Henry James “Red” Allen, Jr., was born in the Algiers neighborhood of New Orleans, Louisiana, on January 7, 1908. After playing trumpet on riverboats on the Mississippi River, Allen went to Chicago in 1927 to join King Oliver’s band. Around this time he made his first recordings with Clarence Williams.
In 1929, he was offered a recording contract with Victor Records and went to New York City, where he joined Luis Russell’s Orchestra, as a featured soloist. As a bandleader, Allen recorded for Victor from 1929 through 1930. Allen continued making many recordings under his own name and also with Russell, Fats Waller, and Jelly Roll Morton.
In 1933 Allen joined Fletcher Henderson’s Orchestra, in which he stayed until 1934. He played with the Mills Blue Rhythm Band from 1934 to 1937, after which he returned to Russell, whose band was then fronted by Louis Armstrong. Allen seldom received any solo space on recordings with Armstrong, who played with similar phrasing and intensity.
Allen made a series of recordings as co-leader with Coleman Hawkins in 1933 for the American Record Corporation’s family of labels, and continued as an ARC recording artist. In 1935, he was promoted to ARC’s Vocalion label for a popular series of swing records from 1935 through late 1937.
After leaving the Armstrong-fronted Luis Russell orchestra in September 1940, Allen gigged briefly with Benny Goodman. He then began a year’s residency with his own newly formed sextet at The Famous Door in Manhattan. He played with this group, which featured trombonist J.C. Higginbotham, in New York, Boston, California until 1943.
Allen worked steadily, and made numerous tours of the United States and Europe through the mid-1960s. In December 1957, Allen appeared with Pee Wee Russell on the television program The Sound Of Jazz. He led the house band at New York’s Metropole Cafe from 1954, until the club ceased its jazz policy in 1965.
In late 1966, Allen was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. After undergoing surgery, he made a final tour of England, which ended six weeks before his death. Henry “Red” Allen died in New York City on April 17, 1967. – adapted from Wikipedia
