ALBUM REVIEW: Duane Betts Bends Allman Roots Toward ‘Wild and Precious Life’
Henry Carrigan
Posted On July 12, 2023
Like his father, Dickey Betts, Duane Betts dwells in the spaces between the notes, traversing the frets of his guitar to produce ringing arpeggios of sound and crystalline lead runs that echo long after he caresses each note. He’s honed that skill for two decades as a member of Dickey Betts & Great Southern, co-founder of The Allman Betts Band, and a touring member of Dawes. On his debut solo album, Wild & Precious Life, Betts noodles up and down the neck of his guitar, providing lush soundscapes for his lyrics of loss and love, struggle and joy.
Duane Betts (photo by Dylan Jon Wade Cox)
Betts and guitarist Johnny Stachela kick off the album’s opener, “Evergreen,” with dual guitars, launching the propulsive song about constancy in life and love into high gear from the start. While all of the tracks recall sonically many of the Allman Brothers’ songs — in this case there are echoing moments from “Blue Sky” —Betts takes those moments in his own direction and uses them in his singular way.
The rocker “Waiting on a Song” rambles down the road, layering phrase upon phrase and note upon note in the instrumental bridges, while the tender love song “Circles in the Stars” flows spaciously over currents of piano notes that provide the just-right counterpoint to Betts’ lead ornamentation.
The snarling blues rocker “Cold Dark World” features Marcus King and Betts trading licks against the backdrop of John Ginty’s wailing B3, and Betts’ tribute to his dad, “Stare at the Sun,” features Derek Trucks contributing scalding lead runs. (Trucks is, of course, another Allman Brothers progeny, the nephew of the late Butch Trucks, the band’s drummer.) The instrumental “Under the Bali Moon” recalls the sonic architecture of “In Memory of Elizabeth Reed”; it’s a slowly unfolding jazz rock jam that features tinkling, mystic piano supporting the layers of guitar work.
Wild & Precious Life secures Duane Betts’ place in the pantheon of great Southern rockers. His just-right-note guitar playing and his reflective lyrics fill the album with emotional resonance, creating high hopes for another album to come sooner rather than later.
Duane Betts’ Wild & Precious Life is out July 14 on Royal Potato Family.
