Former Allman Brothers guitarist Dickey Betts dropped in on Kid Rock's show last night (Feb. 10) at Los Angeles' House of Blues, guesting on covers of the Allmans' "Ramblin' Man" and Ray Charles' "What'd I Say."
"We have a bunch of mutual friends," Betts tells Billboard.com of Rock, "but I'd never actually met him. I'd been looking forward to it for years."
Betts is in Los Angeles to rehearse for the Grammys' tribute to Southern rock on Sunday, which will feature a variety of country acts singing "Ramblin' Man," Lynyrd Skynyrd's "Freebird" and "Sweet Home Alabama" and Elvin Bishop's "Fooled Around and Fell in Love."
"I'm coming out about halfway into it," Betts reports." When they finish 'Fooled Around and Fell in Love,' I kick in with "Ramblin' Man" with Tim McGraw and then stay out for 'Sweet Home Alabama.'"
The Grammy performance will dovetail into Betts' spring tour with Great Southern, kicking off March 3 in Falls Church, Va. The group now features Betts' longtime collaborator Danny Toler. "Danny was the first guitarist we had in the Allman Brothers back when Duane [Allman] was killed," Betts says.
Betts says fans can expect the shows to feature "all the songs I wrote when I was with the Brothers: 'Jessica,' 'In Memory of Elizabeth Reed,' 'Ramblin' Man' and 'Blue Sky.' Some of the other guys write, and we do some of their material. We have an acoustic segment, too. We usually play about three hours, if we have the time."
In May, Eagle Rock will release an as-yet-untitled CD/DVD package chronicling Betts' performance at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland last September. The set will feature a new song, "Cleveland Blues," written the day of the show.
"I was waiting for my son to come down so I was sitting in the bar having a beer," Betts recalls. "I just started messing around with this song in my head. I asked the waiter for a pen and his pad he takes orders on, and jotted this song down and we did it that night."
"We have a bunch of mutual friends," Betts tells Billboard.com of Rock, "but I'd never actually met him. I'd been looking forward to it for years."
Betts is in Los Angeles to rehearse for the Grammys' tribute to Southern rock on Sunday, which will feature a variety of country acts singing "Ramblin' Man," Lynyrd Skynyrd's "Freebird" and "Sweet Home Alabama" and Elvin Bishop's "Fooled Around and Fell in Love."
"I'm coming out about halfway into it," Betts reports." When they finish 'Fooled Around and Fell in Love,' I kick in with "Ramblin' Man" with Tim McGraw and then stay out for 'Sweet Home Alabama.'"
The Grammy performance will dovetail into Betts' spring tour with Great Southern, kicking off March 3 in Falls Church, Va. The group now features Betts' longtime collaborator Danny Toler. "Danny was the first guitarist we had in the Allman Brothers back when Duane [Allman] was killed," Betts says.
Betts says fans can expect the shows to feature "all the songs I wrote when I was with the Brothers: 'Jessica,' 'In Memory of Elizabeth Reed,' 'Ramblin' Man' and 'Blue Sky.' Some of the other guys write, and we do some of their material. We have an acoustic segment, too. We usually play about three hours, if we have the time."
In May, Eagle Rock will release an as-yet-untitled CD/DVD package chronicling Betts' performance at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland last September. The set will feature a new song, "Cleveland Blues," written the day of the show.
"I was waiting for my son to come down so I was sitting in the bar having a beer," Betts recalls. "I just started messing around with this song in my head. I asked the waiter for a pen and his pad he takes orders on, and jotted this song down and we did it that night."
Up for Discussion