Despite a good cover of Muddy Waters' "Can't Lose What You Never Had" -- highlighted by a great Dickey Betts solo -- the Allman Brothers Band sounds lethargic at times on Win, Lose or Draw, although they still play decently. The title track and Dickey Betts' instrumental, "High Falls," are among the few highlights, decent but unexceptional performances sparked by Betts' playing (which is engaging even on the weaker tracks like "Louisiana Lou"). The album's main fault lies not with what it is (it's a fairly decent outing, actually), but what it could have been, and who it's from -- as a debut album from a new band, it would be excusable and acceptable. ~ Bruce Eder, All Music Guide
This record was the end of the line for the band at the time. After the very successful Brothers and Sisters two years previously, the group had fallen prey to internal tensions. Dickey Betts (continuing to be billed as Richard Betts for this album) had seemingly taken over from Gregg Allman as the de facto bandleader, while both had issued solo albums.
Due to being tied to the West Coast, much of Allman's vocals and instrumentation were recorded at the Record Plant Studios in Los Angeles, California, with the vocals and instrumentation of the rest being recorded at Capricorn Studios in Macon, Georgia. Additionally, drummers Butch Trucks and Jaimoe went missing from "Louisiana Lou and Three Card Monty John" and the Billy Joe Shaver cover "Sweet Mama (Lay Your Burdens Down)", replaced with producer Johnny Sandlin (who had drummed in the pre-Allman Brothers Band group The Hour Glass) and occasional road drummer Bill Stewart.
In any case, there were a few modest highlights on Win, Lose or Draw: the dynamic Muddy Waters cover "Can't Lose What You Never Had", sung strongly by Allman with start-stop mini-false endings; the long, fluid Betts instrumental "High Falls"; and the title track, which reflected Allman's Jackson Browne-influenced work from his Laid Back solo album. But in general, reviews of the album were negative, commenting on a lack of energy, formulaic songwriting, and indifferent sound.
The album reached #5 on the Billboard 200 albums chart based on their previous popularity. The record had been highly anticipated a year earlier, but now the Allmans' moment was passing. Long ethereal jams were out of vogue; by autumn 1975 other trends were in the air, from Bruce Springsteen's high-energy Jersey dramas to Patti Smith's intense proto-punk poetry, with punk rock and disco music just around the corner. The Allman Brothers would dissolve in acrimony the following year, and a late 1970s reunion attempt notwithstanding, would not reclaim their spot in the American musical pantheon until their successful 1989 reformation.
