March 17, 2014. 7:30pm. Ticket: LACMA Member: $20 | General guest: $25. At LACMA, the Brown Auditorium. LACMA is located at 5905 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles 90036. Ample parking on 6th Street in the Pritzker Parking Garage just east of Fairfax. Free parking after 7:00 pm.
Writers Bloc with LACMA present Galadrielle Allman, daughter of Duane Allman (the Allman Bros.) and Mikal Gilmore.
This is a program about the search for, and study of, family.
Duane Allman, was a virtuoso guitarist whose band, The Allman Brothers, was nothing less than legendary. Rolling Stone named the band as one of the best bands of all time. Allman founded the band with his brother, Gregg, in the late 60’s. It can be argued that Duane and Gregg Allman created what is now called Southern Rock, music that originated in Georgia– a potent cocktail of blues, jazz, rock and country. Allman’s influence in rock is immeasurable. It is impossible to think of rock ‘n roll without paying homage to to Ramblin’ Man, anthem to a generation. Allman lent his talent to so many singers and musicians, from Aretha Franklin to Eric Clapton’s Derek and the Dominos song Layla. Allman was killed in a motorcycle accident in late 1971, leaving behind a two-year-old daughter, Galadrielle.
Galadrielle Allman grew up in the shadow of this legend, part of one of the great rock ‘n roll families of American music. But she had nothing tangible to hold on to. To build a firm picture of her late father, she sought out stories, photos, music– anything that would connect her to who Duane Allman was. Her uncle, Gregg Allman, calls the result of her research a “revelation.” Written in beautiful lyrical prose, this is more than a story about the man behind one of the great artists in American music– but it is about a woman’s search through loss and memory to find her father.
Mikal Gilmore is the author of Shot in the Heart,his searing portrait of his own family that tells the story of his brother, Gary Gilmore, who was executed in Utah in 1977 for murder. Gilmore’s narrative is shocking and devastating, filled with family history of child abuse, alcoholism, adultery, and murder. It won numerous literary awards for its brutal honesty and candid assessment of an American family gone horribly wrong. Gilmore writes for Rolling Stone, and has written extensively on music, literature and culture, including his terrific book, Stories Done: Writings on the 1960’s and its Discontents.