Interview: Sarasota native Duane Betts on debut solo album before Florida shows

Duane Betts and Palmetto Motel: 7 p.m. July 14; Revolution Live, 100 SW Third Ave., Fort Lauderdale; jointherevolution.net; 7 p.m. July 15; Jannus Live, 200 First Ave. N., St. Petersburg; jannuslive.com; 7 p.m. July 16; Intuition Ale Works, 929 E. Bay St., Jacksonville; intuitionaleworks.com

After decades spent playing music, including with some of the biggest names in rock and blues, Duane Betts will soon put out his first album under his own name.

The 45-year-old singer-songwriter, guitarist and Sarasota native will release his debut solo full-length “Wild & Precious Life” on July 14. Along with his solo career, Betts has played with his father — founding Allman Brothers Band guitarist and longtime Sarasota County resident Dickey Betts — and his band Great Southern, in the Los Angeles folk-rock group Dawes, and in the Allman Betts Band with fellow ABB progeny Devon Allman.

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Betts wrote “Wild & Precious Life” in the two areas he now splits his time between — Sarasota and Jackson Hole, Wyoming, where he’ll also host the inaugural Horseshoe Music Festival on Labor Day weekend — and recorded it in Jacksonville at Derek Trucks and Susan Tedeschi’s Swamp Raga studio. Trucks, co-leader of Tedeschi Trucks Band and a former Allman Brothers Band member, also performs on the album alongside other musical guests including Marcus King and Nicki Bluhm.

The same weekend that “Wild & Precious Life” is released, Betts will play a string of shows in his home state in Fort Lauderdale, St. Petersburg and Jacksonville with his band Palmetto Motel, whose members include Sarasota’s own Pedro Arevalo. Betts spoke with the Herald-Tribune about the new album and more in a phone interview June 28, the day after making his debut at the famed Grand Ole Opry in Nashville. Here are excerpts.

What was the process of writing “Wild & Precious Life”?

I started writing a lot for the record really not knowing what exactly I was writing for, if it was going to be another Allman Betts Band record or if it was going to be a solo record, but I knew I wanted to do a full-length Duane Betts album. So when the pandemic hit, I was in Jackson Hole, Wyoming during the summer of 2020. I was doing a lot of hiking, and I had my acoustic guitars there, and I got in a good groove writing. That was kind of when the body of work started taking shape, and a few of those songs are on the record. So that was one part of it, and then the other part of it was more of the collaborative stuff with Stoll Vaughan, and Johnny Stachela was a smaller part of that. Those writing sessions were in the very beginning of 2022, down at my dad’s house in Sarasota, right before we went into the studio in Jacksonville in March of 2022. So it was kind of leading right up into the recording of the record.

As you mention, you recorded the album in Jacksonville, at Derek Trucks and Susan Tedeschi’s Swamp Raga studio. What was the experience like recording it there?

They’re such great people and wonderful hosts, and they made us feel really comfortable. The studio is really like being at home, and we had a really fun time. We just ordered takeout, and there’s nature around, which is good to step out of the studio and walk through the woods; all of that stuff is really helpful. And yeah, we had a great time making it, and Derek and Susan are wonderful people. They would pop their heads in every now and then and listen and hang out, but not get too up in our business because you don’t want an audience while you’re recording a record, really.

Trucks also performs on the album on “Stare at the Sun,” and my understanding is that song and the song's name are a tribute to your father?

Yeah, indirectly. The song was written kind of with my dad in mind, some of the feeling that I was conveying. But it really came to shape from something that Derek told me about my dad’s guitar approach, which was he said he’s a player that isn’t afraid to stare directly into the sun. So I had already started a verse and I had the melody. I brought that idea to Stoll Vaughan and Stoll loved it, and then I told him that story and then we wrote the rest of the song and it really took shape from that. So yeah, what Derek had said really gave the song a direction.

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I also understand some of the album’s songs “were written in the presence of” your father. Could you explain that a bit more? Was he someone you could bounce ideas off in the songwriting process?

He was around, so for the stuff that we were writing in Florida, we were writing over in the study of the house and then we’d see him. He wasn’t in the room with us when we were writing, but he was around, he was present. So yeah, we were bouncing ideas off of him, and Stoll is really an inquisitive person and is really fascinated by people, so he was asking my dad all kinds of stuff. So yeah, that definitely maybe played a little part in the writing process.

Your upcoming Florida shows will be with your band Palmetto Motel. Who are the other members, and where did the band name come from?

The band name is pretty easy — it’s actually a nickname that I gave to my dad’s guesthouse. That’s kind of where I stay when I’m there, but a lot of really interesting people have stayed there over the years: Gregg Allman has stayed there, Vassar Clements has stayed there, Billy Joe Shaver has stayed there, just to name a few. So that’s the inspiration for the name, and then the band members are myself, Johnny Stachela, we have Pedro Arevalo on bass and vocals, Vincent Fossett Jr. on drums, and John Ginty on keyboards.

You just had your debut performance at the Grand Ole Opry. What was that experience like?

Yeah, we were in Nashville last night, we did the Opry and it was a night to remember, definitely. It was really awesome. They roll out the red carpet when you do a debut, they really make a big deal about it, and I was just thankful to have the opportunity and be part of the whole experience.

Later this year, you’ll be hosting the inaugural Horseshoe Music Festival in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. Tell me a little about what to expect with that festival.

The Horseshoe Music Festival is really an idea that my wife had. Last year, we did a Duane Betts & Friends show that was very successful and I had some of our friends — Jackie Greene, Luther and Cody Dickinson, Nicki Bluhm, Berry Duane Oakley was there, Lamar Williams Jr. was there, Johnny Stachela was there. So this was kind of to continue that but go one step further, or two or three steps further. Jackson Hole is a place that is very near and dear to both of our hearts, but especially my wife, because she’s lived there for going on 25 years.

That's kind of the impetus for putting it together. So we have three different theme nights: we have an Americana night, Grateful Dead/Allman Brothers night, and then more of a blues, kind of funky New Orleans night. We have some really great guests booked already that aren’t announced yet, and then we’re looking to lock in more for the rest of the festival to fill it out. But yeah, we’re really excited about it. There’s also a culinary element and a wellness element and a fashion element too, so that really differentiates it from what we did last year.

Speaking of the Grateful Dead, you recently played with Phil Lesh & Friends, even performing "In Memory of Elizabeth Reed" and "Blue Sky." What was that experience like?

Yeah, I just played two shows with Phil actually in April, and then I played with him last year too. To play with Phil, he's one of my favorite bass players from one of my favorite bands. I love his approach, and I love playing with all the musicians that he has with him. He has really fun people and great musicians involved in his operation, and to be afforded the opportunity to be part of that is always an honor.

Before your Florida shows with Palmetto Motel, you have a couple of dates with Allman Betts Band. You and Devon are both plenty busy at the moment, but do you think a third Allman Betts Band album is a possibility down the line?

It's a possibility, yeah. I haven't really thought a lot about it. I'm really focused on what I'm doing right now with this one; I haven't even put this one out yet. I'm excited; I think that I can do a lot with what I have going on with this band, too.

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This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Interview: Duane Betts on 'Wild & Precious Life' before Florida shows