Rockin'XXL: Bernard Allison (USA)

Monday, April 2, 2018

Bernard Allison (USA)

Bernard Allison (26.November 1965) is the guitar-playing, singing, and songwriting son of late legendary blues guitarist Luther Allison. True to form for this chip off the old block, the young Allison injects every bit as much energy into his live shows as his father did. Bernard counts among his influences icons like Albert King, Muddy Waters, and Freddie King, and later, Stevie Ray Vaughan and Johnny Winter. He began accompanying his famous father to blues festivals in the early '70s. There, he was introduced to a who's who of Chicago blues stars: Muddy Waters, Hound Dog Taylor, and Albert King, among others. When he was seven or eight, he began having aspirations of becoming a guitar slinger like his father. Luther Allison was more than just a casual record collector, and so Bernard benefited from his father and brothers' collections of classic blues and gospel.After graduating from high school, Bernard began playing with Koko Taylor in her touring band. He stayed with Taylor's band until 1985, when he left to hustle up his own gigs as Bernard Allison & Back Talk. Bernard spent a lot of time in Canada with his first band, and later rejoined Taylor and her Blues Machine for another two years in the late '80s. After joining his father in Europe for a live recording, Bernard was asked to join Luther's touring band and become his European bandleader. Luther helped his son along with the finer points of showmanship for several years until Bernard was good enough to lead his own trio or quartet. At Christmastime in 1989, while both were living together in Paris, the elder Allison arranged to give his son the most precious gift for budding musicians: studio time to record his first album. Bernard's debut, Next Generation, was recorded for Mondo Records using musicians from his dad's band.

1990

Teldec 1990/ 10 tracks/ 45:35 min.