1971 was shaping up to be the Allmans’ year. Breakthrough live album At Fillmore East was recorded in March and released in July, and the date digitised here was a radio broadcast for WPLJ-FM intended to promote it. Of course, the motorbike accident that claimed lead guitarist brother Duane two months later changed the landscape irrevocably, making every previously recorded musical moment precious.
Two tracks, Trouble No More and One Way Out replace Whipping Post when compared with At Fillmore East, but the improvised nature of the Allmans’ music makes duplication irrelevant. A special bonus comes in the form of Soul Serenade, a tribute to then-recently departed saxophonist King Curtis that segues out of You Don’t Love Me at Duane’s prompting.
The packaging is basic and the music long available from download sites, but the performance is incendiary and sound quality – as you’d expect from a radio broadcast – excellent. Leftfield Media appear to be releasing pre-1992 radio broadcasts that emanate from non-signatories of the 1992 EU Copyright Convention, so grab it while you can.
