Henry Allen (1908 - 1967)
Trumpet player, Henry "Red" Allen Jr. was the
son of Henry Allen who was the leader of the
Allen Brass Band of Algiers, Louisiana. Algiers
is directly across the Mississippi River from New
Orleans. As a teenager he played in his father's
band, with George Lewis, the Excelsior Band and
with the Sam Morgan Band. In 1926 he left New
Orleans to play with Sidney Desvigne's Southern
Syncopaters on the riverboat Island Queen which
ran between St. Louis and Cinncinati. In 1927 he joined King Oliver's Dixie
Syncopators while they were on tour in St. Louis. The tour didn't go well for Oliver,
and the band kind of fell to pieces in New York, but Red made his first recordings
while there with Clarence Williams. Allen returned to New Orleans and played with
Fats Pichon and then joined Fate Marable on the Strekfus riverboat Capitol where he
would remain until 1928. After being offered a Victor recording contract and jobs by
both Duke Ellington and Luis Russell, he returned to New York. He made several
recordings under his owm name in 1929 for Victor, before joining Luis Russell and his
Orchestra, staying with them until 1933. He then joined the Fletcher Henderson
Orchestra, replacing Rex Stewart as the group's featured soloist. During this time
period Allen made several popular recordings with Coleman Hawkins, where he sang
and played trumpet. Starting in 1934 he joined Mills Blue Rhythm Band until he left
them in 1937 to rejoin Luis Russell's band which was fronted by Louis Armstrong at
that time. He stayed with them until 1940 when he began leading small groups in New
York nightclubs and played on records by Jelly Roll Morton, and Sidney Bechet. He
continued to record his own records, as well as tour with Billie Holiday, and others
throughout the 1940s. In the 1950s and 1960s Red would continue to lead an active
career recording with his old friends George Lewis, Coleman Hawkins, and with Kid
Ory. Red continued playing up until his death in 1966 from pancreatic cancer.
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