Search - Allman Brothers :: Evening With: First Set

The Brothers are still strong!

finulanu | Here, there, and everywhere | 01/21/2008

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Now that's what I'm talking about! Warren Haynes is the man! Dickey's pretty good, too! So let's get as much footage of them jamming as humanly possible. Because the chemistry between Dickey and Warren is just perfect. Listen to their playing on "Southbound", my favorite take of that song, for an example. Or "Blue Sky". See, you have to be pretty good guitarists to pull of "Blue Sky", and that's how I'd describe both of our heroes. The setlist leans heavily towards Shades of Two Worlds, and for the most part they do a fine job recreating my favorite of their '90s albums: "End of the Line" is one of their few straight-ahead rock songs, and it's quite satisfying; the jamming on "Get on with Your Life" and the always epic "Nobody Knows" is comparable to what happened live during the classic years. There's even a brief acoustic set: while Dickey Betts' age shows on the disappointing "Midnight Blues" (a Blind Willie McTell cover), Gregg's ragged vocals give "Melissa" extra weight. It's also interesting to note that they skip over a lot of the warhorses - there's no "Whippin' Post", "Trouble No More", "Mountain Jam", "You Don't Love Me", "Statesboro Blues", "In Memory of Elizabeth Reed" or "Stormy Monday" here, though they do provide yet another elongated version of "Dreams". Now, you can call me a purist if you want, but there is no replacing Duane on that track. Dickey and Warren do their best, but it's a letdown. A slower "Revival" fares much better, with the group sinking into one of those "unstoppable Allmans grooves". You know, for a group that's supposed to be "past it", the Allmans do a fantastic job here overall."