Oteil Burbridge (Allman Bros., Tedeschi-Trucks)

Courtesy of Oteil Burbridge Com

He is a virtuoso of the instrument, and among of the elite players in the jam band / improvisational fusion (jazz / funk / world) sub-genres. Oteil Burbridge started off as so many bass player do, on drums!

 

Recognizing his multi-faceted musical talents, Oteil’s mom encouraged her son (whose name translates as “explorer”) to investigate additional instruments including violin and trumpet. Honing his chops in his native Washington D.C. club circuit, Burbridge garnered national attention aplenty as the anchor of the experimental Aquarium Rescue Unit – an ensemble which  featured members of jam-band giants Phish, Phil Lesh & Friends, and Blues Traveler among others.  

 

Burbridge took over the Allmans bass chair in 1997 following the departure of Allen Woody. He waxed the band’s final studio slab – the underrated Hittin’ the Note (2003) wherein he worked the five string and appeared and numerous live sets. To my ears, Burbridge’s work with the Brothers echoed Berry Oakley as Oteil was given to working the pocket which occasional upper register flourishes. Burbridge also took an occasional lead vocal with the band.

 

Among Oteil’s high-profile collaborations included Dead & Company helmed with Grateful alumnae Bob Weir, Billy Bill Kreutzmann, and Mickey Hart along with John Mayer.  He also joined founding drummers Butch Trucks and Jai Johnny Johnson in Les Brers. Burbridge also served as the harmonic and rhythmic anchor of the Tedeschi Trucks band – which garnered a Grammy as for Best Blues Album in in 2012 for Revelator.

 

Burbridge has recorded under his own name and as a bandleader – Oteil Burbridge and The Peacemakers. Among his notable session credits include Gregg Allman, Warren Hayes, Herbie Hancock, and The Zac Brown Band.

 

Oteil has been cited by this writer in Huffington Post for his tenure in the final incarnations of the Allman Bros. Band as deserving of Rock and Roll Hall of Fame honors with Lamar Williams, David Goldflies, and Allen Woody. 11 More Bass Players Who Belong in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (2016) Link: https://bit.ly/2EZx1Lf

 

A truly diverse and prolific cat – keep up with Oteil at www.OteilBurbridge.com – gear heads be advised to check out OB’s extensive collection of basses – ranging from the trad-for to the six string…

 

 

Oteil Burbridge Sound & Vision…

 

Aquarium Rescue Unit: Live at the Jacksonville Jazz Festival 1996: https://youtu.be/lzxVxC5kLMQ

 

Allman Brothers: “Instrumental Illness” https://youtu.be/Z1_6HPpTuuU

 

Dead & Company “Comes a Time” with Oteil on lead vocal https://youtu.be/-zHpenigs3k

 

Tedeschi Trucks Band “Midnight in Harlem” https://youtu.be/K1J04ugcdi8  

 

Les Brers “Every Hungry Woman” https://youtu.be/zOhYD5TfUrM

 

Oteil & The Peacemakers “Subterranea” https://youtu.be/zOhYD5TfUrM

 

 

David Goldflies (Dickey Betts, Allman Bros.)

 

An extraordinary upright and electric player, David “Rook” Goldflies anchored the Allman Brothers Band from 1978-82 as the ensemble aimed for more of a commercial audience on record. Though the Brothers were not quite cut out for pop radio, David and the band soared on stage, and Goldflies’ work on three Allmans’ releases Enlightened Rogues (1979), Reach for the Sky (1980), and Brothers of the Road (1981) was exemplary.

 

Born into a family of classical musicians, David was a key member of Dickey Betts’ Great Southern. Nowadays David is a composer and bassist with the Panama City Pops Orchestra, and also helms an Allman Brothers repertory ensemble aptly named the Allman Goldflies Band.

 

As I was witness – when David Goldflies and Dan Toler joined the then-reunited ABB they brought with them a vibrant, fresh perspective on the blues rock blues rock format which, to my ears, was in a creative rut by the late 1970s.

 

Composed by Dickey Betts and David Goldflies, and featuring percussionist Joe Lala and vocalist Bonnie Bramlett – dig this pop oriented track “Try It One More Time” https://youtu.be/hS_rGgQpqUI featuring David’s soulful slap-and-pop, harmonic extensions, and sharp tone throughout.

 

Recordings such as this helped expand the language of the genre and introduced a new generation, myself included, to roots and blues music. Enlighted Rogues, Reach for the Sky, and Brothers of the Road, were gems of their era – hence their appeal to my age group. Then we went back and further explored the art-form.

 

A master groove and counter-melodic player, improviser   – keep up with David’s numerous projects by way of https://www.goldfliesmusic.com/

 

 David Goldflies Sound & Vision 

WSRE Pensacola Broadcast of the Allman Goldflies Band https://youtu.be/d7i42N2mnpE

David with BHLT – Betts, Hall, Leavell, Trucks at the Capitol Theater in Passaic NJ in 1983 https://youtu.be/k_Dn1YFkN_Q

David with the Allmans Live at the Capitol Theater in 1979 https://youtu.be/5Hb9aNgivdg

Read about David in Broadway World which references Know Your Bass Player: https://bit.ly/37mU8Zi

Eleven More Bass Players Who Belong in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: David Goldflies https://bit.ly/2IQTkl3

 

 

David Goldflies on Season Tres of Know Your Bass Player on Film, 2019 New York City, Euphoria Studios