And Then There Was One
A musical powerhouse, the Allman Brothers’ greatest triumph came just before their most heartwrenching tragedy: the death of Duane Allman, one of the great guitar players of all time, rupturing one of the greatest bands ever known. The tale starts somewhere special, but it’s a bumpy ride almost from the start.
1. He Was Born In The Right Place
Duane Allman was born in 1946 in Nashville, Tennessee, that almost mythical musical kingdom in America’s South. His brother Gregg was born 13 months later, but the family would soon be on the move due to the father’s military service, ending up in Norfolk, Virginia. It’s here where the family’s first tragedy would strike.
2. He Soon Saw Tragedy
Lieutenant Willis Allman and a fellow officer struck up a conversation with an army vet—unaware of the man's murderous intent. The vet returned later that day and shot Allman, taking all his money. It was the day after Christmas, 1949, and the brothers were now fatherless.
Their mother, Geraldine, would have to figure out how to make ends meet.
3. His Mother Sent Him Away
Geraldine decided to train as an accountant, and, no longer able to play housewife, sent her children off to a military academy in Tennessee. But the boys weren’t destined to follow in their father’s footsteps—they loathed every minute at the academy.
But soon they’d be moving to another cultural hotspot, this time even further south.
4. He Moved To Another Hotbed of Culture
Daytona Beach, land of NASCAR races and white-sand beaches, would be the brothers’ next home, and they soon enrolled in Seabreeze High School. This was a welcome end to the military discipline of their former school—but it was not the end of their visits to Tennessee.
5. His Brother Learned Guitar
Every summer brothers Duane and Gregg would return to Nashville to visit their grandmother, and it was here that a crucial first step on their musical careers would begin—though younger brother Gregg, not Duane, would take the lead.
Their grandmother's neighbor started teaching Gregg how to play the guitar. Duane's interests, meanwhile, seemed to lie elsewhere.
6. Duane Wanted Wheels
In 1960, Gregg Allman saved enough money to buy a Teisco Silvertone, a Japanese-made guitar. Duane, on the other hand, decided a Harley 165 motorcycle was more his style. But like a lot of siblings, he wanted to have his cake and eat it to0.
Despite being a lefty, Duane started hogging his brother's right-handed guitar—but his Harley wasn't long for this world.
7. Duane Overtook His Brother
In a now-chilling precursor of tragedy to come, Duane soon crashed his motorbike. The wreckage was good enough to sell, giving Duane the money to buy a Silverstone all of his own. Duane would become the better guitarist of the two brothers, with a concert cementing Duane’s determination to achieve musical greatness.
8. He Saw Himself On Stage
BB King was playing in Nashville, and seeing this legendary blues guitarist igniting a fire in Duane’s musical heart. Turning to his brother, he said, “We got to get into this”. And true to his word, they soon did.
9. He Was In A Class Of His Own
The brothers joined or formed their own bands around Daytona as they took to the stage for the first time. Just one taste, and the they were hooked. Maybe even a little too much. Duane’s enthusiasm apparently knew no bounds, as he dropped out of school to focus on music 100%.
He had one band, “The Escorts,” that even hit the big time in 1965 by opening for a world-famous band.
10. The Brothers Hit The Road
In 1965, Duane’s band The Escorts opened for the Beach Boys, but this early success couldn’t stop the band from breaking up. But the good news was that brother Gregg, who hadn’t had the guts to drop out of high school, had graduated, and the boys in the band were ready to tour. The Allman Joys were hitting the road.
11. He Made His Way Back To Nashville
Hitting one gig after another, the Allman Joys made their way through the Southeastern states, and returned to their hometown of Nashville to set up base. But things never seemed to stay the same for too long, so the Allman Joys became the Hour Glass, and it was time for another surprise.
Duane went missing for three days, then burst into their hotel room. No one was prepared for what he said next.
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12. He Got Married On A Whim
“I got married!” he announced to an astonished Gregg. Duane explained he’d been missing his girlfriend, Patti Chandlee, so he took the car and drove to Daytona Beach to propose. Then they drove to South Carolina to get hitched. Duane Allman was living like there was no tomorrow.
And he didn't even realize how little time he had left.
13. He Liked Running Around
As a friend of Duane’s said years later, he “was always running around” and “wasn’t much of a family-type of man”. So the marriage was likely doomed from the start, though they did have one child together. But in a cruel twist of irony, the rock legend's daughter was born deaf.
14. He Headed West
Meanwhile, the band hit the road and made their way to the bright lights of Los Angeles, where they succeeded in signing a contract with Liberty Records and recording two albums. But the brothers’ vision for their band and the record company execs’ weren’t exactly a match.
15. His Soul Stood Firm
For one thing, Liberty was trying to sell the group as a pop band, but the boys saw themselves more influenced by blues, and they just couldn’t bend to marketing gurus’ designs. The clock ran out for Hour Glass, the deal fell apart, and suddenly it was all over.
Now without a band, the brothers returned to Florida. But Duane wasn’t giving up yet.
16. He Played The Waiting Game
The Allman brothers recorded some demos with folk rockers called the 31st of February, whose drummer was Butch Tracks. No one knew it yet, but the Allman Brothers Band was already taking shape. He just needed a singer. Luckily, he knew the perfect guy...
17. He Found His Singer
It turned out the perfect singer was there all the time, he just had to get back to Florida. Gregg Allman had stayed in California for Hour Glass, but Duane convinced his brother to take lead vocals in his new musical project. And they worked fast.
Two weeks later, the new Allman Brothers Band was on the road, heading to New York with hopes higher than ever. But they were in for disappointment.
18. He Faced Disappointment
The band played lots of live gigs, but most importantly, were recording their first album, The Allman Brothers Band. It came out in November 1969, but failed to hit the charts. Disappointed, the group went back to the drawing board.
For the Allman Brothers, "drawing board" always involved lots of touring. For Duane Allman, that could be a dangerous thing...
19. Duane Was A Player
It was no surprise that Patti was history pretty quick, for as friend Jim Shepley said, Duane “was always after the women. And he always had women”. And one of those women he met was at a tour stop in St Louis. Her name was Donna Roosman, and she’d be another of Duane’s girlfriends, with history quickly repeating itself.
20. He Was A Father Again
Duane and Donna had a child together, another daughter for the Southern rocker. This latest relationship didn’t last either, but Galadrielle Allman’s place in history was assured when she wrote about a father she could never remember. It was called Please Be with Me: A Song for My Father.
21. Duane Liked To Inhale
And it wasn’t just the women that Duane collected while on tour. They traveled in a moving treasure chest of temptations, first in a Ford Ecoline van, and then a Winnebago christened the “Wind Bag”. But life on the road brought Duane into a world of sin—and he dove right in.
By 1970, he'd already ODed on opium once, after a show. But he wasn't going to slow down any time soon...
22. Duane Liked It Nonstop
Somehow Duane and the rest of the band survived, performing an astonishing 300 gigs while on tour in 1970 alone. Along the way they squeezed in recording sessions for their second album. They called it Idlewild South, and it was named after a farmhouse.
23. Duane Was Getting Noticed
The band rented a farmhouse just outside of Macon, Georgia, dubbed it “Idlewild South” after the old name for New York City’s biggest airport, because of the frequent comings and goings. It was also the band taking a stand against those who said you could only make it big in New York or LA.
24. Duane Moves Into The Big House
And it wasn’t just the farmhouse where all this partying and music-making was going on, helping to turn Macon from a quaint town into a happening place. In May 1970, the band moved into “The Big House” after Linda Oakley, wife of the band’s bass player Berry Oakley, signed the lease.
But it wasn’t one big happy family when Duane returned to old ways.
25. Duane Moves On, Donna Moves Out
Duane would eventually boot his ex-girlfriend, now named Donna Allman, out of the Big House, along with their young daughter. His latest love was Dixie Lee Meadows, and she seemed to spark something special inside him. The only song he ever wrote all on his own was “Little Martha,” and he wrote it for Dixie.
26. He Pushed The Edge
The band was on the road so much, they rarely had a chance to see the Big House, fame and fortune still eluding them. Released in August 1970, their second album sold better and managed to sneak into the Billboard charts, but progress seemed slow.
Then a famous musician made an offer—but Duane would have to make a big choice in the process.
27. Clapton Wanted To Talk
The Allman Brothers Band played a Miami concert the same month their second album came out, and famed musician Eric Clapton and his bandmates were in the audience. Clapton was in town recording his band’s latest album, and he clearly saw something in his fellow guitarist. He went backstage to talk.
28. Duane Played Love Songs
One thing led to another, and the two bands headed to the recording studio and jammed. Clapton later said Duane was the "musical brother I'd never had but wished I did”. One thing led to another, and Duane joined in the recording sessions for the Dominos’ album Layla And Other Assorted Love Songs.
29. Clapton Made An Offer
Critics and fans think Duane’s work on that album was some of his best playing. In fact, some of the best playing. Clapton clearly was enthralled, so he offered his musical brother a long-term role in Derek and the Dominos.
But that meant Duane would have to make a choice between family and fame.
30. He Stayed True To His Band
Duane clearly enjoyed playing with Clapton and his group. He even appeared on stage with Clapton’s band at least twice, but he never toured with them, and never joined the band as a member. Instead, Duane stayed with his own band, and a prophecy would soon come true—twice.
31. He Liked Variety
Duane was faithful to his band, but kept up his bits on the side as a session musician. His cover of “Hey Jude” with Wilson Pickett even hit the charts, so it was no surprise he’d head to New York to work with Aretha Franklin. It was there that a prophecy ensued.
32. He Saw His Future
When he got to New York in early 1969, Duane Allman went to a famed Manhattan rock venue called the Fillmore East. Johnny Winter was playing, and it was then that Duane had a revelation. He turned to a guitarist friend and vowed that in a year he’d be on that very same stage.
33. He Made It Come True
By the end of the year, the Allman Brothers Band was on that very same stage, just as Duane had vowed they’d be. But as impressive as that achievement, the name Fillmore East would make for an even bigger triumph—before Duane's spark burned out forever.
34. He Made It Doubly True
Unrelenting live performers that they were, the band decided that their third album should feature them live in concert. So for three nights in March 1971, they performed at the Fillmore East. Duane’s prophecy was definitely solidly fulfilled at this point.
35. He Was No Longer In The Audience
Also billed that night was Johnny Winter, the very same performer Duane had gone to see that first night he’d been to the Fillmore East. He’d been in the audience watching Winter back then, and now Duane walked the same stage.
But beyond the sense of satisfaction was this burning question: Would ditching the studio and embracing the rawness of live performance finally make this new album a hit?
36. He Hoped For The Best
Live At The Fillmore East came out in July. The band had put in long, hard hours to get their music heard, playing countless free concerts in their formative years. Now they hoped the relentless touring would finally pay off.
37. He Slid Into Success
And it was a winner! Live At The Fillmore East proceeded to chart for weeks on end, helped by Duane’s slide guitar playing, using a technique he discovered by accident, thanks to his brother. And “Stateboro Blues,” the album’s first track, held a special place in this history.
38. He Unbottled His Talent
“Statesboro Blues” was the first track Duane ever played with his famous slide guitar technique. But without two birthday gifts from his brother—a record album and a bottle of pills—Duane might never have made the leap. And a leaping horse.
39. He Made a Discovery
In 1968 Duane fell off a horse and injured his left elbow, an accident he apparently blamed Gregg for. Subsequently, on Duane’s birthday, the younger brother dropped off a Taj Mahal album and a bottle of antihistamines, rang the doorbell, and beat a hasty retreat.
He wasn’t sure Duane was ready to forgive him for the accident. But he'd definitely thank him for the gift.
40. He Demanded An Audience
Gregg didn’t have to wait long to find out. A couple of hours passed and Gregg picked up the phone. Duane is shouting at him to come over right away. When Gregg raced over, he made a historic discovery.
41. He Unbottled His Talent
Upon arriving, Gregg saw that his brother had dumped the pills out, washed off the label, and was using the empty bottle of antihistamines to play the guitar strings. He was sliding along to “Statesboro Blues” on the Taj Mahal album Gregg had given him. It became a hallmark of the band’s sound.
42. He Just Wouldn’t Stop
Duane clearly was a huge driving force behind the success of the band. But the rock-’n’-roll life didn’t exactly encourage restraint. Duane kept on living big, until he’d end up dying big.
43. He Had A Need For Speed
For even though teenaged Duane had traded in a wrecked motorbike for his first guitar, he’d never really lost his need for speed. In the autumn of the band’s biggest triumph, tragedy was about to strike. But it all started pleasantly enough.
44. He Said Goodbye
Rolling Stone reported that the group had been enjoying “their first real vacation in more than two years” when Duane left a party held at the band’s “Big House” in Macon. Linda Oakley, wife of bassist Berry Oakley, was celebrating her birthday.
Duane rode away from the party at 5:45 pm, saying goodbye to the Big House for the last time.
45. He Raced Ahead
It was October 29, 1971, a day etched in music history. After leaving the party, Duane would shortly be racing down Hillcrest Avenue in the western part of this quaint Georgia city. Soon, a flatbed truck was clearly in view ahead of him when everything suddenly went horribly wrong.
46. He Swerved
The truck suddenly stopped at the intersection. Duane swerved to avoid a collision, but he hit either the back of the truck or a ball on the truck’s crane. He was thrown into the air, and from there things got even worse—but how?
47. He Hit And Skidded
Duane hit the road and skidded quite a length down it, which was bad enough, but his motorcycle had landed on top of him too. Coming to a rest, he was pinned to the ground, but he was miraculously still alive.
48. He’s On His Way
Duane’s girlfriend, Dixie Meadows, along with Berry Oakley’s sister, Candy, were taking the same route. They came upon the accident scene and waited in horror for the ambulance. Duane reportedly stopped breathing twice on the way to the hospital and had to be revived each time.
49. His Family Has Hope
In her 2014 book, Please Be With Me, Duane’s daughter Galadrielle talks of the heartbreak at the hospital. Doctors assured the family that Duane would survive, so as he was wheeled into surgery, hopes were high. But three hours later came the horrible news.
50. It Was Hopeless From The Start
In the horrific crash Duane had suffered a collapsed chest, ruptured coronary artery, and badly damaged liver. As the attending surgeon later stated, any one of these injuries would likely have killed someone, but the combination left little hope. And so after hours of surgery, Duane Allman was pronounced dead. He was only 24 years old.
51. The World Mourned Duane
Friends, family, and the musical world at large mourned at Duane’s funeral service in Macon days later. Record producer Jerry Wexler gave the eulogy, stating that Allman had attained his place among the great Blues musicians of the South. Everyone finished by singing “Will The Circle Be Unbroken,” a gospel song.
52. The Bittersweet News
Billboard magazine had two stories on Duane and his band in its next issue. One reported that Duane had died on the operating table, and another announced Live At Fillmore East had been certified gold. Meanwhile, after a period of mourning, the band marched on.
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53. Dixie Sued The Estate
The now five members of the Allman Brothers Band prepared their next album, which featured plenty of guitar work from Duane. He’d recorded “Little Martha” for Dixie just weeks before he died. But memories weren’t enough for Dixie, who sued, unsuccessfully, to gain control of the estate.
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54. Things Weren’t So Peachy
Meanwhile, the band called the album Eat A Peach in memory of Duane’s retort to a reporter: “I'm hitting a lick for peace, and every time I'm in Georgia I eat a peach for peace”. But there would be no peace yet for the band, as echoes of one tragedy would play out just 13 months later—with eerie similarities.
55. So Soon, So Similar
Duane’s death had hit the group’s bass player, Berry Oakley, particularly badly. Depression was chipping away at his spirit, even as he tried to guide the band forward. One year and 13 days after Duane had died in a motorbike accident,
Oakley smashed his motorbike into a city bus, just three blocks from where Duane had met his own fate. Unlike Duane, Berry got up from the crash—but he couldn't escape his fate.
56. Bandmates Forever
Oakley was able to walk away from the crash, and made his way back to the Big House, but he was soon rushed to hospital. His injuries, doctors said, meant death had been inevitable, even if he’d received treatment right away. In tribute to their friendship, Oakley was buried in a plot right next to Duane at Rose Hill Cemetery.
57. The Drumbeat Of Time
The Allman Brothers Band continued on, through various incarnations and breakups, but Gregg died in 2017, the same year drummer Butch Trucks shot himself. After guitarist and vocalist Dickey Betts died in 2024, the only founding member still alive is Jai Johanny “Jaimoe” Johanson, also a drummer.
58. The Tributes Continued
In 1995 the band that Duane Allman had been so instrumental in starting and shaping was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and Duane remains high up on lists of the greatest guitarists of all time. His improvisational style is particularly adored. Despite his early departure, his legacy remains strong.
59. He Was Wild And Reckless
A close friend summed up Duane’s life and death best, right after the funeral service: “I guess him dyin’ so young, though, was almost inevitable. He had a wild and reckless streak in him, and apart from pickin’ his git-tar, he’d get…bored, I guess you could call it”.
60. Duane Had Left The Building
“You don’t live long if you live…impulsive like that,” said the friend, but, he lamented, “I’m just sorry he had to up and leave America so early. He had a fat lot left in him to do.” Amen.
