Leslie Allen (29 August 1902 – 25 June 1996) was a Canadian saxophonist and vocalist popular in Britain during the 1930s.

Life

Allen was born in

Ealing Ealing () is a district in West London, England, west of Charing Cross in the London Borough of Ealing. Ealing is the administrative centre of the borough and is identified as a major metropolitan centre in the London Plan. Ealing was histor ...

, London; at age 3, he and his family moved to Canada. As a child, he played clarinet alongside his father in the

Queen's Own Rifles The Queen's Own Rifles of Canada is a Primary Reserve regiment of the Canadian Armed Forces, based in Toronto. The regiment is part of 4th Canadian Division's 32 Canadian Brigade Group. It is the only reserve regiment in Canada to currently have a ...

Band and later learned to play the saxophone. Allen performed with the dance bands of Burton Till and

Luigi Romanelli Luigi Romanelli (July 21, 1751March 1, 1839) was an Italian opera librettist. Romanelli was born in Rome. He wrote tens of librettos, most of them for operas to be performed at La Scala in Milan. In the same city he was professor of declamation ...

and in 1922 worked briefly in New York before travelling to England in 1924 as part of a band of fellow Canadians recruited by Hal Swain. Swain had intended his band to play at the Rector's Club in London, but found it closed. Luckily, the band found work as the resident band at the New Prince's restaurant in

Piccadilly Piccadilly () is a road in the City of Westminster, London, to the south of Mayfair, between Hyde Park Corner in the west and Piccadilly Circus in the east. It is part of the A4 road that connects central London to Hammersmith, Earl's Court, ...

and took on the name 'The New Princes' Toronto Band'. Under this name, they recorded for

Columbia Columbia may refer to: * Columbia (personification), the historical female national personification of the United States, and a poetic name for America Places North America Natural features * Columbia Plateau, a geologic and geographic region in ...

for eighteen months with Allen serving as alto-saxophonist and occasional vocalist. Between 1926 and 1927, Allen joined several of his NPTB colleagues on a European tour where they performed as 'Dave Caplin's Toronto Band' under the leadership of banjoist Caplin. After returning to England in 1927, Allen spent the next five years playing and singing with several leading British dance orchestras (including those of Carroll Gibbons,

George Melachrino George Melachrino (born ''George Miltiades''; 1 May 1909 – 18 June 1965) was a musician, composer of film music, and musical director who was English born of Greek and Italian descent. He was an accomplished player of the violin, viola, oboe, cla ...

and Geraldo) and making a number of freelance recording (including duets with Al Bowlly). In 1932, he joined Henry Hall's

BBC Dance Orchestra The BBC Big Band, originally known as the BBC Radio Big Band is a British big band, previously run under the auspices of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC). The band broadcasts exclusively on BBC Radio, particularly on BBC Radio 2's long ...

as a featured vocalist and enjoyed national hits with 'The Sun Has Got His Hat On' and 'Auf Wiedersehen My Dear'. Allen parted ways with Hall in 1934 and began a career as a solo act, scoring hits with 'Tell Me Tonight', 'Love Is The Sweetest and the children's ballad, 'Little Man You've Had A Busy Day' on which his wife, Anne and son, Norman had speaking parts. In 1935, he starred in the musical comedy ‘Heat Wave’. Subsequently, Allen formed his own bands, the Les Allen Melody Four and the male voice singing group, Les Allen & His Canadian Bachelors, with fellow countrymen Jack Curtis (lead), Herbie King (tenor), and Cy Mack (baritone and arranger). During the Second World War, Allen travelled and entertained Canadian troops. After the war, he played the juvenile lead in the 1945 revival of " Miss Hook of Holland" before returning to Toronto in 1948, where he started a second career in the office supply trade, retiring in 1971. He died in Toronto in 1996 at the age of 93. Allen's nephew, Singer-accordionist Eddie Allen, was a member of

The Happy Gang ''The Happy Gang'' was a Canadian Broadcasting Corporation radio lunchtime variety show that ran from 1937 to 1959. During the Golden Age of Radio and well into the 1950s, it was one of Canada's most popular programs. In its heyday, it had about ...

from 1938 to 1959.Canadian Encyclopedi
"The Happy Gang – Members"
/ref>

References

External links

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Canadian Encyclopedia Entry
{{DEFAULTSORT:Allen, Les 1902 births 1996 deaths 20th-century Canadian male singers Canadian jazz saxophonists Male saxophonists 20th-century saxophonists Canadian male jazz musicians British emigrants to Canada