Mose John Allison Jr. (November 11, 1927 – November 15, 2016) was an American

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

and

blues Blues is a music genre and musical form that originated among African Americans in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues has incorporated spiritual (music), spirituals, work songs, field hollers, Ring shout, shouts, cha ...

pianist, singer, and songwriter. He became notable for playing a unique mix of blues and modern jazz, both singing and playing piano. After moving to New York in 1956, he worked primarily in jazz settings, playing with jazz musicians like

Stan Getz Stan Getz (born Stanley Gayetski; February 2, 1927 – June 6, 1991) was an American jazz saxophonist. Playing primarily the tenor saxophone, Getz was known as "The Sound" because of his warm, lyrical tone, with his prime influence being the wis ...

Al Cohn Al Cohn (November 24, 1925 – February 15, 1988) was an American jazz saxophonist, arranger and composer. He came to prominence in the band of clarinetist Woody Herman and was known for his longtime musical partnership with fellow saxophonist ...

, and

Zoot Sims John Haley "Zoot" Sims (October 29, 1925 – March 23, 1985) was an American jazz saxophonist, playing mainly tenor but also alto (and, later, soprano) saxophone. He first gained attention in the "Four Brothers" sax section of Woody Herman's big ...

, along with producing numerous recordings. He is described as having been "one of the finest songwriters in 20th-century blues."Bogdanov, Vladimir; Woodstra, Chris, eds. (2003). ''All Music Guide to the Blues: The Definitive Guide to the Blues''. Hal Leonard. p. 7. His songs were strongly dependent on evoking moods, with his individualistic, "quirky", and subtle ironic humor.Komara, Edward; Lee, Peter, eds. (2006). ''The Blues Encyclopedia''. Routledge. p. 22. His writing influence on R&B had well-known fans recording his songs, among them

Pete Townshend Peter Dennis Blandford Townshend (; born 19 May 1945) is an English musician. He is the co-founder, guitarist, keyboardist, second lead vocalist, principal songwriter and leader of the Who, one of the most influential rock bands of the 1960s an ...

, who recorded his "

Young Man Blues "Young Man Blues" is a song by jazz artist Mose Allison. Allison first recorded it in March 1957 for his debut album, '' Back Country Suite'', in which it appears under the title "Back Country Suite: Blues". In Allison's two-CD compilation set of ...

" for

the Who The Who are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1964. Their classic lineup (1964–1978) consisted of lead vocalist Roger Daltrey, guitarist Pete Townshend, bassist John Entwistle and drummer Keith Moon. Considered one of th ...

's ''

Live at Leeds ''Live at Leeds'' is the first live album by the English rock music, rock band the Who, recorded at the University of Leeds Refectory on 14 February 1970 and released on 11 May 1970, by Decca Records, Decca and MCA Records, MCA in the United St ...

'' album in 1970.

John Mayall John Brumwell Mayall (29 November 1933 – 22 July 2024) was an English blues and Rock music, rock musician, songwriter and producer. In the 1960s, he formed John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers, a band that has counted among its members some of ...

was one of dozens who recorded his classic, " Parchman Farm", and

Georgie Fame Georgie Fame (born Clive Powell; 26 June 1943) is an English R&B and jazz musician. Fame, who had a string of 1960s hits, is still performing, often working with contemporaries such as Alan Price, Van Morrison and Bill Wyman. Fame is the only B ...

used many of Allison's songs. Others who recorded his songs included Leon Russell ("I'm Smashed"),

The Clash The Clash were an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1976. Billed as "The Only Band That Matters", they are considered one of the most influential acts in the original wave of British punk rock, with their music fusing elements ...

("Look Here"), and

Bonnie Raitt Bonnie Lynn Raitt (; born November 8, 1949) is an American singer, guitarist, and songwriter. In 1971, Raitt released her Bonnie Raitt (album), self-titled debut album. Following this, she released a series of critically acclaimed Americana (mu ...

("Everybody's Cryin' Mercy"). The 1980s saw an increase in his popularity with new fans drawn to his unique blend of modern jazz. In the 1990s he began recording more consistently.

Van Morrison Sir George Ivan "Van" Morrison (born 31 August 1945) is a Northern Irish singer-songwriter and musician whose recording career started in the 1960s. Morrison's albums have performed well in the UK and Ireland, with more than 40 reaching the UK ...

and Ben Sidran collaborated with him on a tribute album, ''Tell Me Something: The Songs of Mose Allison''. The Pixies wrote the song "Allison" as a tribute. Allison's music had an important influence on other artists, such as

Jimi Hendrix James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942September 18, 1970) was an American singer-songwriter and musician. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential guitarists of all time. Inducted ...

J. J. Cale John Weldon "J. J." Cale (December 5, 1938 – July 26, 2013) was an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter. Though he avoided the limelight, his influence as a musical artist has been acknowledged by figures such as Neil Young, Mark Knopf ...

the Yardbirds The Yardbirds are an English rock music, rock band formed in London in 1963. The band started the careers of three of rock's most famous guitarists: Eric Clapton (1963–1965), Jeff Beck (1965–1966) and Jimmy Page (1966–1968), all of whom ...

the Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for over six decades, they are one of the most popular, influential, and enduring bands of the Album era, rock era. In the early 1960s, the band pione ...

Tom Waits Thomas Alan Waits (born December 7, 1949) is an American musician, composer, songwriter, and actor. His lyrics often focus on society's underworld and are delivered in his trademark deep, gravelly voice. He began in the American folk music, fo ...

, and

. He was inducted into the Long Island Music Hall of Fame in 2006.

Early life

Allison was born in Tallahatchie County, Mississippi on his grandfather's farm (known as "the Island"), located outside the small unincorporated community of Tippo. The farm got the name, according to Allison, "because Tippo Bayou encircles it." He took piano lessons at 5, picked cotton, played piano in grammar school and trumpet in high school,Feather, Leonard; Gitler, Ira (2007). ''The Biographical Encyclopedia of Jazz''. Oxford University Press. p. 14. and wrote his first song at 13. Allison attended the

University of Mississippi The University of Mississippi (Epithet, byname Ole Miss) is a Public university, public research university in University, near Oxford, Mississippi, United States, with a University of Mississippi Medical Center, medical center in Jackson, Miss ...

for a while and then enlisted in the U.S. Army for two years. Shortly after mustering out, he enrolled at

Louisiana State University Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as Louisiana State University (LSU), is an American Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louis ...

(LSU), from which he graduated in 1952 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in English with a minor in philosophy. Allison received an Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from LSU in 2008.

Career

In 1956, Allison moved to New York City and launched his jazz career, performing with artists such as

, Gerry Mulligan,

, and Phil Woods. His debut album, '' Back Country Suite'', was issued by

Prestige Prestige may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Films *Prestige (film), ''Prestige'' (film), a 1932 American film directed by Tay Garnett: woman travels to French Indochina to meet up with husband *The Prestige (film), ''The Prestige'' (fi ...

in 1957. He formed his own trio in 1958, with Addison Farmer on bass and Nick Stabulas on drums. In 1959, he released a single " The Seventh Son" on one side and " Do Nothing Till You Hear from Me" on the other side. It was not until 1963 that his record label allowed him to release an album entirely of vocals. Entitled ''Mose Allison Sings'', it was a compilation of songs from his previous Prestige albums that paid tribute to artists, including

Willie Dixon William James Dixon (July 1, 1915January 29, 1992) was an American blues musician, vocalist, songwriter, arranger and record producer. He was proficient in playing both the upright bass and the guitar, and sang with a distinctive voice, but he ...

(" The Seventh Son", the first track the album), the Mojo Triangle: Sonny Boy Williamson (" Eyesight to the Blind"), and Jimmy Rogers ("That's All Right"). However, an original composition, with no connection other than the same title to "Bukka" White's 1940 "Parchman Farm", on the album brought him the most attention: "Parchman Farm". For more than two decades, "Parchman Farm" was his most requested song. He dropped it from his playlist in the 1980s partly because some critics felt it was politically incorrect, but also, he specified, because, "You go to the Mississippi Delta and there are no cotton sacks. It's all machines and chemicals." Allison in 2007 Prestige tried to market Allison as a

pop star A pop icon is a celebrity, character, or object whose exposure in popular culture is regarded as constituting a defining characteristic of a given society or era. The usage of the term is largely subjective since there are no definitively object ...

, but Columbia and later

Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the Age of Discovery, it was known for se ...

tried to market him as a

artist. Because he sang blues, '' Jet'' magazine thought that he was black and wanted to interview him. His album '' The Way of the World'', released in March 2010, was his first after a 12-year absence from the recording studio. In 2012, Allison was honored with a marker on the Mississippi Blues Trail in his hometown of Tippo. On January 14, 2013, he was named a Jazz Master by the

National Endowment for the Arts The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created in 1965 as an independent agency of the feder ...

, the nation's highest honor in jazz, in a ceremony at

Lincoln Center Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts (also simply known as Lincoln Center) is a complex of buildings in the Lincoln Square neighborhood on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. It has thirty indoor and outdoor facilities and is host to 5 ...

in New York. Allison wrote some 150 songs. His performances were described as being "delivered in a casual conversational way with a melodic southern accented tone that has a pitch and range ideally suited to his idiosyncratic phrasing, laconic approach and ironic sense of humour."

Influence and legacy

A reporter interviewing Allison once stated he was "a social critic before

Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan; born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Described as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture over his nearly 70-year ...

, satirical long before

Randy Newman Randall Stuart Newman (born November 28, 1943) is an American singer, songwriter, arranger, pianist, composer, conductor and orchestrator. He is known for his non-rhotic Southern American English, Southern-accented singing style, early America ...

and rude before

Mick Jagger Sir Michael Philip Jagger (born 26 July 1943) is an English musician. He is known as the lead singer and one of the founder members of The Rolling Stones. Jagger has co-written most of the band's songs with lead guitarist Keith Richards; Jagge ...

." His music influenced many

and rock artists, including

(who made "Young Man Blues" a staple of their live performances), and

, who described him as "more important than Bob Dylan". Blue Cheer recorded a version of his song "Parchman Farm" on their debut album, as did

Cactus A cactus (: cacti, cactuses, or less commonly, cactus) is a member of the plant family Cactaceae (), a family of the order Caryophyllales comprising about 127 genera with some 1,750 known species. The word ''cactus'' derives, through Latin, ...

. The Yardbirds and the Misunderstood both recorded versions of his song "I'm Not Talking".

Manfred Mann Manfred Mann were an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. They were named after their keyboardist Manfred Mann (musician), Manfred Mann, who later led the successful 1970s group Manfred Mann's Earth Band. The group had two l ...

also recorded a version for the BBC.

John Evan John Evan (born John Spencer Evans; born 28 March 1948, in Derby, Derbyshire) is a British musician and composer. He is best known as the keyboardist for Jethro Tull from April 1970 to June 1980. Early life Evans' father was headmaster at a ...

s, keyboardist for the band Jethro Tull, was influenced by Allison's piano playing, which he described as "so deceptively simple and impressive." Allison helped open the "blues' racial divide, proving that a white man from rural Mississippi could hold his own in a traditionally black genre." The effort proved difficult, which he described in the lyrics of "Ever Since I Stole the Blues", one of his most famous songs: ''"Well the blues police from down in Dixieland / Tried to catch me with the goods on hand / Ever since the white boy stole the blues."'' His song "Look Here" was covered by

the Clash The Clash were an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1976. Billed as "The Only Band That Matters", they are considered one of the most influential acts in the original wave of British punk rock, with their music fusing elements ...

on their album '' Sandinista!''. Leon Russell covered Allison's song "Smashed!" on his album ''Stop All That Jazz''. Allison performed with

, Georgie Fame, and Ben Sidran on the album '' Tell Me Something: The Songs of Mose Allison''.

Elvis Costello Declan Patrick MacManus (born 25 August 1954), known professionally as Elvis Costello, is an English singer, songwriter, record producer, author and television host. According to ''Rolling Stone'', Costello "reinvigorated the literate, lyrical ...

recorded "Everybody's Cryin' Mercy" for his album '' Kojak Variety'' and "Your Mind Is on Vacation" for '' King of America'' (bonus tracks). Dani Klein, of the Belgian music act Vaya Con Dios, recorded "Mind on Vacation" for the album '' Roots and Wings'', as did Canadian musician Colin James on his 1997 album ''National Steel''. Frank Black, of the band the Pixies, said that the song "Allison", from their album '' Bossanova'', is about Mose Allison.AlecEiffel.net Pixies Titles/Names
Retrieved April 1, 2008. The film '' The Whole Nine Yards'' begins with Allison's song "I Don't Worry About a Thing" during the opening credits. Americana singer-songwriter Greg Brown wrote and performed the song "Mose Allison Played Here" for his 1997 album '' Slant 6 Mind''. The Dutch musician Herman Brood recorded several of Allison's songs, including "Going to the City", "Stop This World", "Back on the Corner", and "Swinging Machine". Brood's band Wild Romance was named from the line "I lost my mind in a wild romance" after hearing Mose Allison's recording (''Local Color'' album, 1957) of Percy Mayfield's 1951 song "Lost Mind". Allison received 3 Grammy nominations: in 1983 and 1988 for Best Jazz Vocal Performance, Male, and in 2001 for Best Jazz Vocal Album. In 2013, he was awarded the NEA Jazzmasters Award at Lincoln Center.

Personal life and death

Mose married his wife, Audre, in 1949. They lived in Smithtown, New York, on

Long Island Long Island is a densely populated continental island in southeastern New York (state), New York state, extending into the Atlantic Ocean. It constitutes a significant share of the New York metropolitan area in both population and land are ...

, where they raised four children, including a daughter, Amy, who is a musician. Audre Allison said that when she first met Mose, "I could tell that he was someone who generated his own joy." She also said, "Mose has always paid attention to what is happening in the world, and has always read voraciously both past and present histories." Allison died November 15, 2016, four days after his 89th birthday, at his home in

Hilton Head, South Carolina Hilton Head Island, often referred to as simply Hilton Head, is a Lowcountry resort town and barrier island in Beaufort County, South Carolina, United States. It is northeast of Savannah, Georgia (as the crow flies), and southwest of Charles ...

Discography

As leader

Compilations

*1963 : ''Mose Allison Sings'' (Prestige 7279), reissued as ''Seventh Son'' (Prestige 10052), 1973; released on CD as ''Greatest Hits'' (OJC 6004) in 1988; a " Rudy Van Gelder Remasters" edition (Concord 30011) was released with three additional tracks in 2006 *1966 : ''Down Home Piano'' (Prestige 7423; CD reissue: OJC 922, 1997) *1967 : ''Mose Allison Plays for Lovers'' (Prestige 7446) *1970 : '' The Best of Mose Allison'' (Atlantic 1542), released on CD with eight additional tracks in 1988 *1971 : ''Retrospective'' (Columbia C-30564) *1972 : ''Mose Allison'' (Prestige 24002), Sides A & B previously released in Prestige 7091 – "Back County Suite" Recorded 3/7/57, Sides C & D previously released in Prestige 7121 – "Local Color" Recorded 11/8/57 *1994 : '' Allison Wonderland: The Mose Allison Anthology'' ( Rhino R2-71689, two-CD set) *1994 : ''High Jinks! The Mose Allison Trilogy'' (Columbia/Epic/Legacy J3K-64275, three-CD set containing all the material from Columbia CS-8240, Columbia CS-8365, Epic BA-17031, plus six previously unreleased tracks) *1997 : ''Jazz Profile: Mose Allison'' (Blue Note 55230) *2010 : ''Mose Allison: The Collection'' (Floating World/Retro World FLOATM-6068, two-CD set) *2014 : ''The Mose Allison Collection 1956–1962'' (Acrobat ACQCD-7078, four-CD set) *2015 : ''Seven Classic Albums'' (Real Gone Jazz RGJCD-472, four-CD set containing all the material from ''Back Country Suite'', ''Local Color'', ''Young Man Mose'', ''Ramblin' With Mose'', ''Creek Bank'', ''Autumn Song'' ll Prestige and ''I Love the Life I Live'' olumbia *2016 : ''I’m Not Talkin’: The Song Stylings of Mose Allison 1957–1972'' (BGP/Beat Goes Public CDBGPD-304) *2021 : ''The Complete Atlantic/Elektra Albums 1962-1983'' (Strawberry Music QCRJAMBOX 003, six-CD set includes 10 studio and 2 live albums)

As sideman

With

*'' The Al Cohn Quintet Featuring Bobby Brookmeyer'', with Bob Brookmeyer (

Coral Corals are colonial marine invertebrates within the subphylum Anthozoa of the phylum Cnidaria. They typically form compact Colony (biology), colonies of many identical individual polyp (zoology), polyps. Coral species include the important Coral ...

CRL-57118, 1956) *'' Al and Zoot: Al Cohn Quintet Featuring Zoot Sims'', with

(Coral CRL-57171, 1957) *'' Jazz Alive! A Night at the Half Note'', with Zoot Sims, Phil Woods (

United Artists United Artists (UA) is an American film production and film distribution, distribution company owned by Amazon MGM Studios. In its original operating period, it was founded in February 1919 by Charlie Chaplin, D. W. Griffith, Mary Pickford an ...

UAL-4040/UAS-5040, 1959) *'' Either Way'', with Zoot Sims and Cecil "Kid Haffey" Collier (vocals on three of the eight tracks) (Fred Miles Presents FM-1, 1961; Zim ZMS-2002, 1976) With

*'' The Soft Swing'' (Verve MGV-8321, 1957, released 1959)

References

External links

* – official site *
Mose Allison
concert review at allaboutjazz.com (February 11, 2005) * interview in Los Angeles Citybeat
"Mose Allison American Legend Live in California"
– official IBis Recordings site {{DEFAULTSORT:Allison, Mose 1927 births 2016 deaths American blues singers American jazz pianists American male jazz pianists American jazz singers Atlantic Records artists Jazz-blues pianists Louisiana State University alumni Singers from Mississippi People from Tallahatchie County, Mississippi Prestige Records artists University of Mississippi alumni Jazz musicians from Mississippi Blue Note Records artists Anti- (record label) artists NEA Jazz Masters