Gregg Allman engaged to 24-year-old girlfriend

[May 26, 2012]  NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- Gregg Allman is getting married for the seventh time.

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame member has told several interviewers this week that he's engaged to his 24-year-old girlfriend, Shannon Williams, and Allman's publicist and manager confirmed the news Friday morning.

Allman talked about the unexpected love he felt for Williams in an interview with The Associated Press earlier this year for a story about his memoir, "My Cross to Bear," but admitted he was leery about taking the relationship further because of his past difficulties in his love life. But Allman told Howard Stern, Piers Morgan and a SiriusXM town hall audience this week that he's taken the relationship to the next stage.

Little is known about Williams, who entered the 64-year-old rock pioneer's life after a liver transplant and a run of health difficulties. Allman told the AP in a love-struck voice he met her while in Florida on Friday, Jan. 13, and "I am totally in love."

Allman's failed marriages make up a significant part of "My Cross to Bear," a best-seller after its release May 1. He offers a rare glimpse into his private life, detailing the rise and collapse of his relationship with Cher, among other topics. It's clear his failed relationships haunt him. He told the AP he has a distrust of the institution of marriage and has been left with the feeling that few, if any, of his wives were actually deeply in love with him.

No date has been set for the marriage.

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Online:

http://www.greggallman.com/

[Associated Press; By CHRIS TALBOTT]

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