Duane Betts says it`s an honor to play with dad Dickey

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APRIL 24,2012
Entertainment
Duane Betts says it's an honor to play with dad Dickey
Legendary Allman Brothers Band vocalist-guitarist Dickey Betts many not have felt comfortable enough to
join his former band mates for their recent Lifetime Achievement Grammy, but he certainly enjoys
performing with his son, Duane.
Named after Duane Allman, the late founder of the Allman Brothers Band, the younger Betts, 33, cut his
teeth sitting in with that group as a teen and has shared the stage with his dad for the past seven years in
Great Southern. The southern rock outfit will perform on April 25 at the State Theatre.
Betts said it also is an honor being named for Duane Allman, whom many consider to the greatest slide
guitarist in rock history.
Allman's leadership and values stand alongside his massive contribution to the musical world, Betts said.
"That's why I'm honored to be named after someone as great as he is," he said.
Inspired by the jazz interplay between trumpeter Miles Davis and saxophonist John Coltrane, Dickey Betts
invented the dual rock guitar lead with Allman. That tradition continues in the Allman Brothers Band
between Warren Haynes, a one-time member of Great Southern whom Betts recruited into the Allman
Brothers, and Derek Trucks, the nephew of founding Allmans drummer Butch Trucks. A rift with the elder
Trucks, however, has kept Betts out of the Allmans lineup, Betts manager David Spero said.
Some Southern rock bands, such as Lynyrd Skynyrd and The Outlaws, added to the Allmans' guitar
dynamic with a third guitar, which is the configuration Great Southern utilizes. The Betts father-son team is
joined by Andy Aledort, a sought-after session player who has worked with the Allmans and Chicago blues
great Buddy Guy.
"Andy's a great guitar player too," Betts said. "The three of us try not to overstep each other. One night
Andy will do a solo on 'Elizabeth Reed,' the next time, I'll do it. We try to keep it tasteful.
"That dual guitar lead is definitely in my genetic code," he continued. "I sharpened my teeth on it growing
up, listening to Warren and my father every night. There's a subtlety when you play that music that you
don't have to use when you with other music. When you play that music, you have to be subtle with the
volume and the dynamic."
Having recently moved to Malibu, Calif., from his hometown of Sarasota, Fla., Betts said he expects to form
a new band of his own soon. He said he is in the writing process for a recording project.
Betts previously was signed to Atlantic Records with Whitestar, which toured with Kid Rock and featured
his best friend, Alex Orbison, the drummer son of the late rock 'n' roll pioneer Roy Orbison.
Of his four brothers and sisters, Kimberly, is a singer, as well as an actress, he said.
Dickey Betts & Great Southern also will perform April 28 at the New York Society for Ethical Culture, 2 W.
64th St. at Central Park West.
While the band will not be appearing at the Allmans' annual Peach Festival this summer, it will
return to New Jersey in June for the Southern-rock flavored Rock, Ribs & Ridges Festival at the
Hidden Valley Club in Vernon. That bill also will feature The Georgia Satellites, Artimus Pyle of
Lynyrd Skynyrd, Molly Hatchet, and New Riders of the Purple Sage on June 9 and 10.