My Cross to Bear

Statesboro Blues, Midnight Rider, Whipping Post-you can hear the slide guitar just reading the names. These are songs of every road trip you've ever been on. These are some of the most recognizable songs in American rock. These are the songs of the Allman Brothers.

Now we are going to get the inside story on those songs-and a whole lot more. One of the most entertaining live bands ever to take the stage, the Allman Brothers Band long ago set the standard for concert performance and defined what it meant to perform rock and roll. But despite their massive success stretching across the last forty-five years, no one has ever told the inside story of the band...until now.

In this book, rock icon Gregg Allman tells the full, unflinching story of his life in music -- from the Allman Brothers, to his solo career, his string of failed marriages, his struggles with drugs and alcohol -- detailing his rocky path to becoming a member of rock 'n' roll royalty. From Gregg's rough and tumble youth with his older brother Duane to the formation of the band that would go on to change the sound of rock and roll, this book will be the inside story of the Allman Brothers-told like never before in the unforgettable voice of one of its founders. Here Gregg gives a vivid portrait of the south in 60s, one in which race and culture were changing, and in the background of that tumultuous time a new sound was emerging. It was the sound of slide guitar mingling with keyboards. The sound of wailing vocals. The sound of the Allman Brothers.

From the beginning they received with nearly universal praise from fans and critics alike, and yet at almost every turn, the band's success was met by tragedy. What began with Duane Allman's tragic death in a motorcycle accident continued when, a year later, bassist Berry Oakley was also killed on a motorcycle. But the band's hard times didn't end there. For decades substance abuse plagued Gregg, and though he eventually was able to survive his demons, in 2010 he required a life-saving liver transplant in order to survive his battle with Hepatitis C.
In this book, Gregg opens up about these struggles and more, detailing the hardships, the personality clashes, and ultimately the joy that went into making some of the most electrifying rock and roll ever recorded. Documenting an era in which the southern music came alive, Gregg holds nothing back and the end result is an essential volume for every fan of good, old fashioned rock 'n' roll.