Skydog: The Duane Allman Story

Skydog: The Duane Allman Story tells the story of Duane Allman’s rise from guitar-playing kid to guitar hero, which happens within the span of Duane’s 24 short years. It’s hard to believe that Duane Allman’s impact came in such a short time. Furthermore, it’s hard to believe that Duane Allman’s tenure in the Allman Brothers Band lasted less than three years before his untimely death. His legacy and impact on music has proved to be lasting.

I really enjoyed reading this book. I’ve been a longtime fan of the Allman Brothers Band, but I’ve never delved too much into Duane Allman’s background. Randy Poe provides an enlightening look into the drive and passion that led Duane Allman to ultimately create what is arguably one of the best rock and roll bands in history. For example, I had never known that part of Duane’s childhood was spent just outside of Nashville, or how he has appeared on the recordings of many legends, including Otis Rush, Aretha Franklin and Wilson Pickett. In fact, Duane was the catalyst in getting Pickett to record the Beatles’ Hey Jude, which was a fairly big hit for Pickett.

Of course, Poe also describes how Allman came to be on the Derek and the Dominos recordings, as well as the famous Fillmore concerts with the Allman Brothers Band. There are so many aspects to Duane’s short career that Poe covers in this book, I found it hard to put down. Additionally, Billy Gibbons provides the foreward, and Poe includes an extensive discography and description of Allman’s guitars, with photos of Duane playing many of them.

All in all, I found Skydog: The Duane Allman Story by Randy Poe to be an excellent book, and I’d highly recommend it to anyone who has an interest in the Allman Brother Band or in Duane Allman.