Geri Allen

Geri Allen
Geri Allen
	Allen in 2008
Born	June 12, 1957; Pontiac, Michigan, U.S.
Died	June 27, 2017 (aged 60); Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Alma mater	Howard University ; University of Pittsburgh
Spouse	Steve Coleman (m. 1987; div. 1989) Wallace Roney (m. 1995; div. 2008)
Children	3
	Musical career
Genres	Jazz, blues, funk, gospel
Occupation(s)	Musician, educator, composer
Instrument	Piano
Years active	1982–2017
Labels	Motema Music, Polygram, Storyville, Blue Note, Telarc
Website	www.GeriAllen.com

Geri Antoinette Allen (June 12, 1957 – June 27, 2017) was an American jazz pianist, composer, and educator. She taught at the University of Michigan and the University of Pittsburgh.

Quick Facts Born, Died ...

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Thumb — Allen at Detroit Jazz Fest in 2009

Allen was born in Pontiac, Michigan, on June 12, 1957, and grew up in Detroit.^[2] "Her father, Mount Allen Jr, was a school principal, her mother, Barbara, a government administrator in the defence industry."^[3] Allen was educated in Detroit Public Schools.^[4] She started playing the piano at the age of seven, and settled on becoming a jazz pianist in her early teens.^[3]

Allen graduated from Howard University's jazz studies program in 1979.^[5] She then continued her studies: with pianist Kenny Barron in New York;^[3] and at the University of Pittsburgh, where she completed a master's degree in ethnomusicology in 1982.^[5] After this, she returned to New York.^[3]

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Allen became involved in the M-Base collective in New York.^[3] Her recording debut as a leader was in 1984, resulting in The Printmakers.^[2] This trio album, with bassist Anthony Cox and drummer Andrew Cyrille, also featured some of Allen's compositions.^[2]

Allen married trumpeter Wallace Roney in 1995.^[3] They had a daughter and a son; the marriage ended in divorce.^[3] Allen was awarded the Jazzpar Prize in 1996.^[3] In the same year, she recorded two albums with Ornette Coleman: Sound Museum: Hidden Man and Sound Museum: Three Women.^[5]

In 2006, Allen composed "For the Healing of the Nations", a suite written in tribute to the victims and survivors of the September 11 attacks.^[3] She was awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship in 2008.^[3]

Allen was a longtime resident of Montclair, New Jersey.^[6] For 10 years she taught jazz and improvisational studies at the University of Michigan, and she became director of the jazz studies program at the University of Pittsburgh in 2013.^[2]

Allen died on June 27, 2017, two weeks after her 60th birthday, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, after suffering from cancer.^[7]

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Honorary Doctorate of Music from Berklee, 2014^[8]
Guggenheim Fellowship, 2008^[9]
African American Classical Music Award from Spelman College, 2007^[10]
The Benny Golson Jazz Master Award, 2005^[11]
Distinguished Alumni Award from Howard, 1996^[12]
Danish Jazzpar Prize (first woman recipient), 1996^[13]^[14]
Soul Train's Lady of Soul Award (first recipient) for jazz album of the year for Twenty-One, 1995^[14]

As leader/co-leader

Main sources:^[15]^[16]

More information Recording date, Title ...

Recording date	Title	Label	Year released	Personnel/Notes
1984-02	The Printmakers	Minor Music	1985	Trio, with Anthony Cox (bass), Andrew Cyrille (drums, percussion)
1985-01	Home Grown	Minor Music	1985	Solo piano
1986-12	Open on All Sides in the Middle	Minor Music	1987	With Rayse Biggs (trumpet, flugelhorn), Robin Eubanks (trombone), David McMurray (soprano sax, flute), Steve Coleman (alto sax), Jaribu Shahid (bass), Tani Tabbal (drums), Shahita Nurallah (vocals); plus guests Mino Cinelu (drums, percussion), Lloyd Storey (tap dance), Marcus Belgrave (flugelhorn)
1989	Twylight	Minor Music	1989	Trio, with Jaribu Shahid (bass), Tani Tabbal (drums), plus Sadiq Bey (congas, percussion), Eli Fountain (percussion) as guests, and Clarice Taylor Bell (vocals) on one track
1989-03	In the Year of the Dragon	JMT	1989	Trio, with Charlie Haden (bass), Paul Motian (drums); one track quartet, with Juan Lazaro Mendolas (flute) added
1989-04	Segments	DIW	1989	Trio, with Charlie Haden (bass), Paul Motian (drums)
1990-01	The Nurturer	Blue Note	1991	Sextet, with Marcus Belgrave (trumpet, flugelhorn), Kenny Garrett (alto sax), Robert Hurst (bass), Jeff "Tain" Watts (drums), Eli Fountain (percussion)
1990-12	Live at the Village Vanguard	DIW	1991	Trio, with Charlie Haden (bass), Paul Motian (drums); in concert
1990-12	Live at the Village Vanguard: Unissued Tracks^[17]	Somethin' Cool	2022	Trio, with Charlie Haden (bass), Paul Motian (drums); in concert
1992-02	Maroons	Blue Note	1992	With Marcus Belgrave and Wallace Roney (trumpet), Anthony Cox and Dwayne Dolphin (bass), Pheeroan akLaff and Tani Tabbal (drums) in various combinations
1994-03	Twenty One	Blue Note	1994	Trio, with Ron Carter (bass), Tony Williams (drums)
1995-12, 1996-03	Eyes in the Back of Your Head	Blue Note	1997	Some tracks solo piano/synthesizer; some duos with Ornette Coleman (alto sax), Wallace Roney (trumpet) and Cyro Baptista (percussion); some trio tracks, with Roney (trumpet) and Baptista (percussion)
1996-03	Some Aspects of Water	Storyville	1997	With Henrik Bolberg Pedersen (trumpet, flugelhorn), Johnny Coles (flugelhorn), Kjeld Ipsen (trombone), Axel Windfeld (tuba), Michael Hove (alto sax, flute, clarinet), Uffe Markussen (tenor sax, soprano sax, bass clarinet), Palle Danielsson (bass), Lenny White (drums)
1998-02	The Gathering	Verve	1998	With Wallace Roney (trumpet, flugelhorn), Robin Eubanks (trombone), Dwight Andrews (piccolo, alto flute, bass flute, bass clarinet), Vernon Reid (guitar), Ralphe Armstrong (7-stringbass), Buster Williams (bass), Lenny White (drums), Mino Cinelu (percussion) in various combinations
2004-01	The Life of a Song	Telarc	2004	Trio, with Dave Holland (bass), Jack DeJohnette (drums); one track sextet, with Marcus Belgrave (flugelhorn), Dwight Andrews (sax), Clifton Anderson (trombone) added
2006-03	Timeless Portraits and Dreams	Telarc	2006	Trio, with Ron Carter (bass), Jimmy Cobb (drums); some tracks solo piano; some tracks with Wallace Roney (trumpet), Donald Walden (tenor sax), Carmen Lundy, George Shirley and The Atlanta Jazz Chorus (vocals) added in various combinations
2008-12	Flying Toward the Sound	Motéma	2010	Solo piano
2009-02	Geri Allen & Timeline Live	Motéma	2010	Quartet, with Kenny Davis (bass), Kassa Overall (drums), Maurice Chestnut (tap dance)
2011-01, 2011-04	A Child Is Born	Motéma	2011	Solo keyboards; some tracks with Carolyn Brewer, Connaitre Miller, Barbara Roney and Farah Jasmine Griffin (vocals) added in various combinations
2012-08	Grand River Crossings	Motéma	2013	Solo piano; some tracks duo, with Marcus Belgrave (trumpet); one track duo with David McMurray (alto sax)
2012-09	A Lovesome Thing^[18]	Motéma	2023	Duo, with Kurt Rosenwinkel (guitar)
2015-06	Perfection	Motéma	2016	Trio, with David Murray (tenor sax, bass clarinet), Terri Lyne Carrington (drums); one track sextet, with Wallace Roney (trumpet), Craig Harris (trombone), Charnett Moffett (bass) added

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As sidewoman

Main source:^[19]

With Franco Ambrosetti

Movies (Enja, 1987) – rec. 1986
Movies Too (Enja, 1988)

With The Batson Brothers

Three Pianos for Jimi (Douglas, 1998)^[20]

With Betty Carter

Droppin' Things (Verve, 1990) – live
Feed the Fire (Verve, 1994) – live rec. 1983
The Music Never Stops (Blue Engine, 2019) – live

With Ornette Coleman

Sound Museum: Hidden Man (Harmolodic/Verve, 1996)
Sound Museum: Three Women (Harmolodic/Verve, 1996)

With Steve Coleman

Motherland Pulse (JMT, 1985)
And Five Elements: On the Edge of Tomorrow (JMT, 1986)
And Five Elements: World Expansion (JMT, 1986)
And Five Elements: Sine Die (Pangaea, 1986) – 1 track

With Charlie Haden

1987: Etudes (Soul Note, 1988)
1989: The Montreal Tapes: with Geri Allen and Paul Motian (Verve, 1997)
1989: The Montreal Tapes: Liberation Music Orchestra (Verve, 1999)

With Oliver Lake

Expandable Language (Black Saint, 1984)
Otherside (Gramavision, 1988)
Talkin' Stick (Passin' Thru, 2000)

With Charles Lloyd

Lift Every Voice (ECM, 2002)
Jumping the Creek (ECM, 2005) – rec. 2004

With Wallace Roney

Munchin' (Muse, 1993)
Crunchin' (Muse, 1993)
Mistérios (Warner Bros., 1994)
Village (Warner Bros, 1997)
No Room for Argument (Stretch, 2000)
Prototype (HighNote, 2004)
Mystikal (HighNote, 2005)
Jazz (Highnote, 2007)

With Trio 3 (Oliver Lake, Reggie Workman & Andrew Cyrille)

At This Time (Intakt, 2009)
Celebrating Mary Lou Williams–Live at Birdland New York (Intakt, 2011)

With others

Cecil Brooks III, The Collective (Muse, 1989)
Roy Brooks, Duet in Detroit (Enja, 1993) – rec. 1989
Buddy Collette, Flute Talk with James Newton (Soul Note, 1988)
Craig Handy, Reflections in Change (Sirocco Music, 1999)
Joseph Jarman, Inheritance (FourStar, 1991) - rec. 1983
Frank Lowe, Decision in Paradise (Soul Note, 1984)
Paul Motian, Monk in Motian (JMT, 1988)
Greg Osby, Mindgames (JMT, 1988)
Dewey Redman, Living on the Edge (Black Saint, 1989)
Gregory Charles Royal, Dream Come True (GCR, 1979) – reissued (Celeste (Japan), 2008)
Woody Shaw, Bemsha Swing (Blue Note, 1997) – rec. 1986
John Stubblefield, Bushman Song (Enja, 1986)
Wayne Shorter, Joy Ryder (Columbia, 1988)^[21]
Gary Thomas, By Any Means Necessary (JMT, 1989)
Ernie Watts, Unity (JVC, 1995)
The Mary Lou Williams Collective, Zodiac Suite: Revisited (Mary, 2006)
Buster Williams, Houdini (Sirocco Music, 2001) – rec. 2000
Reggie Workman, Cerebral Caverns (Postcards, 1995)
V.A., Kansas City (A Robert Altman Film, Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) (Verve, 1996)

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Geri Allen portrays jazz pianist Mary Lou Williams and performs with the jazz band in the Robert Altman film Kansas City.

[1]
"Separate the art from the artist?". 27 October 2021.
[2]
Russonello, Giovanni (June 27, 2017). "Geri Allen, Pianist Who Reconciled Jazz's Far-Flung Styles, Dies at 60". The New York Times.
[3]
Fordham, John (July 3, 2017). "Geri Allen Obituary". The Guardian.
[4]
Cook, Richard (2005). Richard Cook's Jazz Encyclopedia. London: Penguin Books. p. 8. ISBN 0-141-00646-3.
[5]
Schudel, Matt (June 28, 2017). "Geri Allen, Versatile Jazz Pianist, Composer and Educator, Dies at 60". The Washington Post.
[6]
Staudter, Thomas. "Making Jazz and Family, Home and the Road Work Together", The New York Times, September 9, 2001. Accessed September 18, 2017. "Her luggage already packed for a late afternoon flight to San Francisco, Geri Allen, a jazz pianist, still had several precious hours remaining before her departure out of Newark, so she was filling the morning in the company of three children, ages 3 to 11. Ms. Allen's husband, Wallace Roney, a trumpeter, had returned home after midnight from an evening rehearsal at Carnegie Hall, and to respect his need to sleep, mother and children romped in the yard until growling stomachs sent them back inside to the breakfast table.... Ms. Allen and Mr. Roney have lived in their three-story frame house in Montclair, a short trip from Manhattan, since 1991." Geri Allen and Wallace Roney were divorced in 2008.
[7]
Adlet, David R. (June 27, 2017). "Geri Allen, Brilliantly Expressive Pianist, Composer and Educator, Dies at 60". WGBO. Retrieved June 27, 2017.
[8]
"Jimmy Page, Geri Allen, Valerie Simpson, Thara Memory to Receive Honorary Degrees | Berklee College of Music". www.berklee.edu. Retrieved September 7, 2019.
[9]
"John Simon Guggenheim Foundation | Geri Allen". Retrieved September 7, 2019.
[10]
"Geri Allen, Pianist, Composer And Educator, Dies At 60". NPR.org. Retrieved September 7, 2019.
[11]
"Benny Golson Award". Howard University Jazz Ensemble. Retrieved September 20, 2023.
[12]
"Howard University Alumni Outcomes Assessment Project: Perspectives Along the Path to Truth and Service" (PDF). Howard University. Retrieved February 5, 2024.
[13]
Shipton, Alyn (2022). On Jazz: A Personal Journey. Cambridge University Press. p. 247. ISBN 978-1-108-99833-8.
[14]
"As Gender Bias Fades, New Artists Emerge". Billboard. June 29, 1996. p. 94.
[15]
Jazzlists: Geri Allen: leader and co-leader discography. Retrieved November 22, 2017.
[16]
"Geri Allen Discography", JazzDisco.org. Retrieved November 22, 2017.
[17]
"Geri Allen - Live at the Village Vanguard: Unissued Tracks". Jazz Music Archives. Retrieved February 5, 2024.
[18]
"Geri Allen & Kurt Rosenwinkel: A Lovesome Thing". Jazz Music Archives. Retrieved February 5, 2024.
[19]
Jazzlists: Geri Allen sidewoman: main albums and selected single artist collections. Retrieved November 22, 2017.
[20]
Triad - Three Pianos for Jimi at Discogs (list of releases)
[21]
Yanow, S. AllMusic Review accessed April 2, 2012

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Official Website 4
Geri Allen at Motéma Music
Geri Allen at All About Jazz
Geri Allen at NPR Music
Jazz Conversations with Eric Jackson: Geri Allen, from WGBH Radio Boston
Geri Allen at Rhapsody

[1] [1]
"Separate the art from the artist?". 27 October 2021.

[NYT-2] [2]
Russonello, Giovanni (June 27, 2017). "Geri Allen, Pianist Who Reconciled Jazz's Far-Flung Styles, Dies at 60". The New York Times.

[Guard-3] [3]
Fordham, John (July 3, 2017). "Geri Allen Obituary". The Guardian.

[RCJE-4] [4]
Cook, Richard (2005). Richard Cook's Jazz Encyclopedia. London: Penguin Books. p. 8. ISBN 0-141-00646-3.

[WP-5] [5]
Schudel, Matt (June 28, 2017). "Geri Allen, Versatile Jazz Pianist, Composer and Educator, Dies at 60". The Washington Post.

[6] [6]
Staudter, Thomas. "Making Jazz and Family, Home and the Road Work Together", The New York Times, September 9, 2001. Accessed September 18, 2017. "Her luggage already packed for a late afternoon flight to San Francisco, Geri Allen, a jazz pianist, still had several precious hours remaining before her departure out of Newark, so she was filling the morning in the company of three children, ages 3 to 11. Ms. Allen's husband, Wallace Roney, a trumpeter, had returned home after midnight from an evening rehearsal at Carnegie Hall, and to respect his need to sleep, mother and children romped in the yard until growling stomachs sent them back inside to the breakfast table.... Ms. Allen and Mr. Roney have lived in their three-story frame house in Montclair, a short trip from Manhattan, since 1991." Geri Allen and Wallace Roney were divorced in 2008.

[7] [7]
Adlet, David R. (June 27, 2017). "Geri Allen, Brilliantly Expressive Pianist, Composer and Educator, Dies at 60". WGBO. Retrieved June 27, 2017.

[8] [8]
"Jimmy Page, Geri Allen, Valerie Simpson, Thara Memory to Receive Honorary Degrees | Berklee College of Music". www.berklee.edu. Retrieved September 7, 2019.

[9] [9]
"John Simon Guggenheim Foundation | Geri Allen". Retrieved September 7, 2019.

[10] [10]
"Geri Allen, Pianist, Composer And Educator, Dies At 60". NPR.org. Retrieved September 7, 2019.

[11] [11]
"Benny Golson Award". Howard University Jazz Ensemble. Retrieved September 20, 2023.

[12] [12]
"Howard University Alumni Outcomes Assessment Project: Perspectives Along the Path to Truth and Service" (PDF). Howard University. Retrieved February 5, 2024.

[13] [13]
Shipton, Alyn (2022). On Jazz: A Personal Journey. Cambridge University Press. p. 247. ISBN 978-1-108-99833-8.

[bb-14] [14]
"As Gender Bias Fades, New Artists Emerge". Billboard. June 29, 1996. p. 94.

[15] [15]
Jazzlists: Geri Allen: leader and co-leader discography. Retrieved November 22, 2017.

[16] [16]
"Geri Allen Discography", JazzDisco.org. Retrieved November 22, 2017.

[17] [17]
"Geri Allen - Live at the Village Vanguard: Unissued Tracks". Jazz Music Archives. Retrieved February 5, 2024.

[18] [18]
"Geri Allen & Kurt Rosenwinkel: A Lovesome Thing". Jazz Music Archives. Retrieved February 5, 2024.

[19] [19]
Jazzlists: Geri Allen sidewoman: main albums and selected single artist collections. Retrieved November 22, 2017.

[20] [20]
Triad - Three Pianos for Jimi at Discogs (list of releases)

[21] [21]
Yanow, S. AllMusic Review accessed April 2, 2012

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[14]

[15]

[16]

[17]

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[19]

[20]

[21]

Geri Allen

As leader/co-leader

As sidewoman

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Early life and education

Later life and career

Awards

Discography

Filmography

See also

References

External links

Geri Allen
Allen in 2008
Born	(1957-06-12)June 12, 1957 Pontiac, Michigan, U.S.
Died	June 27, 2017(2017-06-27) (aged 60) Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Alma mater	Howard University University of Pittsburgh
Spouse	Steve Coleman (m. 1987; div. 1989) ^[1] Wallace Roney (m. 1995; div. 2008)
Children	3
Musical career
Genres	Jazz, blues, funk, gospel
Occupation(s)	Musician, educator, composer
Instrument	Piano
Years active	1982–2017
Labels	Motema Music, Polygram, Storyville, Blue Note, Telarc
Website	www.GeriAllen.com