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David Allyn
The David Allyn Big Band, March 1992
Source:
JazzWax by Marc Myers
Vocalist David Allyn led a superb big band in New York in the early 1990s. Which makes sense, given the bands he sang for starting in the 1940s. His career list includes bands led by Jack Teagarden, Boyd Raeburn, Lyle Griffin, Johnny Mandel, Bill Holman, Johnny Richards, Dave Terry and Bob Florence. Fortunately for us, Paul Cammarata, who produced David's big band gigs at New York's Red Blazer Too, videotaped or audiotaped Allyn and the band's appearance in March 1992. ...
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David Allyn: Radio Interview
Source:
JazzWax by Marc Myers
One of the finest pure-jazz male vocalists in the LP era was David Allyn. He easily was among the hippest up-tempo singers and one of the most heartbreaking balladeers. It's hard not to snap your fingers when David launches into swingers on albums or tear up when he works a vulnerable torch song. David had amazing early experience, starting with trombonist Jack Teagarden in 1941, the same year Frank Sinatra was with trombonist Tommy Dorsey. As great as David was, ...
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David Allyn: When Love Comes
Source:
JazzWax by Marc Myers
I listened extensively to the Boyd Raeburn Orchestra over the weekend while writing. I'm always awed by the band and how sophisticated it was as early as 1944. Nearly all of the musicians who played in the Raeburn bands turned out to be exceptional. The list includes Johnny Mandel, Hal McKusick, Al Cohn, Don Lamond, Pinky Savitt, Earl Swope, Serge Chaloff and on and on. As for the Raeburn arrangers, they included George Handy, Johnny Mandel, George Williams, Ed Finckel, ...
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David Allyn: Where You At?
Source:
JazzWax by Marc Myers
Singer David Allyn joined Jack Teagarden's band in early 1940—just months after Frank Sinatra began singing with Tommy Dorsey. Both singers learned a great deal about phrasing from their trombonist bosses. When Sinatra left Dorsey in '42 to record as a solo artist at Columbia, Allyn went into the Army. After Allyn returned to the States in the mid-40s and recovered from battle shock suffered in North Africa, he began singing with Boyd Raeburn's band. While Sinatra became a heartthrob ...
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Hidden Downloads: David Allyn
Source:
JazzWax by Marc Myers
One of my favorite male vocal albums is A Sure Thing: David Allyn Sings Jerome Kern. Recorded originally for World Pacific 55 years ago this November, the album was arranged and conducted by Johnny Mandel. Johnny and David were both in Boyd Raeburn's band at the same time in the mid-1940s and maintained a lifelong friendship. A Sure Thing—long out of print—also happens to be available again. More in a minute. A Sure Thing was recorded just after David was released ...
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David Allyn: A Swing for Joey
Source:
JazzWax by Marc Myers
Last week I came across a rather haunting and brief David Allyn vocal ballad called A Swing for Joey. It runs all of 32 measures, without a repeating chorus or a break for solos. Curious, I did a little research and found that the song was recorded only twice--both times by David. The first recording of the song was for David's 1964 album This Is My Lucky Day (Everest), with big band arrangements by Bob Florence. The second was for ...
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Interview: David Allyn (Part 2)
Source:
JazzWax by Marc Myers
True confession: I probably listen to David Allyn's A Sure Thing (World Pacific) from 1957 at least once every two weeks. The album features soaring charts by Johnny Mandel, and it's among the most perfect male vocal packages ever recorded. That's a pretty big statement, but you won't find much pushback from those who own it or know it. David's vocals on the record are crushed velvet valentines that never feel sticky or forced. On each track, David delivers an ...
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Interview: David Allyn (Part 1)
Source:
JazzWax by Marc Myers
David Allyn is a singer's singer. All jazz vocalists with a heart have a tender spot for David's warm, passionate baritone. Leading arrangers and jazz musicians from the 1940s and 1950s, including Johnny Mandel, Hal McKusick, Joe Wilder and others who came up during this era, also love David's voice and intonation. Before Chet Baker, before Johnny Hartman and before Jackie Paris, David pioneered the sensitive male ballad, and his confessional phrasing remains remarkable today. [Photo: David Allyn, left, with ...
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Music
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trumpet and vocals
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vocals
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Bobby Darin
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David Allyn
Instrument: Vocals
Born: July 19, 1923
Died: November 22, 2012
