Birth name Richard Allen Instruments Drums Name Richard Allen Genres Soul music | Occupation(s) Musician Years active 1959–2002 Role Musician | |
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Born August 13, 1932Memphis, Tennessee, United States ( 1932-08-13 ) Associated acts Funk Brothers, Motown Records Died June 30, 2002, Detroit, Michigan, United States Movies Standing in the Shadows of Motown Music group The Funk Brothers (1959 – 1972) Similar People Benny Benjamin, Uriel Jones, Eddie "Bongo" Brown, Joe Hunter, Robert White | ||
Richard "Pistol" Allen (August 13, 1932 – June 30, 2002) was an African-American musician, most notable as a Motown session drummer with The Funk Brothers.
History
Richard "Pistol" Allen was the primary recording session drummer for Motown Records' in-house Funk Brothers band on most of Holland-Dozier and Holland's hit productions of the 1960s. Hits for which Allen played the drums include "Heat Wave" by Martha & the Vandellas, "The Way You Do the Things You Do" by The Temptations, "Baby Love" by the Supremes, "I Heard It Through The Grapevine" by Marvin Gaye, and "Reach Out I'll Be There" by the Four Tops.
Allen's influences included Max Roach, Buddy Rich, and fellow Funk Brother Benny Benjamin. He played a studio set made up of Ludwig, Slingerland, Rogers and Gretsch components and likely Zildjian cymbals.
Although he appeared in Standing in the Shadows of Motown, the 2002 documentary about the Funk Brothers, Allen died of cancer in June 2002 in Detroit, Michigan at the age of 69, almost six months before the completed film was released.
"Pistol" Allen was inducted into the Michigan Rock and Roll Legends online Hall of Fame in 2010 as a member of the Funk Brothers.