Duane "Skydog" Allman is generally regarded as one of the greatest rock and roll guitarists, noted for his mastery of the slide guitar as well as intensity and soulfulness on "standard" lead and rhythm guitar in a variety of styles. He was a noted session musician, was a founding member and the leader of The Allman Brothers Band, and also had a major role on the album Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs, by Derek and the Dominos, a 1970-71 band led by Eric Clapton.
Howard Duane Allman was born in Nashville, Tennessee on November 20, 1946. Duane, as he was known, and his brother, Gregg, were raised by their mother Geraldine Allman after their father, Willis, was murdered when Duane was just 3-years-old. Geraldine, "Mama A" moved with her boys to Daytona Beach, Florida in 1957. Once Gregg heard a neighbor playing guitar, he decided that he needed to learn the instrument. Duane soon followed suit, and became an even better player than his brother. The boys were influenced by the bluesy music of artists such as B.B King, whom they saw in concert while teenagers.
Duane dropped out of high school to stay home and practice guitar and when Gregg graduated from Sea Breeze High School in 1965, the young men formed their first official band, the Allman Joys. When the Allman Joys became The Hour Glass in 1967, the group moved to Los Angeles. During this time, Duane perfected his electric slide guitar technique, using an empty Coricidin glass bottle over his ring finger as a slide
Duane simply loved to play the guitar, and was a much in-demand session musician for acts such as Wilson Pickett, Aretha Franklin, Percy Sledge, Boz Scaggs, and Herbie Mann. When he grew frustrated by the limits of being a session musician, Allman headed back to Florida with a few musicians. In March 1969, the Allman Brothers Band was formed, featuring Jaimoe Johanson, Dickie Betts, Berry Oakley, Reese Wynans, and Duane and Gregg Allman. Their debut self-titled album dropped in 1969 and the band began to tour.
A huge fan of Eric Clapton, Duane Allman was surprised and thrilled to be asked to play on Clapton's album "Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs." Clapton was, in turn, a huge Duane Allman fan. In addition to touring with his band, Allman was known to drop in on recording sessions to jam with whomever happened to be recording. Allman often received cash payments but rarely album credit, so it is impossible to know exactly how many recordings of his work exist.
He was killed in a motorcycle accident at the age of 24. Shortly after his death Ronnie Van Zant of Lynyrd Skynyrd dedicated the song "Free Bird" to his memory. Despite his short career the Rolling Stone magazine in 2003 named Duane Allman as number two on their list of the 100 greatest guitarists of all time.
Discography:
The Hour Glass The Hour Glass 1967 studio album
Power of Love The Hour Glass 1968 studio album
The Allman Brothers Band The Allman Brothers Band 1969 studio album
Boz Scaggs Boz Scaggs 1969 studio album
Hey Jude Wilson Pickett 1969 studio album
The Dynamic Clarence Carter Clarence Carter 1969 studio album
Instant Groove King Curtis 1969 studio album
More Sweet Soul Arthur Conley 1969 studio album
Southern Fried John P. Hammond 1969 studio album
Two Jews Blues Barry Goldberg 1969 studio album
Mourning in the Morning Otis Rush 1969 studio album
Idlewild South The Allman Brothers Band 1970 studio album
New Routes Lulu 1970 studio album
Ronnie Hawkins Ronnie Hawkins 1970 studio album
Spirit in the Dark Aretha Franklin 1970 Recorded in 1969-1970 studio album
To Bonnie from Delaney Delaney & Bonnie 1970 studio album
Ton-Ton Macoute! Johnny Jenkins 1970 Recorded in 1969-1970 studio album
This Girl's in Love with You Aretha Franklin 1970 Recorded in 1969 studio album
Christmas and the Beads of Sweat Laura Nyro 1970 studio album
Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs Derek and the Dominos 1970 studio album
5'll Get You Ten Cowboy 1971 studio album
Hard and Heavy Sam Samudio 1971 studio album
Motel Shot Delaney & Bonnie 1971 studio album
Push Push Herbie Mann 1971 studio album
At Fillmore East The Allman Brothers Band 1971 live album
An Anthology Duane Allman 1972 Recorded in 1968-1971 compilation album
D&B Together Delaney & Bonnie 1972 Recorded in 1969, 1971 studio album
Dialogs Duane Allman 1972 Recorded in 1970, 1972
Duane & Greg Allman Duane and Greg Allman 1972 Recorded in 1968 studio album
Eat a Peach The Allman Brothers Band 1972 Recorded in 1971 studio album
Early Allman – Featuring Duane and Gregg Allman The Allman Joys 1973 Recorded in 1966 studio album
The Hour Glass The Hour Glass 1973 Recorded in 1967-1968 compilation album
An Anthology Volume II Duane Allman 1974 Recorded in 1968-1971 compilation album
The Road Goes On Forever The Allman Brothers Band 1975 Recorded in 1969-1973 compilation album
The Best of Duane Allman Duane Allman 1979 compilation album
Dreams The Allman Brothers Band 1989 Recorded in 1966-1988 compilation album
The Layla Sessions: 20th Anniversary Edition Derek and the Dominos 1990 Recorded in 1970 studio album
Live at Ludlow Garage: 1970 The Allman Brothers Band 1991 Recorded in 1970 live album
A Decade of Hits 1969–1979 The Allman Brothers Band 1991 Recorded in 1969-1979 compilation album
The Fillmore Concerts The Allman Brothers Band 1992 Recorded in 1971 live album
Fillmore East, February 1970 The Allman Brothers Band 1996 Recorded in 1970 live album
Mycology: An Anthology The Allman Brothers Band 1998 compilation album
All Live! The Allman Brothers Band 1998 Recorded in 1971-1975 live album
20th Century Masters - The Millennium Collection: The Best of the Allman Brothers Band The Allman Brothers Band 2000 Recorded in 1969-1979 compilation album
American University 12/13/70 The Allman Brothers Band 2002 Recorded in 1970 live album
Live at the Atlanta International Pop Festival: July 3 & 5, 1970 The Allman Brothers Band 2003 Recorded in 1970 live album
S.U.N.Y. at Stonybrook: Stonybrook, NY 9/19/71 The Allman Brothers Band 2003 Recorded in 1971 live album
Southbound The Hour Glass 2004 Recorded in 1967-1969 compilation album
Gold The Allman Brothers Band 2005 Recorded in 1969-1979 compilation album
Boston Common, 8/17/71 The Allman Brothers Band 2007 Recorded in 1971 live album
Skydog: The Duane Allman Retrospective[5] Duane Allman 2013 Recorded in 1965-1971 7 Disc Box Set
Goin' Down Slow
Duane Allman Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I've had my fun if I don't ever get well no more
I know my help is failing me now
I know I'm goin' down slow
Won't somebody wright my mother and tell her the shape I'm in
I want somebody to wright my mother and tell her the shape I'm in
I want you tell her to pray for me
Mother please don't send me no doctor
a doctor can't do me no good
I don't want you to send me no doctor now
a doctor just can't do me no good
Back when I was a young boy oh.
I just didn't do the thing I should
Duane Allman's "Goin' Down Slow" is a song that speaks to the inevitability of death and the feelings that come along with it. The opening line "I've had my fun if I don't ever get well no more" sets the tone for the rest of the song, as Allman acknowledges that his time is running out and he's not going to recover from whatever ails him. The repetition of that line drives home the idea that there's no escaping death, no matter how much joy one has experienced in life.
As the song continues, Allman asks for someone to write his mother and tell her about the condition he's in. The fact that he makes this request implies that he's unable to do it himself, and it's a poignant moment that speaks to the fear and isolation that comes with facing one's own mortality. Allman asks for his mother's forgiveness for his sins, something that many people may feel as they approach the end of their lives.
The final verse drives home the idea that medical professionals are powerless in the face of death. Allman realizes that there's nothing anyone can do for him, and there's a sense of resignation and acceptance in his voice. It's a somber reminder that, ultimately, we're all just humans and we're all going to die eventually.
Line by Line Meaning
I've had my fun if I don't ever get well no more
I've enjoyed my life if I never recover from my sickness.
I know my help is failing me now
I understand my condition is worsening.
Won't somebody write my mother and tell her the shape I'm in
Can someone please inform my mother of my current state?
I want somebody to write my mother and tell her the shape I'm in
I need someone to tell her so she can pray for me.
Ask her to forgive me for all my sins
Request her to absolve me for my transgressions.
Mother please don't send me no doctor
I beg you not to send a physician.
a doctor can't do me no good
A medical practitioner can't heal me.
I don't want you to send me no doctor now
Currently, it's not necessary to send a doctor.
a doctor just can't do me no good
A doctor can't aid me in this situation.
Back when I was a young boy oh.
When I was younger in my past, oh.
I just didn't do the thing I should
I regret not doing what was right back then.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: JAMES B. ODEN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@timothylewis2450
A blues classic done to perfection. Written and recorded by St Louis Jimmy Oden in 1941 and made famous by Howlin Wolf 20 years later. Absolutely sublime.
@MichaelC_22
Thanks for the history. I did not know this. Great to see the evolution. I did the same thing with Sleepy John Estes - Someday Baby, Muddy Waters - Trouble No More, and The Allman Brothers - Trouble No More.
@susancarson9160
going down . .. best blues song ever . . . .somebody dying, knowing it, trying to rally himself, trying to redeem himself, knows he is going down.. duane picked up on this like no one else could. playing it up and down .singing world weary .absolutely great guitar work. have listened to it here over 100 times The best.
@formula2tom225
please call my momma
@donjohn2695
Free did
A blistering version on their ton's of sobs debut album
@dolkat
So very gratifying to read all this love for Duane here after so many years of wondering if nobody else ever got how extraordinary he was. That instrument WAS him. Seamless, right from the heart.
@candice3897
I agree.
@kevinmahoney5923
Whenever the subject of an early death of an artist comes comes up, he comes to mind first, always. We was robbed. Yeah, we was robbed.
@ckegman6103
One of the greatest...
@shirleymcdaniel2530
I listen to this song everyday. Pisses me off when people say Duane couldn't sing. I love his voice as much as his slide guitar playing. One fabulous piece of art and history. He will be forever my favorite.