Gene Watson's Peers: Harley Allen
Gene Watson's peers within the country music industry
believe in the sheer talent of this unassuming man from east Texas, so much
so that Gene is regarded by many of them as 'the singer's singer' - and
rightly so!
All of Gene's Peers who were contacted in 2007 were most gracious with their
time & words. It is here, within this special part of gene-watson.com, that
you have an opportunity to read a quote from
Harley Allen, which he
submitted to this site on Sunday 24 June 2007.
Sean Brady would like to take this opportunity to say 'thank you' to
Harley Allen who has
made a special contribution to a unique part of this online 'celebration of
a Lone Star Hero'.
Harley Allen
This quote was submitted on Sunday 24 June 2007
'Gene Watson is still one of the top five best country
singers of all time'.
Thank you, Harley Allen,
for your support of Gene Watson.
About Harley Allen...
Harley Allen's
background is that of bluegrass music; Harley & his brothers toured &
recorded as the Allen Brothers. Harley’s late father, Red Allen, was not
only one of the great lead voices in bluegrass, but also sang the low
harmony part on some of the finest trios ever recorded with the Osbourne
Brothers, including 'Once more' & 'My destiny'.
Red was clearly an influence on Harley’s singing, but also gave him his
initial inspiration to write songs at an early age. By the time Harley was
in his late teens, his gift of song-writing started to take shape & he began
building what would become a gigantic catalogue of songs.
Harley listened to some of the great songwriters & singers in country music,
such as Hank Williams, Ira Louvin & Tom T. Hall & found kindred spirits in
these performers.
Harley Allen's move to Nashville’s Music Row from his home in Dayton, Ohio
was a very natural one for him & his song-writing talent earned him an
immediate staff writing position at the Ten Ten Music Group. Harley
also saw the release (in 1996) of 'Another River', a critically acclaimed
album on Mercury Records.
Harley Allen's acclaimed songs have been recorded by a
number of important artists within the country music genre:
Alan Jackson: 'Who I am'
'Who I Am' (Arista
Records, 1994)
Hal Ketchum: 'No easy road'
'Every Little Word' (Curb Records, 1994)
Garth Brooks: 'Rollin'
'Fresh Horses' (Capitol
Records, 1995)
Wesley Dennis: 'It ain't fair'
'Wesley
Dennis' (Mercury Records, 1995)
Ty England: 'New faces in the fields'
'Ty
England' (RCA Records, 1995)
Sammy Kershaw: 'For years'
'Politics, Religion &
Her' (Mercury Records, 1996)
Alan Jackson: 'Everything I love' & 'Between the devil
& me'
'Everything I Love' (Arista Records, 1996)
Tracy Byrd: 'Cowgirl'
'Big Love' (MCA
Records, 1996)
Alison Krauss & Union Station: 'It doesn't matter'
'So Long
So Wrong' (Rounder Records, 1997)
Alan Jackson: 'Another good reason'
'High
Mileage' (Arista Records, 1999)
Gary Allan: 'Bourbon borderline' & 'Learning to live with me'
'Smoke Rings in the Dark' (MCA Records, 1999)
Craig Morgan: 'Paradise'
'Craig Morgan'
(Atlantic Records, 2000)
Mark Wills: 'Still waiting'
'Permanently'
(Mercury Nashville, 2000)
Rhonda Vincent: 'In your
loneliness' & 'When loves arrives'
'Written in the
Stars' (Giant Records, 2003)
In May 2007, Gene Watson recorded Harley Allen's 'In a perfect
world' (co-written with Tim Mensy).
The track is the title cut
of Gene Watson's debut album for
Shanachie Records.
'In a Perfect World' was officially released
on Tuesday 25 September 2007; at the time of its releases, the album was
considered to be one of the more important country music albums of 2007.
Visit Harley Allen's
Official MySpace Site