Originally from Iowa, Jay Allen moved to Nashville in 2013 and worked as a songwriter before releasing his breakthrough track, Blank Stares – a touching ballad addressing his late mother’s Alzheimer’s – which became a huge viral hit. Since then he’s appeared on The Voice in the US, performed at the White House and the Capitol Building, and raised over $100m for Alzheimer’s research. He’s now made his way across the pond for a short UK tour over the past few days, which concluded last night at The Pheasantry in London.
Walking in to huge cheers and hugging fans on the way to the stage, Allen kicked off his set with his version of Toby Keith’s ‘Should’ve Been A Cowboy’. The song showed off the gravelly edge to his vocals and I liked the rockier spin he put on the song, as well as encouraging the crowd to sing and clap along. He followed that with a rendition of ‘Folsom Prison Blues’ which saw him stepping out into the crowd to dance with an audience member.
Throughout the evening one thing which stood out to me was Allen’s connection with the audience. He regularly encouraged the audience to join in, whether that was suggesting songs for guitarist Hunter to attempt in his riff-off – which included the likes of Free Bird, Livin’ On A Prayer and Turning Japanese – inviting a long-time couple up to dance ‘After You’ with its soulful vocals and huge chorus, borrowing a fan’s sunglasses for the laid-back, sunny ‘Cool’ or asking audience members to share their stories of loss, which provided a very touching moment. Additionally, he peppered the set with jokes and stories from everything about his songwriting to his wife (fellow country singer Kylie Morgan) and his visit to the UK, as well as reflecting on dealing with his drinking after the loss of his mum before performing the introspective, moving ‘Whiskey Prayer’ which featured some particularly powerful vocals.
Although Allen is arguably best known for his ballads, his live performance really brought out the rockier influences in his vocal, particularly on the more upbeat tracks. ‘Mustang On Mud Tires’, from 2021 EP ‘Bulletproof’, had a funky driving vibe (as well as a killer impression of Kylie’s vocals at the end), whilst ‘Top It Off’ featured a huge soaring chorus, latest single ‘Heart Ain’t Gonna Break Itself’ saw him showing off his flirtatious side and the cheeky ‘Jello Shot’ had a playful, cheeky feel. That said, there was plenty for fans of his slower songs to enjoy, particularly recent release ‘No Present Like The Time’ which featured a stripped-back melody and a heartfelt delivery from Allen – I’m not ashamed to admit I shed a tear at that one!
For me though the highlight of the show was ‘Tattoos To Heaven’. Allen introduced the song by talking about his own tattoos and the significance they’ve had in his life, before launching into the punchy track. I was particularly impressed by the belt in his voice as well as the big notes towards the end, and the song had a great energy about it that paired well with his quick delivery and the absolute belief and conviction he injected into his delivery of every line. It was nice to see another side of him and I think it’s an element that could win over a lot of fans here.
After a run-through of several cover tracks which allowed Allen to show off his country chops on Jon Pardi’s ‘Dirt On My Boots’ before paying tribute to the music he loved growing up with a powerful one-two of Matchbox Twenty’s ‘Unwell’ and 3 Doors Down’s ‘Here Without You’, he closed the show with ‘Blank Stares’. Before the song he spoke very movingly about his mum and the story behind the song’s success, and you could feel him pouring absolutely every drop of emotion into the lyrics as he frequently looked up during the lyrics. It was a really touching way to end the set and the crowd responded with enormous cheers and applause, before he grabbed a quick video with the audience and made time to speak to them afterwards.
Overall Jay Allen delivered an impressive London headline show which showed off both his rock and country sides, as well as great stage presence, a highly engaging performance and strong vocals throughout. From the chatter around me afterwards it was clear he’d made a significant impression on many people there and I think it’s going to be really interesting to see where he goes from here. At the end of the show he mentioned that he “would love to come back, it’s been a pleasure to be here” and the feeling definitely seemed to be mutual, so make sure you keep an eye out for him the next time he’s back in the UK.
Set list: 1. Should’ve Been A Cowboy (Toby Keith cover) 2. Folsom Prison Blues (Johnny Cash cover) 3. Guitar riff-off (including Livin’ On A Prayer (Bon Jovi cover)/Free Bird (Lynyrd Skynyrd cover)/Turning Japanese (The Vapors cover) (performed by guitarist Hunter) 4. Mustang On Mud Tires 5. Cool 6. Top It Off 7. Heart Ain’t Gonna Break Itself 8. After You 9. Whiskey Prayer 10. No Present Like The Time 11. Tattoos To Heaven 12. Jello Shot 13. Wanted Dead Or Alive (Bon Jovi cover) (with Hunter and audience member Andy) 14. Dirt On My Boots (Jon Pardi cover) 15. Unwell (Matchbox Twenty cover) 16. Here Without You (3 Doors Down cover) 17. Blank Stares Performance date: 8th August 2023
