Two obituaries in one day. . .
Dicky Betts, one of my favorite rock guitarists of all time, died in Florida last Thursday. He was 80, and had been plagued by illness (exacerbated by drugs, drinking, and smoking) for some time. When he was at his height with the Allman Brothers, especially when playing with Duane Allman before Duane’s untimely death, he was incomparable, and had a sound that could be identified immediately. You can read the NYT obituary by clicking below, but I’d to memorialize him with his music rather than with words. From what I hear, he was probably somewhat of a jerk, and often didn’t get along well with his bandmates, but of course many great artists, musical or otherwise, weren’t exemplary people. I know virtually nothing about Betts as a person (look him up on Wikipedia if you want information), but I know his music, and I’ve put four great examples below.
You can read the NYT obit—in line with house style, they call him “Mr. Betts”—by clicking on the headline below, or see it archived here.
An excerpt:
Despite not being an actual Allman brother — the band, founded in 1969, was led by Duane Allman, who achieved guitar-god status before he died in a motorcycle accident at 24, and Gregg Allman, the lead vocalist, who got an added flash of the limelight in 1975 when he married Cher — Mr. Betts was a guiding force in the group for decades and central to the sound that came to define Southern rock.
Although pigeonholed by some fans in the band’s early days as its “other” guitarist, Mr. Betts, whose solos seemed at times to scorch the fretboard of his Gibson Les Paul, proved a worthy sparring partner to Duane Allman, serving as a co-lead guitarist, rather than as a sidekick.
With his chiseled features, Wild West mustache and gunfighter demeanor, Mr. Betts certainly looked the part of the star. And he played like one. Nowhere was that more apparent than on the band’s landmark 1971 live double album, “At Fillmore East,” which was filled with expansive jams and showcased the intricate interplay between Mr. Betts and Mr. Allman. It sold more than a million copies.
“The second half of ‘At Fillmore East’ is as vivid and exhilarating as recorded rock has ever been,” Grayson Haver Currin of Pitchfork wrote in a 2022 appraisal.
A centerpiece of the album was “In Memory of Elizabeth Reed,” a haunting, jazz-influenced instrumental written by Mr. Betts whose title was taken from a headstone at a graveyard in the band’s hometown, Macon, Ga. That track’s “textural interplay,” Mr. Currin continued, “resembles Miles Davis’s then-new electric bands, organ and guitar oozing into one another like melting butter and chocolate.”
“Duane and I had an understanding, like an old soul kind of understanding of let’s play together,” Mr. Betts said in a 2020 interview with The Sarasota Herald-Tribune in Florida. “Duane would say, ‘Man, I get so jealous of you sometimes when you burn off and I have to follow it,’ and we would joke about it. So that’s kind of Duane and mine’s relationship. It was a real understanding. Like, ‘Come on, this is a hell of a band, let’s not hot dog it up.’”
Mr. Allman made his feelings about his bandmate clear. “I’m the famous guitar player,” he once said, “but Dickey is the good one.”
Note that last sentence. Yet on Rolling Stone‘s bizarre list of “The 250 greatest guitarists of all time,” Betts ranks at only #145 (sandwiched between Mike Bloomfield and Odetta), while Duane Allman comes in at a respectable #10. (#1 is Jimi Hendrix, while Eric Clapton is only #35.) That list is just wonky. Hendrix’s position makes sense, but to put Clapton at #35 and Betts at #145 is insane. Best to ignore that list!
Although the NYT and others name “Ramblin’ Man” as Betts’s biggest success, I still find”Blue Sky” preferable, and it’s my favorite song of his (he wrote it, sang it, and played it, alternating with Duane Allman). Here is “southern rock”—I’ve never been sure what that is—at its finest. I heard the Allman Brothers, sans Duane, play this song live, and was only about 10 feet from the stage in a standing crowd. After playing “Blue Sky,” Betts threw his pick into the audience, and I’m sad that I didn’t catch it.
The solo on this piece is incomparable, and you can hear the original recording here. Warren Haynes alternates with Betts, but Betts outshines him. (Dickie is, of course, the one with the cowboy hat and boots.)
Another favorite of mine, the instrumental “Jessica“. This was also written by Betts, who does a great job playing it live in 1982. I love Betts’s great solo that starts with a big guitar whine at 3:39, slows and then speeds up at 4:51. The original is here.
This song, “Whipping Post,” was written by Greg Allman, but it’s one of the few examples on video of Betts playing with Duane Allman. Duane is the star here, but Betts gets his licks in starting about 5:40. You judge who’s best. This is the full original band, and the original recording is here.
I’m throwing in this version of Gregg’s song “Melissa‘ because it’s all-acoustic performance and shows Betts’s skill on acoustic guitar, especially in the final solo with Haynes. Greg wrote this song out of frustration, feeling unable to write any good songs. He finally succeeded with this one, despite the lameness of some of the words. The original recording is here.
I was just listening to “Ain’t Wastin’ Time No More” 🙁
A platitude from yesterday’s (?) Hili dialogue: one isn’t really dead until all the ripples one left behind have gone. Are Betts’ songs or Dennett’s books more long-lasting as ripples in the lives of others?
“Ramblin’ Man” got my attention when it came out on “Brothers and Sisters” (which I have on vinyl), but “Blue Sky” has kept my attention ever since first hearing it on “Eat a Peach” (which I also have on vinyl). Every time I hear that beautiful intro, it stops me dead in my tracks. And, of course, there are “Melissa” and “Jessica” from Betts’s repertoire, both beautiful pieces. Great musician.
Thanks for these memories. My wife-to-be and I saw the Allman Brothers at the Fabulous Forum in L.A. in 1973. The opening acts were Boz Scaggs and the Marshall Tucker Band! We weren’t 10 rows back, but high up in the nosebleed section, so it was hard to see exactly what was going on. My memories are of Betts soloing on “Blue Sky” and “Les Brers in A Minor,” both highlights of that evening and an era from long ago.
When it’s time for leavin’
He hopes we’ll understand
Totally agree that Betts was a legend — “Blue Sky” is truly one of the best.
The end of an era for sure…
I was fortunate enough to meet Dickie a couple of times. He was very down to earth guy. The funniest story I know about him was when he had Colonel Bruce Hampton and the Aquarium Rescue Unit open up for him. Colonel Bruce was doing the last song of his set. The band went into this Florence sound breakdown at the end of the song. The colonel came out on stage with a big hullahoop and was prancing around. When he would stick his head through the hullahoop, the band would break into what I could only describe as a jazz style change that was really odd as if all the band members were playing completely different songs, then Bruce would pull his head or arm out of the hullahoop and the band would go back to the original groove. Finally Bruce put his whole body through the hula hoop and the band kept playing the jazzy weird breakdown all the wile Bruce was dancing as if he was drowning in molasses. Dickie was standing off stage an laughing maniacally, watching Bruce drown. Bruce finally flipped the hullahoop up in the air 15 ft, and when it hit the ground, the band stopped and the crowd went wild! Bruce came off stage and walked by Dickie. Dickie was still laughing when Bruce walked by, Dickie looked at Bruce and said “What the fuck was that Bruce?”. Bruce looked at him and said, “That’s over your head Dickie…” Everyone just rolled laughing! Dickie went up next, plugged in his SG and lit it up!
The Colonel was a legend. As you probably know he died from a heart attack, on stage, doing “Lovelight” as the encore of his 70th birthday tribute concert.
Great player, great songs.
(For any who live near the Portland Oregon area, there’s a great Allman Brothers tribute band: One Way Out PDX. Highly recommended. https://onewayoutpdx.com/ )
I agree it’s weird to rank Clapton at 35. They had an older list where he was ranked as #2! But after the George Floyd incident, Rolling Stone issued new versions of “best-ever” lists with more diversity in them (the original lists were far better).
A brilliant guitarist – RIP, Dickey.
Blue sky, one of my favorites!
I’ve heard it said that “chicks don’t get the Allman Brothers”, but the group of gals I ran with in the 70s loved them. I never tire of their albums. I loved Greg Allman’s solo stuff, too. Very melancholic memories for me. Thanks for noting Bett’s passing.
Mild and nostalgic melancholia is also what I often thought their music expressed for me then. And even now. “Eat a Peach” (1972) was the only vinyl LP by the group that I bought.
After time, the songs conjure up memories of friends, in an ideal world of made up, is now enjoying Mr Bett’s guitar licks…
Can never tire of Blue Sky. I can’t listen to Hendrix or Clapton or even Duanne with the delight that I get from Dickie. His melodic tone is perfect for a long drive, and on a long drive I will often put on Rambling Man or Blue Sky on repeat. It’s that never ending feeling his guitar gives. One of the earliest live performances of Blue Sky, and the dual guitars are the true brothers in the band.
I am glad that you threw in Melissa. Our jam group has a great time playing and singing that song, as well as a few of the other Brothers classics.
Melissa was one of Gregg’s first compositions…before Dickey became affiliated w the Bros…
Dickey was a member of the band before Gregg.
Duane, then Jaimoe, Barry, Dickey, Butch, then
Gregg was the last member of the band, called in from California to sing and write.
However, Melissa was written while Gregg was back in California, with an obligation to Liberty Records …along with Dreams…
Hope you’ve been made aware of how the slide guitar development occurred…
Little Martha