The new-and-improved Allman Betts Family Revival traveled to Boston on Friday for a celebration of the Allman Brothers Band legacy. The show helmed by the Allman Betts Band at the Orpheum Theatre also featured guest appearances by Anders Osborne, Sierra Hull, Jackie Green, and more.
First launched as a birthday celebration for Gregg Allman following his death in 2017, The Revival has evolved into an annual tradition. New in 2023, bandleaders/heirs to the ABB legacy Devon Allman and Duane Betts have introduced a new format. The first set of the show is devoted to the music of Gregg Allman while the second half celebrates the compositions by Dickey Betts for nearly three hours of music.
In the first set, Devon combed through his father’s songbook with Allman Brothers classics like “Melissa”, “Ain’t Wastin’ Time No More”, “Blue Sky”, and more as well as Gregg’s solo works like “I’m No Angel and “Fear of Falling”. Assisting Gregg’s son was a parade of contributors including Jackie Greene, Jimmy Hall, Tal Wilkenfeld, Luther Dickinson, and Larry McCray who all tagged in throughout the set which ultimately closed with a 20-minute “Dreams”.
For the second set, Duane Betts took the reigns as the band celebrated Dickey’s contributions to the vast ABB legacy with numbers like “Pony Boy” and “Ramblin’ Man”. As the set progressed, the rotating ensemble which also included Mattie Schell, Osborne, and Hall opened up the instrumental roadmaps of “In Memory of Elizabeth Reed” and “Whipping Post” for lengthy bouts of improvisation. The show fittingly closed with an encore of “End of the Line”, beginning as a trio of Allman, Betts, and mandolinist Sierra Hull but ultimately ballooning to include all of the musicians on hand.
Check out a gallery of images from The Allman Betts Family Revival at the Orpheum Theatre in Boston courtesy of photographer Joanna Gleason along with videos by K T. The Revival travels next to Tysons, VA for a show on Tuesday. For tickets and a full list of tour dates visit the tour website.
The Allman Betts Family Revival – “Statesboro Blues” (Blind Willie McTell) – 12/1/23
Setlist: The Allman Betts Family Revival | Orpheum Theatre | Boston, MA | 12/1/23
Set One: Fear of Falling, Statesboro Blues (with Jimmy Hall), No One to Run With (with Jimmy Hall), I’m No Angel (with Ally Venable), Melissa (with Jackie Greene), Ain’t Wastin’ Time No More (with Tal Wilkenfeld and Luther Dickinson), Soulshine (with Larry McCray), Blue Sky, Dreams
Set 2: Sailin’ ‘Cross the Devil’s Sea (with Luther Dickinson), Seven Turns, Pony Boy, Come and Go Blues, (with Mattie Schell), In Memory of Elizabeth Reed, One Way Out, Ramblin’ Man (with Anders Osborne), Whipping Post (with Jimmy Hall)
Encore: End of the Line (with Sierra Hull. All hands on deck)
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