Allison learned piano in grammar school, followed by trumpet in high school. He went to college at the University of Mississippi and Louisiana State University. He received a BA in English with a minor in Philosophy. After serving in the U.S. Army, he moved to New York City and launched his music career.
Allison's first exposure to blues on record was through Louis Jordan recordings, including "Outskirts of Town" and "Pinetop Blues." Allison credits Jordan as being a major influence on him, and also credits Nat King Cole, Louis Armstrong and Fats Waller. He started out on trumpet but later switched to piano. In his youth, he had easy access, via the radio, to the music of Pete Johnson , Albert Ammons and Meade Lux Lewis . Allison also credits the songwriter Percy Mayfield , "The Poet Laureate of the Blues," as being a major inspiration on his songwriting.
After a stint in college and the Army, Allison's first professional gig was in Lake Charles, LA, in 1950. He returned to college to finish up at Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, where he studied English and Philosophy, a far cry from his initial path as a chemical engineering major.
Allison began his recording career with the Prestige label in 1956, shortly after he moved to New York City. He recorded an album with Al Cohn and Bobby Brookmeyer , and then in 1957 got his own record contract. A big break was the opportunity to play with Cohn and Zoot Sims shortly after his arrival in New York, but he later became more well known after playing with saxophonist Stan Getz. After leaving Prestige Records, where he recorded now classic albums like Back Country Suite (1957), Young Man Mose (1958), and Seventh Son (1958-59), he moved to Columbia for two years before meeting up with Nesuhi Ertegun of Atlantic Records. He recalled that he signed his contract with Atlantic after about ten minutes in Nesuhi's office. Allison spent a big part of his recording career at Atlantic Records, where he became most friendly with Ertegun. After the company saw substantial growth and Allison was no longer working directly with him, he became discouraged and left. Allison has also recorded for Columbia (before he began his long relationship with Atlantic), and the Epic and Prestige labels.
Allison's discography is a lengthy one, and there are gems to be found on all of his albums, many of which can be found in vinyl shops. His output since 1957 has averaged at least one album a year until 1976, when he finished up at Atlantic with the classic Your Mind Is On Vacation. There was a gap of six years before he recorded again, this time for Elektra's Musician subsidiary in 1982, when he recorded Middle Class White Boy. Since 1987, he's been with Bluenote/Capitol. His debut for that label was Ever Since the World Ended. Allison has recorded some of the most creative material of his career with the Bluenote subsidiary of Capitol Records, including My Backyard (1992) and The Earth Wants You (1994), both produced by Ben Sidran. Also in 1994, Rhino Records released a boxed set, Allison Wonderland.
Although his boogie woogie and bebop-laden piano style is innovative and fresh sounding when it comes to blues and jazz, it is as a songwriter that Allison really shines.
His music has influenced many blues and rock artists including The Rolling Stones, John Mayall, JJ Cale and The Who, who played his song Young Man Blues on several tours. Allison is the subject of the Pixies song Allison and Greg Brown song Mose Allison played here. His song Look Here was covered by The Clash on their album Sandinista; and Blue Cheer famously covered Parchman Farm but renamed or misspelled it as Parchment Farm. Van Morrison released an album of his songs entitled Tell Me Something: The Songs of Mose Allison.
He is the father of country songwriter Amy Allison.
Mose Allison was inducted into the Long Island Music Hall of Fame in 2006.
Fool's Paradise
Mose Allison Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I can't hold the teardrops from my eyes
For at sundown I will lay a-dyin'
At the door of the Fool's Paradise
Rode into this cattle town this morning
Left my bearer to check the market price
And I walked into the nearest bar room
There the crowd was gay and girls were dancing
And the men were playing cards and dice
So I stepped up to the bar to join them
What a grand place, this Fool's Paradise
It was then I showed to them your picture
I passed it around once or twice
Then a man insulted your sweet honor
At the bar of the Fool's Paradise
So I slapped his face and I told him,I said,
"You eat them words, Mister, or draw, that's my advice"
And he said, "Well somebody might get hurt inside,
But I'll be glad to meet you in the street at sundown,
At sundown in front of the Fool's Paradise"
So goodbye my darlin', may God bless you
I go to make this sacrifice
And if ever you visit old Dodge City
Remember the Fool's Paradise
The song Fool's Paradise by Mose Allison is a sorrowful tale of a man writing a letter to his sweetheart, knowing that he will die at the door of a bar known as the Fool's Paradise. The singer arrives in a cattle town and walks into a local barroom to find a lively crowd of men playing cards and dice while women dance. As he joins in the revelry and shows off his sweetheart's picture, one man insults her honor, and the singer is quick to defend her. This leads to a challenge for a duel at sundown in front of the Fool's Paradise, and the singer accepts the dare knowing that he will lay dying at its door.
Line by Line Meaning
As I write this letter to you, Darlin'
I am writing this letter to you, my love
I can't hold the teardrops from my eyes
I am crying uncontrollably
For at sundown I will lay a-dyin'
I will die at sundown
At the door of the Fool's Paradise
Outside of a place called Fool's Paradise
Rode into this cattle town this morning
I entered this town early this morning
Left my bearer to check the market price
I left someone to check the current prices
And I walked into the nearest bar room
I entered the closest bar
They call it the Fool's Paradise
The place is named Fool's Paradise
There the crowd was gay and girls were dancing
There were many people having fun and girls were dancing
And the men were playing cards and dice
The men were gambling with cards and dice
So I stepped up to the bar to join them
I went to the bar to participate
What a grand place, this Fool's Paradise
This is an amazing place
It was then I showed to them your picture
I showed them your photo at that moment
I passed it around once or twice
I showed it to them a few times
Then a man insulted your sweet honor
A man disrespected your sweet reputation
At the bar of the Fool's Paradise
At Fool's Paradise bar
So I slapped his face and I told him, I said,
I hit him and told him
"You eat them words, Mister, or draw, that's my advice"
"Take back what you said or get ready to fight"
And he said, "Well somebody might get hurt inside,
He replied that someone might get hurt
But I'll be glad to meet you in the street at sundown,
He suggested a fight at sunset
At sundown in front of the Fool's Paradise"
In front of Fool's Paradise at sunset
So goodbye my darlin', may God bless you
Goodbye my love, may God bless you
I go to make this sacrifice
I am going to make this sacrifice
And if ever you visit old Dodge City
If you ever go to Dodge City
Remember the Fool's Paradise
Remember Fool's Paradise
Lyrics © BMG RIGHTS MANAGEMENT US, LLC
Written by: DAVID AVID, JOHNNY FULLER, ROBERT GEDDINS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind