Brothers and Sisters: The Allman Brothers Band and the Inside Story of the Album That Defined the '70s

by Alan Paul

THE INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

New York Times bestselling author Alan Paul's in-depth narrative look at the Allman Brothers' most successful album, and a portrait of an era in rock and roll and American history.

The Allman Brothers Band’s Brothers and Sisters was not only the band’s bestselling album, at over seven million copies sold, but it was also a powerfully influential release, both musically and culturally, one whose influence continues to be profoundly felt.

Celebrating the album’s fiftieth anniversary, Brothers and Sisters the book delves into the making of the album, while also presenting a broader cultural history of the era, based on first-person interviews, historical documents, and in-depth research.

Brothers and Sisters traces the making of the template-shaping record alongside the stories of how the Allman Brothers came to the rescue of a flailing Jimmy Carter presidential campaign and helped get the former governor of Georgia elected president; how Gregg Allman’s marriage to Cher was an early harbinger of an emerging celebrity media culture; and how the band’s success led to internal fissures. The book also examines the Allman Brothers' relationship with the Grateful Dead―including the most in-depth reporting ever on the Summer Jam at Watkins Glen, the largest rock festival ever―and describes how they inspired bands like Lynyrd Skynyrd, helping create the southern rock genre.

With exclusive access to hundreds of hours of never-before-heard interviews with every major player, including Dickey Betts and Gregg Allman, conducted by Allman Brothers Band archivist, photographer, and “Tour Mystic” Kirk West, Brothers and Sisters is an honest assessment of the band’s career, history, and highs and lows.

Genres: Music, Nonfiction, Biography, History, Audiobook, Historical, Southern

352 pages, Hardcover

Published July 25, 2023

About the author

Alan Paul's last two books have been instant New York Times bestsellers: One Way Out: The Inside History of the Allman Brothers Band, and Texas Flood: the Inside Story of Stevie Ray Vaughan. The latter has been optioned and is being developed for both documentary and feature films. His first book, Big in China: My Unlikely Adventures Raising a Family, Playing the Blues, and Becoming a Star in Beijing, is about his experiences raising an American family, forming a band and becoming an unlikely rock star in Beijing.

He also founded Friends of the Brothers, the premier celebration of the music of the Allman Brothers Band, featuring members of the Dickey Betts, Jaimoe and Gregg Allman bands. He is a regular guest on radio shows and a frequent contributor to The Wall Street Journal, Guitar World, and other publications. He lives in New Jersey with his wife, Rebecca Blumenstein. They have three children.

Please visit www.alanpaul.net or www.facebook.com/alanpaulauthor.

Reviews

[Scott · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars

"Alright now, Peter, listen - everything's going to be fine. You're very high right now and you'll probably be that way for about five more hours. Try taking some vitamin B complex, some vitamin C complex, and if you have a beer go ahead and drink it. Just remember you're a living organism on this planet, and you're very safe - you're just taken a a heavy drug. Relax, stay inside, and listen to some music, okay?" [pause] "Do you have any Allman Brothers?" -- Dan Akroyd as newly-elected U.S. President Jimmy Carter, talking down a man experiencing a heavy acid trip, on a 1977 episode of Saturday Night Live

Brothers and Sisters is a pretty good title for a book about the Allman Brothers Band, seeing as how this interracial country-tinged rock group lived together for a time (with the assorted wives and girlfriends) on a shared rural property outside of their home base of Macon, Georgia. However, it's that misnomer subtitle that gives me pause - although the making of their 1973 album Brothers and Sisters is discussed at length it is not the sole focus of the narrative, which encompasses 1971 to 1976. Beginning with the accidental deaths of founding member / guitarist Duane Allman in '71, and then bassist Berry Oakley just one year later - which, it could be asserted, would've ended the existence of nearly any other band - this group strongly rebounded to record their arguably best-remembered album. (Op-ed note: Their Eat a Peach from 1972 is also a strong contender, and deserves its very own book.) Featuring the FM radio-friendly hits 'Jessica,' 'Ramblin' Man' (their highest-charting single ever), and my absolute favorite 'Wasted Words' (such a gloriously snarky rock song!), the Brothers and Sisters disc pushed them into the forefront of the American music scene.

However, after all of this commercial and critical acclaim they would never again reach such heights - ceding the Southern rock spotlight to 'brothers-from-another-mother' Lynyrd Skynyrd - and things sort of fell apart amidst those 'usual suspects' of in-fighting, line-up changes, some duplicitous management, drug addiction, and extramarital affairs. But is this a downer of a book? Not at all. I sensed the joy in the making and performing of the music - 1973 was also the year that ABB headlined the 'Summer Jam' in Watkins Glen, New York which drew an even larger audience than the original Woodstock event (!) - and it was news to me that the group was partly responsible for Georgia governor Jimmy Carter's ascension to the White House in 1976. (Whatever your opinion of Carter as president he is depicted here as a sincere, polite man who truly was a fan of ABB's music and proud of their success.). If you fondly recall the 2000 film Almost Famous - based on Cameron Crowe's journalistic shadowing of groups like Eagles, Led Zeppelin, and the Allman Brothers Band during the untamed early 70's- you will likely very much enjoy author Paul's Brothers and Sisters.

[*TUDOR^QUEEN* · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 Stars

My favorite genre in reading is the rock biography, and I was intrigued to delve into this classic band. They have a history of tragedy, losing two founding band members within about a year- both due to motorcycle accidents. Also, founding member Gregg Allman famously married iconic entertainer Cher. Author Alan Paul wrote a comprehensive biography of this band back in 2012 in the oral history format called "One Way Out: The Inside History of the Allman Brothers Band". This newer offering focuses on the creation of their most successful album "Brothers and Sisters" (contains their one major hit "Ramblin' Man") in the wake of the deaths of members Duane Allman (lead guitarist, band leader) and Berry Oakley (bassist). It also details The Allman Brothers' kinship with The Grateful Dead and other southern rock bands sprouting up such as The Marshall Tucker Band and Lynyrd Skynyrd.

I decided to read this author's previous biography of the band to get a better sense of their history thinking that it would help me to appreciate this newer book more. However, it had the reverse effect. I loved the 2012 oral history biography "One Way Out: The Inside History of the Allman Brothers Band", a very fulfilling biographical offering on The Allman Brothers Band. This spotlight on a small chunk of their history left me feeling unfulfilled in comparison to the prior biography. I found out a little more about Gregg Allman's whirlwind marriage to Cher (she smelled like a mermaid according to Gregg), some of lead guitarist Dickie Bett's marital relationships, certain concerts/festivals and comparative bands from the time, business dealings- but my reader experience of this book paled in comparison to "One Way Out".

Thank you to the publisher St. Martin's Press who provided an advance reader copy via NetGalley.

[Daniel Ray · Rating 4 out of 5]

In 1971 at age 24 guitarist great Duane Allman, the inspiration and founder of the Allman Brothers Band, died in a freak motorcycle accident. A year later bassist Barry Oakley also died on a motorcycle at almost the same location. Barry was severely depressed about Duane’s death and was also 24 when he died. They are considered to be the first Southern Rock band - a combination of blues, rock, gospel, jazz, and country. There was other talent Iike Dickey Betts and Gregg Allman that kept the band working but their success seemed to fade after 1973. It’s another what could have been story.

[Mike · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. Covers a lot of ground but focuses mainly on the rebuilding of the band following the death of their founder and undisputed leader, the late great guitar legend Duane Allman; then the further devastation of losing Duane's consigliere within the band, bassist Berry Oakley, a year later.

I'm slightly more than a casual fan of The Allman Brothers Band, but not anywhere near a superfan or true disciple. I know the most popular songs, a handful of rarities from both the band and various solo projects, and have owned a copy of Live at Fillmore East on vinyl, cassette, CD, and probably even 8-track (Yep, I'm old). I'm more an old Blues guy who stumbled onto the band and then reverse engineered their sound to become a bigger fan of many of their influences. Point being -- I went in to this read knowing some stuff but with big gaps in my knowledge of The Allman Brothers Band .

This book filled in a lot of blank spots in my overall knowledge of the band. The author managed to get hours and hours of previously unreleased interviews (on tape) with various band members that offer a lot of inside perspective and candid observations that you probably won't find anywhere else. The narrative flow gets a little sidetracked from time to time and some of the trickier aspects of the business side of things (contract issues, management, royalties, etc.) can be a little dull but overall this is a really good, informative book.

It truly is an inside view of how this great band rebuilt itself from near extinction into something that was more successful and (arguably) greater than before... And, to a lesser degree, it looks at how unresolved issues and petty rivalries eventually destroyed that success.

BOTTOM LINE: This is the true story of a legendary band, told well, and worth your time. Any fan of Classic Rock should enjoy it!

[Bear Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Please note - I listened to the audiobook version that is not currently an option on Goodreads.

Great thanks to Macmillan Audio, the American Library Association, and Libro.fm for the ALC.

What an absolutely fantastic book. My goodness. From start to finish, the care taken in the research for this book was obvious. Sourced largely from a treasure trove of interviews with the band members themselves but also various people in their orbit at the time (managers, producers, etc.), the authenticity of the account presented is unquestionable. This is not a book that comes up with theories to tell the narrative that the author chose. This is a history book of facts, both enlightening and, at times, uncomfortable.

The book is essentially three different segments that stand on their own but also serve as effective foundations for the subsequent part. It starts with a history of the band that gets progressive more in-depth after the tragic death of founding member Duane Allman in 1971. The detailed history of the band's near-end in 1971 through its incredible rise to nationwide fame in 1974 is the bulk of this first segment; focused on the core of group, with hints of the larger world outside of them.

The second segment, and in my opinion the weakest part, was a look at the relationship between the Allman Brothers Band and The Grateful Dead. Both organizations were, at the time, great friends and inspirations of each other. This segment of the book serves as a look at musical impact of the Allman Brothers Band, but also the commercial impact as it culminates with the Summer Jam at Watkins Glen festival of 1973; an event co-headlined by the ABB and the Dead, which saw some 600,000 people in attendence.

The third segment builds off the previous two to explain how the Allmans, but really their record label Capricorn Records, played a large and pivotal part in the campaign and eventual election of President Jimmy Carter. This segment of the book was deftly written, pulling from the previous two segments to show just how financially powerful the ABB was in this period but also how important Jimmy Carter's embracing of the youth culture was at the time. Going into the book unaware of the details of Carter's campaign, I found the publisher's blurb of "how the Allman Brothers came to the rescue of a flailing Jimmy Carter presidential campaign and helped get the former governor of Georgia elected president" a bit hard to believe. Having now finished the book, I find it hard to believe I didn't know beforehand how important popular music was to Carter's campaign.

This is also a rare instance where I believe that the audiobook may be a superior experience. While the text is read by the author himself, which is a joy of its own, there are multiple insertions of the actual interviews with the band members. Having the text supported in this way makes the entire experience so much more engrossing. There were times when it did get repetitive; e.g.- the author quoted someone directly, then the interview clip would be inserted and you will hear the same thing said again. This is only a minor annoyance as in most of those instances, the interview clips are longer and give more detail than the author's quoted section.

I cannot recommend this book enough. This is the sort of look at history that transcends genre; it's not simply a history of a band - it's a history of a piece of time and the myriad ways different pieces of culture interacted. It is an effective example of how America in the late 1960s lead to the America of the 1970s, and how The Allman Brothers Band encapsulated many of the most important pieces of the culture then.

[Rachel Cotney · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great read. Taken from hundreds of hours of tape recorded interviews by the main players. Brothers and Sisters covers an often overlooked chapter in the band's life- what happened after Duane and Berry died so tragically young. Loved learning about their connections with the Grateful Dead (never knew all that) and how much they helped in Jimmy Carter's presidential campaign. I didn't know the band set up an organization to help Native Americans and played multiple benefits for their cause, either. I highly recommend this book to all lovers of rock and blues music.

[Oliver · Rating 3 out of 5]

Got my hands on an ARC of the book so take my review with a grain of salt—
I’m no hardcore Allman Brothers fan so I’m not the target audience for this book, but I still found the story engaging and very well-researched. Each chapter branches out in a new direction and I appreciate how the book doesn’t limit itself to a particular scale but addresses both the personal lives of individuals and history on a national scale. I wasn’t much a fan of the writing style, though, as I thought it succumbed to subjective description too frequently.

[Mark Westmoreland · Rating 5 out of 5]

No one gives better insight into the Allman Brothers than Alan Paul.

[Paul Bauer · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fine account of the making of the ABB's landmark record.

[Brian Burhoe · Rating 5 out of 5]

BROTHERS AND SISTERS: Allman Brothers Band and the Inside Story of the Album that Defined the 70's by Alan Paul - a Book Review.

It's the story of the making of the classic album BROTHERS AND SISTERS. It's a riveting report of Rock and Rogues. And downhome country boys. It goes back in time and ahead. And what a story Alan Paul tells us!

Two deaths had shaken them all. To the point where the Allman Brothers Band wondered if they could create the music for that 1973 album. Group leader Duane Allman had been killed in a motorcycle accident in '71. Next year, bassist Berry Oakley also died in his own motorcycle crash.

But Gregg Allman was determined. Gregg wrote two songs for that album: "Come and Go Blues" and "Wasted Words." They were sad, bitter, very bluesy, beautifully crafted.

Lead guitarist Dickey Betts wrote four of the songs, including "Ramblin' Man" and "Jessica," their biggest hits. "Jessica" came to him while watching his baby girl happily bouncing across the floor on all fours. "Lord, I was born a ramblin' man" became the opening line for Southern Rock as an art form.

BROTHERS AND SISTERS went gold after two days of release...

Chapters 13 and 14, about the Summer Jam at Watkins Glen, reads like a freaking novel. Paul catches the sheer energy and details of the last great outdoor Boomer concert. The Band, the Grateful Dead and Allman Brothers Band made music history together.

By 1974, the band was splintering. Coming together again. Splintering again.

Grief over those bandmates' deaths still haunted them. So did the heavy use of drugs. Betts' marriage with Jessica's mother, Sandy "Blue Sky" Wabegijig (of the Wiikwemkoong First Nation in Northern Canada) was falling apart.

Gregg met and married Cher. Gregg and rest of the Band were befriended by Jimmy Carter and supported Carter on his drive to the Presidency.

Then came the highly publicized arrests and trials involving Gregg and the Dixie Mafia.

Alan Paul writes with fascinating detail, honesty and a real sense of the people and their time. It belongs on your Country Music bookshelf.

Special Thanks to Goodreads and St. Martin's Press for the signed Advanced Reader Copy of this Great Read...

To read more about The Allman Brothers, see https://www.CivilizedBears.com/Brothe...

- Brian Alan Burhoe

[Larry Fontenot · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is an excellent book, detailing the years around the creation of the ABB most successful disc, Brothers and Sisters. This book begins with a short recap of the beginnings of the band and Duane and Berry's passing one year apart. But the real narrative begins after the band begins to recover from those tragedies. It is well-documented and gives honest appraisals of both the band's music and the love/hate relationships of the personnel. As a long time fan of ABB and a lucky fan to have been at their Live From Fillmore East performance, I can say that this is a refreshing reminder of how great this band was, how tumultuous the lives were, and how its reputation is assured for all time to come.

[Carly Gillum · Rating 4 out of 5]

Growing up listening to 70s rock, courtesy of my parents, the Allman Brothers Band was always a bit of a knowledge gap. Everyone knows “Ramblin’ Man,” everyone knows the tragedy of Duane Allman, everyone knows the Gregg Allman and Cher relationship.

This book aims to dig deeper, to understand the band specifically while recording their album “Brothers and Sisters,” but also showcasing what led to that album and the aftermath of it. I found the parts discussing the close relationship with the Grateful Dead - another gap in my musical knowledge - to be especially fun to read about. What a time it must have been to see these bands play together for hours on end!

Thanks to St. Martin’s Press for the ARC!

[Allen Allnoch · Rating 5 out of 5]

Many writers and authors have explored the ABB, but Alan Paul is the authority on their collective history and individual careers. He does his usual outstanding work here in detailing a successful but chaotic period for the band while setting it all in the larger context of 1970s music, pop culture and even politics.

[Ellen Wilson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Googling photos of Cher in Macon, GA

[Jessica Fitzpatrick · Rating 4 out of 5]

I grew up listening to The Allman Brothers Band so this was a great and informative about the story and all that they did. Going to give this to my dad next!

[Maureen Cronin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read for me; love this band and all the members have such different stories.

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

As these tales come & go, this is a readable one -- but like the rest, just so sad.....the wasted talent & efforts are hard to grasp.

[Carol Watson · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Damn we were good," reflected founding Allman Brothers band member Jaimoe as he listened to re-release of some early recordings. The book expands way beyond just the making of Brothers & Sisters. It's really a rock history of music and politics at the time of the Allman Bros popularity. It's definitely a must-read for the true southern rock music geek. And spoiler alert...there's lots of Jimmy Carter info as well.

[Jim · Rating 5 out of 5]

I learned a lot about the years surrounding the release of Brothers and Sisters and a lot about how key that album was to the career of the band.

This book comes across as a well researched, labor of love.

[David Brimer · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent, thoroughly researched dive into the post-Duane, pre-1976 breakup Allmans. We follow the boys through Barry Oakley’s death, the writing and release of Brothers and Sisters, Gregg and Dickey’s solo albums, the 73-74 tours, and the acrimonious breakup after Win, Lose or Draw.

If you’re a fan, you should read this right away!

[Gaucho36 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Simply awesome. Deeply researched on all fronts. I thought I knew all there was to know about ABB but this was loaded with new insights. Also tons of background on record labels and the louts who run them - and the early days of Southern Rock giants like Lynyrd Skynyrd, MTB and the Outlaws.

If you are deeply interested in this era and this music it is a clear 5 star product. If you are not a fan you would probably give it a 1.

You know who you are out there …… so proceed accordingly!

[Mary McMasters · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved hearing the familiar voices, many now gone, telling aspects of this story I never knew. Amazing talent. Surprising survival.

[Patrick Geraghty · Rating 5 out of 5]

I first encountered the author when he wrote the liner notes for the Gregg Allman Anthology: One More Try. Since then I have made it a point to read whatever he writes. This is the inside story you have not heard. After the tragic deaths of two members how did The Allman Brothers Band pull themselves together to not only finish the album they were working on at the time of Duane Allman's death (Eat A Peach) and play live again, but start work on what would be their most successful album (Brothers and Sisters), during which time Berry Oakley died? This is the story of that feat culled from hours of taped interviews conducted by a band-insider (Kirk West) and passed along to Alan Paul. It is the story of epic live shows and equally as epic personnel issues. It's all here told in a non-salacious, matter of fact way.
As a fan of the band who wore out two vinyl copies of Brothers and Sisters, I can honestly say I devoured this book and recommend it wholeheartedly.

[Dan · Rating 4 out of 5]

My thanks to both NetGalley and the publisher St.Martin's Press for an advanced copy of this book looking at a band balanced on the precipice of success and imploding, and that tension that traveled with them like a shadow throughout the 1970's.

Great art is not created in a vaccum. Whether it is one chef or a brigade of chefs adding their own special ingredients to the meals, one of the largest influences in the creation of art is what is happening at the moment. And life changes a lot in a moment. A band of brothers, close as can be, has lost a key member in fact for one member of the band a literal brother. The famous one, the one the people knew, who could quietly, but powerfully in the right direction. A year later another loss, just as shocking, leads to not just two members joining a band, but the added tension of who is actually in charge of the direction of the band. Folk music influences meets country music influences. Add in drugs, label problems, crew problems. That is a lot of ingredients being added to that soup. And yet it all lead to the creation of an album that become a template for the Allman Brothers sound, and Southern Rock in general. Brothers and Sisters: The Allman Brothers Band and the Inside Story of the Album That Defined the '70s by Alan Paul is the second book to look at this band, this one focusing more on their actions in the 70's from concerts to political, to one becoming the cover star of People Magazine.

The Allman Brothers were making a name for themselves when tragically their founder and spiritual leader Duane Allman was killed in a motorcycle accident. After barely taking time off the band did their healing on the road, and tried to come to terms with the band, and continuing on. A year later with plans to record, they suffered another loss, this time losing Berry Oakley, their bassist, in another motorcycle crash. The band had just added one new player, and now needed another. The album that followed was their longest one to record, which was understandable. The biggest problem was who was in charge, and where were the songs coming from, which since both songwriters Dickey Betts and Greg Allman had different influences, lead to creative discussions. And amazing music. The book also looks more in depth at the Allman Brothers relationship with the Grateful Dead, and their performance at Watkins Glen New York. Also the rise of Southern Rock, which one could say the band has a hand in, their political work with Jimmy Carter, and helping in his campaign. And about Greg and Cher, and what that did to media and the rise of celebrity magazines.

More than a follow-up to Alan Paul's One Way Out: The Inside History of the Allman Brothers Band this book draws on new sources and interviews that have been previously been hidden under a insider to the band's desk. The contemporaneous notes fill in many gaps, that drugs or loss of key people might have otherwise been lost to time. The writing is great, and never is too much, which can happen in rock biographies. Paul is very good at getting the story right, even if Paul has to share four different versions. Paul really makes this look effortless, though I know this writing is very hard to do well. There is a lot more about the solo albums both Greg Allman and Dickey Betts were working on, more about the new members joining the band, and even the influences that members were drawing on for their performances. I had no idea about the influence of the Grateful Dead on the band, though it does make sense, though I can't get over Dickey Betts wanting to steal their sound so much. Also reading about the behind the scenes stories about the Watkins Glen concert was a favorite section for me.

A book that demands music to be played while reading. I really owe a generous donation to the Internet Archive for the amount of times I have listened to the Dead and the Brothers play their February 11 show. The ending really is epic. Another exceptional book, with a real warts and all way of telling the story, and a need to get to the truth. Alan Paul really is quite good at this, and I can't wait to see what Paul unearths next.

[David Ward · Rating 4 out of 5]

Brothers and Sisters: The Allman Brothers Band and the Inside Story of the Album That Defined the '70s by Alan Paul (St. Martin’s Press 2023) (780.92) (3891).

This is author Alan Paul’s second screed about the Allman Brothers Band, and it is a solid effort.

As an old Southern hippie, I have been an Allman Brothers fan since the guys moved to Macon, Georgia in the early 1970s, hooked up with promoter Phil Walden, and proceeded to show the rock and roll world what Southern rock was all about.

[A disclaimer: I have personally owned and worn out two copies of the original vinyl Allman Brothers double album At Fillmore East and three copies of the CD set of the same recording. I also owned a vinyl copy of the album Brothers and Sisters (on which this book’s title is based) which I purchased on the day it hit the shelves at my local record store in Knoxville, Tennessee. I loves me some Allman Brothers!]

Equally important to this review is the fact that the only band that I love more than the Allman Brothers is the Grateful Dead. Though the Grateful Dead and the Allman Brothers band members were friends, the two bands shared a concert stage very few times and basically are footnotes in each other’s performance histories. However, the two bands did share the stage at one of the most powerful and legendary outdoor concerts of all time: the concert at Watkins Glen, New York on July 28, 1973, four years after (and just down the road from) another famous outdoor show in Woodstock, New York.

One writer who attended both Woodstock and the concert at Watkins Glen compared the two shows:
“The crowd [at Watkins Glen] seemed less diverse than at Woodstock…This was the youth of the nation…not a gathering of disaffected weirdos…Watkins Glen was a ritual re-creation of a past event with the sole purpose of providing a good time for its participants.”
- Brothers and Sisters, quoting Patrick Snyder-Scumpy in Crawdaddy Magazine, (p 132).

It was therefore a delight and a huge surprise to find that author Alan Paul spent the first 150 pages of Brothers and Sisters: The Allman Brothers Band and the Inside Story of the Album That Defined the '70s touting the interrelationships between the two bands! I loved reading this, but the reality is that the relationship between the bands is at best an exceedingly minor footnote in either band’s history.

Paul’s book also does a fine job relating the back story about the Allman Brothers Band’s critical and timely support of the political campaign of a little-known Georgia politician named Jimmy Carter when he successfully ran for president in 1976.

Here are a few little bits of trivia from Alan Paul about the Allman Brothers that had escaped me all these years: Allman Brother Dickie Betts played on the Grateful Dead’s Wake of the Flood album; Lynyrd Skynyrd was managed by Alan Walden, who was the brother of Capricorn Records founder and manager of the Allman Brothers Band’s Phil Walden; Allman Brother Warren Haynes is a native of Asheville, North Carolina; and musicians Billy Joe Shaver and Elvin Bishop were Dickie Betts’ drinking buddy and old pal respectively.

I have enjoyed several of author Alan Paul’s rock and roll biographies before I read Brothers and Sisters. This is another enjoyable and very creditable addition to his body of work.

My rating: 7.5/10, finished 11/27/23 (3891).

[MB KARAPCIK · Rating 4 out of 5]

The seminal Allman Brothers album, Brothers and Sisters, takes center stage in the book by the same name and by Alan Paul who wrote the incredible One Way Out, an oral history of the band. This book focuses solely on this album and the events surrounding the band and in society at the time.

You'll find out how the band members coped after losing two of their band members, Duane Allman and Berry Oakley, who both acted as bandleaders. You'll discover how they could record this memorable album that spawned one of their most famous, if not the most famous, hit, Ramblin' Man. You'll learn how the Allman Brothers helped to get Jimmy Carter elected. And, for those interested in 1970s celebrity culture, how Gregg Allman made Cher turn his way.

At first, I could not figure out how the author could write a book on one album. Was there enough material to chew on? Yes. Many chapters devote time to how the members individually dealt with the blow of Duane and Berry dying so young and so unexpectedly. That really rocked the foundation of the band and left many of the members with scars and drug problems. It very definitely led to the band losing their way without their unofficial leaders at the helm.

I enjoyed hearing about the creation of Brothers and Sisters and how Ramblin' Man became such a hit despite Dickey Betts (who goes by Richard during this time period) not liking how his voice sounded. You also get some insight into the creation of groups like the Marshall Tucker Band and their greatest competition, Lynyrd Skynyrd. Even though I'm not a huge fan of either one, I gained more respect and really enjoyed hearing about their rises to fame. And I was intrigued by their relationship with the Grateful Dead and how unforeseen events changed that relationship for good.

Since I was a little kid when Jimmy Carter was elected, it was interesting to hear how the Allman Brothers influenced his campaign. I had heard about that but didn't know much about the origins or results other than Carter was our eventual President. Although these passages could run a little slow, it was important to note that this was the first real campaign that showed how a rock band could play a part in electing a President.

And, of course, my interest piqued when you hear the story of how Gregg met Cher and their subsequent relationship. It was kind of a "meet-cute" type of story really and gave me some insight into their relationship. Obviously, it didn't end well, but she wasn't necessarily a negative influence on Gregg, and they were a gorgeous-looking couple. I'm sure that I need to read this from Cher's perspective because I don't think everything was unicorns and rainbows.

This book isn't just a book about a popular album or an influential rock band. It's a piece of history that really expanded my knowledge of the 1970s politically and culturally. I enjoyed reading the book and am glad I was awarded the opportunity because there's so much more to the book than one hit song that you still hear on the radio.

Thank you, St. Martin's Press, for an advanced reading copy of this book in exchange for an honest review! It was a pleasure!

[John Mullarkey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Most longtime fans of rock music are familiar with the Allman Brothers Band and “Brothers and Sisters”, could very well appear on a “Top 10” list of all-time great albums (along with “Live at the Fillmore East”). What is not always known is just how the album came to be under the utmost of difficult circumstances following the tragic death of guitarist and leader Duane Allman in 1971, followed a year later by the death of bassist Berry Oakley.
Alan Paul has written the definitive account of the making of, and legacy of one of the definitive and outstanding rock albums of the 70’s. But the album itself, while being the centerpiece of the story, set in motion a great deal more for the Allman Brothers Band as it not only propelled them to great heights of popularity and fame, with a hit single - “Ramblin Man” but influenced an entire new genre (Southern Rock) of popular rock music; made one of its members a household name by marrying a legendary pop and TV star; cast the band as a political influencers in the endorsement of a presidential candidate, Jimmy Carter; befriended and gained the trust of a then teenage rock critic; teamed with the Grateful Dead and The Band for one of the highest attended rock events of the decade at the Watkins Glen Summer Jam; had much of their wealth and profits manipulated by shady management, and got mixed up with the seamy side of the music business, which resulted in arrests/courts cases involving the Dixie Mafia; and of course, as is the case in most storied bands, there is the topic of substance abuse. This all could be the making of a great Hollywood film, and yes it would actually become the basis for one: “Almost Famous” (2000) - It's all written about within the pages. It’s a terrific story and a detailed account of a pivotal time period of popular music as FM radio was flourishing and the touring and concert element of rock music was becoming huge business. What makes Alan Paul’s work even more unique and fascinating is that this story is derived from a treasure trove of taped interviews from band members themselves that have been concealed for decades. Thus, not only is it a well-written account detailing the band, its road and studio crew, but it is also very honest and candid. Fans of Greg Allman’s memoir, My Cross to Bear (2012), and Paul’s earlier oral history of the Allman Brothers One Way Out: The Inside History of the Allman Brothers Band (2014) will find this very much in the category of a “must read”.

[Seth Arnopole · Rating 5 out of 5]

When I was a teenager learning to play the guitar, the early 1990s resurgence of the Allman Brothers Band was just getting started. I adored their first four albums and thought that their 90s work was great as well. At that time, I wasn't able to connect as much with their mid-70s music - back then, I thought it sounded too "slick" for my ears. Over time, as I learned more about music, I recognized how great the band was during this period, as it reinvented itself as a two-keyboard rather than two-guitar group. I came to love the work they did during this time (even the flawed "Win, Lose, or Draw" album).

Alan Paul is to be commended for expanding readers' knowledge of this period of ABB history, in the wake of founding visionary Duane Allman's sudden death, followed by the eerily similar death of bassist Berry Oakley one year later. After these losses, the band suddenly reached its commercial peak with a huge hit single ("Ramblin' Man") and album ("Brothers and Sisters"), also playing for a crowd bigger than the one at Woodtsock in Watkins Glen, NY with The Band and The Grateful Dead. Soon enough, Gregg Allman and Dickey Betts, the band's primary songwriters, both recorded successful solo albums that explored directions that were outside the parameters of the band (Allman with an interesting hybrid of soul/R&B and singer-songwriter approaches, and Betts with western swing and country music). After that, the Allmans released one subpar studio album and a live album that received a lukewarm reception (but whose reputation has grown in recent decades), and then they broke up, only to reform again a couple of years later.

This book sheds light on matters like the pressures of the band during this period, their musical achievements, their business dealings (their manager also owned their record company and controlled their publishing), the rise of "Southern Rock" as a genre, etc., but it is especially illuminating about their association with the Grateful Dead; the two bands were closer at that time than many fans might have realized. The book ends with a touching story about Gregg, in a rough period in his life, heading to rehab in Buffalo, NY only to connect with some local high students and some musicians, establishing some lasting relationships.

[Ellie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This Book!!!! Alan Paul has written a remarkable book about the Allman Brothers Band from the time right before Duane's death, to Berry Oakley's death, to Gregg's meeting Cher, to the continued bad feelings between Gregg and Dickey Betts that went on for decades. The Allman Brothers Band was the sound of the early 70's; the best rock band in the world! Even though they didn't appreciate that title, they did define the Southern rock sound. Drugs in that world hurt them...Phil Walden hurt them...the deaths of their family and band members really destroyed them. This book was one gasp after the next for me! So incredibly sad! And now Gregg is gone and Butch Trucks committed suicide a few years ago. It was great to read about Cowboy and to read what Tommy Talton and Scott Boyer had to say since they were close with the Band. This was a great book, very sad in so many areas, and so very enlightening. If they had only had the tools to deal with their fame, drugs, emotions and alcohol...I bet they'd still be playing, larger than life.

Thank you to Alan Paul for the research (incredible that you ended up with all those cassettes) and to NetGalley and St. Martin's Publishing Group for the eGalley in exchange for this very honest review.

[Joe Mojoguzzi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Having just finished the book today, I will write more later in a more formal manner, but I can say that it is among the finest nonfiction biographies I have ever read. The absolute completeness Paul provided in arguably such a short space is amazing. The fact that he goes into such detail about the finances and the Capricorn problems while capturing the lightning that was that period again is nothing short of amazing. 

And it is, indeed, my story, too, as a fan. I have a photo of me in my Win, Lose, or Draw T-shirt. My nickname for a short time was “Southbound.” I saw the brothers in 1975 in Richmond with John Hammond, opening at the Richmond Coliseum. And I devoured all of the music. I went to see the Highway Call tour opener in Richmond, and loved it so much, that my friend and I went to DC the following week to catch it again.

“Thank you” doesn’t capture my feelings. But it’ll have to do. If you are interested at all in this period, by all means read this book. And listen to the audio book, too, on Libro.fm. Paul includes great snippets of actual interviews. Amazing.