Gregory LeNoir “Gregg” Allman (December 8, 1947 – May 27, 2017) was an American musician, singer, keyboardist and songwriter best known for performing in the Allman Brothers Band. He was born and spent much of his childhood in Nashville, Tennessee, before relocating to Daytona Beach, Florida. He and his brother, Duane Allman, developed an interest in music in their teens, and began performing in the Allman Joys in the mid-1960s. In 1967, they relocated to Los Angeles and were renamed the Hour Glass, releasing two albums for Liberty Records.
In 1969, he and Duane regrouped to form the Allman Brothers Band, which settled in Macon, Georgia. The Allman Brothers Band began to reach mainstream success by the early 1970s, with their live album At Fillmore East representing a commercial and artistic breakthrough. Shortly thereafter, Duane was killed in a motorcycle crash in 1971. The following year, the band’s bassist, Berry Oakley, was also killed in a motorcycle accident very close to the location of Duane’s wreck. Their 1973 album Brothers and Sisters became their biggest hit.
Internal turmoil took over the group, leading to a breakup after Allman was forced to testify against his road manager Scooter Herring in 1975. Allman next pursued a solo career, releasing his debut album Laid Back the same year. Allman was married to pop star Cher for the rest of the decade, while he continued his solo career with the Gregg Allman Band. After a brief Allman Brothers reunion and a decade of little activity, he reached an unexpected peak with the hit single “I’m No Angel” in 1987. After two more solo albums, the Allman Brothers regrouped for a third and final time in 1989, and continued performing until 2014. He released his most recent solo album, Low Country Blues, in 2011, and his next, Southern Blood, is set to be released in 2017.
For his work in music, Allman was referred to as a Southern rock pioneer and received numerous awards, including several Grammys; he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the Georgia Music Hall of Fame. His distinctive voice placed him in 70th place in the Rolling Stone list of the “100 Greatest Singers of All Time”. Allman released an autobiography, My Cross to Bear, in 2012.
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Allman’s partners included Shelley Kay Jefts, Janice Blair, Cher, Julie Bindas, J. P. Galiana, and Stacey Fountain. In 2012, he announced his engagement to Shannon Williams on the Piers Morgan Tonight show, and the two were married in February 2017.
Allman had five children: son Michael Sean Allman (born 1966), from a relationship with former waitress Mary Lynn Green; son Devon Allman (born 1972), lead singer of Honeytribe, from his marriage to Shelley Kay Jefts; son Elijah Blue Allman (born 1976), lead singer of Deadsy, from his marriage to Cher; daughter Delilah Island Allman, from his marriage to Julie Bindas; and daughter Layla Brooklyn Allman (born 1993), lead singer of Picture Me Broken, from a relationship with radio journalist Shelby Blackburn.
Mr. Allman has an extensive biography and a lot of it can be read at the following:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gregg_Allman
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Other Notable Musicians’ Deaths… May 2017
29: David Lewiston, 88, British music collector, stroke.
28: Elisabeth Chojnacka, 77, Polish harpsichordist (Xenakis Ensemble); Marcus Intalex, British disc jockey and record producer.
27: Gregg Allman, 69, American Hall of Fame singer-songwriter (“Whipping Post”, “Midnight Rider”) and musician (The Allman Brothers Band), liver cancer.
24: Claudia Hellmann, 93, German opera singer.
23: Irio De Paula, 78, Brazilian guitarist and composer.