“Johnny Neel and The Dave Chappell Band Aug 5 2016” by Tojo45 is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Today, the music world mourns the loss of Johnny Neel, who passed away on Sunday, Oct. 7. Neel was a storied musician, vocalist and songwriter and a foundational figure in Southern rock, best known for his contributions to the Dickey Betts Band and the Allman Brothers Band’s second reunion. Beyond these highlights, he is remembered as a warm soul and an exceptional artist to whom music was meaning itself, and his gifts as an accompanist and composer led to a wide orbit of crossings with iconic artists across genres. Neel was 70.

News of Neel’s passing was confirmed by his friend and collaborator Doug Jones in a post to Neel’s Facebook feed. The announcement reads, “Hello all. We have sad news to share. Johnny Neel passed away today from a massive heart failure.  His wife Christine and his daughter Johnna were by his side.  As many of you know, Johnny had a stroke 2019 and never quite recovered from it. We are deeply saddened and will miss him greatly.”

Neel was born in Wilmington, Delaware on June 11, 1954. After losing his sight as an infant to an incubator, he gravitated towards music from a young age, listening avidly to the new guard of popular music and picking up the bongos before his schooling. At a school for the blind, Neel was introduced to the piano as an element of his curriculum and quickly became attached to the instrument, playing along to such diverse early influences as Oscar Peterson, Elton John, Chick Corea, The Rolling Stones and the young Stevie Wonder. He cut his first record at 12 with “Talking About People” b/w “The Secret Word is Prayer,” two energetic garage-tinted soul cuts that became radio hits in the Wilmington and Philadelphia area.

Neel found continued success as an adult with his Johnny Neel Band, which toured up and down the East Coast and recorded two full-length records, 1981’s One Hot Night and 1983’s You Should’ve Been There. In 1984, the artist trucked down to Nashville, Tenn. to make a name for himself as a session performer and quickly established himself as a versatile player in a wealth of configurations and high-profile venues across Music City. At an early show at the Bluebird Café, he crossed paths with Warren Haynes, and the two Nashville newcomers struck up a quick partnership as co-writers and background vocalists.

As the duo continued to raise their profile, they caught the attention of then-Nashville resident Dickey Betts, who was setting off a solo career and tapped Neel and Haynes to join his Dickey Betts Band. Neel contributed to seven of the 10 cuts on the resulting album Pattern Disruptive, a fiery, tight Southern rock offering released in 1988, including the standout hit “Rock Bottom.” After hearing his keyboard and harmonica prowess on the record, Gregg Allman invited Neel to tour with him and add his touch to “Island” on 1988’s The Gregg Allman Band self-titled.

Now with co-signs from two core members, Neel was welcomed into the Allman Brothers Band in 1989, when the legendary outfit reformed to commemorate its 20th anniversary. Alongside Allman, Betts, Butch Trucks, Jaimoe, Haynes and bassist Allen Woody, the artist wrote, recorded and toured intensely with the Allmans from 1989 to 1990, contributing to their 1990 comeback album Seven Turns. Neel plays on all nine cuts from the Allman Brothers’ ninth studio album and co-wrote four of them, including the chart-topping smash single “Good Clean Fun,” which he composed with Betts and Allman. After ushering in a new golden age of Southern rock with the Allman Brothers Band’s reunion, Neel pushed off to follow his own star in solo work in 1990.

Throughout his career, Neel was a massively prolific songwriter and recorder. After parting ways with the Allman Brothers, he went on to spearhead 12 further records with a variety of backing configurations. From 1994 to 1995, he performed as Johnny Neel & The Last Word, dropping a self-titled project in 1994 with co-writes from Delbert McClinton on “Read Me My Rights” and Haynes on “Maydell,” which would later be recorded by the Allman Brothers and John Mayall. Later formations include Johnny Neel and The Criminal Element, Johnny Neel and The Italian Experience, Rattlebone and a wealth of recordings under his own name, plus collaborative projects like Blue Floyd (a Pink Floyd cover group with Woody, Matt Abts, Marc Ford and Berry Oakley Jr.) Grease Factor (with Derek Jones, Jeff Sipe, Shane Theriot and Count M’butu) and Deep Fried (with Abts, Brian Stoltz and George Porter Jr.).

Beyond Betts, Allman and The Allman Brothers, Neel worked as a sideman on recordings by Haynes, Gov’t Mule, Michael McDonald, Montgomery Gentry, Todd Snider, David Allan Coe and many more. His compositions were covered by the likes of Gov’t Mule, McClinton, Keith Whitley, Travis Tritt, The Oak Ridge Boys, Restless Heart, Ann Peebles and Dorothy Moore.

Neel is remembered not only for his musical talents, but as a larger-than-life personality who brought his whole self to every session, sit-in and interaction. Fans can show their love for the late artist by contributing to a fund for funeral expenses and general living expenses for his wife Christine, who cared for Neel in his final years, here.

Read Haynes’ tribute to Neel below.