Richard B. Allen

Richard B. Allen (right) discussing with Donald Marquis and Dawn Dedeaux in New Orleans in 1991

Richard Binion "Dick" Allen (born January 29, 1927 in Milledgeville , Georgia ; † April 12, 2007 in Dublin , Georgia) was an American jazz historian and author who was also a lecturer.

Live and act

Allen grew up in Georgia . His father was a psychiatrist in a sanatorium (Allen's Invalid Home) in his hometown, which was also run by his ancestors. He studied at Princeton University and was stationed in the Navy in Gulfport (Mississippi) during World War II . During this time he began to study the history of New Orleans jazz , for which he frequently traveled to New Orleans . In 1945 he heard Big Eye Louis Nelson in Luthjens Dance Hall. After the war, he received a bachelor's degree from the University of Georgia . Instead of continuing his training as a psychiatrist or doctor, he lived in New Orleans from 1949 and began there in 1951 with oral history interviews with jazz veterans and contemporary witnesses of early jazz, while he financed himself with jobs in book and record stores, for example. He worked in the record store of the discographer Orin Blackstone in New Orleans and later became his partner in the store and had his own store in the mid-1950s. He later received support from the Ford Foundation for his interviews. He was introduced to the New Orleans jazz scene by his longtime friend Monk Hazel .

He wanted to write a master's thesis with his interviews and turned in 1958 to the head of the history faculty of Tulane University William Ransom Hogan , who enthusiastically supported him. Instead of being used for a diploma, the interviews were used to build the Tulane University jazz archive ( William Ransom Hogan Jazz Archive ) and Allen became assistant curator under jazz historian Bill Russell . Allen became a curator in 1965, which he remained until 1980. Bill Russell and others conducted over 2000 interviews (all taped and transcribed), around 500 of which were conducted by himself. He lived in New Orleans until 2003 and went to a nursing home due to illness.

Allen was also the point of contact for New Orleans visitors interested in jazz history and jazz, such as Ken Colyer 1953, Stanley Kubrick (then 1950 photographer), and Whitney Balliett 1966 (illustrated in his essay Mecca, Louisiana , The New Yorker , June 11th 1966). Ballet called him the "Curator of New Orleans Jazz", a "friendly, tireless and cool Virgil" ("a kind, indefatigable, and cool Virgil ".) And described him as small, plump and with a spherical head, with a preference not only for jazz, but also for Louisiana cuisine. It was an original accepted by black musicians in the French Quarter , and when he began his research he was still constantly hampered by the Jim Crow laws.

Allen has also worked for organizations such as the American Historical Association , American Musicological Society, and the Smithsonian Institution . He has published regularly in jazz magazines such as Storyville , Footnote , Studies in Jazz Discography , JazzTimes , The Mississippi Rag , worked as a program designer at the Newport Jazz Festival and the Smithsonian Folklife Festival , and worked for the Journal of Jazz Studies and Mecca magazine . Allen also taught jazz history at Tulane's University College, wrote many liner notes and magazine articles on New Orleans jazz. He contributed to the publication of the book Brass Bands and New Orleans Jazz by William J. Schafer and was one of the founders of the annual New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival . George Wein asked him for advice in 1970 when it was founded and he recommended two of his employees, Allison Miner (1949–1995) and Quint Davis (* 1947), who were then among the main organizers.

In 1992 he stopped teaching at Tulane University, but remained active in the local jazz community. In 2003 he left New Orleans and lived in a nursing home.

Allen also took trombone lessons from Manuel Manetta (1889–1969), who also taught Jelly Roll Morton , among others .

Publications (selection)

• Publications in The Jazz Archivist (William Ransom Hogan Archive of New Orleans Jazz)
  • Speaking of Jazz - Frank Netto, New Orleans Owls, Rene Netto, Tony Almerico . (1987)
  • Speaking of Jazz: The First Interview - Steve Brown, New Orleans Rhythm Kings. (1987)
  • Speaking of Jazz: Godfrey Mayor Hirsch - Biographical sketch of New Orleans musician Godfrey Hirsch ; Johnny Bayersdorffer , New Orleans Owls, Saenger Theater, Louis Prima, Dawnbusters. (1989)
  • The Local and International Dave Winstein - Part 2 - Continued from vol. IV, no. 1; Sharkey Bonano, Dawnbusters, Pinky Vidacovich, Ellis Stratakos Orchestra, American Federation of Musicians, AFM Local 174. Vol. V, no. 1-2 (1990)
  • Who What Bennie Pottle? - Discussion of name authority issues and other anomalies encountered in New Orleans jazz research; Brunies Brothers, Lester Bouchon, Paul Barbarin. (1990)
  • A Testament to Two Friends - Memorial to Chester Zardis , Percy Humphrey. (1991)

Web links

Commons : Richard B. Allen  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

• Bruce Raeburn Dick Allen , KnowLA Encyclopedia of Louisiana 2011
• Obituary in the New York Times
• Obituary in the Guardian

Individual evidence

1. ^ Obituary in The New York Times
2. ↑ Jonathan Mark Souther: New Orleans on parade: tourism and the transformation of the crescent city
3. ↑ William Ransom Hogan Archive of New Orleans Jazz ( Memento of the original from June 10, 2010 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. 
4. ^ The Jazz Archivist - William Ransom Hogan Archive of New Orleans Jazz
5. ↑ ^{a b} obituary (English)