****** - Verified Buyer
4.5
As I write this Amazon has once again lumped all reviews for the various editions of this album under the album name."Laid Back is my pride and joy". Gregg Allman."All these beautiful songs, with influences from Jackson Browne and Neil Young and Bob Dylan and Tim Buckley". Jaimoe.This new 2 CD version has remastered sound which sounds better than the original vinyl and the earlier CD versions. The sound is a bit cleaner and a bit more open sounding--the original vinyl LP had a somewhat muddy sound. With headphones it's a very nice listening experience--it was too early in the morning to make "noise" when I reviewed this edition.Chances are if you're reading this you're very familiar with how great the original album was and still is, so saying anything about the songs and arrangements is pretty much a waste of time. This was Allman's first solo album and I still think it's his best overall. Backing away from his main gig with the Allman Brothers Band, this solo album is full of bluesy, soulful songs and arrangements--even the more up tempo tunes are laid back compared to the firepower in the ABB. And recording the album in Macon, Ga. with friends certainly helped stamp these songs with a southern feel. The vocals are simply great--time-worn yet soulful--as is the instrumental backing. With sympathetic musicians like Chuck Leavell on keyboards, Tommy Talton/Scott Boyer/Jimmy Nalls/Buzzy Feiten on guitars, jazzman David Newman-sax, Butch Trucks and Jaimoe from the ABB on percussion, Bill Stewart-drums, and various bass players (including David Brown who was in the band the 31st of February with Scott Boyer and Butch Trucks), and some great background vocalists, this album is authentic bluesy soul from Allman.CD 1 has the original (remastered) album on tracks 1-8 plus early mixes of the complete album on tracks 9-16. While it's nice to hear the early stuff which is worthwhile hearing, and the tracks shed some light on the finished album, I still think the original album is so strong that it can still easily stand alone. But listening to these early versions is like hearing the album all over again, only with slight differences here and there--and in the end--pretty nice.CD 2 is full of demos (which include "God Rest His Soul" (both solo and band versions--both beautiful), "Rollin' Stone (Catfish Blues)", and "Shadow Dream Song", which are great additions. Other tunes include "Wasted Words", a nice country-ish alternate of "These Days" (with pedal steel), rough mixes of "These Days" and rehearsals of "Multi-colored Lady", and "Midnight Rider", a demo of "Song For Adam/Shadow Dream Song", and a nicely done live solo version of "Melissa" from '74 dedicated to Allman's brother and Oakley. Some of these tracks make me wish that more music from this period would see release--there has to be more solo Gregg Allman performances in the vaults somewhere.To my ears this second disc is a good addition to what Allman was doing prior to and around the time of the "Laid Back" sessions--a few highlights (to my ears) follow. "Queen of Hearts" is very spare sounding unlike the issued version we all know. "God Rest His Soul" is a tribute to slain civil rights leader Martin Luther KIng, with a bleak sounding solo guitar and vocal really standing out--but the band version has it's good points. Muddy Waters' "Catfish Blues" is another stark performance with Allman's vocal and guitar accompaniment. "Song For Adam/Shadow Dream Song" is a solo by Allman with guitar and vocal. But then there's "Wasted Words", which is a band recording with Johnny Winter-slide guitar, Buddy Miles-drums, and Berry Oakley-bass which is a fully electric performance with typically fierce picking by Winter. While it sounds a bit out of place with the overall feel of this album, it does point in the direction of what the ABB was doing. And there's other treats here I've not touched on.The 22 page booklet has unseen/rare period photos plus informative liner notes from Allman Brothers Band historian John Lynskey. There's a track list with info on all the early mixes, demos, outtakes, and alternate tracks, plus rare photos of the core band, portraits of Allman, and a repro of the original album credits page. The covers of the booklet reproduce the original album cover graphics. Taken as a whole this latest edition of the album is well worth adding to any fan's shelf of Gregg Allman/Allman Brothers albums. Plus the price also makes this a good purchase. And if you've never heard this album--buy it--you're in for a treat.
