About Me
Allan Soberman is a cantors son and singer/songwriter/musician based in Toronto, Canada. He started his career as a bassist/singer with many of the folk acts in and around Toronto in the early- to mid- 1970s. He has accompanied people such as Grammy award-winner Dan Hill, Grammy award-winner Ben Mink, Canadian stalwarts Stringband, Brent Titcomb, Nancy White, Marie-Lynn Hammond, Bill Hughes (of Lazarus), and others, touring Canada, the United States and Mexico. He has appeared with acts opening for the likes of Billy Crystal, Billy Joel, Maria Muldaur, Sonny Terry and Brownie McGhee, Steve Goodman, J.J. Cale, the Paul Butterfield Blues Band and Eric Weisberg.Always interested in record production, he began work in the mid- 1970's for record producer John Capek (who co-wrote hits such as Rhythm of My Heart for Rod Stewart and Pieces Of Ice for Diana Ross), garnering production experience and doing many background vocal sessions which he put to good use as a session vocalist in television and radio commercials and on record for people such as Sylvia Tyson (formerly of Ian & Sylvia). Additionally, he scored several educational films with violinist/producer/songwriter, Ben Mink (k.d. langs co-writer/co-producer). He also produced a fusion jazz/folk instrumental album for Mink engineered by Daniel Lanois (noted producer of U2, Bob Dylan, Peter Gabriel, Robbie Robertson, Emmy Lou Harris). Allan has had two singles released by Boot Records (a rootsy Canadian label founded by Canadian icon Stompin Tom Connors) which garnered widespread Canadian airplay. While commuting to Nashville in the 1980s, he co-wrote with many veteran songwriters such as Robin Lerner (Faith Hill), Dickey Lee (George Jones, Brenda Lee), Tommy Rocco (Anne Murray), Casey Kelly (Tanya Tucker, Kenny Rogers), Byron Hill (George Strait, Alabama) and Susan Longacre (Neil Diamond).In the early 1980's, some of his recorded material with Beach Boy-esque harmonies caught the ear of producer/Beach Boy, Bruce Johnston, who took on the publishing of some of the material with his partner Terry Melcher (producer for the Byrds/Paul Revere and the Raiders). During the following years, Allan worked with Juno award-winning childrens entertainer, Bob Schneider, touring ,playing on records and appearing on TV specials aired in Canada and on PBS in the U.S. He has continued playing and singing for various musicians in the Toronto area along with continuing to compose and placing songs in films e.g. Universal Soldier 2 with Jean Claude Van Damme.In the year 2001, after completing a tribute compilation CD to his late father, Cantor Morris Soberman, he recorded a traditional Friday evening zmir (song), Shalom Aleichem, that his family would sing around the Sabbath evening dinner table. It was basically done to make a musical connection with his father, using the traditional melody but producing it in his own way. After receiving encouraging responses from friends and colleagues, he completed an entire CD entitled Searching for My Voice. It encompasses prayers that he learned as a child, using their original traditional melody while creating a unique, contemporary setting for them. In order to maintain the intimate connection to his father, he recorded this project by himself, singing all the vocal arrangements and playing all the instruments.
