When Lonnie Mack came out with the guitar instrumental "Memphis" I thought, Oh God, finally somebody we guitar players can relate to !
Richard BettsDuane Allman was one of the best there ever was ... when you listen to him, you are hearing a truly gifted individual giving his all to the music, and there is nothing better than that. Duane played music the same way that he rode his motorcycle and drove his car .. he was a daredevil, just triple Scorpio, God's-on-my-side wide open... that was part of the romance and I loved Duane. I have nothing but admiration for him
Richard Betts... When I heard "Pride and Joy" by Stevie Ray Vaughn on the radio, I just said "Hallelujah" .. he was just so good and strong and he would not be denied... he single handedly brought guitar and blues oriented music back to the marketplace
Richard BettsDuane Allman was bursting with energy ... he was a force to be reckoned with. His drive and focus, as well as his intense belief in himself and our band, was incredible. He knew we were going to make it. We all knew we were a good band, but no one had that supreme confidence like he did, and it was a great thing, because his confidence and enthusiam were infectious... it says a lot that his hero was Muhammad Ali. That kind of supreme confidence that Ali had - that's where Duane was coming from
Richard BettsIt hit the damn papers that I was being chased through the woods with dogs and choppers. I mean, who the hell are we after here, John Dillinger? For Chrissakes, I'm just a lowly guitar player.
Richard BettsDuane Allman didn't see himself as the bandleader .. he led by example, and you gained a lot of respect from Duane if you earned it, if you proved you could keep up with him. If you couldn't, you'd either end up in awe of him or you might not even like him. He was very different from Jerry Garcia (guitar/leader of the Grateful Dead) who was very easy going. Duane didn't have time to be easy going ... there was much more urgency to his personality
Richard Betts