Allison August is a singer-songwriter. Music is in her DNA.
Allison's grandmother was a conductor and orchestra violinist; her grandfather - a first-chair cellist. Her father's mother played guitar and sang cowboy songs. Her father taught jazz theory. And her mother is a concert pianist and celebrated composer. A musical legacy spanning four generations exposed her to a myriad of styles and influences.
Allison wrote her first songs at only nine years old. At 13, she joined her first band. High school brought paying gigs at private parties, school proms, and dive bars. In her college years, she linked up with a gifted group of musicians also finding their way into the scene - Dino Soldo, Bryan Head, and David J Carpenter. Together, they created Barebones, Allison's first professional band, which quickly signed to Monster Music, and in 1996 released their debut album 'For the Mind, Body, And Soul' to critical acclaim.
While Barebones was a short-lived project, her connection to this core group of trusted artists endured. In 2016 she reunited with David J Carpenter, Bryan Head, and Dino Soldo to release a new album. Encouraged by one of her biggest influences, Paul Barrere of Little Feat, the four songs he agreed to play on evolved into an entire album titled Holy Water. Coco Montoya, Greg Liesz, Josh Smith, and Lance Lopez also lend their talents to this soulful blues recording.
Her new record, 'August Moon', produced by Grammy winner Tony Braunagel, features longtime collaborators Bryan (Drums) & David J. (Bass), in addition to a plethora of ace musicians including Billy Watts (Guitar), Phil Parlapiano (Keys), Jimmy Z (Sax/Harmonica), and the vibrant backing vocals of Teresa James, Gregg Sutton, and Maxanne Lewis. Her powerhouse vocals on a duet with Blues icon Sugaray Rayford prove she can hold her own with the best of the genre.
