Duane Allen | |
---|---|
Background information | |
Birth name | Duane David Allen |
Born | April 29, 1943 |
Origin | Cunningham, Lamar County, Texas |
Genres | Country |
Occupation | Singer |
Instrument(s) | Vocals, guitar |
Years active | 1966–present |
Member of | The Oak Ridge Boys |
Duane David Allen (born April 29, 1943) is an American singer and songwriter who had formal training in both operatic and quartet singing before becoming a member of The Oak Ridge Boys in 1966. Allen is the lead singer for the quartet and is heard on the majority of their most successful songs.
Allen was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2015 as a member of the Oak Ridge Boys.
Allen attended East Texas State University graduating in 1966, where he was a member of Delta Tau Delta International Fraternity.
Allen is considered the President and CEO of the Oak Ridge Boys. He is active on social media and feels obligated to respond quickly to his fans. Allen also plans out how many tour days are needed each year for his employees to live comfortably. They still tour roughly 150 days per year. [1]
Allen was inducted in the Texas Gospel Music Hall of Fame. [2] On August 9, 2014, Allen was inducted into the Texas Country Music Hall of Fame along with the rest of the Oak Ridge Boys.
In 2014, Allen received a memorial bridge honor in his hometown in Texas. [3] "I did not know until our bus turned down the small road that the bridge was on ‘our’ road," the singer said. "It was a complete surprise. I thought it would be south of our place, but when we turned down ‘our’ road, now named the Duane Allen Road, my stomach just about came out of my body. I was so thrilled that I did not have the proper words to express myself. I was still emotionally charged when I tried to speak.”
Duane lives in Hendersonville, Tennessee. He was married to Norah Lee Allen, a backup singer on the Grand Ole Opry; Norah died on March 31, 2024. [4]
Daughter Jamie is married to musician Paul Martin, formerly of Exile, more recently of Marty Stuart and the Fabulous Superlatives, [5] [ better source needed ] and they have several children. They formed a family band called The Martin Family Circus (now known as Rockland Road.) Son Dee is also a musician. He is part of a group called Tall Dark Stranger.[ citation needed ]
Hendersonville is the most populous city in Sumner County, Tennessee, on Old Hickory Lake. As of the 2020 census the city's population was 61,753.
The Gospel Music Hall of Fame, created in 1972 by the Gospel Music Association, is a Hall of Fame dedicated exclusively to recognizing meaningful contributions by individuals and groups in all forms of gospel music.
Duane Eddy was an American rock and roll guitarist. In the late 1950s and early 1960s, he had a string of hit records produced by Lee Hazlewood which were noted for their characteristically "twangy" guitar sound, including "Rebel-'Rouser", "Peter Gunn", and "Because They're Young". He had sold 12 million records by 1963. His guitar style influenced the Ventures, the Shadows, the Beatles, Bruce Springsteen, Steve Earle, and Marty Stuart.
The Oak Ridge Boys are an American country and gospel vocal quartet originating in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. Since 2024, the group consists of Duane Allen, William Lee Golden, Richard Sterban, and Ben James. The group was founded in 1943 as The Oak Ridge Quartet. They became popular in Southern gospel during the 1950s. Their name was changed to the Oak Ridge Boys in the early 1960s, and they remained a gospel group until the mid-1970s, when they changed their image and concentrated on country music.
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