The Great Tony Allen
Over the course of my journey as a musician there have been a select number of people that I received pure inspiration and encouragement from. Whether it be through words of conformation or just a good hang over a meal. Tony Allen was one of those people. I had the pleasure to work with Tony on a number of occasions while drumming for the Chicago Afrobeat Project. My history with the band dates back well over ten years now and was my first exploration into studying the music seriously. Working with Tony in a band meant that I played a portion of songs up top and he finished the show off.
The first show I played with Tony was on July 26th, 2013 at the Cedar Cultural Center up in Minneapolis. To say I was nervous is an understatement. Tony was in his seventies and could sit down and make the band groove while singing. For whatever reason I didn’t ride up with the band so we didn’t really get a chance to talk until we got to the venue. The show was packed and people came to see him, in the back of my mind I wanted to hurry up and finish my songs to hear him. Once the show ended we were all hanging in the green room and he told me, “You got it”. I was so encouraged even though I knew I still had a lot of work to do. Luckily that concert is archived online and can be heard here. The energy total shifts once he begins to play. He stayed in Chicago for about a week following that show. Over the course of the we got to spend sometime together. It was during this time that I got a chance to learn more about the man outside of the music. My son and I went to go hang with and a few other drummer on a random summer afternoon.
While he was in town on that trip they tracked the sessions for CAbP’s latest release What Goes Up. He presented a master class and they filmed most of this documentary about is approach and grooves. To cap off a week with Tony we played another show on August 1st, 2013 at Reggie’s Rock Club in Chicago. After he left I had the chance to unpack the experience.
In December of 2017 Tony came to play the album release show with Chicago Afrobeat Project for What Goes Up. This time it was more of a celebration and my memory of this show is the energy shifting when Tony sat behind the drums. Though he had given me lessons, pointers and confirmation I still didn’t make the band settle like he was able to. Tony was a master at manipulating time and his touch on the hi-hat and bass drum was like no other. Since his passing, there was an op-ed posted on okayafrica stating that Tony was not the co-founder of Afrobeat music and that Fela is the sole originator. I liken this to James Brown’s relationship with Clyde Stubblefield and Jabo Starks. They very well can be the architects of the the song from start to finish. They were able to coach their guys to get them to where they wanted them to be. But individual musicians bring themselves to every gig, without Tony Allen the music of Fela Kuti would feel different. Tony was also Fela’s musical director so he trusted him with overall sound of the band. Tony was very passionate about passing the music to the next generation. He was also still pushing himself to make new grooves and be creative behind the kit.
The last time Tony came to visit was self prompted. It seems as if he was making his rounds and spending time with all of the bands in America that he connected with over the years. I believe he was in New York before coming to see us and kept heading west after he left us. One thing that was consistent with Tony is his schedule. He was a night owl and could hang with the best of them many days waking at noon and hanging all evening. Thank you Tony for your contribution to music! Thank you for sharing your gift with me personally and given your stamp of approval! Your spirit will be missed but will live on through the many recordings that are available!!