Rockin' Dave Allen
Encyclopedia
David Allen Stich, a.k.a. Rockin’ Dave Allen, a.k.a. Dave Allen, (September 27, 1941 – April 28, 1985) 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.
, 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. 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.” 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. With his third release “Shirley Jean” 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-AM
and KYOK-AM
, 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. 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. The label was primarily known for its roster of Texas psychedelic rock
bands, including the 13th Floor Elevators
, Bubble Puppy
and the Red Krayola
. 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.
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
). 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. 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.
Blues
Blues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
guitarist
Guitarist
A guitarist is a musician who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselves on the guitar while singing.- Versatility :The guitarist controls an extremely...
, singer and songwriter. Allen performed live throughout Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
and the Gulf Coast area from the late 1950s through the early 1980s. He recorded for the Jin
Jin Records
Jin Records is a Ville Platte, Louisiana-based swamp pop record label, although some Cajun recordings have also been issued on the label. It was started by Floyd Soileau in 1958....
, Eric, International Artists
International Artists
International Artists was an independent record label based in Houston, Texas that originally existed from 1965 to 1970.During its existence IA released 12 albums and 39 singles and was owned by a group of businessmen in Houston. Among its staff were producer Lelan Rogers, brother of country...
, Rock-a-Billy and Big Orange record labels for a total of sixteen 45 sides and two vinyl LPs
LP record
The LP, or long-playing microgroove record, is a format for phonograph records, an analog sound storage medium. Introduced by Columbia Records in 1948, it was soon adopted as a new standard by the entire record industry...
. Some of this material has also appeared on compact disc
Compact Disc
The Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store digital data. It was originally developed to store and playback sound recordings exclusively, but later expanded to encompass data storage , write-once audio and data storage , rewritable media , Video Compact Discs , Super Video Compact Discs ,...
anthologies by Ace Records. Approximately eighty minutes of Allen’s recordings remain unreleased.
Biography
Allen was born in Houston, Texas but his family moved to FranklinFranklin, Texas
Franklin is a city in Robertson County, Texas, United States. The population was 1,470 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Robertson County...
, 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
Mandolin
A mandolin is a musical instrument in the lute family . It descends from the mandore, a soprano member of the lute family. The mandolin soundboard comes in many shapes—but generally round or teardrop-shaped, sometimes with scrolls or other projections. A mandolin may have f-holes, or a single...
when he was five years old and playing the fiddle
Fiddle
The term fiddle may refer to any bowed string musical instrument, most often the violin. It is also a colloquial term for the instrument used by players in all genres, including classical music...
on a local radio program in nearby College Station
College Station, Texas
College Station is a city in Brazos County, Texas, situated in East Central Texas in the heart of the Brazos Valley. The city is located within the most populated region of Texas, near three of the 10 largest cities in the United States - Houston, Dallas, and San Antonio...
shortly thereafter. He got his first guitar, a Silvertone
Silvertone (instruments)
Silvertone was the brand name used by Sears, Roebuck and Company for its line of sound equipment from 1915 to 1972. A hand-cranked phonograph was introduced under the Silvertone brand by Sears in 1915...
archtop
Archtop guitar
An archtop guitar is a steel-stringed acoustic or semi-acoustic guitar with a full body and a distinctive arched top, whose sound is particularly popular with blues and jazz players.Typically, an archtop guitar has:* 6 strings...
from Sears, at the age of twelve. Allen turned professional at the age of fourteen, playing regularly with Richard Smith and the Hill Boppers. Although mostly familiar only with country music up to this point, Allen saw one of Elvis Presley’s
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"....
early Texas performances in 1955 and began to emulate the playing style of Presley’s guitarist, Scotty Moore
Scotty Moore
Winfield Scott "Scotty" Moore III is an American guitarist. He is best known for his backing of Elvis Presley in the first part of his career, between 1954 and the beginning of Elvis' Hollywood years...
. Rockabilly
Rockabilly
Rockabilly is one of the earliest styles of rock and roll music, dating to the early 1950s.The term rockabilly is a portmanteau of rock and hillbilly, the latter a reference to the country music that contributed strongly to the style's development...
and rock ‘n’ roll soon became his main interest and he acquired a 1956 Fender Stratocaster
Fender Stratocaster
The Fender Stratocaster, often referred to as "Strat", is a model of electric guitar designed by Leo Fender, George Fullerton, and Freddie Tavares in 1954, and manufactured continuously by the Fender Musical Instruments Corporation to the present. It is a double-cutaway guitar, with an extended top...
and a Silvertone amplifier
Amplifier
Generally, an amplifier or simply amp, is a device for increasing the power of a signal.In popular use, the term usually describes an electronic amplifier, in which the input "signal" is usually a voltage or a current. In audio applications, amplifiers drive the loudspeakers used in PA systems to...
.
Allen’s family returned to Houston in 1957 where he enrolled in Sam Houston High School
Sam Houston High School (Houston)
Sam Houston Center for Math, Technology, and SciencePrincipal AdministratorJane Crump , Rolando Treviño Grade levels9 - 12Founded1878School typePublic school Religious affiliationLocation Houston, TexasEnrollment...
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
Stage name
A stage name, also called a showbiz name or screen name, is a pseudonym used by performers and entertainers such as actors, wrestlers, comedians, and musicians.-Motivation to use a stage name:...
“Rockin’ Dave Allen.” His band was called The Thunderbirds. In the fall of 1959, Allen bought a Fender Jazzmaster
Fender Jazzmaster
The Fender Jazzmaster is an electric guitar designed as an upmarket sibling to the Fender Stratocaster. First introduced at the 1958 NAMM Show, it was initially marketed at jazz guitarists, but found favor among surf rock guitarists in the early 1960s...
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. With his third release “Shirley Jean” 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
Jimmy Clanton
Jimmy Clanton is an American singer who became known as the "swamp pop R&B teenage idol". His band recorded a hit song "Just A Dream" which Clanton had written in 1958 for the Ace Records label. It reached number four on the Billboard chart and sold a million copies...
, Roy Orbison
Roy Orbison
Roy Kelton Orbison was an American singer-songwriter, well known for his distinctive, powerful voice, complex compositions, and dark emotional ballads. Orbison grew up in Texas and began singing in a rockabilly/country & western band in high school until he was signed by Sun Records in Memphis...
, Bobby Vee
Bobby Vee
Robert Thomas Velline , known as Bobby Vee, is an American pop music singer. According to Billboard magazine, Vee has had 38 Hot 100 chart hits, 10 of which hit the Top 20.-Career:...
, Charlie Rich
Charlie Rich
Charles Rich was an American country music singer and musician. A Grammy Award winner, his eclectic-style of music was often hard to classify in a single genre, playing in the rockabilly, jazz, blues, country, and gospel genres.In the latter part of his life, Rich acquired the nickname The Silver...
, Mickey Gilley
Mickey Gilley
Mickey Leroy Gilley is an American country music singer and musician. Although he started out singing straight-up country and western material in the 1970s, he moved towards a more pop-friendly sound in the 1980s, bringing him further success on not just the country charts, but the pop charts as...
, Bobby “Blue” Bland
Bobby Bland
Robert Calvin Bland better known as Bobby "Blue" Bland, is an American singer of blues and soul. He is an original member of the Beale Streeters, and is sometimes referred to as the "Lion of the Blues"...
, Jimmy Reed
Jimmy Reed
Mathis James "Jimmy" Reed was an American blues musician and songwriter, notable for bringing his distinctive style of blues to mainstream audiences. Reed was a major player in the field of electric blues, as opposed to the more acoustic-based sound of many of his contemporaries...
, Roy Head
Roy Head
Roy Head is an American singer, best known for his hit "Treat Her Right."-Career:Head achieved fame as a member of a musical group out from San Marcos, Texas known as The Traits. The group's sponsor landed their first recording contract in 1958 with TNT Music in San Antonio, Texas while they were...
, Doug Sahm
Doug Sahm
Douglas Wayne Sahm , was an American musician from Texas. Born in San Antonio, Texas, he was a child prodigy in country music, but became a significant figure in blues rock and other genres. Today Sahm is considered one of the most important figures in what is identified as Tejano music...
, Chuck Jackson
Chuck Jackson
Chuck Jackson is an R&B singer who was one of the first artists to record material by Burt Bacharach and Hal David successfully. He has performed with moderate success since 1961...
, T-Bone Walker
T-Bone Walker
Aaron Thibeaux "T-Bone" Walker was a critically acclaimed American blues guitarist, singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, who was one of the most influential pioneers and innovators of the jump blues and electric blues sound. He is the first musician recorded playing blues with the...
, Bobby Vinton
Bobby Vinton
Bobby Vinton is an American pop music singer of Polish origin. In pop music circles, he became known as "The Polish Prince".-Early life:...
, Gene Thomas, Johnnie Allan
Johnnie Allan
Johnnie Allan, real name John Allen Guillot, is a pioneer of the swamp pop musical genre.Born March 10, 1938, in Rayne, Louisiana, Allan, a Cajun, grew up in a musical family, and at age six obtained his first guitar. By age thirteen he was playing with Walter Mouton and the Scott Playboys, a...
, Rod Bernard
Rod Bernard
Rod Bernard is an American singer who helped to pioneer the musical genre known as "swamp pop", which combined New Orleans-style rhythm and blues, country and western, and Cajun and black Creole music...
, Joe Barry
Joe Barry
Joe Barry is the linebackers coach for the University of Southern California, former linebackers coach for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and the former defensive coordinator for the National Football League Detroit Lions. He is the son of former Detroit Lions assistant offensive line coach Mike Barry...
, Jivin’ Gene and Doug Kershaw
Doug Kershaw
Doug Kershaw, born January 24, 1936, is an American fiddle player, singer and songwriter from Louisiana. Active since 1949, Kershaw has recorded fifteen albums and charted on the Hot Country Songs charts.- Early life :...
. 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-AM
KCOH
KCOH is an American urban-oriented radio station under self-ownership. Its studio is located in Southeast Houston, Houston.KCOH began its broadcasting activities in 1953 and has since then maintained its urban programming such as gospel, talk, blues, etc...
and KYOK-AM
KYOK
KYOK AM is an Urban contemporary gospel radio station in the Houston, Texas metropolitan area operationg at 1140 AM during the daytime hours only. It is currently owned by Martin Broadcasting....
, and the rhythm and blues
Rhythm and blues
Rhythm and blues, often abbreviated to R&B, is a genre of popular African American music that originated in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly to urban African Americans, at a time when "urbane, rocking, jazz based music with a...
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. From that point on, he gravitated towards playing mostly blues.
Following the British Invasion
British Invasion
The British Invasion is a term used to describe the large number of rock and roll, beat, rock, and pop performers from the United Kingdom who became popular in the United States during the time period from 1964 through 1966.- Background :...
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. The label was primarily known for its roster of Texas psychedelic rock
Psychedelic rock
Psychedelic rock is a style of rock music that is inspired or influenced by psychedelic culture and attempts to replicate and enhance the mind-altering experiences of psychedelic drugs. It emerged during the mid 1960s among folk rock and blues rock bands in United States and the United Kingdom...
bands, including the 13th Floor Elevators
13th Floor Elevators
The 13th Floor Elevators were an American rock band from Austin, Texas formed by guitarist and vocalist Roky Erickson, electric jug player Tommy Hall, and guitarist Stacy Sutherland, which existed from 1965 to 1969...
, Bubble Puppy
Bubble Puppy
-Origins:The group was formed in 1966 in San Antonio, Texas by Rod Prince and Roy Cox. Looking to form a "top gun rock band" based on the concept of dual lead guitars, a staple of southern rock that was highly unusual on the psychedelic music scene, Prince and Cox recruited Todd Potter: a gymnast,...
and the Red Krayola
Red Krayola
Red Krayola was a psychedelic, avant-garde rock band from Houston, Texas, formed by art students at the University of St. Thomas in 1966. The band was led by singer/guitarist and visual artist Mayo Thompson, along with drummer Frederick Barthelme and Steve Cunningham...
. IA was also a part-owner of the Love Street Light Circus Feel Good Machine, a psychedelic nightclub at Allen’s Landing
Allen's Landing
Allen's Landing is the birthplace of the city of Houston—the largest city in the U.S. state of Texas. In August 1836, just months after the Republic of Texas won its independence from Mexico, two brothers from New York—John Kirby Allen and Augustus Chapman Allen—purchased 6,642 acres in...
where Allen sometimes performed.
Allen recorded with Big Walter Price “The Thunderbird” and wrote and played for blue-eyed soul
Blue-eyed soul
Blue-eyed soul is a media term that was used to describe rhythm and blues and soul music performed by white artists, with a strong pop music influence. The term was first used in the mid-1960s to describe white artists who performed soul and R&B that was similar to the music of the Motown and...
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.
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
SugarHill Recording Studios
SugarHill Recording Studios is a recording studio in Houston, Texas. The studio was important in launching the careers of such artists as Lightnin' Hopkins, The Big Bopper, George Jones, the Sir Douglas Quintet, Roy Head, and Freddy Fender. It is renowned for its collection of vintage regording...
). 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
Terpin hydrate
Terpin hydrate is an expectorant, commonly used to loosen mucus in the setting of acute or chronic bronchitis, and related conditions. It is derived from sources such as oil of turpentine, oregano, thyme and eucalyptus. Though it was quite popular in the USA since the late nineteenth century, it...
elixir with codeine
Codeine
Codeine or 3-methylmorphine is an opiate used for its analgesic, antitussive, and antidiarrheal properties...
(until such time as it was no longer available over the counter), alcohol
Vodka
Vodka , is a distilled beverage. It is composed primarily of water and ethanol with traces of impurities and flavorings. Vodka is made by the distillation of fermented substances such as grains, potatoes, or sometimes fruits....
and tobacco exacerbated his mental condition and compromised his physical health. Allen performed onstage throughout the Houston area up until his death from pneumonia
Pneumonia
Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung—especially affecting the microscopic air sacs —associated with fever, chest symptoms, and a lack of air space on a chest X-ray. Pneumonia is typically caused by an infection but there are a number of other causes...
in 1985 at the age of forty-three.
In 1979, Rock-a-Billy Productions of Lafayette, Louisiana
Lafayette, Louisiana
Lafayette is a city in and the parish seat of Lafayette Parish, Louisiana, United States, on the Vermilion River. The population was 120,623 at the 2010 census...
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
Liner notes
Liner notes are the writings found in booklets which come inserted into the compact disc jewel case or the equivalent packaging for vinyl records and cassettes.-Origin:...
for this reissue. In 1989, Charly Records
Charly Records
Charly Records is a British record label which specialises in reissued material.-History:Among the labels whose original releases are reissued by Charly are Vee-Jay, Sun, Immediate, BYG, Tomato, and Fania. Charly Records was founded in France in 1974 by Jean-Luc Young, who had been a promoter of...
reissued Color Blind on vinyl on the Decal label. Beginning in the early 1990s, Allen’s Jin singles began to appear on swamp pop
Swamp pop
Swamp rock is a musical genre indigenous to the Acadiana region of south Louisiana and an adjoining section of southeast Texas. Created in the 1950s and early 1960s by teenaged Cajuns and black Creoles, it combines New Orleans-style rhythm and blues, country and western, and traditional French...
anthologies by Ace Records on compact disc. In November 2010, Snapper Music
Snapper Music
Snapper Music is an independent record label founded in 1996 by former head of Castle Communications Jon Beecher, Dougie Dudgeon and funded by the late Mark Levinson from Palan Music Publishing. In 1999 Snapper broke away from its parent company in an MBO in association with ACT and CAI venture...
issued a deluxe, limited edition of Color Blind, its first-ever release on compact disc. Allen’s numerous unreleased demos
Demo (music)
A demo version or demo of a song is one recorded for reference rather than for release. A demo is a way for a musician to approximate their ideas on tape or disc, and provide an example of those ideas to record labels, producers or other artists...
and a tape of a live performance from 1972 are being held in trust by his heirs for future consideration.