Beginnings

---

---

Editorial reviews

Amazon.com essential recording
For once, a record label actually gives us more bang for the buck, combining two indisputable classics--1969's self-titled debut and the 1970 follow-up Idlewild South--onto one glorious CD. Five urgent notes kick off Spencer Davis's "Don't Want You No More," and by the time that searing instrumental morphs into Gregg Allman's superb slow blues "It's Not My Cross to Bear," it's clear these Georgians mean business. Everyone talks of the Muddy Waters and Willie Dixon covers, the furious twin leads of Duane and Dickey Betts, Gregg's soulful voice and formidable organ, the percussion attack of Jaimoe and Butch Trucks, but what about the songwriting skills? Just start with "Cross to Bear," "Whipping Post," "Dreams," "Revival," "Elizabeth Reed"--are you kidding? These two records blend gritty blues, Southern soul, and psychedelic rock into an exciting creation, and they serve notice: the Allmans will contend for the title of best American rock & roll band. --Marc Greilsamer

---

Customer reviews

review by: date: 2009-01-03 rating:
Beware! First album remixed
I purchased this in the hopes that these remastered versions would yield a significant sonic improvement over the poor quality earlier versions of the first two ABB albums on CD that I already owned.

What I wasn't expecting was that the contents of the first album have been remixed here. (Idlewild South does not appear to have been remixed.) The albums themselves are both five stars in my book. However, I must "ding" this release at least one star for being a remix but not advertised as such.

Among the differences between the original "ABB mix" and the "Beginnings mix" are:
--Intro to "Every Hungry Woman": Original mix has the guitar in the left channel and a faint hi-hat pedal stomp counting out the beat in the right. The remix has the guitar more or less centered, and the hi-hat deleted.
--End of "Whipping Post" fades out in the remix, as opposed to a "cold" end in the original mix. The fade out cuts off the snare drum shots that close out the original mix.
--On several tracks, bass guitar has been moved from center to the left channel and increased substantially. This mimics the approach used on several "Idlewild South" tracks, suggesting that this remix may have been an attempt to apply the "Idlewild South" mixing strategy and lessons learned to the "ABB" session tapes.
--On several tracks, especially where two lead guitar parts play note-for-note harmonies, the positions of the two guitars (one panned 100% left, the other panned 100% right) have been reversed in the remix, while drums and percussion have their positions unchanged (e.g maraccas panned 100% left).
--Vocals in the remix tend to seem a bit "cleaner" and more forward as opposed to the original mix. I haven't yet determined whether this is simply a volume issue, or whether the reverb was cut back.

As a personal preference, I tend to avoid remixes. I view recordings as a document of the times in which they were originally produced. The Allman Brothers Band still had a lot to learn when the were cutting ABB. Given the timing of the release of Beginnings (sometime in 1973), after the deaths of Duane Allman and Berry Oakley in late 1971 and late 1972 respectively, it's quite likely that the remixes took place after one, if not both, of their deaths.

How would this bit of information affect your buying decision? If you're an ABB completist and want to learn more about the music by studying the differences between the remix and the original mix, or don't care about the remix and are looking for the best value, then pick up this package and you won't be disappointed. The vocals and bass are for the most part clearer than in the original mix. But if you do care whether or not you're listening to mixes that were made before the deaths of Allman and Oakley, you'll need to buy the first album individually. Since "Idlewild South" does not appear to have been remixed here, you might consider purchasing both "Beginnings" and the first CD if you want both mixes of the first album plus "Idlewild South."

---

review by: xdaoki date: 2008-01-07 rating:
Essencial cd
This cd contain the first and second ABB that are essencials to anyone blues/rock collection. The Almans Brothers with Duane is one of the best jam band in the world!

---

review by: man of steel date: 2007-12-31 rating:
sweet classic allman bros.
what an amazing piece of music history, with the original crew...nice to have the first two records together and the blues and edgy toughness of greg's voice is wonderful...add this to the collection...

---

review by: date: 2007-10-26 rating:
Southern blues-rock
Great classic selection of Allman originals. Did not notice any huge differences with the remastering, but then, my ears are much older. A must have if you want to hear the original Allman Bros. Band when all were still alive. Dual lead guitars, dual percussionists, distinct vocals, and more! An excellent value and a fine collectable if you like the southern blues-rock genre!


review by: If at first the idea is not absurd, then there is no hope for it.-Albert Einstein date: 2007-08-26 rating:
Two essential Allman Brothers albums together but try and find the earlier edition
Sometimes older is better and I'm not just talking about the music itself but the mastering of the recordings as well. Two terrific albums on one CD, "Beginnings" represents The Allman Brothers with a very good album(the first album)and truly stunning second album. Duane and Gregg Allman had recorded previously (and Greg was a session player)with their band The Allman Joys (nice pun). These are both terrific albums and normally I'd encourage people to buy the new editions if they were remastered and better than previous editions. This version sounds pretty good but can't hold a candle to the individual albums and even the other version of "Beginnings" mastered by Dennis Drake.

Drake accurately captures the rich sound of the original mastertape without having to resort to cheap tricks like playing with the EQ or mastering them so loud that there is no dynamic range. Any of the Allman Brothers albums that are mastered by Dennis Drake (and you'll know because these were the earlier masterings but, unfortunately, Drake's credit isn't on the outside of the CD but the inside of the CD booklet.

The two albums included here are classic recordings with Duane in terrific form, Gregg belting out the blues like he had lived them and Dickey Betts adding some nice guitar flourishes and writing some terrific tunes that perfectly complimented Gregg's songs. If you can't find used copies of the earlier remasters done by Dennis Drake, this isn't bad. The best versions out there of the first two albums are the Drake and the recent Mofi reissue.

---

Similar products

Eat a Peach
The Allman Brothers at Fillmore East
Brothers and Sisters
An Anthology
Idlewild South

---

Similar categories

Music . Styles . Blues . Slide Guitar
Music . Styles . Classic Rock . Album-Oriented Rock (AOR)
Music . Styles . Classic Rock . Southern Rock
Music . Styles . Hard Rock & Metal . General
Music . Styles . Hard Rock & Metal . General AAS
Music . Styles . Pop . General
Music . Styles . Rock . General
Music . Styles . Rock . Blues Rock
Music . Styles . Rock . Jam Bands . Rock Jam Bands
Music . Special Features . Essentials: Greats from the Greatest
Music . Specialty Stores . Custom Stores . Music Deals . 2 CDs for $20
Music . Specialty Stores . Custom Stores . Music Deals . More Titles at Least 25% Off
Music . Specialty Stores . Custom Stores . Music Deals . All Music Deals
Music . Refinements . Format (binding) . CD . CD Album
Music . Refinements . Features & Promotions . Music Deals
Music . Refinements . Edition (format) . Original Recording Remastered
Music . Refinements . Edition (format) . Reissued
Music . Refinements . Edition (format) . Main Albums

---