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Allen Woody
Allen Woody with Gov't Mule.
Background information
Birth name	Douglas Allen Woody
Born	(1955-10-03)October 3, 1955
Died	August 25, 2000(2000-08-25) (aged 44)
Genres	Southern Rock, Hard Rock, Blues-Rock, Jam
Occupations	Musician, songwriter
Instruments	Bass, Mandolin
Associated acts	The Allman Brothers, Gov't Mule, The Peter Criss Band, The Artimus Pyle Band, Blue Floyd, Montage
Notable instruments
Gibson Thunderbird Epiphone Rumble Kat

Douglas Allen Woody (October 3, 1955 – August 25, 2000)^[1] was bass guitarist best known for his tenure in the rock groups The Allman Brothers Band, Gov't Mule, The Artimus Pyle Band, The Peter Criss Band, Blue Floyd, and Montage.

Biography[link]

Woody joined The Allman Brothers Band along with guitarist Warren Haynes upon the group's reunion in 1989. Woody and Haynes formed side project Gov't Mule in 1994 with former Dicky Betts 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.

Woody was found dead sitting up in a chair in the morning of Saturday August 26, 2000 at the Marriott Courtyard Motel in Queens, New York. A preliminary autopsy performed was inconclusive and showed no immediate cause of death.^[2] He is 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, Dave Schools, Oteil Burbridge (Woody's replacement in the Allman Brothers Band), George Porter Jr. and Les Claypool.

Musical equipment[link]

Woody was a respected bass guitarist^{[citation needed]} - he 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 him: a bass/guitar and a bass/mandolin. With the Allman Brothers, although Woody used many different basses, Gibson Thunderbirds were his preferred instruments, along with Alembic 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 or Gibson Thunderbird. Ampeg 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.

The movie Rising Low, directed by fellow bass player Mike Gordon, is a documentary about bass players dedicated to the memory of Allen Woody and features bass players that he respected and knew in his lifetime.

Discography[link]

Allman Brothers Band albums featuring Allen Woody

• Seven Turns (1990)
• Shades of Two Worlds (1991)
• 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)

Gov't Mule albums featuring Allen Woody

• Gov't Mule (1995)
• Live from 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)

References[link]

External links[link]

• Allman Brothers– Official Allman Brothers Band website
• Gov't Mule– Official Gov't Mule website
• Warren Haynes talks about Allen Woody– Friend and bandmate Warren Haynes talks about Allen's bass playing, guitar collection and their original ideas when creating Gov't Mule
• Rising Low
• Allen Woody Tribute Site– Allen Woody Tribute Site