After dissolving in 1975 following the release of Win, Lose or Draw, The Allman Brothers Band reunited in 1979 for Enlightened Rogues. While it's impossible to discount the impact of returning producer Tom Dowd (who'd been at the helm for some of the ABB's early successes), it's immediately obvious that the band were simply ready to rev up again. From the opening track "Crazy Love" onward, there's plenty of audible energy crackling out of these cuts. That tune and "Can't Take It with You" make a perfect one-two punch, bristling with bluesy grit and locomotion. Guitar man Dickey Betts really ran with the ball here, penning everything but a version of the Little Willie John R&B nugget "I Need Your Love So Bad" (which lets Gregg Allman display his way with a simmering, slow blues) and "Just Ain't Easy" (the kind of soulful, stirring ballad that's one of Allman's great strengths). With the dynamic between more reflective moments like the latter tune and Betts' hard-charging blues-rock tunes, Enlightened Rogues has all the essential ABB ingredients.