Sign-Offs

Barry Allen Rasmussen, 74, on Apr. 4. Born and raised in Edmonton, Barry Allen (as he was known professionally) started his music career when he joined locally established band Wes Dakus and The Rebels. With no recording studio in Edmonton, the group ended up working with producer Norman Petty (Buddy Holly, Roy Orbison) who liked Allen’s backing vocals. That led to a solo deal with Capitol Records and several nationally charting hits, the biggest being the title track from his sophomore album, Lovedrops, in 1966 which rose to #10 on the RPM Magazine chart. After forming his own backing bands Southbound Freeway and Coloured Rain, Allen moved to Calgary to host “Come Together,” a TV show recorded by CFCN at the city’s Apollo Club, that featured up and coming local and international talent. It ran for three seasons. Allen later toured with the show’s house band, Cheyenne Winter, opening for acts like Steely Dan and Dr. John. In 1977, Allen put his time behind the soundboard at Tommy Banks’ Century II Studios to use at 630 CHED in Edmonton where he was hired as the production manager. After a few years, he went on to buy Bumstead Studios, where k.d. Lang’s first records were recorded, and renamed it Homestead Recorders. Corb Lund, Wide Mouth Mason, and Gordie Johnson of Big Sugar are among the acts that went on to record there. Allen joined the Board of Directors for the Alberta Recording Industry Association in the 1990s, and went on to receive two Prairie Music Alliance Awards for Engineer of the Year. Homestead also won Studio of the Year at the Western Canadian Music Awards in 2003.

Published in Broadcast Dialogue on April 16, 2020