RIP, Dickey Betts

 Dickey Betts has passed away.  Dickey Betts mattered.  Dickey Betts contributed something positive to the world.  He had the fortune to be a part of one of the greatest bands in all of history, and yet the other side of the coin is that by standing next to Duane Allman, and playing guitar alongside Duane Allman, he was the other guy.  In any other rock band, as lead guitarist, he would have been feted as a god.  "Clapton is god?"  Dickey was beyond Clapton, in my opinion, as a writer, and as a player.  Clapton became a star as the lead player first for the Yardbirds and Mayall, then Cream, and only then did he have to stand next to Duane, after establishing himself.  Dickey?  Dickey was there, all along.  I do like Clapton.  Cream, Derek & The Dominoes, and some of that early material?  Good stuff.  Dickey?  Do not overlook how amazing a player Dickey Betts was.  Once Duane passed away, Dickey took the lead, and wrote songs like Ramblin' Man.  Then, eventually, the group came back with real vitality upon finding Warren Haynes.  There was a run of albums, including some live albums with Warren and Dickey that rival some of the best early works, until Dickey's substance problems made it impossible for him to continue in the band.  Then, Derek Trucks came on full time, giving the world the pairing of Warren and Derek, which was at least as musically interesting, if not as iconic as Duane and Dickey.

The only original member left is Jaimoe, who is one of the best percussionists around, but the true legacy of the Allman Brothers in music today is the Tedeschi Trucks Band.  Derek, of course, is the nephew of the late Butch, and it is no longer even controversial among guitar aficionados to say that Derek is better than Duane.  Derek is on another plane of existence, and Susan Tedeschi has the best voice in blues today, maybe ever.

Memento mori.

Dickey had a hard life, but he did something.  He was a great artist, greater than you know.  Ramblin' Man?  Cool song.  Here is Dickey's opus, "In Memory of Elizabeth Reed," live in 1970, with the original Allmans.  It is astonishing how good everyone here is.