Allman comes back to ‘holy ground’

Gregg Allman lived in Macon for only a few of his 69 years, but in the end, it’s the place he called home.

More than 200 people came from around the country Saturday for the private funeral of the co-founder of the Allman Brothers Band. The group that pioneered the Southern rock sound blossomed into fame in the early 1970s while living in Macon.

The service was held at Snow’s Memorial Chapel not far from the Capricorn Studio building where The Allman Brothers Band recorded its early hits.

Michael Lehman, Allman’s friend and manager, spoke at the service along with Allman’s best friend Hewell “Chank” Middleton and family members.

In an interview with The Telegraph after the service, Lehman said almost from the time he met Allman 15 years ago, the singer talked about his desire to be buried in Macon next to his brother, Duane.

“Gregg loved Macon and really considered it an adopted home,” Lehman said. “This is where the Allman Brothers got their start and it was really considered holy ground by the Allman Brothers and particularly Gregg.”

Among those in attendance were Allman’s ex-wife Cher and former President Jimmy Carter. Carter credited Allman with helping him to office by performing concerts on the campaign trail in 1976. Rock legend Peter Frampton was also in attendance, along with many others in the music industry.

Otis Redding III, son of soul legend Otis Redding, was among the invitees. He said attendees sang “Will the Circle Be Unbroken.”

“There was a lot of good singing and a lot of good, down-to-earth and not-planned stories from family members and siblings,” Redding said. “Everybody talked about the good times.”

Redding didn’t speak at the service but afterward recalled fond memories of Allman.

“Every time I was around him he always had something very meaningful and polite to say,” he said. “He always wanted to tell you something to make you smile. He would always tell me something good about myself.”

Hundreds of people lined the streets along the procession route, with many there two hours before the service started.

Among the fans waiting along First Street before the services started were Chris and Cindy Parisher, who drove from Raleigh, N.C., to see the funeral procession. “We’ve seen the Allman Brothers probably 30-plus times and felt like it was only fitting to see Gregg his last time,” Cindy said.

Chris said he attended his first Allman Brothers concert in 1971 and has worked on stage with them. That concert was just a few months before Duane was killed.

“I just really loved Gregg Allman’s voice,” Chris said. “Plus, all the guys in the band were just really great musicians.”

After the service Allman was buried at Rose Hill Cemetery in a plot adjacent to where Duane Allman and Allman Brothers bassist Berry Oakley are buried together. Duane Allman was killed in a motorcycle accident in Macon in 1971 and a year later Oakley died after a motorcycle accident in Macon.

The burial of Gregg Allman in Macon, as well as the Big House Museum, solidifies the town as a mecca for Allman Brothers fans. And that may only grow. Lehman said other band members have expressed a desire to be buried at Rose Hill. He said there are plans to build a memorial wall at Gregg Allman’s grave so that band members who are cremated could have their ashes placed there.

Lehman also said there still may be a public memorial for Allman either at the Fox Theater in Atlanta or in New York City, or possibly both.

“I think there will be something more,” he said. “We are just starting to think about it.”

This story was originally published June 3, 2017 at 5:03 PM with the headline "Allman comes back to ‘holy ground’."