Stars of rock and blues honor Allman

    Just two days after Gregg Allman comes to town for his concert at Sarasota's Sailor Circus Arena, some of the

Gregg Allman

biggest names in rock, pop, blues and country will pay tribute to him in Atlanta.
    "All My Friends: Celebrating the Songs & Voice of Gregg Allman" is scheduled for held Jan. 10 at Atlanta's Fox Theatre. Plans call for the concert to be filmed, so if you can't make it to Atlanta you can see the film sometime down the line.
    It should be worth seeing. The lineup confirmed so far includes the Allman Brothers Band, Sam Moore (of Sam and Dave), Taj Mahal, Warren Haynes, Natalie Cole, Jackson Browne, John Hiatt, Pat Monahan of Train, Martina McBride, Trace Adkins, Don Was, John Hiatt and Eric Church and several others have signed on to pay tribute in concert to Gregg Allman early next year. 
    Tickets go on sale Nov. 1 at the Fox Theatre box office. 
    But there's no need to drive 500 miles to catch of evening of Allman tunes. On Jan. 8, Gregg Allman himself, who of course used to live in Manatee County, will play a concert at the Sailor Circus Arena in Sarasota. Tickets for that show are already on sale. In fact, the word is they're going fast. Stop by the  Sailor Circus Arena box office, 2075 Bahia Vista St., Sarasota, call 941-355-9805 or go to www.circussarasota.org.
   And if you're a lover of all things Allman, you might want to check out Michael Allman, Gregg's son who lives in Pinellas County, this weekend. He's headlining the the Cortez Stone Crab Festival, 10a.m.-6 p.m. Saturday and Sunday in the area around N.E. Taylor Boat Works, 4628 119th St W. 119th St. W.,Cortez. The festival's free and has lots of other bands playing too.
    

Orlando Calling: Greatest Florida music fest ever?

Jack White (far left) and his rock band The Raconteurs. Publicity photo.

Is Orlando Calling the greatest, most eclectic, big name, Sunshine State music fest ever?

Top alt-country, hip-hop, blues, modern and classic rock acts....

My vote is yes.

Here's the lineup playing the Florida Citrus Bowl Stadium Nov. 12-13:

Sat. Nov. 12

The Killers
Pixies
The Avett Brothers
The Roots
The Raconteurs
Gogol Bordello
O.A.R.
Iron and Wine
Pete Yorn
Gavin DeGraw
Jenny and Johnny
Drive By Truckers
Civil Twilight
Lucero
Dr. Dog
Justin Townes Earle
Felice Brothers
Ben Sollee
Renee & The Translators

Sun. Nov. 13

Bob Seger &The Silver Bullet Band
Kid Rock
Doobie Brothers
Dwight Yoakam
Buddy Guy
Warren Haynes Band
Chris Isaak
Brandi Carlile
Robert Randolph & The Family Band
Michelle Branch
The Flatlanders
Los Lonely Boys
Blues Traveler
Justin Townes Earle
The David Mayfield Parade
The Supervillains


Tickets are on sale at http://www.orlandocalling.com or by calling Ticketmaster at 800-745-3000.

Purchased before Sept. 1:
Single Day Tickets
$80 – Stage One Field Access and Reserved Seating options
$165 – VIP

2-Day Weekend Tickets:
$145 – Stage One Field Access and Reserved Seating options
$285 -- VIP

The Raconteurs cover the Sonny Bono-penned Cher/Nancy Sinatra hit 

"Bang, Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down)"

Devon Allman calls dad Gregg Allman's upcoming solo album 'killer'

The highly anticipated Gregg Allman solo album, "Low Country Blues" (pictured), will be released Jan. 18 on Rounder Records.

Super producer T-Bone Burnett helmed the album that features Allman, a former resident of Manatee County, lending his rich, Southern drawl to classic blues songs by the likes of Muddy Waters, B.B. King, Skip James, Bobby Bland, Otis Rush and Sleepy John Estes.

"Low Country Blues" also features one new song, "Just Another Rider," written by Allman and his Allman Brothers Band colleague Warren Haynes.

"I've heard the whole thing," son Devon Allman (also an accomplished musician) told the Bradenton Herald during a recent interview to advance his Nov. 14 appearance at Ace's. "I love it. It's a killer record and something he's needed to make for awhile. It's very old school."

"Low Country Blues" finds Gregg Allman joined by an all-star cast of players including New Orleans icon Dr. John on piano, guitar great Doyle Bramhall II, bassist Dennis Crouch and drummer Jay Bellerose.

In addition to being available at the usual outlets, the album will also be sold at Starbucks shops nationwide.

The complete track list for "Low Country Blues" can be found on Gregg Allman's official website.

Gregg Allman Band performing at the 1994 Sarasota Blues Festival.