John P. Allen (musician)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

John P. Allen is a Canadian country, rock and bluegrass fiddler.

Allen was a member of the rock band Great Speckled Bird in the 1970s, and played with bluegrass bands the Good Brothers, Big Redd Ford and the Dixie Flyers.[1][2] He played country fiddle as a member of Tommy Hunter's band. Allen joined the country band Prairie Oyster in 1982, with whom he won six Juno awards.[3][4][5][6]

In 2005 Allen recorded an album, The Canadian ̶ F̶̶i̶̶d̶̶d̶̶l̶̶e̶ Violin, featuring a mix of original music and a few carefully chosen covers covering a wide range of musical styles.[3][7] The album was produced , son of Allen's Prairie Oyster bandmate .[8] A second solo album, A Canadian Portrait, followed in 2008 sticking more closely to traditional country music.

Allen experienced cardio-vascular health problems in the spring of 2019 resulting in a successful heart transplant, but has been unable to work since (as of December 2019). A star-studded benefit was held for him in Thorndale, Ontario on December 8, 2019.[9]

As a member of Prairie Oyster, Allen was inducted into the Canadian Country Music Hall of Fame in 2008. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2019.[10]

Discography[]

See also Prairie Oyster

  • The Canadian ̶ F̶̶i̶̶d̶̶d̶̶l̶̶e̶ Violin (2005)
  • A Canadian Portrait (2008) - as "John P. Allen With The Bachelor Farmers"

External links[]

References[]

  1. ^ Lederman, Ann; Christina Smith. "Fiddling". Encyclopedia of Music in Canada. Historica Dominion. Retrieved 21 March 2013.
  2. ^ "Dixie Flyers". Encyclopedia of Music in Canada. Historica Dominion. Retrieved 21 March 2013.
  3. ^ Jump up to: a b Quill, Greg, "CD Reviews - John P. Allen:The Canadian Violin". Toronto Daily Star, 28 April 2005
  4. ^ "Prairie Oyster, BMG, Hope to Turn U.S. Tide with New 'Moon'", Billboard, 30 Apr 1994
  5. ^ Country music matinees kick off with six-time Juno winner, St. Catherines Standard, 30 April 2010
  6. ^ CCMA Honors Canadian Country, Billboard, 1 Sep 1996 - Page 47
  7. ^ John P. Allen The Canadian Violin, CD review, exclaim.ca, August 2005
  8. ^ https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0861898/bio
  9. ^ https://lfpress.com/entertainment/music/musicians-gather-at-purple-hill-to-help-canadian-fiddle-icon-john-p-allen
  10. ^ https://fclma.ca/class-of-2019-2/
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