Calling all music lovers! There’s an item now on display in downtown Swainsboro that just might be of interest to you.
Michael Bright, manager of Main Street Market, explains the above-pictured motorcycle once belonged to hit recording artist Gregg Allman.
That’s right—the Gregg Allman of The Allman Brothers Band.
This past Saturday, April 2, marked one week since the motorcycle’s arrival to town, and hundreds have flocked to the market on Main Street to check it out for themselves. (One of those visitors was a woman from Alabama; Bright says she and a friend made the long drive, spent the night in Dublin, and came over the first Saturday it was in store.)
As it turns out, the motorcycle’s journey to Main Street Market is one worth telling.
It begins in more than two decades ago when Allman purchase the 1999 Harley Davidson Dyna Lowrider. It was brand new at the time inside a Madera, California dealership, Golden Gate Harley Davidson.
Allman would move to Richmond Hill in 2000, and two years later, he traded the motorcycle in at the Harley Davidson dealership in nearby Savannah.
The owner of Leopold’s Ice Cream in Savannah purchased it in 2002, then sent it to auction in 2018, just one year after Allman’s death.
The ride sat it storage until March 2022, and this point in the story is where the motorcycle’s local ties come in.
“The man who bought it at the auction in 2018 kept it in his storage unit for five years,” Bright explained. “He walked into the Music Memories Museum here at Main Street Market for the first time ever, and he said the Lord spoke to him. God told him he had something that would be good for the museum, and sure enough, he sold it to me.”
Bright hoped to drum up anticipation for a grand reveal, and he began posting teasers on Main Street’s Facebook. The Saturday it was wheeled in house, he took a photo and provided some context.
Since then, the post has been viewed more than 20,000 times.
“I’ve already had one man from Sturgis, South Dakota who owns a saloon that already said he would double my money to buy it from me. There’s only been two of Gregg’s motorcycles auctioned off, and the man who has the other one connected with me on Facebook. He’s from Jacksonville, Florida, and he made sure to congratulate me on this one. His sits in his living room. This one is the first one we know of to be displayed in a museum.”
Beyond that, Bright is excited to have a piece of music history right here at home. He believes it will bring in even more visitors the market sees monthly now.
“I just believe this motorcycle is a great draw for Swainsboro, Georgia. There are more than 1 million followers on the The Allman Brothers Facebook page. They have many fans who would love to come see this piece of history.”
About Gregg Allman
Greg Allman was an American musician, singer, and songwriter known for performing in The Allman Brothers Band.
He grew up with an interest in rhythm and blues music, and The Allman Brothers Band fused it with rock music, jazz, and country at times.
Allman wrote several of the band’s biggest songs, including “Whipping Post,” “Melissa,” and “Midnight Rider.”
He also had a successful solo career, releasing seven studio albums. He was born and spent much of his childhood in Nashville, Tennessee before relocating to Daytona Beach, Florida and eventually Richmond Hill.
For his work in music, Allman was referred to as a “southern rock pioneer” and received numerous awards, including one Grammy Award. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the Georgia Music Hall of Fame alike.
His distinctive voice placed him 70th in The Rolling Stone’s list of the 100 Greatest Singers of All Time.