James Allan is the lead singer and guitarist of the Scottish

Scotland

Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...

 rock band

Rock music

Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...

 Glasvegas

Glasvegas

Glasvegas are a Scottish indie rock band from Glasgow. The band consists of James Allan , Rab Allan , Paul Donoghue and Jonna Löfgren . The band received critical acclaim for their debut album Glasvegas which was released in September 2008, reaching No...

, and a former footballer.

Early and personal life

Born in in Dalmarnock

Dalmarnock

Dalmarnock is a district in the Scottish city of Glasgow. It is situated north of the River Clyde. It is bounded by the Clyde to the south and east, Parkhead to the north, and Bridgeton at Dunn Street to the north west...

, Glasgow

Glasgow

Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...

, he attended the city's St Mungo's Academy. Allan is a lifelong supporter of Celtic

Celtic F.C.

Celtic Football Club is a Scottish football club based in the Parkhead area of Glasgow, which currently plays in the Scottish Premier League. The club was established in 1887, and played its first game in 1888. Celtic have won the Scottish League Championship on 42 occasions, most recently in the...

.

Allan's cousin is Glasvegas bandmate/guitarist Rab Allan. His sister Denise is the band's co-manager.

Football career

Allan played as a winger for Cowdenbeath

Cowdenbeath F.C.

Cowdenbeath Football Club are a professional Scottish football team based in the town of Cowdenbeath, Fife. They currently play in the Second Division of the Scottish Football League. The club plays its home games at Central Park in the centre of the town which has the unusual feature of a motor...

, East Fife

East Fife F.C.

East Fife Football Club are a Scottish football club based in the Fife coastal town of Methil...

, Queen's Park

Queen's Park F.C.

Queen's Park Football Club are an association football club based in Glasgow, Scotland. The club are currently the only amateur club in the Scottish League; their amateur status is reflected by their motto, Ludere Causa Ludendi – to play for the sake of playing.Queen's Park are the oldest...

, Gretna

Gretna F.C.

Gretna Football Club was a Scottish football club that represented the town of Gretna, Dumfries and Galloway, close to the border between England and Scotland...

, Stirling Albion

Stirling Albion F.C.

Stirling Albion F.C. are a Scottish football club currently playing in the Scottish Second Division. The club are nicknamed The Binos . They play at Doubletree Dunblane Stadium in Stirling, on the outskirts of the city near the River Forth...

 and Dumbarton

Dumbarton F.C.

Dumbarton Football Club is Scotland's 4th oldest football club – founded in 1872, just after Queen's Park , Kilmarnock and Stranraer...

, making 105 appearances in the Scottish Football League

Scottish Football League

The Scottish Football League is a league of football teams in Scotland, comprising theScottish First Division, Scottish Second Division and Scottish Third Division. From the league's foundation in 1890 until the breakaway Scottish Premier League was formed in 1998, the Scottish Football League...

. He was part of the Cowdenbeath squad that won promotion as runners up in the 2000–01 Scottish Third Division.

Music career

During his football career, Allan decided to write songs and form a band. After touring Scotland for several years Glasvegas released four singles, before eventually being signed to Columbia. His songs deal with social issues such as absentee fathers ("Daddy's Gone

Daddy's Gone

"Daddy's Gone" is a song by Scottish Indie rock band Glasvegas. The song was written and composed by the band's singer and guitarist James Allan....

"), murder ("Flowers & Football Tops

Flowers & Football Tops

"Flowers & Football Tops" is a song by Scottish Indie rock band Glasvegas, taken from their self-titled debut album. The song was released as a single in the UK on 23 February 2009...

") and the challenges of social work ("Geraldine

Geraldine (song)

"Geraldine" is a 2008 single by Scottish Indie rock band Glasvegas. It was released on 23 June 2008 and reached #11 on the UK singles chart, and #1 on the NME chart two weeks later...

").

On 8 September 2009, bandmates Rab Allan and Paul Donoghue announced that James Allan had been missing since the previous Friday, which resulted in a no-show at the Mercury Prize

Mercury Prize

The Mercury Prize, formerly called the Mercury Music Prize and currently known as the Barclaycard Mercury Prize for sponsorship reasons, is an annual music prize awarded for the best album from the United Kingdom and Ireland. It was established by the British Phonographic Industry and British...

 awards ceremony. However he made a call to the band's manager on the 9 September 2009 that he was safe and well in New York

New York

New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...

, where Glasvegas were about to embark upon a US tour supporting Kings of Leon

Kings of Leon

Kings of Leon is an American rock band that originated in Albion, Oklahoma but formed in Nashville, Tennessee in 1999. The band is composed of brothers Anthony Caleb Followill , Ivan Nathan Followill and Michael Jared Followill Kings of Leon is an American rock band that originated in Albion,...

. It is thought that the lack of communication sourced from Allan being without a mobile phone for six months, according to fellow bandmates.

Allan cites Elvis Presley

Elvis Presley

Elvis Aaron Presley was one of the most popular American singers of the 20th century. A cultural icon, he is widely known by the single name Elvis. He is often referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll" or simply "the King"....

 and Phil Spector

Phil Spector

Phillip Harvey "Phil" Spector is an American record producer and songwriter, later known for his conviction in the murder of actress Lana Clarkson....

 as his main influences. He recently met up with Ian McCulloch

Ian McCulloch (singer)

Ian Stephen McCulloch is an English singer, born in Liverpool, and is best known as the frontman for the rock group Echo & the Bunnymen.-Career:...

, in his home city for a night out. Here, he described the Echo and the Bunnymen frontman as one of his inspirations.