If Greg Allman had his druthers, he’d much rather play a concert indoors. Being a musician, he prefers the contained, inside acoustics.
That said, the legendary rocker does see a place for playing outdoors.
“The sound is not as good as if it was contained, but outside it just puts people in a good ol’ frame of mind,” said Allman, 64, speaking by phone from his home in Savannah, Ga. “You know how it is. In the summertime, there ought to be more outside gigs.”
The Allman Brothers Band perform Monday evening at Merriweather Post Pavilion. Santana co-headlines the show.
| Onstage |
| The Allman Brothers Band and Santana |
| Where: Merriweather Post Pavilion, 10475 Little Patuxent Parkway, Columbia |
| When: Doors at 5 p.m, Monday |
| Info: $45 to $125; merriweathermusic.com |
The Allman Brothers are best know for popular 1970s songs “Jessica,” “Melissa,” and “Ramblin’ Man.” In fact, it’s been 40 years since the release of the group’s classic album “Eat a Peach.” Greg Allman said the band may do something special to commemorate the anniversary.
“We might at some gigs,” Allman said. “I’m not sure. As yet we don’t have anything. I’m sure when we all get together, we’ll come up with something.”
This year’s tour includes a new venture: The Peach Festival in Scranton, Pa., Aug. 10 to 12. The festival will include the Allman Brothers Band, Zac Brown Band, Tedeschi Trucks Band and many more.
Allman recently penned a memoir titled “My Cross to Bear,” which came out in May. In the book, Greg addresses the 1971 death of his brother Duane; substance abuse and rehab stints; his many marriages, include to Cher; and more.
Allman said that the book started out as a journal he began writing back in the ’80s.
“I guess I was in my late 30s, but I had such a great life up to then, I thought well, I’m going to start keeping me a journal,” Allman said. “I’m going to write down all the stuff that I remember, and when I get to be an old codger sitting in a rocking chair on the front porch, I can pick up these pages and thumb through them and relive the old things again.”
Is everything in there in “My Cross to Bear?”
“Is it in there?” Allman said. “Is it all in there? Am I dead yet? Of course it’s not all in there.”
Allman added that he felt mixed emotions going through the old stories.
“Some of them were hilarious,” he said. “A lot of them were. Some of them were a little sad.”
Earlier this year, the Grammys recognized the Allman Brothers Band with its Lifetime Achievement Award, an appropriate honor for a band with such a rich legacy.
“They don’t give out too many of those,” Allman said. “It’s something to be really proud of.”
