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Testimonials

A testimonial from John Lynskey –

Many people have a mystical, special place that they heard of in their youth, and as time passed, a yearning developed to actually visit and experience what it is all about, and see if reality actually meets expectations. Some people go the Grand Canyon, while others journey to Paris. For fans of the Allman Brothers Band, the Holy Grail has always been 2321 Vineville Avenue in Macon, Georgia - site of the Big House. As a child of the í70s, I grew up on the music of the Allman Brothers, as many of us did, and I first recall hearing of the Big House from an older guy who had been through Macon. He regaled us with tales of the Brotherhood, and the magic that existed at the Big House. His stories fascinated all of us, and a connection was made to the music of the Brothers and the communal home that was the centerpiece of their existence. By the time I was old enough to travel to Macon, the dream had seemingly died. Duane and Berry were gone, the band had disintegrated, and Southern rock had been replaced by the Flock of Seagulls. Despite that, those thoughts, the conjunctures, the images of how it must have been at the Big House stayed in my head. Maybe deep in the back, but still there, nonetheless.

1989 rolled around, and like a phoenix rising, the Allman Brothers were born again. The excitement was back, because the music had been resurrected, and was being played with the passion and spirit of the original band. Getting to see the ABB after so many years should have been enough, but still being curious about Macon, Rose Hill, and the Big House, those old memories started crawling around inside my head again, and the questions demanded to be answered.

In 1992, word got around about Hittiní the Note, and that was an eye-opener. Just knowing there were fellow travelers on the same road made all the difference - I had such a deep passion for the ABB, and it was great to find out that there were others who felt the same way. When HTN disclosed that Kirk and Kirsten West had purchased the Big House and were actually going to live there, the big freak happened. The pilgrimage to Macon had to be made, and in April1994, it finally came to pass. Using Issue #3 of Hittiní the Note as a guide, it took me to the Hippie Crash Pad, the H&H, Rose Hill, and finally, the Big House on Vineville. Seeing it for the first time was almost surreal - the place really did exist, it wasnít a Brigadoon. Knocking on the door, I didnít know what to expect, but Kirsten welcomed a total stranger into her home without hesitation. Kirk had just returned from the Beacon run, and he said he only had a few minutes to spend with me. Three hours later, we had made a complete tour of the house, from the archive collection, Duaneís room, the ìRambliní Manî kitchen, and the mother lode that is the third floor ABB tape storage area. We sat on the front porch, and it really was too much to take in. The same front porch that the band had sat around, with the bay window where ìBlue Skyî was written right next to us. My mind stopped working at that point - I was actually at the spot that had occupied a major niche in my life for over 30 years, and the distance and the years just melted away. As for what we talked about, memory fails me, and itís probably just as well, because Iím sure I was a babbling idiot. Itís a good thing Kirk didnít remember either, because about a year later, luck handed me the Editorís spot at Hittiní the Note, and the Big House has become like a second home, but it always remains the Holy Grail.

Over the last 10 years, the Big House come to mean so much to so many people. Anyone who has visited knows what itís liked to be ìFirst-timed.î You need to go back again at least once, just so you can gain some perspective and have a somewhat clear head to comprehend what is actually there. Kirk and Kirsten West have managed to recreate the same family spirit and communal vibe at the Big House that existed 30 years ago, and it needs to continue - for so many reasons. For the legacy of the music, the memory of the men who made it, and so that those of us who feel it, live it, and really get it will always have a chance to go back where it all began. If youíve been there, I donít have to say any more. If you havenít, you need to, because youíll get the Fever, too, and then youíll understand. There are a lot of worthy causes out there, and people are always raising funds for one thing or another, but if the music of the Allman Brothers has been part of your lifeís soundtrack, then itís a no brainer - support this foundation, and help guarantee that the road will indeed go on forever.

John Lynskey
Hittiní the Note magazine

A testimonial from Richard Hudson–

Duane and Gregg moved to Daytona Beach in 1958, while my family moved there in 1956 from Tennessee. Duane and I were the same age, with Gregg a year younger. All of us - Duane, Gregg, and me - spent many a day together playing on the beach and going back to either their house or mine to eat tuna fish salad sandwiches with only mayo - no pickles. The other guys that we spent a lot of time with were Neal Hurst (who has passed on), Ronnie Rainey (killed in a car accident), and Robby Brown. We didnít live far from each other - my family owned a Mom and Pop motel across the street from the beach, and the brothers lived near by until they moved to the house their mother still lives in today. I helped Gregg collect for his paper route because we couldnít go play until all the work was done; I also remember the nights spent at sleepovers at our motel and dinners eaten at my motherís dinner table. One summer day our families went on a picnic down at the inlet - we decided to swim across to this small island - only to discover from a fisherman that there were sharks swimming around the area. But we were only kids, and that didnít scare us. I have many good memories about those childhood times, and will cherish them forever.

It had been about 37 years since I last saw Gregg in person. My wife got us back stage (a birthday surprise for me) at Hi-Fi Buys in 2002 to see him for a few minutes after the concert. That was really great - all too short, however.
I hope the enclosed check will help in your efforts to preserve the Big House for future generations to come, as it should be.

Best Regards always,

Richard Hudson

A testimonial from Mark Kearnes –

Years ago, I was in the car with my mom, listening to the radio and all the commercials that come with it. was starting to think about other things, then the next thing I know, the commercials were off, and this blast of joyous sound was exerting itself from the speakers. I was dumbstruck, because I had never heard anything like this. This sound was alive, like nothing I have ever experienced. The song I heard actually made my heart skip a beat, and I held my breath as I listened to every note that rolled its wonderful path from the speakers to my ears. I couldn’t believe that something could be this full, this wonderful, and I prayed there was more of it. But, it seemed, as soon as it had started, the song was over, and the radio found itself again playing the same boring commercials they played last time. But I tuned them out; I was too much in awe of what I had just heard. The only question I could ask myself was "What in the heck was that???" I then realized I had no idea what the name of the band was or even the name of the song. I shot a look up at mom and asked "What was that?!!" the only thing she could say was "What was what??" How could she not have heard what I had just heard?? Nobody could have possibly ignored that. "The song they just played!!" Oh, she said, "That was Jessica by the Allman Brothers." I could do nothing but think about what I had heard. I went home and started flipping through my Dad's CD collection. We all listened to the Classic Rock station, and most of the artists that were played on the radio were present in his collection. Sure enough, I came upon a CD case with an ABB stacked logo embroided jacket on the front. It read a Decade of hits. I popped it into the stereo, and then embarked on the journey of a lifetime. I listened to the entire CD, and sat there for the longest time, not moving at all. I conceded that I had to know more about this group of extraordinary men.

So I went to the first source I knew of - my parents. They told the story of their existence as best as they could, Cher and all, and it ended with myself having even more questions then read Midnight Rider, spent countless hours on-line, and read every article I could get my hand on and listened to every story, album, and song I could listen to. I learned about Duane and Berry, and I remember how shocked I was about their death, even though it had been many years since it happened. The more I learned, the more room I had in my heart for every one of them, and their music. I've spent many a summer night talking to my dad about them, and listening to whatever album I had. I have never found music that can move me like there’s has. The music they have made, and are still making, is like no other, and it is very, very dear to me. I remember the first time I heard Mountain Jam, It was just so beautiful, I couldn’t help but have tears swell in my eyes, and the first time I heard Derek Trucks play Layla, it was just so much emotion that I cried for what seemed like the longest time.

Since that day I heard Jessica on the radio, my travels down the "road that goes on forever" have taken me to many places, and I have met many people along the way. From Tuffy Phillips to Kirk and Kirsten West, they all have a very special place in my heart. I met Kirk and Kirsten when I began to maintain the lawn at the Big House, and I could not have asked for better friends. They are two wonderful people of whom I have the greatest admiration for. They work so hard to keep the ABB running smoothly, and many things would not have come to be if it wasn’t for them. We all owe them a whole lot of gratitude. I have enjoyed every minute that I have spent at the Big House, and it is a really magical place to be.

I am so proud to be an Allman Brothers fan; it is truly a pleasure and a privilege to be one. We are so blessed to have such fine musicians among us, and I can’t thank them enough for all the long hours and ruff tours they have had to endure to keep bringing the joy of music to us. What these 6 men started in March of 1969 is truly what legends are made of, and I can think of no better way to honor them than by establishing a museum in the very home they lived in. Nothing could be more fitting and right to honor this band of enlightened rouges that gave their all in name of music. Such a group deserves no less, and I can just see Duane and Berry grinning right now ear to ear up in the clouds-“You hear that man, we’re gonna have our own museum now, people are gonna remember us for along time.” The very spirit that Duane founded his band on is in that house. It flows up the stairs, and through the yard, and in the hallway, and in the bedrooms and everywhere imaginable. I like to think that when someone comes to visit the Big House, they leave with a new understanding of not just music, but life also, because being an Allman Brothers fan is more than just music, it’s a way of life, with an understanding of respect, helping each other out, but most of all, love.

I like to think that when someone visits the Big House, they take with him or her piece of that spirit, and that they will use it in their daily lives and will try to live by it. This might not be true all the time, but if it can reach out and grab one person, then hopefully it will touch another, then it will go on to many more. I think everyone needs to “catch the fever”, because, in my opinion, there is no greater feeling in the world. There is no better way then establishing the Big House as the Allman Brothers Band museum. But you still might ask, what’s the mission? and I’ll tell you again.

Summary: Spreading the joy of music; protecting the history of the Allman Brothers Band; and, of course, enlightening the Unenlightened. This is my mission, and I’m sticking to it. I know you will too. Duane would be one proud man right now. What he started is being remembered for forever, and I'm sure he wouldn’t have it any other way. And, I thank you, from the bottom of my heart. You may give a person no greater gift than the gift of music and happiness. Thank you.

Here’s to helping spread the music.

Thanks,
Mark Kearnes

Mark Kearnes

A testimonial from Mark McKendrick, London, England –

Hiya Guys,

My girl and myself have just returned to the U.K. from NYC, where the sole purpose of our visit was to attend the Big House Benefit at the Beacon Theatre.

This was a trip that should've been way out of our league in financial terms, however when we saw the leaflet that arrived in our Instant Live Summer Run 2004 Flight Box we checked it out on the web-site and decided we would take a chance.

I've been to a lot of gigs in my lifetime, I've performed at quite a few and I've worked quite a few as a member of various crews (one of the crews I worked was at Knebworth in 1974) and considering all these facts I've just got to tell you that in my humble opinion The Big House Benefit was possibly - if not probably - one of the best, if not THE best and most enjoyable concert I've EVER attended.

I'm only really familiar with The Allman Bros. Band and The Derek Trucks Band, therefore it was a massive bonus to hear music from Jaimoe, Oteil and Warren that was totally new to me but equally enthralling. I was thrilled by the performances of these three bands, but, being unfamiliar with them I didn't have a clue as to the titles of the tunes they played and hence their availability on record.

As yet, I have seen no reviews of The Big House Benefit - only the ABB run of the prevous nights, and am eager to know what tunes were played by the three other bands and whether or not I can buy their stuff.

Can you help me with this problem?

Will there be any Big House Benefit CDs available?

Will there be any more Big House Benefit gigs? If there are, I'll book my tickets NOW, even if it kills me I'd gladly do it all over again.

You know you could sell-out THE ROYAL ALBERT HALL for at least a whole week - if not, a lot longer - with the bill you provided at The Beacon. It was brilliant.

I booked my Gov't Mule tickets for the U.K. show ages ago and on the strength of Warren's performance at the benefit I think I made an astute move.

Thanks for a superb evening and making our trip to NYC the best thing we've EVER done!

Mark McKendrick, London, England.