25 Random Things About Me…
Posted by Steve Allen | Filed under Personal Blog
If you’re on Facebook, you know all too well about the “25 Random Things About Me” post that is going around. If you are not familiar with it, here is what it is about. If you were “tagged” to do this, you were supposed to write 25 random things about you. Then list 25 people and send it to them in addition to re-tagging the original person who sent it to you. I thought I would post it here too.
25 Random Things About Steve Allen…
1. I’ve seen several of my friends from WV get tagged in the “25 Random Things About Me” and just last night I was wondering how long it would be before I got tagged. I got tagged twice today.
2. I once had a pet cow named Robbie. He has provided several funny stories that I tell as often as I can. Oh, I had a pet chicken too. Her name was Christina.
3. I’m a huge Motown fan. I’ve collected every Motwon single every released. I’ve also tried to make contact with everyone that I can who worked there. Often times I use some of the Motown musicians on my studio recordings and those guys are still awesome. I’m just glad they answer the phone when I call.
4. I’ve got to work with or meet most of my heroes including Brian Wilson, George Jones, Vestal Goodman, Tommy Emmanuel and Dottie Rambo.
5. If the doctor told me I only have six months to live and I could do just one more recording session, I would want to record James Taylor.
6. I grew up in the smallest incorporated town in West Virginia. Current population 92 people in 2.2 square miles.
7. I am very proud of where I came from. I actually named my company after my hometown: Worthington Music Group.
8. My mother wouldn’t allow me to run for mayor when I was 11. I can remember not making any sense of why she didn’t think I could do a good job if I would be elected.
9. My mom really discouraged me from pursing music as a career. She thought the only thing available for me was playing local dive bars for $50 per night. When I was in high school she wanted me to take vocational classes to become an electrician. I followed my heart and it paid off. Today my mom is one of my biggest supporters.
10. I lost my dad to leukemia in October. I miss him dearly. He used to call me in the middle of the day and sing these hilarious songs that he just made up off of the top of his head.
11. I was always very close to dad. When he got sick I went to be with him in WV as much as possible. Some of the best times we’ve ever shared were in room 403 at Fairmont General Hospital.
12. I have a dog named Chloe, but dad wouldn’t let me bring her to TN when I moved here 10 years ago. He wanted her. He just called her “dog.” Four days before he died he wanted to see her. So I took her to his hospital room. You should have seen the look on both of their faces when they saw each other. Simply priceless.
13. I’ve been dating Kimberly Allen for the past three years. No, we’re not related. We checked. The ironic thing is that her brother is also named Steve Allen.
14. I’ve never loved anyone so dearly as I do Kimberly. I never take it for granted that she is willing to put up with me. (In case you don’t know, I’m am an incredibly quirky person.)
15. I have had a couple horrible date experiences. I’ll briefly describe two of them. The first was when I had a date scheduled with “Girl A” to attend an award show but she cancelled at the last minute. I ask “Girl B” to go with me. At intermission “Girl B” and I run into “Girl A.” They knew each other!! It turned out they were former roommates. They chatted while I devised an escape plan. The second, and worst, date experience I’ve ever had was when I asked a girl to attend one of my client’s concert with me. She agreed, but when I went to pick her up… SHE BROUGHT HER BOYFRIEND! She never once mentioned she wasn’t single. I don’t know why she didn’t politely decline the date. She did however bring yet another girl with her so It wouldn’t be overly awkward. Let me say that this girl had some rocks in her coin purse if you know what I mean.
16. I am so thankful for my Aunt Louise, Aunt Betty and Uncle Walter who nurtured my interest in music all of my life. I don’t know what would have happened if they did not do what they’ve done.
17. I once wrote a song for a girl that I had a crush on back in high school. I played it for her and then she spilled a Sprite down my back. I’m did not take that as a compliment. However, the song as since been recorded. I laugh all of the way to the bank with my royalty check every quarter.
18. I was a four year member of the North Marion Noteables (show choir) back in high school. Those four years taught me the fundamentals that I use every day in my business. I can’t believe other teachers criticized it for being a two-period class.
19. I have taken private music instruction all of my life. Randall Hall was my teacher from middle school till my freshman year of college. He taught me how commercial music worked. By the way, he played with all of the Motown groups too. He lives back in Shinnston, WV. Kimberly, my mom, and I ran into him a couple months ago.
20. I used to be made-fun of a lot growing up. Especially during elementary school. It is amazing how those things stick with you for the rest of your life. I’ve learned to use it as motivation. I think I will homeschool my kids though.
21. I am love old recording microphones. I have mics from the 1930s to the 1970s. The old ones just sound better.
22. I just bought a Hammond organ. If you don’t know what that is, its the King James version of the organ. Just turn on the radio and you’ll hear it. They are on everything. I bought it from a church I attended from 1998 to 2001. They called and asked me if I wanted it. I told them yes. Then they asked if I could pick it up before Wednesday because they wanted to set up the Christmas tree and the organ was in the way.
23. I love vinyl records. My favorite artists are Billy Joel, Frank Sinatra, Mills Brothers, Four Freshman, old soul recordings.
24. I also have a 1923 Edison Diamond Disc record player in my office. It sounds amazing. I really think I was born forty years too late.
25. I always try to let people know how much they mean to me. Here is a reminder to a few people that I have thought of while writing this note (in random order): Kevin Haugh, Kimberly Allen, Aunt Betty, Cheryl Stanley, Crystal Johnson, Rod Batson, Brad Baton, my mom, all of the Unthanks, Aaron Minick, Michael Sykes, Scott Fowler, the late Roger Bennett, Les Butler, the people that I went to high school with back in WV, Kelly Back, Bruce Watkins, Mark Drury, David Smith, Gwen Embrey, Gary Harmon, Dean Newkirk, Phebe Braik. Trust me there are more…
Tags: items, random, steve allen
Who I Am & What Is On My Mind…
Posted by Steve Allen | Filed under SoGospelNews.com Articles
Hello there! My name is Steve Allen. No, not the Steve Allen, former host of the Tonight Show, just Steve Allen. In the coming months, I will be shedding some light on what some may view as the simple task of making a record. In actuality, the process is complex and sometimes tedious, but at the end of the day it is truly worth every sleepless night.
Let’s think about that statement for a second, making a record. What is a record? You would be rather surprised to learn the many different definitions and descriptions of that all too familiar word. You know, I was shopping the other day and had a brief conversation with a fellow twenty-something about today’s music. I happened to utter the old adage, “they don’t make records like they used to” which prompted her response, “I don’t think they even make records anymore at all.” Hmm, I thought, what could she have meant? I mean, I see records made everyday. I then realized, she thought I meant, vinyl records. She happens to be right. Long gone are the days of the 33 1/3 long play records. But my friends, records, are still very much in production today, even, dare I say, great ones.
It is that brief, yet, insightful conversation that leads me to write a series of articles in which I seek to debunk the myth that records are not being made today. I will discuss the inner workings of a great record. I will ask the questions, “Who should make records?” and “Is a record really what you need to expand your ministry?” We will examine some of the greatest records of all time and find out how and why they have stood the test of time. I will lead you step by step through the creative process of making a great record, exploring the art and science of this process. Finally, I will give you some advice on how to make your record timeless. What’s that? Just who am I and why should you listen to me about making a record? Well, that is a valid question. The simple answer: I am a producer & mix engineer.
If you haven’t seen my face, hopefully, you have seen my name. I have been living and working in Nashville for the past seven years. Along the way, I have worked with many wonderful people in the southern gospel family. Many of whom are my heroes.
My story begins in the rolling hills of West Virginia. Born in Worthington, the smallest incorporated town in West Virginia, I have recorded with more people than live in my hometown. Well, almost. Worthington is 2.2 square miles. That’s right, it’s smaller than a Wal-Mart! I moved to Nashville to attend Middle Tennessee State University in 1998. In October of that year, I heard Scott Fowler on a southern gospel radio station. Now, Scott Fowler, as many of you know, is a former member of the legendary Cathedral Quartet. I took a chance and called Scott after the show to ask if I might intern for him at Square One Studio. The rest, as they say, is history.
My initial project at Square One Studio, when the Cathedral Quartet retired later that year, was as engineer for Scott and Roger Bennett’s new group, Legacy Five. Their critically acclaimed, nationally released first album received two Dove nominations. Since that fateful day, I have worked with a veritable who’s who of Christian artists, including Bob Carlisle, Vestal Goodman, Gaither Vocal Band, Ernie Haase, The Isaacs, and The Old Friends Quartet.
So what have I been up to lately you ask? Well, I have had the honor of helping to make several great gospel records with producer/songwriter Zane King. Most notable was Terry Terrell’s “Back on My Feet” CD. The title cut from that project received mainstream country radio airplay, which is no easy feat. In July of 2005, I worked on the pilot for a TV show called Gospel Music at the River, at the River of Life Assembly of God in Smyrna, TN, starring country music giant George Jones. In May 2005, I engineered a Kirk Talley CD and video, which Talley shared was the best product had ever done. Talley appeared subsequently in a feature article in the August 2005 issue of GQ magazine.
Now, do these accomplishments make me the authority on the record making process? Not hardly. Are there people out there that know more about it than I? Absolutely. Isaac Newton once said, “If I have seen further it is because I have stood on the shoulders of giants.” What these accomplishments have afforded me is the opportunity to stand on the shoulders of the some of the biggest giants in the southern gospel family.
My father told me that hard work always pays off. “Son, make hay while the sun is out”, he would say. Well, it turns out the ol’ man was right. Not only do I feel that I have succeeded in my career, thus far, but I feel pretty darn good about how I have accomplished this feat. You see, I feel that I have a very specific purpose in this world. You might think that making records is that purpose. No, not really. Making records is my job. Being the best man that I can be, loving every human being, giving back to humanity, never letting anyone leave my life with less than they came with, my friends, that is my purpose. It just so happens that my job consists of delivering love to mankind under the disguise of a record!
Until next time, happy listening!
Steve Allen
thank's for the interesting information...