Let Jon Allen be your guide as he introduces you to the dark underbelly of 18th century London with his brand new album ‘Seven Dials’. The acclaimed folk, blues and Americana singer-songwriter presents a time capsule of an album in which each song captures a different snapshot of the experiences of ordinary Londoners during that era. Back then, the Seven Dials area was far removed from the vibrant city rush that it now has: instead it was one of the most deprived parts of the capital. Listen HERE.
The full album extends his poetic narrative, taking in tales of underworld criminality, striving for a better future, and maintaining a semblance of hope at a time when all optimism seems to have been extinguished. The album’s title track and new focus song sees Jon’s gritty, whisky-soaked vocal set to a melancholic ‘70s Elton John-style piano ballad. Its lyrics capture a nostalgia for a time that might otherwise be best forgotten. But that’s human nature – our memories of moments lost to history inevitably focus on the positives and forget about the negatives.
As Jon Allen explains, “I wrote this from the point of view of two characters reflecting on a time when they lived untamed in the moment, careless and bold, amidst the chaos of Seven Dials, Covent Garden. A place of contradictions – gritty and exciting but also dangerous and destructive.”
The title track encapsulates precisely what the entire album achieves. The stories and characters that Jon depicts are rooted in time, but their experiences and emotions have striking parallels in the present day. The record is also remarkable for Jon’s creative independence, with him having produced, performed and written everything that we hear.
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