Gwyn Jay Allen

GWYN JAY ALLEN

I LOVE LOUIS

…a creole tribute to Louis Armstrong

I Love Louis is star vocalist Gwyn Jay Allen’s Creole tribute to the late, great Louis Armstrong. Produced, directed and arranged by the UK’s most exciting Latin-jazz pianist, Alex Wilson, the album comprises ten superb tracks featuring Gwyn’s original songs, inspired by Louis, plus his exciting interpretations of Armstrong songs all brought together in a captivating and enthralling whole. The first vocal tribute of its kind to Louis Armstrong. Gwyn is joined on the album by an all-star band including a very special guest artist, the Grammy Award-winning trumpeter Roy Hargrove of Verve Records. The impressive line-up in full is as follows:

Vocals - Gwyn Jay Allen

Vocals - Lauren Dalrymple

Piano and Hammond Organ - Alex Wilson

Bass - Neil Charles

Drums - Troy Miller

Trumpet - Quentin Collins

Trumpet - Roy Hargrove (Tracks 6 & 7) Courtesy of Verve Records

Trombone - Barnaby Dickinson

Guitar - Jo Caleb

I Love Louis will be launched at two very special dates at London’s Pizza Express on 27th/28th January 2008. The band on both nights will be the all-star line-up from the album led by M.D. Alex Wilson. Further UK dates, still to be announced, will run from April onwards.

A natural born entertainer, Gwyn Jay Allen went on to star as Cab Calloway in the long running smash hit West End musical, The Blues Brothers following residencies, first at London’s Park Lane Hilton then the world famous Dorchester Hotel. His lifelong love of the work of Louis ‘Satchmo’ Armstrong propelled him onto TV stardom when he made the finals of ITV’s Stars In Their Eyes. Many featured TV appearances have since followed and his vocals, guitar and percussion have graced the recordings of many musical giants including Diana Ross, Basement Jaxx, Maxi Priest and Jamiroquai.

Gwyn has just returned from his first I Love Louis tour of Melbourne, Australia where he received rave reviews, sparking up plans for 2008’s four city-wide tour of Australia together with Hong Kong, Singapore and Japan.

In 2001 Gwyn Jay Allen independently released his first solo album, Land of Milk and Money and that same year supported gospel giant, Kirk Franklin at the Royal Albert Hall. Gwyn has also lead various gospel bands and leads worship and evangelism at his local church, Dunamis – House of Praise in Ealing.

Gwyn Jay Allen was born in the UK of Sierra Leone parentage. On a visit to his homeland in 1999, Gwyn was taken hostage by the West African peacekeeping force in the Sierra Leonean civil war and was interrogated at gunpoint. He managed to escape through Guinea by plane to Senegal and from there to the Gambia on a 3-day road and ferry crossing. It is testament to the strength of Gwyn’s character that he talks of this experience almost as if it was nothing out of the ordinary.

GWYN JAY ALLEN
I LOVE LOUIS (DUNAMIS 3 CD)
28TH JANUARY 2008
DUNAMIS RECORDS
For CDs/interviews/further information etc.
please contact Peter Conway Management
Tel: 0208 378 1012 Email: [email protected]

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