Devon Allman Marries Dr. Ashley Eavenson on Sprawling Missouri Estate: See the Wedding Photos (Exclusive)

The Allman Family Revival musician tied the knot at Westwind Hills on May 5

It may have taken five years for Allman Family Revival's Devon Allman and his love Dr. Ashley Eavenson to tie the knot, but just a handful of weeks and a brush with death for the couple to realize they were in love.

"I was in Germany on tour, and I had to have a massive surgery where I had a 50/50 chance of living," recalls Allman, 50, during an interview with PEOPLE about his 2019 health battle that ended up requiring serious intestinal surgery. "She flew over there, and that just proved a lot about her character when she came over."

"I was with him in the hospital for a long time," remembers Eavenson, 35, a former St. Louis Rams cheerleader who now works as a chiropractic physician in the suburbs of St. Louis. "We went through a lot in the very beginning."

But now, it's onto a whole new beginning for the couple, who officially became husband and wife on May 5 during an exquisite yet fun-filled ceremony at Westwind Hills in Pacific, Missouri.

"It's desolate in a beautiful way,” Allman tells PEOPLE about the couple's wedding venue while honeymooning in Cape Town, South Africa. "We wanted to make our guests really feel like they were getting out of town for the day and the evening. It was gorgeous. Ash really knocked it out of the park with every aspect of it, from the layout to the flower arrangements to the band."

Not surprisingly, music did serve as the ultimate centerpiece of the day, with everyone from Alex Orbison (son of Roy Orbison), Duane Betts (son of Dickey Betts of The Allman Brothers Band), Jimmy Hall and Orion Gregory Allman (Devon's son) to country artist Maggie Rose in attendance.

"We had some beautiful John Coltrane records playing as people were seated," says the son of late rock legend Gregg Allman. "We had a custom string quartet playing some French music for the ceremony that was just beautiful. We had a rock band and had a DJ and then it was Cinco de Mayo."

(Leading the band for the night was JD Simo, who did all of the guitar work on the recent Elvis film.)

Related: Devon Allman Pays Tribute to Late Dad Gregg with Reimagined Version of 'These Days' with Maggie Rose

Indeed, the reception took "a complete left turn" when a four-piece mariachi band took over. "They led everyone out to the front of the venue, where these 20-foot spark fireworks went off and a taco truck pulled up."

Of course, the entirety of the day and night took much planning, planning that seemed to fall in Eavenson's lap primarily.

"[Devon] is used to putting on these huge events, but he was even impressed with how the night went,” recalls the bride, who worked alongside Belli Fiori for the florals for the event. "It was really cool for him to be so blown away at the work I've been doing for months."

"Ultimately, the night played out in four different scenes," adds Allman, who proposed to Eavenson while vacationing together in Europe in July of 2022. "It was the ceremony scene and then the cocktail party scene and then the dinner and then the rock show."

But no matter what, the spotlight always shown on their love.

"He's the biggest softie in the world," says Eavenson of her award-winning singer, guitarist, songwriter, and producer husband. "That's my favorite thing about him. He's this rock and roller, but really, he is this big teddy bear."

And it was this "teddy bear" that couldn't help but spend a portion of the night thinking about what his late father would think of his now-wife.

"He would be so impressed by how put together of a woman that she is," Allman says quietly. "She is so very selfless. She really gives of herself with her job and all her friends. Everyone will tell you that she always puts everybody first. She's a giver to the core. Everyone who has Ash in their lives are better for it."

The couple recently wrapped their honeymoon, basking in the bliss of a time that had them visiting everywhere from Dubai to Milan to Lake Como before Allman embarked on a European tour.

"This is really shaping up to be the most insane year of my life," he says with a laugh. "In a good way, of course."

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