DEBBIE ELLIOTT, HOST:
There's a corner of Alabama known for cranking out music that holds its own against Motown in Memphis. It's the Muscle Shoals sound. Billy Allen grew up nearby, singing with a powerful voice that was destined to be heard. He cut his teeth covering songs at venues around northwest Alabama.
BILLY ALLEN: My whole idea was, OK, I'm good at taking a song and making it my own, putting my own stamp on it, sinking my own teeth into it. So years of that, I'm building, OK, this is what I'll do. I'll master this.
ELLIOTT: Then he met Jay Burgess of the band The Pollies, who challenged him to start writing his own songs.
ALLEN: And I'm like, oh, no (laughter). I'm not a writer.
(SOUNDBITE OF BILLY ALLEN AND THE POLLIES SONG, "TEARS KEEP ON FALLING")
ALLEN: He's like, we'll just talk. And then he started showing me how to put those ideas into melodies. He really showed me how to take those words and make music out of it, quite literally.
(SOUNDBITE OF BILLY ALLEN AND THE POLLIES SONG, "TEARS KEEP ON FALLING")
ELLIOTT: The result was an album called "Black Noise" that the newly formed Billy Allen + the Pollies released last year. They're out with a new record called "Live At Muscle Shoals Sound." I spoke with Billy Allen about learning to sing his own music, capturing the energy of a new group and the magic of Muscle Shoals.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "TEARS KEEP ON FALLING")
BILLY ALLEN AND THE POLLIES: (Singing) I just can't stand the pain. I never found how to get up. These tears just keep on falling. These tears just keep on falling.
ELLIOTT: I'm curious what it was like recording in such a legendary place. I mean, Muscle Shoals Studio produced hits for artists like - I don't know - Aretha Franklin, Wilson Pickett, the Rolling Stones, The Staple Singers, Rod Stewart, Bob - I mean, you can just go on and on and on. Did you find that to be inspirational or maybe a little intimidating?
ALLEN: A little bit of both (laughter). It's crazy, and you can feel it standing in that room singing, you know? It's like a thread is running through that building, and it gets ahold of you when you stand there and sing. So it's quite incredible, man.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "TEARS KEEP ON FALLING")
BILLY ALLEN AND THE POLLIES: (Singing) I just can't stand the pain. I never found how to get up.
ELLIOTT: What was your music origin story? How did you come to be a singer?
ALLEN: Well, I grew up in Town Creek. That's probably about 45 minutes away from Muscle Shoals.
ELLIOTT: A little, small town.
ALLEN: A little, small town. Don't go too fast (laughter). I went to church with my mother. There, not being able to play, I picked up everything in the choir stand - every movement, every song, every note. And so we was at a visiting church, and a group called The All Sisters (ph) pointed at me and said, give him the mic. And we did the whole song over again with me singing it. I knew then that was - that's what I wanted to do. It was that feeling that you got, you know? Like you're flying, you know? You never want to lose that feeling.
ELLIOTT: Now, how did you come to first connect with The Pollies and eventually get together to make these records?
ALLEN: Years, years of doing cover band. I think I did my first cover band in a bar at 16. But one of The Pollies, along with another band member from another band, seen me perform at OTR, which is downtown Florence.
ELLIOTT: That was Jay Burgess with the Pollies, who was there. And he wasn't there with just another musician. He was there with Brittany Howard of Alabama Shakes.
ALLEN: Oh, you know the story (laughter).
ELLIOTT: Yeah. I read about it. And they're like, on this balcony going...
ALLEN: I didn't want to name-drop (laughter).
ELLIOTT: Is that a record? Who is that? What is this voice? Like...
ALLEN: (Laughter) Maybe a few years after that, they contacted Rodney Hall, which I was working with at the time at FAME Studios. The moment The Pollies started playing, I'm like, oh, my God. This is my band (laughter).
ELLIOTT: And the chemistry was just there.
ALLEN: It was there. It was magical. 'Cause we had played with several different guys there at FAME. But when those guys - when The Pollies came in, I'm like, this is what I've been looking for right here.
(SOUNDBITE OF BILLY ALLEN AND THE POLLIES SONG, "IF YOU WANT ME TO STAY")
ELLIOTT: Let's listen to the track "If You Want Me To Stay."
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "IF YOU WANT ME TO STAY")
BILLY ALLEN AND THE POLLIES: (Singing) The memories of old flames stands behind your locked door. Ooh, baby, surrender the key, and we can start all over again. If you want me to stay, I won't go. I won't go.
ELLIOTT: Now, this live album, recorded at Muscle Shoals Studio - but, you know, I think when most of us think live album, we think of a performance venue, right? What is it like having an audience in an actual recording studio and recording live in a studio?
ALLEN: (Laughter).
ELLIOTT: How does that work?
ALLEN: It's a bit strange at first, you know? You have to let them know, it's OK. This is - we've already done the record. You can interact. You can have fun and make noise, you know? We did about two runs, you know, to kind of get everybody sort of loosened up.
ELLIOTT: Yeah. 'Cause you're supposed to be quiet in the studio, right?
ALLEN: Right, right. And I think they had on headphones and stuff too. But once they warmed up, there was dancing. And then we told them, come in, get around us, you know? Be in the show (laughter).
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "IF YOU WANT ME TO STAY")
BILLY ALLEN AND THE POLLIES: (Singing) If you want me to stay...
UNIDENTIFIED AUDIENCE: (Singing) If you want me to stay...
BILLY ALLEN AND THE POLLIES: (Singing) I won't go. I won't go.
UNIDENTIFIED AUDIENCE: (Singing) I won't go. I won't go.
BILLY ALLEN AND THE POLLIES: (Singing) If you need me, darling...
UNIDENTIFIED AUDIENCE: (Singing) If you need me, darling...
BILLY ALLEN AND THE POLLIES: (Singing) Honey, like I need you. I won't go. If you want me to stay, I won't go. I won't go.
ELLIOTT: Now I want to listen to something that's a little slower, but it was a...
ALLEN: OK.
ELLIOTT: ...Really pretty song - "Invited."
ALLEN: Ooh.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "INVITED")
BILLY ALLEN AND THE POLLIES: (Singing) I don't want to be invited to your house, to your house or get drunk on the couch tonight. I don't want to be invited. Yeah.
ALLEN: This is one of the songs where we all pitched in. And I was like, OK, I don't have anything. I can't think of anything. And I think the keyboardist yelled out, write about being invited to all these different things, and you just want to go home or, you know, you just want to just - and I'm like, oh, yes (laughter). That's perfect 'cause that is so me. I don't want to go to the after party. I don't want to...
ELLIOTT: Really?
ALLEN: ...Go and hang and get high. Yeah. I'm an introvert, you know? You can't tell it on that stage but...
ELLIOTT: No. You do not come off as an introvert.
ALLEN: (Laughter) Well, that's good. I'm doing good acting (laughter).
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "INVITED")
BILLY ALLEN AND THE POLLIES: (Singing) I don't want to be invited.
ELLIOTT: So it sounds like you're becoming a little bit more comfortable writing after playing covers for all this time.
ALLEN: Much more. Much more. I don't want to go back to the straight cover world. No. I'm done with that. That's the old chapter.
ELLIOTT: How do you think you found your voice?
ALLEN: Ooh. From experience...
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "FOREVER")
BILLY ALLEN AND THE POLLIES: (Singing) Have you ever looked around, watched your whole world drown? I have.
ALLEN: ...From having to sing through the pain, from having to sing through the joys, it came. You know, I studied, imitated and then, slowly, my voice just started emerging through. And I'm like, OK, let me do more of this. You know, this feels right.
ELLIOTT: That was Billy Allen of Billy Allen + The Pollies. Their new album, "Live At Muscle Shoals Sound," is out now. Billy Allen, thanks so much for the conversation.
ALLEN: Thank you. Quite comfortable conversation.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "FOREVER")
BILLY ALLEN AND THE POLLIES: (Singing) When the sun and moon collide, I will be your guide forever. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.
