Duane Betts

The son of a major figure in Southern rock, Duane Betts is keeping the tradition alive as a guitarist who plays a soulful fusion of classic rock, blues, roots rock, and jam band flavors. He has proven his mettle as a sideman, playing with Dawes, Jamtown, Whitestarr, and his father's long-running act Dickey Betts & Great Southern before stepping forward as a frontman. Teaming with other second-generation Southern rock artists, Duane was the co-founder of the Allman Betts Band, who made their debut with 2019's Down to the River, and he gathered an impressive list of friends and admirers to cut his first full-length solo album, 2023's Wild & Precious Life. Duane Betts was born in Sarasota, Florida on April 16, 1978. His father, Dickey Betts, was a founding member of the Allman Brothers Band and named his son in honor of his friend and bandmate Duane Allman, who died in a motorcycle accident in 1971. Growing up in a house filled with music, Duane began playing the drums when he was young, and took up the guitar at age 12. By the time he was 16, he was playing well enough to join his father on-stage with the Allman Brothers Band for their appearance at Woodstock '94. In 1998, Duane joined Backbone69, which featured two other vintage rock scions, Alex Orbison (son of Roy) on drums and Berry Oakley, Jr. (whose late father, Berry Oakley, was a member of the Allman Brothers Band) on bass. The group split up after the death of their lead singer, Chris Williams, and Duane moved on to Whitestarr, a group led by vocalist Cisco Adler. They signed with Atlantic, though they would be dropped before the release of their debut album, with only a four-song promo EP to show for their efforts. In 2005, Dickey Betts, who had left the Allman Brothers Band, re-formed his solo project of the '70s and '80s, Dickey Betts & Great Southern, and invited Duane to join the group -- father and son toured together for nearly a decade. In 2014, near the end of his run with Great Southern, Duane launched a group of his own, Brethren of the Coast, that also featured his Great Southern bandmate Pedro Arevalo and Damon Webb, who'd worked with Duane in Whitestarr. In 2015, Duane became part of the group Dawes, performing on tour in support of All Your Favorite Bands, and he next worked with Jamtown, featuring Donavon Frankenreiter, G. Love, and Cisco Adler, appearing on their 2017 release Fool in Love and touring behind it. Duane introduced a new solo project, Duane Betts and the Pistoleers, in 2017 with Johnny Stachela, Jorgen Carlsson, and Gov't Mule drummer Matt Abts. In 2018, he launched a new band with Devon Allman and Berry Oakley Jr., calling the group the Allman Betts Band; their debut album, Down to the River, arrived in June 2019. Duane released his first solo record, Sketches of American Music, in 2018. A six-song EP steeped in blues and Southern rock influences, it included guest appearances from Steve Cropper of Booker T. and the MG's (who also produced the set), and Marc Ford of the Black Crowes. While Dickey Betts had retired from music in 2017, he returned to the stage with a new edition of Great Southern and Duane on guitar. For the next several years, Duane divided his time between touring with his father and working with the Allman Betts Band, who toured extensively and recorded a second album, 2020's Bless Your Heart, before going on indefinite hiatus in 2021. In 2022, Duane started work on his next solo release, recording with producer Jim Scott at Florida's Swamp Raga Studio, a facility owned by Derek Trucks and Susan Tedeschi. With a studio band including three alumni of the Allman Betts Band (guitarist Johnny Stachela, keyboard player John Ginty, and bassist Berry Oakley, Jr.), Tyler Greenwell of the Tedeschi Trucks Band on drums, and guest spots from guitarists Derek Trucks and Marcus King, Wild & Precious Life appeared on Royal Potato Family in July 2023.
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