Allens to join friends for Mount Temple charity night concert

By David Flynn

A reunion of the Allen music family will take place on Tuesday night, April 7, as part of the annual charity night get-together in Mount Temple Church for the local community centre.

A large array of musical talent will also be on the list for the concert, which was a huge success last year, and had a packed gathering at Corpus Christi Church.

The lineup includes Tony Allen of Foster and Allen fame, Tom Allen (aka T.R. Dallas), Lisa Tyrell, Tony Stevens, Brendan Doyle and friends, Mick Mulhern, Padraig Allen, Michael Doyle, Mount Temple Church Choir, Trionagh Allen, Megan O’Hara, Ceoltas Pléaracha na nÓg winners and Country Harmony.

There will be a special tribute to the late local musician, Jack Allen on the night by Jack’s children and grandchildren. Jack who was the bandleader of the group, Allendale died in January 2024.

The MC on the night will be Fr. PJ Hughes, who is from Carn Park in the locality and is based in Moyne, Co. Longford. PJ is also a member of the Allen musical family as he is a nephew of Jack, Tom and Tony.

Accordionist Brendan Doyle is a cousin of Tony and Tom Allen, on their mother’s side. Padraig Allen has his own music group, McLean Avenue in New York, and is coming home for the show.

“It’s going to be really nice on the night and especially I’m looking forward to the tribute to Jack, which will end with all the artists coming back on stage for the finale,” said Tony Allen, Jack’s brother.

“Jack was a very nice singer, who loved folk music and he recorded the song, ‘The Green Fields of Ireland’ and another, ‘The Golden Voice’, which was a tribute to Micheal O’Hehir, and also ‘Sarah Jane’, which local songwriter, Kevin Sheerin wrote.”

Tom Allen (TR) is also looking forward to the concert in Mount Temple, having had a good time at the event last year.

“It was a great concert in 2024, and was very well ran, with a full house, and people are looking forward to it again, and we are all happy to be there, and all the money is going to the local charity,” he said.

“It’s the same church we got baptised in and I served there once upon a time, so we grew up in the church, with the good times and the sad times. I was in the choir there; from I was seven years old onwards till I left at thirteen.”

Tony said that the local community helps out on the night of the concert, and Marie Allen looks after and organises the selling of the tickets. Tony, who is currently near the end of another successful tour with Foster and Allen, will sing in Mount Temple on the night with his wife Trionagh Moore-Allen.

“Myself and Trionagh will sing something together, and I hope PJ (Fr. Hughes) might sing a song or two as well, he’s a very good singer,” said Tony.

TR Dallas will delay a trip he had planned to Nashville, so he can perform at the Mount Temple concert, which is obviously close to the heart of the Allens.

“We were to go on the Monday to Nashville, but decided to put it off for the concert,” said TR. “It’s a family trip and we’ll be going on the Wednesday instead and I’m hoping to meet up there with Max T. Barnes, who’s a friend of mine and Tony’s.”

Max T. Barnes is a successful international songwriter who wrote the classic song, ‘Love Me’, recorded by Collin Raye.

TR has his own further music plans when he returns from Nashville.

“I’ll have a triple album ready to release around May with 55 songs of my 55 years recording,” said TR.

By the early 1970s, Tony and TR had been in a few bands including the Fine Avons and the Prairie Boys, before they joined together with Mick Foster and several other local musicians including showband star, Doc Carroll, in the band, ‘The Night Runners’.

In 1975, Foster and Allen became a duo and an international success while Tom started a solo career which grew into him taking on the singing persona, TR Dallas in 1980, following the success of the night-time TV series, Dallas. Almost six decades later, the brothers are still singing, and will return to where it all began for them in their home village of Mount Temple, on Tuesday, April 7, at 8pm.