A fan remembers Gregg Allman's life-affirming sound

Drums, percussion and bass join in, twin lead guitars launch over the top and an enormous driving rhythm floods the room, penetrating me to the bone.

The muscular, bluesy jam-anthems -- "Midnight Rider," ''Statesboro Blues," ''Stormy Monday" -- lit up packed houses in torrential, soulful sound.

The death of founding member Gregg Allman on Saturday at 69 brought back to me countless memories of dozens of their shows I attended over 25 years.

Gregg Allman, the band's chief singer, songwriter and keyboard player, belted out staples like "Whippin' Post" with his trademark growl.

Twin lead guitars, twin drum kits, bass, keyboards, harp and vocals combining in waves of complex melodies that mixed blues, jazz, country and rock into something new, electric and deeply felt that became known as Southern Rock.

When they all found the same wavelength during a jam — Duane Allman called it "hittin' the note" — their music took fans to places they'd never been.

The integrated band — the African-American drummer, Jaimoe, was there from the start — embodied a message of acceptance, of kinship, of a gathering of tribes — a counter to the social injustices of their day.