Allman Brothers 2: Idlewild South

Arriving less than a year after their LP debut, Idlewild South has some things in common with that album—seven songs four one side, three on the other, just over half an hour long—but it’s hardly a retread. While it does offer another program of blues, other influences creep in, helping to solidify what made the Allman Brothers Band unique, and heads above imitators.

Dickey Betts emerges as a songwriter here, bookending side one with a pair of distinct classics. “Revival” opens with an acoustic strum, switches into a modal riff that builds over other gear changes before settling into the gospel-influenced vocal part—even letting each instrumentalist take a one-bar solo. Compare that to “In Memory Of Elizabeth Reed”, a mesmerizing instrumental loaded with jazz influences, running seven minutes in this version. In between, Gregg Allman offers up the funky “Don’t Keep Me Wonderin’” and “Midnight Rider”, which is either playing on the radio or a television commercial as you read this.

Side two takes a step way back into the blues, with an elaborate arrangement of “Hoochie Coochie Man”, shouted here by bassist Berry Oakley, and likely to give Gregg a rest. He comes back strong with the torchy “Please Call Home”, his piano giving brother Duane plenty of room to wander. “Leave My Blues At Home” is one of their hidden gems, a terrific showcase for the ensemble, driven by a very complicated bass line.

While it does show their growth, Idlewild South doesn’t have the same element of surprise as the first album. That’s not necessarily a criticism; in fact, the two albums were reissued a few years later as a two-record set, called Beginnings. It’s still available as a single CD, and it’s a highly economical option for newcomers, though the debut appeared in a new mix by Tom Dowd.

Some 45 years later, the album was expanded to include three outtakes, and filled the rest of that disc plus another with the complete concert at Cincinnati’s Ludlow Garage from 1970, most of which had appeared as its own release in 1990, both in the wake of their successful Dreams box set as well as to compete with the band’s new album on another label. It’s not as hot as the Fillmore album, but it did include a lengthy “I’m Gonna Move To The Outskirts Of Town”, a 45-minute “Mountain Jam”, and a rare Duane vocal on “Dimples”. Besides sounding marginally better, this upgrade of the show includes a previously unreleased performance of “Elizabeth Reed”. (The Super Deluxe Edition added two more outtakes to the first disc, and put Ludlow Garage on its own two discs.)

The Allman Brothers Band Idlewild South (1970)—3½
2015 45th Anniversary Deluxe Edition: same as 1970, plus 12 extra tracks (Super Deluxe Edition adds another 2 tracks plus Blu-ray)
The Allman Brothers Band Live At Ludlow Garage 1970 (1990)—3½