I wanna know what he would like to play, and then go from there.”
Betts said that “Nobody Knows” has been his favorite song to play on the tour. “It’s challenging. There’s a lot of parts. There’s a lot of nuance in it.”
The tour is visiting new cities this year like Seattle and Kansas City, Missouri. “We’ve been mixing it up quite a bit,” Betts said. “We’re hitting cities we’ve never hit on this tour.”
The tour is coming back to Nashville, Tennessee, on Monday. “There are certain states that have to be there,” Betts said while referring to staple venues such as the Ryman.
“Anytime I get to play on that stage, it’s a good day,” Betts said. “I love the Ryman. I’ve grown pretty familiar with it. I played there probably five or six or seven times now, and I was just there for the Americana Awards. It’s always an honor.”
This year’s tour started on Nov. 30 in St. Charles, Illinois. “We’re pretty much in a groove now,” Betts said. “Everybody’s getting comfortable out here and getting to know each other. The band’s sounding great.”
The tour wraps on Dec. 21 at The Fillmore in San Francisco, where it all started seven years ago.