Harley Allen: 1956-2011

Through the haze of smoke and memory in a Ludlow Street bar called the Bottom's Up, I still have vivid memories of regularly seeing one of the greatest bluegrass bands in the world, The Harley Allen-Mike Lilly Band, in the mid 1980s. It was the bass player in the band, Larry Nager, who described the astounding banjo playing of Mike Lilly as "atomic" and it was said more than once that Harley Allen could "sing like an angel." Harley, along with brothers Neal (who passed in 1974), Ronnie and Greg, were the sons of Red Allen, one of the greatest singers in bluegrass history and a cornerstone in the deep legacy the music has in Dayton and throughout southwestern Ohio.

Cityfolk was fortunate to present the Harley Allen-Mike Lilly Band (part of a concert titled Greenfields of America pairing the band with Irish singer Dolores Keane and Reel Union) , Red and the Allen Brothers as part of the 1989 Dayton Bluegrass Reunion and later a homecoming concert to commemorate the release of Harley's Nashville debut Another River, in 1996.

You can find the rich music of Red Allen, Harley Allen and the Allen Brothers at, among other places, Smithsonian Folkways Records. Taking a page from his Dad's playbook, Harley began writing great songs as a teenager and anyone that spent time at Sam's, Canal Street Tavern and other intimate venues in the '70s and '80s listening to the Allen Brothers and The Allen-Lilly Band already knew how great he was. When Harley moved to Nashville in the mid 1990s, the wider world discovered his songs when Alan Jackson, Garth Brooks, Linda Ronstadt, Alison Krauss and many others performed them.

To hear him sing his own songs was truly something special. In a world now crammed with singer/songwriters and love songs, Harley Allen wrote and sang about love -- particularly the regretful side of it -- as very few could. He was clever and funny, clearly the beneficiary of some blue-chip bluegrass DNA, and in an era of slick Nashville hat acts, it translated into country music with real heart.

50 Great Voices

Over the last year or so, NPR hosted a fantastic series about 50 Great Voices of singers across the world, across time, and across genres. How on earth did they decide? First, they asked listeners for nominations, then had a "feisty conference call" (their words, not mine!) with their 17 panelists to whittle the list to 50. Not an enviable task.

Some name are familiar: Luther Vandross, Billie Holiday, Maria Callas. Others, not so much: Kitty Wells, The Queen of Country Music. Youssou N'Dour, the Voice of Senegal (pictured here). Carlos Gardel, Argentina's Tango Maestro. Each story not only includes samples of the singer at their finest, it also puts their work in context and often includes conversations with the singer themselves.

The range of talent portrayed here is impressive. Browse through and give a listen to something new to you.

Have You Heard? -- Yasmin Levy

Last night I was fortunate to be in the car at the right time to catch an great interview on The World. Anchor Marco Werman was talking to Israeli singer Yasmin Levy, who sings songs from the Ladino culture, the Judeo-Spanish music of Spain. Hers is a name I've heard for years, as agents sent us press kits about the performers they represent. But I don't think I ever took the time to learn much more than that.

Yasmin is following in the footsteps of her father, the singer Yitzhak Levy. But she does something her father wouldn’t do – add a twist of flamenco. At first, both Ladino and flamenco purists protested the mix, but she's proven that the two fit well together. Follow this link to hear not only the interview that was aired, but also see a video clip in which Yasmin describes what Ladino culture is. Then take a listen to a performance and see what you think of this new blend.

Resident Artists of Rise Up & Dance - Volume 2 (Krump)

I am honored to introduce the second pair of resident artists leading Cityfolk’s Rise Up & Dance! community outreach project. Big Mijo and Hurricane are co-creators of Krump, a style of street dance from Los Angeles, which gained world-wide popularity after the release of Rize, a documentary film by David LaChapelle. Mijo & Hurricane’s visit to Dayton and their work in the community has been particularly special and inspiring.

Krump dance, which grew out of the Los Angeles youth street-culture at turn of the millennium, is the youngest art form Cityfolk has ever presented, and it is one of the rare opportunities we have had to work with the creators of a traditional art. In addition, through Rise Up & Dance!, Cityfolk is joining a movement of arts organizations respectfully presenting, documenting, and preserving the urban American art forms of the last 50 years. That is, art forms born within the black and Latino communities during “The Hip Hop Generation.” *

I was impressed beyond expectation during our first week working with Mijo and Hurricane in January at the start of this project. As individuals credited with birthing an art form that gained world-wide recognition when they were barely in their 20s, I was awe-struck by their extreme humility and their eagerness and passion around working with the participating youth. At only 25 and 27 years of age, these artists convey an understanding, openness and sense of integrity to their art form that is well beyond their years.

They are working with talented local artist Reginald “SparrowFaith” Faulkner (pictured in this photo by Studio Sinthesis) and his talented 15 year old assistant extraordinaire, Dillon “Stoney D” Stoneburner. Together they are teaching a group of 3rd-5th grade students from Edison Neighborhood School, and developing a piece of choreography that will be presented as part of the culminating Rise Up & Dance! performance on Saturday, March 19.

Follow this link for a full schedule of all the public events happening over the next few weeks.




* A term coined by Bakari Kitwana, political analyst and author of The Hip Hop Generation: Young Blacks and the Crisis in African American Culture.