A brief introduction to Tony Allen's incredible career
He sadly passed away in May 2020
Last updated 29th Jun 2020
Tony Allen is regarded as one of the pioneers and co-founders of afrobeat and was the drummer and musical director of Fela Kuti's band between 1968 and 1979. Fela Kuti famously claimed that "without Tony Allen, there would be no Afrobeat".
When did Tony Allen begin drumming?
Born in Lagos, Nigeria, in 1940, Tony Allen began drumming at the age of 18 after growing up listening to the Yoruban music Jùjú as well as American jazz, drawing on both musical styles to develop his own unique sound. Allen credited Blue Note drummers like Art Blakey, Max Roach, Elvin Jones as well as Kofi Ghanaba as his early influences.
How did Tony Allen become famous?
Having had a stint with trumpeter Victor Olaiya's highlife band, Allen began drumming with Fela Kuti after meeting him in the 1960s as he was enticed by the way in which Allen was able to merge both jazz and highlife into his sound.
Which other artists did Tony Allen work with?
After parting ways with Fela Kuti, Allen's taste for merging and experimenting with musical styles would lead him to fuse Afrobeat with elements of electronica, R&B and rap. This propensity to innovate would lead him to work in recent years with The Good, the Bad & the Queen, Damon Albarn and Jeff Mills.
When did Tony Allen pass away?
In May 2020, the jazz world lost legendary drummer Tony Allen who suddenly passed away at the age of 79. His importance within the jazz and musical world cannot be understated, with musical titan Brian Eno once describing Allen as "perhaps the greatest drummer who has ever lived".