Douglas Allen Woody (October 3, 1955 – August 25, 2000) was an American

bass guitar The bass guitar (), also known as the electric bass guitar, electric bass, or simply the bass, is the lowest-pitched member of the guitar family. It is similar in appearance and construction to an Electric guitar, electric but with a longer nec ...

ist best known for his eight-year tenure in

the Allman Brothers Band The Allman Brothers Band was an American rock music, rock band formed in Jacksonville, Florida, in 1969. Its founding members were brothers Duane Allman (slide guitar, lead guitar) and Gregg Allman (vocals, keyboards), as well as Dickey Betts ( ...

and as a co-founder of

Gov't Mule Gov't Mule (pronounced "Government Mule") is an American Southern rock jam band, formed in 1994 by guitarist Warren Haynes, bassist Allen Woody (both of The Allman Brothers Band at the time) and drummer Matt Abts (whom Haynes had worked with in ...

Biography

After having studied at

Vanderbilt University Vanderbilt University (informally Vandy or VU) is a private university, private research university in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. Founded in 1873, it was named in honor of shipping and railroad magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt, who provide ...

's Blair School of Music, Woody joined the Allman Brothers Band along with guitarist

Warren Haynes Warren Haynes (born April 6, 1960) is an American musician, singer and songwriter. He is best known for his work as longtime guitarist with the Allman Brothers Band and as founding member of the jam band Gov't Mule. Early in his career he was ...

upon the group's reunion in 1989. Woody and Haynes formed side project Gov't Mule in 1994 with former

Dickey Betts Forrest Richard Betts (December 12, 1943 – April 18, 2024) was an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He was best known as a longtime member of the Allman Brothers Band. A co-founder of the band when it formed in 1969, he was central ...

drummer Matt Abts. Haynes and Woody decided to leave the Allman Brothers Band in 1997 to put a full-time effort into Gov't Mule. Prior to that, Woody played in the 1970s jazz fusion rock band Montage, and following that with former

Kiss A kiss is the touching or pressing of one's lips against another person, animal or object. Cultural connotations of kissing vary widely; depending on the culture and context, a kiss can express sentiments of love, passion, romance, sex ...

drummer

Peter Criss George Peter John Criscuola (born December 20, 1945), better known by his stage name Peter Criss, is an American musician, best known as a co-founder, original drummer, and an occasional vocalist of the hard rock band Kiss. Criss established th ...

in the Criss Penridge Alliance in the 1980s.

Death and legacy

Woody was found dead the morning of Saturday, August 26, 2000 at the Marriott Courtyard in

Queens Queens is the largest by area of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. Located near the western end of Long Island, it is bordered by the ...

, New York. A preliminary

autopsy An autopsy (also referred to as post-mortem examination, obduction, necropsy, or autopsia cadaverum) is a surgical procedure that consists of a thorough examination of a corpse by dissection to determine the cause, mode, and manner of deat ...

performed was inconclusive and showed no immediate cause of death; but he was subsequently determined to have died of a heroin overdose. He was survived by his wife Jenny and daughter Savannah. Woody's death helped Haynes in his decision to return to the Allman Brothers Band. Gov't Mule continued on after Woody's death with Andy Hess assuming bass duties after a three-year period that saw a rotating group of bass players including

Mike Gordon Michael Eliot Gordon (born June 3, 1965) is an American bass guitarist and vocalist most recognized as a founding member of the band Phish. In addition to bass, Gordon plays banjo, piano, and guitar. He is a filmmaker ('' Rising Low'', '' Outs ...

Dave Schools David Allen Schools (born December 11, 1964) is a bass player and founding member of American rock band Widespread Panic. He is also a record producer, songwriter and journalist with articles published in a wide variety of music magazines. Schoo ...

Oteil Burbridge Oteil Burbridge (born August 24, 1964) is an American multi-instrumentalist, specializing on the bass guitar, trained in playing jazz and classical music from an early age. He has achieved fame primarily on bass guitar during the resurgence of t ...

(Woody's replacement in the Allman Brothers Band), George Porter Jr. and

Les Claypool Leslie Edward Claypool (born September 29, 1963) is an American rock music, rock musician. He is the founder, lead singer, bassist, and primary songwriter of the band Primus (band), Primus. Listed as one of the greatest bassists of all time by ...

. The Canadian band Big Sugar wrote one song "Nashville Grass" about Woody's death and funeral.

Musical equipment

Woody had a large collection of bass guitars (around 450), featured in his own bass instruction video and was held in high esteem for his playing. The Epiphone Rumble Kat signature bass was similar to two specially built double-neck instruments that Gibson made for him: a bass/guitar and a bass/mandolin. With the Allman Brothers, although Woody used many different basses,

Gibson Thunderbird The Gibson Thunderbird is an electric bass guitar made by Gibson and Epiphone. Background and introduction The Gibson Thunderbird was introduced in 1963. At the time, Fender had been the leader in the electric bass market since their introdu ...

s were his preferred instruments, along with

Alembic An alembic (from , originating from , 'cup, beaker') is an alchemical still consisting of two vessels connected by a tube, used for distillation of liquids. Description The complete distilling apparatus consists of three parts: * the "" ...

basses. With Gov't Mule, Allen usually played the Gibson EB series, particularly the hollow-bodied EB-2 and the solid-bodied EB-3. At times he played a

Rickenbacker Rickenbacker International Corporation is a string instrument manufacturer based in Santa Ana, California. Rickenbacker is the first known maker of electric guitars, with a steel guitar in 1932, and produces a range of electric guitars and bass ...

or Gibson Thunderbird.

Ampeg Ampeg ("amplified peg") is a manufacturer best known for its bass amplifiers. Originally established in 1946 in Linden, New Jersey by Everett Hull and Stanley Michaels as "Michael-Hull Electronic Labs," today Ampeg is part of the Yamaha Guit ...

SVT was his amp of choice most of the time. Epiphone posthumously released an Allen Woody Limited Edition Bass, a semi-hollow arch-top similar to the Rumble Kat. Woody played esthetically customized Musicvox 4 string Spaceranger and Space Cadet Basses with Gov’t Mule. He played a Musicvox Space Cadet 12 String guitar and Yellow Musicvox Space Cadet 12 String Bass on tour with Blue Floyd performing extended 12 string bass solos in his role as second guitarist in the band.

Discography

;With the Allman Brothers Band * '' Seven Turns'' (1990) * '' Shades of Two Worlds'' (1991) * '' Live at Great Woods'' (1992 VHS/LaserDisc release, 2000 DVD release) * '' An Evening with the Allman Brothers Band: First Set'' (1992) * '' Where It All Begins'' (1994) * '' An Evening with the Allman Brothers Band: 2nd Set'' (1995) * '' Play All Night: Live at the Beacon Theatre 1992'' (2014) ;With Gov't Mule * ''

'' (1995) * '' Live at Roseland Ballroom'' (1996) * '' Dose'' (1998) * '' Live... With a Little Help from Our Friends'' (1998) * '' Life Before Insanity'' (2000) * '' The Deep End, Volume 1'' (2001) * '' Mulennium'' (2010) * '' Sco-Mule (feat. John Scofield)'' (2015) - recorded live in Atlanta in 1999 * ''The Tel-Star Sessions'' (2016) - remixed/remastered demo recordings made in June 1994

References

External links

Official Allman Brothers Band websiteOfficial Gov't Mule website''Fly Guitar'' website featuring an interview with friend and bandmate Warren Haynes; Allen's bass technique, guitar collection and their original ideas when creating Gov't Mule
*
Allen Woody tribute siteAllen Woody Find-A-Grave
{{DEFAULTSORT:Woody, Allen 1955 births 2000 deaths The Allman Brothers Band members American rock bass guitarists American male bass guitarists Gov't Mule members American mandolinists Epic Records artists 20th-century American musicians Guitarists from Tennessee American male guitarists 20th-century American guitarists 20th-century American bass guitarists Deaths by heroin overdose in New York (state) Drug-related deaths in New York City 20th-century American male musicians