President Jimmy Carter planning to attend Gregg Allman's funeral on Saturday

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Eddie Mullholland-WPA Pool/Getty Images; Danny Clinch

Eddie Mullholland-WPA Pool/Getty Images; Danny ClinchPresident Jimmy Carter has revealed that he will attend the funeral of Gregg Allman on Saturday in Macon, Georgia, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.

“Gregg Allman was there when I needed him and [my wife] Rosalynn and I have always been grateful to him,” the 92-year-old Carter says in a statement. He adds that he “will attend the funeral to show my respect and concern,” while noting that he was very proud to participate in a June 2016 ceremony at Mercer University in Macon where he presented the late rocker with an honorary doctorate.

“Rosalynn and I were deeply saddened when we learned that Greg Allman had passed,” Carter also notes in the statement.

He then goes on to talk about his long friendship with Allman, pointing out that “Gregg and the Allman Brothers Band were very helpful to me in my 1976 presidential campaign…The band got the campaign political attention and raised much needed funds.”

Before he ran for president, Carter invited Allman to a party in 1974 — when he was Georgia’s governor — that he hosted for Bob Dylan at the Governor’s Mansion. After Carter was elected president, the Allman Brothers Band attended his Inaugural Ball in Washington, D.C., as his guests.

A private memorial for Gregg is set for 1 p.m. ET on Saturday at Snow’s Memorial Chapel in Macon. Allman will be buried at Macon’s Rose Hill Cemetery, next to two of his Allman Brothers band mates — his brother Duane and founding bassist Berry Oakley. Although the services will be private, a note on GreggAllman.com reports that the Allman family is inviting fans to line the motorcade route between the funeral home and the cemetery.

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