The Rance Allen Group was a

gospel music Gospel music is a traditional genre of Christian music and a cornerstone of Christian media. The creation, performance, significance, and even the definition of gospel music vary according to culture and social context. Gospel music is compo ...

group formed in Monroe,

Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...

, and based in Toledo,

Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...

, named after its lead vocalist, Bishop Rance Allen. The group was formed by vocalist,

guitar The guitar is a stringed musical instrument that is usually fretted (with Fretless guitar, some exceptions) and typically has six or Twelve-string guitar, twelve strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming ...

ist,

pianist A pianist ( , ) is a musician who plays the piano. A pianist's repertoire may include music from a diverse variety of styles, such as traditional classical music, jazz piano, jazz, blues piano, blues, and popular music, including rock music, ...

, and songwriter Rance Allen (b. Monroe, Michigan) with his brothers Tom (

drums The drum is a member of the percussion instrument, percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel–Sachs classification system, it is a membranophones, membranophone. Drums consist of at least one Acoustic membrane, membrane, c ...

) and Steve (

bass guitar The bass guitar (), also known as the electric bass guitar, electric bass, or simply the bass, is the lowest-pitched member of the guitar family. It is similar in appearance and construction to an Electric guitar, electric but with a longer nec ...

); another brother, Esau (percussionist), joined the group on an intermittent basis. During an appearance at a gospel talent contest in

Detroit Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...

, they came to the attention of one of the judges, record promoter Dave Clark, who worked for

Stax Records Stax Records is an American record company, originally based in Memphis, Tennessee. Founded in 1957 as Satellite Records, the label changed its name to Stax Records in September 1961. It also shared its operations with sister label Volt Records. ...

. The group was the first to be signed to the Stax imprint Gospel Truth, and they recorded for the Stax organization throughout the 1970s. In 1972, the group appeared in the documentary film '' Wattstax''. Following this appearance, the group was named "Best Religious Group" by the National Association of Television and Radio Announcers (NATRA). David Porter co-produced the group's 1975 album ''A Soulful Experience'', for which he wrote an autobiographical song, "Just Found Me". The group's incorporation of rock and

soul The soul is the purported Mind–body dualism, immaterial aspect or essence of a Outline of life forms, living being. It is typically believed to be Immortality, immortal and to exist apart from the material world. The three main theories that ...

into traditional black gospel music prefigured the crossover success of such artists as

Amy Grant Amy Lee Grant (born November 25, 1960) is an American singer-songwriter and musician. She began her music career in contemporary Christian music (CCM) before crossing over to pop music in the mid-1980s. Grant has been referred to as "Honorific ...

, Andrae Crouch, and The Winans. In 1978, the group had a Top 30 R&B hit, "I Belong to You." The group received a nomination at the 34th Grammy Awards for Best Contemporary Soul Gospel Album for their 1991 album ''Phenomenon''. The group's latest release,
God Has Been So Good
', is a collaboration with hip-hop pionee
Glenn “Sweety G” Toby
producer Bernard Jackson and new gospel artist Mydason.

Rance Allen

Rance Allen (November 19, 1948 – October 31, 2020) was an American

Bishop A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of di ...

, Minister, and

gospel Gospel originally meant the Christianity, Christian message ("the gospel"), but in the second century Anno domino, AD the term (, from which the English word originated as a calque) came to be used also for the books in which the message w ...

musician, and the founder and leader of the Rance Allen Group. Known for his extremely wide vocal range and powerful singing voice, Allen became known as the main lead vocalist and the leader of the influential group. He was the senior pastor of the New Bethel Church Of God In Christ in Toledo, Ohio, since its July 1985 establishment. In November 2011, Rance Allen was elevated to the office of Bishop in the Church of God in Christ, for the Michigan Northwestern Harvest Jurisdiction. Allen was born in 1948 in

Monroe, Michigan Monroe is the largest city in Monroe County, Michigan, United States, and its county seat. The population was 20,462 at the 2020 census. The city is bordered on the south by Monroe Charter Township, but the two are administered autonomously. M ...

to Thomas and Emma Pearl Allen, to a family of

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

Afro-Caribbean Afro-Caribbean or African Caribbean people are Caribbean people who trace their full or partial ancestry to Sub-Saharan Africa. The majority of the modern Afro-Caribbean people descend from the Indigenous peoples of Africa, Africans (primarily fr ...

, and Afro-Latino American heritage. He had 11 siblings: six sisters and five brothers. Allen founded the Rance Allen Group in

in 1969 joined by his brothers Thomas and Steve. Allen was married to Ellen Marie Allen (''

née The birth name is the name of the person given upon their birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name or to the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a births registe ...

'' Groves). The two were married on December 1, 1970. The couple had no children together. Allen and his group had performed with many gospel musicians throughout the country, including Andrae Crouch, Marvin Winans, Bebe and

Cece Winans Priscilla Marie Love, known professionally by her stage name as CeCe Winans, (born October 8, 1964) is an American gospel singer who has garnered 17 Grammy Awards, the most for any female gospel singer; 33 GMA Dove Awards, 19 Stellar Awards, ...

, the Clark Sisters,

Kirk Franklin Kirk Dewayne Franklin (born January 26, 1970) is an American Gospel music, gospel musician. One of the List of best-selling gospel music artists, best-selling gospel music artists, his accolades include 20 Grammy Awards. ''Variety (magazine), Var ...

, Marvin Sapp, John P. Kee, Fred Hammond, Tye Tribbett,

Shirley Caesar Shirley Ann Caesar-Williams (Birth name, née Caesar; born October 13, 1938), known professionally as Shirley Caesar, is an American Gospel music, gospel singer. Her career began in 1951, when she signed to Federal Records at the age of 12. Thro ...

, Donnie McClurkin, Bernard Jackson Jr. and Mary McLaurine Glover. He also performed for President

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. O ...

at a

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue Northwest (Washington, D.C.), NW in Washington, D.C., it has served as the residence of every U.S. president ...

Celebration of Gospel Music and was nominated for five

Grammy The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious a ...

Awards. Allen died on October 31, 2020, from complications due to a medical procedure he had the previous week. He was 71 years old.

Awards

Discography

* ''Rance Allen Group'' (1972) * ''Truth Is Where It's At'' (1972) * ''Brothers'' (1973) * ''Sanctified'' (1975; UK-only compilation) * ''A Soulful Experience'' (1975; reissued 1981 as ''Ain't No Need Of Crying'') * ''Say My Friend'' (1977; reissued 1979 as ''The Way It Is'') *''Straight from the Heart'' (1978; reissued on CD with bonus tracks in 1994) * ''Smile'' (1979) * ''I Feel Like Goin' On'' (1980) * ''Hear My Voice'' (1983) * ''I Give Myself to You'' (1984) * ''The Best of The Rance Allen Group'' (1988) (Stax Records) * ''Phenomenon'' (1991) * ''Up Above My Head'' (1995 compilation) * ''You Make Me Wanna Dance'' (1995) * ''Let The Music Get Down In Your Soul'' (1997; vault release) * ''Miracle Worker'' (2000) *''The Soulful Truth Of The Rance Allen Group'' (2001; UK-only compilation) * ''All the Way'' (2002) * ''Wattstax'' (various artists; box set) (2003) * ''The Live Experience'' (2004) * ''Closest Friend'' (2007) * ''The Live Experience II'' (2011) * ''Amazing Grace'' (2012) * ''Celebrate'' (2014) * ''Live From San Francisco'' (2016) * ''God Has Been So Good'' (202

References

External links

The Rance Allen Group
on

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* *God Has Been So Goo

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rance Allen Group, The 1970 establishments in Michigan 2020 disestablishments in Michigan American gospel musical groups Family musical groups Musical groups from Michigan Musical groups established in 1970 Stax Records artists Musical groups disestablished in 2020