All My Friends: Celebrating the Songs and Voice of Gregg Allman (DVD Review)

With its emotional honesty and clarity of introspection, there’s such a deep-rooted melancholy in Gregg Allman’s greatest song, “Old Before My Time” (from 2003’s ABB album Hittin’ the Note), that it’s inclusion in the setlist for All My Friends might well have unduly dampened the celebratory atmosphere that permeates the concert. But every other well-known tune written and/or performed by the Southern rock icon is included, offering epiphanies aplenty (though some are more fleeting than others) in two and a half hours of largely stellar playing and singing.

The presence of so many country artists, such as Trace Adkins and Martina McBride, reaffirms the crossover appeal in the demographic of Gregg Allman’s audience, while appearances by the likes of Train’s Pat Monahan elevates the mainstream quotient here. His performances as fevered as the audience response to his introduction, “I’m No Angel” and “Trouble No More” elevates the persona Adkins projects while the latter, making a valiant attempt to sound soulful on “Queen of Hearts,” reminds not only what influence Allman’s had on other singers, but how easy he makes it sound to be moving, even as others strain for the effect.

As well paced, at least for the most of its duration, as is Celebrating the Songs and Voice of Gregg Allman, when it begins to pick up the pace during with Gregg’s appearance to perform “Statesboro Blues” with Taj Mahal, the DVD almost immediately stalls with the random insertion of interview clip (extended likes of which might’ve made for a worthwhile bonus addition), a momentum killer aggravated further by the entry of Widespread Panic. There’s a world-weariness in “Just Ain’t Easy” that, while it’s author Allman’s hallmark, is not his emotion alone, yet the Georgia band barely scratch its surface, so much so that guitarist Jimmy Herring’s scorching solo is all that makes it worth hearing. Derek Trucks’ fiery fills fulfill a similar function on “Wasted Words,” while his tradeoffs and tandem playing with Herring might well have gone on much longer.

The emotional undercurrent of the evening becomes more palpable with the dual performance of one-time California roommates Allman and Jackson Browne on what may otherwise be the most predictable selections in the setlist. Yet the pair transcends the preconceptions during “These Days” and “Melissa” as they embrace the forlorn air missing from it so often in its latter-day performances. Eric Church’s rather nondescript readings of “Ain’t Wastin’ Time No More”‘” and “Win Lose or Draw” nevertheless illuminate the rough-hewn poetry in Gregg’s best writing, while the piano work of the ever estimable Chuck Leavell on those tracks showcases how touching are Allman’s most memorable melodies.

There are some exceptions in terms of song choices arrangements and recording to what is otherwise a string of moving performances. It may be an accurate reflection of the audience’s focus to keep the camera on the stunning Susan Tedeschi while her husband Derek Trucks trades slide licks with the equally fluid guitarist Jack Pearson, but it doesn’t illuminate their expertise there nor the way the band as a whole, including musical director Don Was on bass and the indefatigable drummer Kenny Aronoff, holding the syncopation of “Stand Back”’. And while a close-up of Warren Haynes and Oteil Burbridge’s hands on their respective instruments is more than a little eye-catching, it doesn’t quite make up for the distracting pans away from Trucks as he lifts his “Whipping Post” solo to stratospheric heights of intensity.

Perhaps the best compliment to afford All My Friends is that there’s something worth hearing and/or seeing on virtually every number (even if it’s simply the pungent harp fills of Wet Willie’s Jimmy Hall who commands the stage early on during “Can’t Lose What You Never Had”). Not too surprisingly, the Allman Brothers’ renditions of their titular leader’s most prized contributions to the iconic band’s repertoire, “Dreams” and the aforementioned “Whipping Post,” are the most sustained. But in the midst of scintillating instrumental work, it’s the level of Gregg Allman’s engagement that’s most noteworthy. He exudes a deep sense of respect and commitment from behind his Hammond organ and not just to his bandmates across the stage, but to himself. In doing so reminds why he’s sufficiently inspired so many musicians and singers over the years, not just this night in January 2014.