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Article published Sep 14, 2007 Despite famous last name, younger Allman is his own man
By Steve Wildsmith of The Daily Times Staff
The famous last name is unavoidable, but Devon Allman doesn’t have to use it very often.
Sure, his music stands on its own. But there’s also the startling resemblance to his famous father, Gregg, legendary rocker and one of the founding members of the Allman Brothers Band.
“It’s one of those unavoidable things,” Allman told The Daily Times this week. “Look at me — I sing with soul, I play blues guitar, I have long blonde hair and my last name is Allman. I don’t have to advertise anything or be out there saying, ‘I’m Gregg Allman’s son.’ It’s pretty obvious, man.
“I don’t have to do that, and I don’t want to. My family’s legacy is sacred to me, and I just want to be known for what they’re known for — playing bluesy rock ‘n’ roll and touring and rocking my ass off.”
Rather than capitalize on his famous last name, Allman much prefers doing his own thing, he said. After all, he was raised in Texas and moved to St. Louis in his teens, and it wasn’t until he was 16 that he first met his father.
“He’s been clean and sober for many years, but that was a big hindrance on our relationship when I was a child,” Allman said. “It’s hard to raise children when you’re on drugs and living that lifestyle. I’m really glad he got clean, and when I finally met him when I was 16, we hit it off, and we both realized we have so many things in our lives that are the same. We’ve got that genetic father-and-son bond, and we’ve enjoyed a really healthy relationship ever since.”
Allman grew up far enough from the legacy of the Allman Brothers Band — started in the late 1960s by brothers Gregg and Duane Allman and guitarist Dickey Betts, that band would go on to change the nature of Southern rock and lay the groundwork for dozens of jam bands that would follow in their footsteps.
Devon Allman, however, has always been his own man. There’s are distinct similarities between the Allman Brothers and Honeytribe, but that’s mostly due to the stark likeness between his voice and his father’s. He was raised by his mother, forming Honeytribe in 1999 but taking a break two years later to spend time with his new son. It would be another four years before the band reconvened, but to Allman, the time off was well-spent, especially given his own childhood.
“We loved it when we were doing it in 1999 to the beginning of 2001, but when my son was born … well, I didn’t grow up with my dad, and I didn’t want the same for him,” he said. “The whole psychological aspect of it — 2, 3 and 4 are the core years when they really bond with parents and get a sense of their place in the world, and there was no way I was going to be on the road during those years.
“So I did that, but in my time off, I ran into the guys from Honeytribe, and the same thing was always talked about — how special it was, how it was the best lineup everybody had ever been in. We’re all very passionate musicians, and we’re all very complimentary to each other. Timing was everything, and we just needed the right timing.”
When Honeytribe came back together in 2005, Allman was joined by long-time friend Mark Oyarzabal on drums, George Potsos on bass and Jack Kirkner on Hammond B3 organ and piano. Since then, multi-instrumentalist Pedro Arevalo has signed on, bringing to life a rock ‘n’ roll behemoth that combines the blues influences of Allman’s background with the instrumental sharpness of his bandmates.
At the same time, an opportunity opened up for Allman in Europe — he was the featured vocalist on “Love Union Peace,” the European release by the Vargas Blues Band, and his vocals propelled the lead-off single, “How Verso Are You?,” to No. 3 on the charts in Spain and to hit status on MTV Europe.
“The Vargas thing just fell in my lap — talk about being in the right place at the right time,” he said. “I ended up on that record, and they chose my song as a single, and it was off and running. I went to Spain 10 times that year, and when I came back, after having had success overseas, I really wanted to get Honeytribe going.”
The band hit the studio, recording “Torch,” and set out on the road after that, launching a never-ending tour that has yet to wind down. Driven by a sweet, soul-blues cover of Bob Marley’s “No Woman No Cry,” the album was well-received by critics and has earned airplay on various online and satellite radio stations. Over two years, the band has played more than 500 shows, sharing the stage with other such acts as Gov’t Mule, Tesla, Little Feat, Cheap Trick, and his father’s bands — the Allman Brothers and Gregg Allman and Friends.
“We’ve been out on tour for 23 months; during the first half of that, we were playing 12 to 15 shows a month, and during the second half, we’ve been playing 20 to 25 shows a month,” Allman said. “We’ve played 42 states, Canada, Europe … it’s been non-stop. This is the first intensified touring I’ve ever been a part of, but I love it.
“Obviously, it gets exhausting — you wait around and do a lot of driving, it’s hard to find healthy food and you don’t get a full eight-hour cycle of sleep. But the time on stage obliterates everything, and we love doing our small part to save rock ‘n’ roll.”
In that respect, Allman truly is carrying on his father’s legacy. Honeytribe isn’t a version of the Allman Brothers, nor is it the younger Allman’s attempt to capitalize on his father’s famous name. It’s simply his own project, his own outlet, his own way of doing things.
“It doesn’t have anything to do with making sure people know who I am,” he said “I really just do my thing, man, and let other people talk about whose son I am. At the end of the day, I just want to be the best that I can be.
“If I thought about what my dad and my uncle brought to this industry, it would probably freak me out and make me want to stay at home. I just have to ignore that and work on my craft and leave the comparisons to others. I do what I do, and the way I see it, if you’re not bringing something new to the party, there’s no reason for you to be there.”