Carl Allen - Tippin'

Carl Allen was nice enough to take time out of his busy schedule and answer a few questions about his new album Tippin', released on the Cellar music label, featuring Allen on drums with Chris Potter on tenor saxophone, Christian McBride on bass and John Lee on piano, guesting on one track.

This is a fantastic album and has been on regular rotation around my house lately. I've always been a fan of Carl's drumming and was thrilled when I heard he had a new album coming out.

Here's what Carl had to say about his latest music:

Carl Allen Tippin' - Four on the Floor: February 2025

1) Tell us about your latest recording!

My latest recording is called Tippin’ on the Cellar Music label and it features my brother Christian McBride on bass, Chris Potter on saxophones and bass clarinet and on one track the very talented John Lee on piano.

This is my first recording as a leader in over 20 years and although I generally don’t listen to records that I’ve recorded on as a sidemen I will say that I’m very proud of this recording. The vibe in the studio just felt like we were doing a gig.

2) How did you choose your repertoire and sidemen?

I knew that I wanted to pay tribute to a few people who are close to me for various reasons. For example, Happy Times is a song by Freddie Hubbard. Freddie really was the one who got me out here and I spent eight years with him. I’ve always loved this tune, and I used to tell him that we should to play it more often.

James Williams was a pillar in the Jazz community and very much like an uncle to many of us younger musicians during the 80’s and 90’s. In fact we used to call him Uncle James. His tune Alter Ego just seemed to fit this trio format, and I’ve always loved playing it and felt that it needed more recognition.

L’s Bop, written by the great Lenny White is just such a hip tune. I remember first hearing this tune on a a recording with Lenny, Freddie, and others with this all-star group called Griffith Park Collection. 

McBride‘s tune, A Morning Story is such a great tune. I love playing in three and the form got my attention in addition to the melody.

Roy Hargrove was a genius musician and a beautiful spirit who left us too soon. I wrote a song dedicated to him called Roy’s Joy. My first two records as a leader had Roy on it with the first one and him being only 18 years old. Every time I think of Roy, I think of the joy that he would bring to the music and to others around him.

Some of the other tunes just felt like a natural fit for me like Parker’s Mood, The Inchworm and They Say It’s Wonderful. John Coltrane’s Ballads record has always been one of my favorites.

Put on A Happy Face. Well, that’s part of what I want to do when people listen to this recording.

Lastly, my tune Hidden Agenda was written out of a personal experience that I had gone through. What I realized about dealing with certain people is that there are folks out here who have a hidden agenda. Ultimately, it was a great learning experience.

3) What inspired you to pursue the vibe and instrumentation that you did?

Initially, I was just thinking about some musicians that I wanted to play with. Christian and I have played together for so long and have made so many recordings together that this just made sense to me to have him on this record. Potter and I recorded with Renee Rosnes a few years ago which also featured Christian. As I was putting this together I just had Chris Potter sound in my head so for me, those guys were really the nucleus. 

Once I thought about recording Kenny Barron‘s tune, Song for Abdullah it just made sense to have piano on that one track. John Lee is a young musician whom I met through Cory Weeds from the label when I recorded with him for his recording. I knew that he was coming to the session to observe so I thought it might be nice to have him on this one track.

4) Was there a particular message you were trying to convey to the listener?

The message really isn’t that deep. To be selfish for a moment, I really just wanted to make a record that I wanted to listen to. With that said, I was hoping for the listeners to have something that they could tap their toes to. Just something that felt good. I’ve always felt that sometimes when things feel complicated we need to go back to simplicity. That was kind of the thought process in the vibe behind the recording.

5) Who are your influences with regards to your style of writing and playing?

Well, this is an interesting question. I really would not consider myself a composer per se. Having spent so much time around Benny Golson, Freddie Hubbard, McBride, Benny Green, Bobby Hutcherson, my brother Eddie, who is a great writer, and so many others it’s hard for me to put myself in that same sentence. Quite often when I’m writing tunes, it begins with a single thought. Sometimes it’s just a title. Sometimes it’s a bass line, or a chord, or just a groove. Often times we think it’s all about the melody and in some cases that is true for me, but it doesn’t always start there.

I resonate with simplicity. I like something that I can sing and remember. I grew up on gospel and R&B music. And in that music there’s always something that we sometimes call a hook that helps us to remember the song. I love that and would like to have that as part of my music as well.

6) What are you practicing/studying/listening to/researching these days?

It’s back to the basics for me right now. When I think of all the amazing drummers that I’ve checked out and studied of the years, the common denominator is that they were all fundamentally sound. Doesn’t matter what the genre is. Great time is great time. Great dynamics is great dynamics. Great balance is great balance. These are not limited to genres. 

I’m really excited about not only what my peers are doing, but also some of the younger musicians like Sullivan Fortner, Gerald Clayton, Kendrick Scott, and so many others. One of the things that Art Blakey used to talk to me about was this concept of either your appearing or you disappearing. Now he meant that in terms of just showing up on the scene and physically being seen. I take it somewhat as a metaphor since that we have to remain open and aware of what’s going on around us in order for us to be able to connect with the people who are listening to us.

7) What other current and future projects do you have on the go at the moment?

Well, I do intend to tour with this trio format, but ironically, when this record came out, I started receiving inquiries about other projects that I had. For example, I have an Art Blakey tribute project that I have a number of gigs already booked with for this year.

Believe it or not, there are still some musicians that are on my bucket list that I would love to connect with and make music. And not all of them are jazz musicians. I have always loved Bonnie Raitt and James Taylor and if you guys are listening please hit me up hahaha...

8) How do the drums and your overall approach to rhythm factor into your compositions and concept?

As I stated previously, sometimes when I’m writing it’s based on a groove or a rhythm. I believe the time and rhythm is essential to everything and melody helps move it forward for me.

When I’m playing there are two basic fundamental questions that I try to keep in my head: How does it sound and how does it feel? I always say if the answer is anything other than amazing then I need to get to that. As I have gotten older, I’ve begun to simplify everything.

9) What drummers (or other musicians/composers) do you consider as influences?

For drummers there are so many. Some of the obvious would be Art Blakey, Billy Higgins, Roy Haynes, Elvin Jones, Tony Williams and Max Roach. But there are so many others like Roy McCurdy, Tootie Heath, Mel Lewis, Billy Cobham, Jack DeJohnette, Calvin Rodgers, Philly Joe Jones, Jimmy Cobb and maybe 1000 more. I would sometimes listen to Specs Wright and Al Harewood and marvel at the way that they were able to make the ride cymbal dance.

For composers I would say Mulgrew Miller, James Williams, Christian McBride, Freddie Hubbard, Donald Brown and I have to add Renee Rosnes. She is so amazing. Again, there are so many other others.

10) What advice do you have for younger, aspiring jazz musicians and jazz drummers?

Work on your time and feel, concepts, reading, and listen to more than you even think you need to. And listen to everybody. Remember, jazz music is still all about dancing.