Okay, okay, I get tired, too. I was hot, and I did not want to walk all the way down to the Unum Stage when I got to Riverbend yesterday afternoon (plus, I had a friend along and she was wearing sandals, and you know how hard it is to walk in sandals, but I digress). So I slid on by the Covista Stage and headed for the shade of the Bud Light tent (you know, I kind of wish I was making a thousand dollars a pop for mentioning each of those stages, but I get nada! Again, I digress). I walked into the Deborah Allen show with a vague idea that, somewhere in the recesses of my memory, I had heard the name before – I simply couldn’t place it.

Suddenly, yep, suddenly, during the first chorus of “Baby I Lied,” I remembered just who this attractive, vivacious songbird was, and I thought, oh yeah, that’s Deborah Allen. I remembered hearing the song back when it was a hit on Country radio, and a flood of memories came rushing (yes, really, rushing like a Texan flood) back to me. I remembered the song, the singer, and the name. At the time Deborah Allen had released “Baby I Lied” she was already a talked about songwriter in Nashville (I was living and playing in Murfreesboro at the time), and she was already popular.

Well, in a nutshell, I enjoyed her show immensely. This artist has more energy than most, and a personality that wins over an audience in short order. Deborah not only treated her audience to some of her biggest hits (including an old John Connely – not the politician, the singer – hit cover of her song, “This Time I’m In It For The Love”), and during her show I’m not sure if she stood still once. I like it when artists move about the stage, it makes me feel like they are more like me, and I can rarely sit in one place for long. Allen’s patter with her audience and evident talent is a combination that I believe will bring her back to Riverbend in the future.

Allen’s band was impressive, one and all, and the sound mix achieved by the soundman and band members was one of the best I’ve heard at this year’s Riverbend – so far.

I you’ve a love for Country songs and fine singing, why not check out Deborah Allen’s website (it contains an extensive list of her hit songs, and just might surprise you).

http://www.deborahallen.com/theartist.htm

Jay Mouton
jaymouton@gmail.com