In Memory of Elizabeth Reed

June 26, 1971 was the last concert at the Fillmore East in NYC (there was a "private" last show the following day of which more below).  The bill was Albert King, J Geils Band and The Allman Brothers Band.  I'd attended two prior shows at the Fillmore in 1969 with Jefferson Airplane and The Who as the headliners.  For that last concert I was more interested in J Geils than in The Allman Brothers whose music I barely knew.

These concerts were a bit different than those of today.  The bands played two full shows each evening.  We had tickets for the first show.  Albert King was good and J Geils was terrific (this was when Geils was a blues/funk band before their pop stardom days in the late 70s/early 80s).  The Allman Brothers were the closing act.  The first part of their set was good, but not great, focusing on standard blues tunes.  Then they launched into Hot 'Lanta, In Memory of Elizabeth Reed and Whipping Post with the soaring guitars of Duane Allman and Dickie Betts flowing over the rhythm section of Berry Oakley (bass) and Jaimoe Johanson and Butch Trucks on drums along with Greg Allman on keyboards and vocals.  It was beautiful and uplifting music mixing jazz, rock and blues.  I can still close my eyes, see the band onstage and hear the guitars intertwining and flying above everything. I've never heard anything quite like it since.

Apparently the second show was even better (or at least that's what Barbara always tells me - she was at it (this was before we knew each other)).  It started after midnight and ended after dawn.  It went on so long that when I got home to Connecticut that night I turned on WNEW-FM and to my surprise heard the second show being broadcast live and I listened for awhile.

1971 was the end of the line for the original Allman Brothers lineup.  In October, Duane was killed in a motorcycle accident in Macon, Georgia and a year later Berry Oakley died in another motorcycle accident three blocks from where Duane crashed.  The band has carried on in many incarnations since then.

The Allman Brothers Live At Fillmore East album which you may have heard was actually recorded at a Fillmore concert earlier in the year and not at the June show.  The best version of the live Fillmore Concerts can be found in the 1992 remastering which is less guitar dominated and better shows the rhythmic interplay of the entire band.

The song that stood out the most to me that night was In Memory of Elizabeth Reed, written by Dickie Betts, which remains my favorite rock instrumental.  Below are two versions - listening on a PC or mobile device does not do this justice - get the 1992 remastered version and listen to it loud.

If you have 5 minutes and 39 seconds listen to Duane's solo and the last part of the song.

 

If you have 12+ minutes this is a full live version from the "private" Fillmore East show the day after the closing concert.

This is the complete listing of shows at the Fillmore East from 1968 through its closing.