On Friday night, a long list of Allman Brothers Band members, kin, and associates returned to the iconic Southern rock group’s birthplace, Macon, GA, to pay respects to founding guitarist Dickey Betts, who passed away last year. The loaded tribute show was fittingly billed as In Memory of Dickey Betts, a nod to Betts’ 1970 Allman Brothers Band classic “In Memory of Elizabeth Reed”, which Dickey named after a headstone at Rose Hill Cemetery just a mile away from Macon City Auditorium.
The sold-out summit of Southern rock stars featured a rotating roster of some of the finest players ever to plug in a guitar, from Dickey’s son, Duane Betts, who curated the event, and Gregg Allman’s son, Devon Allman, to Allman Brothers Band veterans Warren Haynes and Derek Trucks to well-known associates and beneficiaries of the band’s influence like Susan Tedeschi (Tedeschi Trucks Band) and Charlie Starr (Blackberry Smoke). Add to that former ABB legends like keyboardist Chuck Leavell and bassist Oteil Burbridge, a rock-solid percussion section of Tyler “Falcon” Greenwell (Tedeschi Trucks Band), Frankie Lombardi, and Mark Greenberg, and more and you had all anyone could ever need for a celebration of a lost legend, a timeless band, and even a genre itself. The fact that they were all focused on sharing the music made or inspired by the late ramblin’ man was a fitting tribute to Dickey Betts’ lasting impact on music at large.
Duane Betts gathered this remarkable mix of players not just to remember his father but to help fund recently established Dickey Betts Memorial Endowed Scholarship at Berklee College of Music, which will will honor Dickey’s legacy by providing financial assistance to students who demonstrate both exceptional musical ability and financial need. For more information or to make a donation to the fund, head here.
The star studded line up had the sold-out audience of die-hards transfixed from the opening notes. The first set featured a wide variety of players like Jimmy Hall, former singer of Atlanta’s own Wet Willie, who came out after an opening “Hot Lanta” to lead this juggernaut ensemble through a jubilant “Statesboro Blues” and “Nothing You Can Do” on vocals and harmonica. Blackberry Smoke guitarist Charlie Starr wowed attendees—and folks streaming live from home—with an electrifying rendition of Richard Betts solo track “Long Time Gone” as Chuck Leavell snuck in on keys alongside John Ginty and Mike Kach for the first time on the night.
The talent parade wasn’t anywhere near done as the spotlight settled on Leavell—the longtime ABB member and current music director for The Rolling Stones—for a duet with Starr “Southbound”. Devon Allman took the reins from there for a sweet and stunning tribute to his late father via “Melissa” and a rousing “Nobody Knows” for Dickey before the first set came to a close with “Jessica”, allowing Leavell the chance to give the assembled audience goosebumps with his recreation of the iconic piano solo he recorded for the track on 1973’s Brothers and Sisters.
In Memory of Dickey Betts – Set One – 2/28/25
[Video: BruizerNet]
During set break, fans were shown clips of video tributes to Dickey made by fans and contemporaries like Bob Weir, Willie and Lukas Nelson, Billy Bob Thornton, Slash, and more, watched speeches by the Betts family and local officials, and witnessed the official designation of February 28th, 2025 as Dickey Betts Day in Macon County.
The second set featured even more classic moments. After Susan Tedeschi led a take on “Pony Boy” (with her husband and TTB co-leader Derek Trucks) slipping in on slide, Jimmy Hall returned to sing “No One Lift To Run With”, once again with help from Mattie Schell. Chuck Leavell covered keys and lead vocals for Dickey’s solo tune “Rain” next before Duane Betts stepped into the spotlight to lead a take on his father’s early-’90s Allman Brothers Band comeback tune “Seven Turns”. Haynes joined in from there, sharing vocals with Duane on a resonant “Back Where It All Begins” ahead of a take on his signature ABB contribution, “Soulshine”.
In Memory of Dickey Betts – “Soulshine” – 2/28/25
[Video: Concert Club]
The throwback guitar showdown between former bandmates Warren Haynes and Derek Trucks on “In Memory of Elizabeth Reed” was electrifying as expected, and the brief departure from the Dickey songbook that followed—a moving, Susan-led rendition of Tedeschi Trucks Band’s “Midnight In Harlem”—showed the ways in which the proverbial road has forked as it goes on forever. Tedeschi remained at the helm next for another Dickey Betts classic, “Blue Sky”, before ABB scion Lamar Williams Jr. stepped to the mic to help round out the set with a howling “Revival”.
As the event neared the three-hour mark, the full cast of players from throughout the night—and then some—took the stage for an all-hands encore rendition of “Ramblin’ Man” that will surely go down as one of the finest takes on the tune ever played. Such joy, heartfelt and clear, can and did loop between the players and audience after all these decades. It was a wonder to behold.
In Memory of Dickey Betts – “Ramblin’ Man” – 2/28/25
[Video: Concert Club]
The fact that the music Dickey Betts and his Allman Brothers Band compatriots either made and inspired lives on so vitally in the hearts and minds of fans around the world is a testament to the skill and love brought into the world by the late guitarist and his friends and family. Hell, it’s a testament to the power of music and family in and of themselves.
Below, check out the annotated setlist, a full pro-shot video, and a gallery of photos (via Emily Butler) from In Memory of Dickey Betts at Macon City Auditorium.
On Tuesday, April 15th and Wednesday, April 16th, 2025, Haynes, Trucks, Burbridge, and Leavell will ride the momentum of this historic night back to Madison Square Garden in New York for the two-night return of The Brothers for the first time in five years. Find tickets to The Brothers at MSG here. Devon Allman, Duane Betts, Johnny Stachela, and John Ginty will bring The Allman Betts Band to the Big Easy at the end of April to headline Daze Between New Orleans (4/29, 4/30) with a special, guest-filled “New Orleans Revival.” Find tickets to Daze Between New Orleans here. In April, Duane Betts & Palmetto Hotel will head out on a tour of the Northeast. Find a list of upcoming dates here.
Setlist: In Memory of Dickey Betts | Macon City Auditorium | Macon, GA | 2/28/25
Set One: Hot Lanta [1], Statesboro Blues [2], Nothing You Can Do [3], Long Time Gone [4], Southbound [5], Melissa [6], Nobody Knows [7], Jessica [8]
Set Two: Pony Boy [9], No One Left To Run With [10], Rain [11], Seven Turns [12], Back Where It All Begins [13], Soulshine [14], In Memory of Elizabeth Reed [15], Midnight In Harlem [16], Blue Sky [17], Revival [18]
Encore: Ramblin’ Man [19]
