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Rating:
There’s not much to do; when you listen to an album like this Hittin' the Note by the reborn and renewed Allman Brothers Band, everything else seems trivial, easily forgettable, and practically the classic "throwaway" music.
Of course, I am exaggerating and emphasizing the concept, influenced by my musical tastes, but we are not too far from reality.
Hittin' the Note marks the grand and convincing return of the ABB after nine years since their last production and after a really troubled period concluded with the traumatic departure of Dickey Betts, one of the band's founders and a mythical figure in the Southern world.
For many, Betts' departure could have marked the definitive end of the band, but the arrival of figures like Warren Haynes and Dereck Trucks has given new life and creativity, and the first result of this renewed lineup is precisely this simply stunning album. It's a work that fears no comparison with the debut albums and presents us with a Gregg Allman in excellent shape, delivering a vocal performance at an extraordinary level.
The 11 tracks of this work are of extraordinary quality, with highlights in the opener Firing Line, where we immediately find Haynes’ sharp guitar mark. Desdemona takes us back to the melancholic atmospheres of Melissa, with a Gregg Allman more inspired than ever. Rockin Horse is simply perfect, with fiery guitars and overwhelming bass and percussion rhythm, much like the instrumental Instrumental Illness, where the rhythm becomes almost tribal and transports us to jazz/blues atmospheres very close to the masterpieces heard on the celebrated Live at Fillmore East.
The concluding Old Friend needs no comments; it’s simply spine-chilling for those who love the most visceral blues close to its origins.
In essence, an album that we could safely define as perfect, with Gregg Allman in shape as in the glory days, overwhelming guitars in perfect harmony between the wild rock blues exuberance of Warren Haynes and the crystalline and almost imperceptible delicacy of Dreck Trucks, a compelling and engaging rhythmic section, and a musical quality that leaves you truly speechless.
In one word: masterpiece!
Tracklist Lyrics Samples and Videos
03 Desdemona (09:20)
Rain falls on a sleepy southern town,
the midnight moon was burnin' brightly.
Memories rushin' on a river, oh Lord!
As you lay sleeping without me.
Highway songs keep me rollin' on,
still I long for you.
Desdemona, I will be your only one again.
I make my living pouring out my pain,
trying to make it through another day.
Your arms reach for me,
on the wind I can feel it,
even though they're a thousand miles away.
Your eyes remind me of everything that's beutiful and blue.
I won't feel myself without you.
Desdemona, I will be your only one, oh yeah.
So hold a candle 'till the darkness fades, nightime sleeps until dawn.
My heart is pounding like the ocean, my soul is empty as the sky, but I know someday I'll be coming home.
Time goes by in the twinkling of an eye, and still I burn for you.
Desdemona, I will be your only one again.
I just wanna be your only one, yes I just wanna be your only one,
your only one.
07 Maydell (04:35)
Fatal beauty, the chokin' kind
Dangerous feeling in this heart of mine
How can you love me
And treat me so unkind
You got me floppin' like a fish in a pan
Ain't no way to treat your man
Chorus:
Maydell
Baby won't you please love me
Maydell, you sure put the squeeze on me
I don't know why I love you,
You put me through hell
I can't break your spell, Maydell
Fire spreads quick through the neighborhood
Talk is cheap when the story's good
Nobody said you did, but everybody said that you would
You got me feelin' like a dog, chasin' his tail
I'll never catch you - you play the game too well
Chorus
Every time I try to walk away,
Just walk away
You bat them eyes, beg me to stay,
Honey won't you stay
Ruby red lips, callin' my name
Forget about the sorrow and the shame
Maydell
Every time I try to walk away,
Just walk away
You bat them eyes, beg me to stay,
Honey won't you stay
Ruby red lips, callin' my name
Forget about the sorrow and the shame
Maydell
Chorus
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