American blues guitarist, singer and songwriter
Rockin' Dave Allen
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![](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/84/Rockin_Dave_Allen.jpg/200px-Rockin_Dave_Allen.jpg) |
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Birth name
| David Allen Stich
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Also known as
| Dave Allen, Rockin' Dave Allen, Dave "The Man" Allen
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Born
| (
1941-09-27
)
September 27, 1941
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Origin
| Houston
,
Texas
, United States
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Died
| April 28, 1985
(1985-04-28)
(aged 43)
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Genres
| Blues
,
swamp pop
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Instrument(s)
| Guitar
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Years active
| 1957?1985
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Website
| www
.daveallenblues
.com
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Musical artist
David Allen Stich
(September 27, 1941 ? April 28, 1985), also known as
Rockin' Dave Allen
and
Dave Allen
, was an American
blues
guitarist
, singer and songwriter. Allen performed live throughout
Texas
and the
Gulf Coast
area from the late 1950s through the early 1980s. He recorded for the Jin, Eric,
International Artists
, Rock-a-Billy and Big Orange record labels for a total of sixteen
45
sides and two vinyl
LPs
. Some of this material has also appeared on
compact disc
anthologies by
Ace Records
. Approximately eighty minutes of Allen’s recordings remain unreleased.
Biography
[
edit
]
Allen was born in
Houston
, Texas but his family moved to
Franklin
, a farming and ranching community in central Texas, just before he started school. Allen exhibited musical talent at an early age, picking out melodies on the
mandolin
when he was five years old and playing the
fiddle
on a local radio program in nearby
College Station
shortly thereafter. He got his first guitar, a
Silvertone
archtop
from
Sears
, at the age of twelve. Allen turned professional at the age of fourteen, playing regularly with Richard Smith and the Hill Boppers.
[1]
Although mostly familiar only with country music up to this point, Allen saw one of
Elvis Presley’s
early Texas performances in 1955 and began to emulate the playing style of Presley’s guitarist,
Scotty Moore
.
Rockabilly
and
rock ‘n’ roll
soon became his main interest and he acquired a 1956
Fender Stratocaster
and a Silvertone
amplifier
.
Allen’s family returned to Houston in 1957 where he enrolled in
Sam Houston High School
and became a regular member of the house band at Van’s Club, later known as Van’s Ballroom. Here he took the
stage name
“Rockin’ Dave Allen.”
[2]
His band was called The Thunderbirds. In the fall of 1959, Allen bought a
Fender Jazzmaster
and had his first record release on Jin records, “Give Me One More Chance” backed with “Rose Marie.” Both were original compositions by Allen. “My Broken Heart” followed and was his first record to hit the southern charts.
[3]
With his third release “Shirley Jean”
[4]
and then with his fourth “Walking Slowly,” Allen broke into the
Top 10
charts of the south. These pop singles led to TV appearances, concert tours and dates at the largest clubs across the southern U.S. alongside such stars as
Jimmy Clanton
,
Roy Orbison
,
Bobby Vee
,
Charlie Rich
,
Mickey Gilley
,
Bobby “Blue” Bland
,
Jimmy Reed
,
Roy Head
,
Doug Sahm
,
Chuck Jackson
,
T-Bone Walker
,
Bobby Vinton
, Gene Thomas,
Johnnie Allan
,
Rod Bernard
,
Joe Barry
, Jivin’ Gene and
Doug Kershaw
. This was the most financially successful period of Allen’s career.
Allen had become an avid listener of Houston’s two African-American radio stations,
KCOH
and
KYOK
, and the
rhythm and blues
they both played, music that had not generally been available to him growing up in Franklin. He became an ardent admirer of Jimmy Reed and
B.B. King
and covered Reed’s song “Can’t Stand to See You Go” on the Jin label in 1960.
[5]
From that point on, he gravitated towards playing mostly blues.
Following the
British Invasion
in 1964, Allen found himself without a recording contract after cutting four 45 sides for
Huey Meaux
. Allen dropped the adjective “Rockin’” from his name and made his living performing live with his recently purchased
Gibson ES-345
and
Fender Twin Reverb
amplifier. In 1968,
Lelan Rogers
of International Artists Records (hereinafter referred to as IA) in Houston signed Allen to a recording contract.
[6]
The label was primarily known for its roster of Texas
psychedelic rock
bands, including the
13th Floor Elevators
,
Bubble Puppy
and the
Red Krayola
.
[7]
IA was also a part-owner of the Love Street Light Circus Feel Good Machine, a psychedelic nightclub at
Allen’s Landing
where Allen sometimes performed.
Allen recorded with
Big Walter Price
“The Thunderbird” and wrote and played for
blue-eyed soul
singer Jimmy Rogers at IA before recording his own album
Color Blind
, composed of eleven original songs recorded in the fall of 1968 and released in the summer of 1969. This was the eleventh of only twelve albums released by IA and its only blues album other than Free Form Patterns by
Lightnin’ Hopkins
.
[8]
Due to a lack of promotion and distribution along with other factors relating to IA’s impending bankruptcy,
Color Blind
was not a success at the time. Nevertheless, Allen had the opportunity to begin recording a second album before creditors padlocked the doors to IA Studios (now
SugarHill Studios
).
[9]
From these February 1970 sessions, two tracks, “Saturday A.M. Blues” and a cover of “C.C. Rider” still exist and have appeared on IA anthologies. Three other tracks, “Mardi Gras,” “Lord, Take Me Today” and a cover of “Folsom Prison Blues” are presumed lost.
Allen's disappointment following
Color Blind
, combined with his concomitant divorce and the relocation of his young daughter to another state, triggered a
depressive disorder
with which Allen would struggle for the remainder of his life. His daily use of
terpin hydrate
elixir with
codeine
(until such time as it was no longer available over the counter),
alcohol
and
tobacco
exacerbated his mental condition and compromised his physical health.
[10]
Allen performed onstage throughout the Houston area up until his death from
pneumonia
in 1985 at the age of forty-three.
In 1979, Rock-a-Billy Productions of
Lafayette, Louisiana
compiled all ten of Allen’s Jin singles into a vinyl LP entitled
Southern Rock ‘n’ Roll of the ’60s
. Allen himself wrote the
liner notes
for this reissue. In 1989,
Charly Records
reissued
Color Blind
on vinyl on the Decal label. Beginning in the early 1990s, Allen’s Jin singles began to appear on
swamp pop
anthologies by Ace Records on compact disc. In November 2010,
Snapper Music
issued a deluxe, limited edition of Color Blind, its first-ever release on compact disc. Allen’s numerous unreleased
demos
and a tape of a live performance from 1972 are being held in trust by his heirs for future consideration.
[11]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
(22 September 1955), “Hillbilly Jamboree Here Draws Capacity Crowd,” The Franklin Texan (Franklin).
- ^
Bernard, Shane K. (1996), Swamp Pop: Cajun and Creole Rhythm and Blues, University Press of Mississippi, p. 62,
ISBN
0-87805-875-3
.
- ^
(25 April 1960), “Reviews of New Pop Records,” The Billboard, p. 157, (New York).
- ^
Broven, John (1983), South to Louisiana: The Music of the Cajun Bayous, Pelican Publishing, p. 217,
ISBN
0-88289-608-3
.
- ^
Romano, Will (2006), Big Boss Man: The Life & Music of Bluesman Jimmy Reed, Backbeat Books, p. 100,
ISBN
0-87930-878-8
.
- ^
Bogdanov, Vladimir; Woodstra, Chris; Erlewine, Stephen Thomas (2003), All Music Guide to the Blues, 3rd ed., Hal Leonard Corporation, p. 5,
ISBN
0-87930-736-6
.
- ^
Drummond, Paul (2007), Eye Mind: The Saga of Roky Erickson and the 13th Floor Elevators, Process Media, p. 338,
ISBN
978-0-9760822-6-2
.
- ^
Lundborg, Patrick (2008), The International Artists label, Story and Discography.
- ^
Bradley, Andy; Wood, Roger (2010), House of Hits: The Story of Houston’s Gold Star/SugarHill Recording Studios, University of Texas Press, p. 180,
ISBN
978-0-292-71919-4
.
- ^
Redeker, Gary (February 2010), Color Blind reissue liner notes, p. 9, Snapper catalog number SNAX619CD.
- ^
Dansby, Andrew (12 March 2010), “Bluesman Dave Allen’s Life Turned Out Like the Songs He Played,” The Houston Chronicle, (Houston).
External links
[
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]
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International
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National
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Artists
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