It’s been a decade since the final ABB show at The Beacon Theatre and it’s now available via CD or digital format. No surprise, Final Concert is a guitar fest with Warren Haynes and Derek Trucks tearing up everything from “Whipping Post” to “Melissa.”
For the opener, Haynes and Trucks play a lilting duet of “Little Martha” in homage to Duane Allman. “One Way Out” is rife with Haynes’ raging slide, echoing Duane’s style like no one else on the planet. He takes the mic for vocals on “Good Morning Little School Girl,” a slow-burn blues demonstrating the differing guitar approaches, with him in the right channel, Trucks’ brilliance at left. Turning up the heat, “Hot ’Lanta” is the ABB’s thrilling instrumental, topped by climbing guitar harmonies.
Another treat is that three of Allman’s ’50s Les Pauls – the two ’bursts and ’57 goldtop – were loaned to Haynes and Trucks for this historic gig. Talk about tone. Today, the sole surviving original member is drummer Jaimoe, but this Beacon show captures their glorious finale with Gregg Allman’s voice and Hammond B3 organ. Long live the Allman Brothers Band. – PP
This article originally appeared in VG’s February 2025 issue. All copyrights are by the author and Vintage Guitar magazine. Unauthorized replication or use is strictly prohibited.
