THE INSTANT
NEW YORK TIMES
BESTSELLER
New York Times
bestselling author Alan Paul's in-depth narrative look at the Allman Brothers' most successful album, and a portrait of an era in rock and roll and American history.
The Allman Brothers Band’s
Brothers and Sisters
was not only the band’s bestselling album, at over seven million copies sold, but it was also a powerfully influential release, both musically and culturally, one whose influence continues to be profoundly felt.
Celebrating the album’s fiftieth anniversary,
the book delves into the making of the album, while also presenting a broader cultural history of the era, based on first-person interviews, historical documents, and in-depth research.
traces the making of the template-shaping record alongside the stories of how the Allman Brothers came to the rescue of a flailing Jimmy Carter presidential campaign and helped get the former governor of Georgia elected president; how Gregg Allman’s marriage to Cher was an early harbinger of an emerging celebrity media culture; and how the band’s success led to internal fissures. The book also examines the Allman Brothers' relationship with the Grateful Dead—including the most in-depth reporting ever on the Summer Jam at Watkins Glen, the largest rock festival ever—and describes how they inspired bands like Lynyrd Skynyrd, helping create the southern rock genre.
With exclusive access to hundreds of hours of never-before-heard interviews with every major player, including Dickey Betts and Gregg Allman, conducted by Allman Brothers Band archivist, photographer, and “Tour Mystic” Kirk West,
is an honest assessment of the band’s career, history, and highs and lows.