In Memory of Elizabeth Reed
"In Memory of Elizabeth Reed" is an instrumental composition by the American group The Allman Brothers Band. It first appeared on their second studio album, Idlewild South (1970), released on Capricorn Records. The jazz-influenced piece was written by guitarist Dickey Betts, among his first writing credits for the group. Betts named it after a headstone he saw for Elizabeth Jones Reed Napier in Rose Hill Cemetery in the band's hometown of Macon, Georgia. Multiple versions of the composition have been recorded, with the version performed on the group's 1971 live album At Fillmore East generally considered the definitive rendition.
Headstone for Elizabeth Reed at Rose Hill Cemetery.
The Allman Brothers Band was an American rock band formed in Jacksonville, Florida, in 1969 by brothers Duane Allman and Gregg Allman, as well as Dickey Betts, Berry Oakley (bass), Butch Trucks (drums), and Jai Johanny "Jaimoe" Johanson (drums). Subsequently, based in Macon, Georgia, they incorporated elements of blues, jazz and country music and their live shows featured jam band-style improvisation and instrumentals.
The Allman Brothers Band in May 1969. From left to right, (back) Duane Allman and Gregg Allman (front) Butch Trucks, Dickey Betts, Berry Oakley and Jaimoe.
"The Big House" in Macon, Georgia, where the band lived in the early 1970s
Duane Allman, the group's leader, was killed in a motorcycle crash in 1971.
Gregg Allman on the band's 1975 tour