One Way Out: The Inside History of the Allman Brothers Band

One Way Out from Alan Paul provides a fascinating history of The Allman Brothers Band, one of the stalwarts that have survived the 1960s. The book unintentionally makes it clear that one of the biggest loss from that time, maybe on par with Aldous Huxley, C.S. Lewis, Jimi Hendrix, and the Kennedys, was founding member Duane Allman who died in a motorcycle accident in 1971 at 24. His brother Gregg and a few of the original band members still remain with others leaving or meeting tragic ends. Paul writes: “The Allman Brothers long history is equally tragic and uplifting , heroic and sad.” They were once on top of the world.

Paul talked with many people about their history and has been covering them for decades. The book which is filled with quotes from many, and is a page turner. There are also some sad photographs from now and then. Here presented is a fascinating saga and insider account. The tale is mostly a male one. They might seem a little politically inappropriate now with the battles for marriage inequality, but not to suggest anything here: they did usually speak nicely about each other. The book does not tell about the secret of their success or message, but it is clear they wanted a more benign world.