Gary Allen Discusses His Classic 1982 EP In White America, Past Pioneering Work, Booking The Red Hot Chili Peppers' First Show, and Current Projects

Gary Allen has become a name of great importance and interest here at Weirdo Music Forever. While he self-released his wonderfully mysterious In White America: This Hollow Valley Broken Jaw of Our Lost Kingdom in 1982, the underground masterpiece is a fine example of a recorded work that feels at least every bit as relevant and compelling now as it did nearly thirty years ago. Stellar track “Oops! It’s an Accident” is arguably the EP’s centerpiece, and has the only (currently searchable) music video, but the entire four-track release is highly recommended. As far as we are concerned, had Gary Allen done nothing more creatively following this release, his position in music history would be a well-deserved and prominent one.

Upon speaking with Gary, however, we soon discovered that his fascinating creative body of work began before the EP, and continued long after its release, right up to the present day. His artistic path has been a fascinating and windy one that includes groundbreaking work within fashion, offering the band that would become the Red Hot Chili Peppers their first-ever gig, employment as Frank Zappa’s personal chef, and much, much more. It was a remarkable honor and joy to speak with Gary Allen, and we are excited to share our conversation with you here.

Bobby Weirdo: I want to start with getting the background to the EP’s release. Had you been playing this material live, or how did this project come together?

Gary Allen: Prior to releasing In White America: This Holy Valley Broken Jaw of Our Lost Kingdom – which I took from T.S. Elliot – [I was in the band] Neighbors Voices.

I was in [Neighbors Voices] with three French guys – David Mamou came [to L.A.] from Paris, and started the band. He met me and asked me to be the lead singer, which was out my category, because I was a fashion model. I didn’t know about singing, but I had been writing poetry, so we got together and worked it out. Then we started Neighbors Voices with Joel Virgel-Vierset, who was the drummer, and Thierry Fauchard as one of the guitarists.

David, his sister Dinah, and I rented a house in Santa Monica. While waiting for Thierry Fauchard to arrive from France, we began to write and arrange our songs. Each of us wrote three songs, [and] I wrote most of the lyrics. We rehearsed for one year before we played live at Al's Bar [in] 1980, 1981.

*Gary Allen performing live at an upper gallery Downtown Los Angeles Warehouse, Photo courtesy Gary Allen*

When I left Neighbors Voices, I started my own band with Michael Balzary [Flea] on bass, Hillel [Slovak] on guitar, and Jack Irons on drums, before they were the Chili Peppers. Taquila Mockingbird was on backing vocals. I performed “Oops! It's an Accident”, “What’s So Atomic”, and a short version of “Itchy-Itchy Boy”.

Anthony [Kiedis] was the boyfriend of my head seamstress and assistant designer – Jennifer Bruce – and was living with Hillel and Flea. They had been rehearsing a couple songs with Anthony rapping. He thought it was great, so he called me up and said, “You have to come over and hear this.” He made me come over, sit down, and watch him. I didn’t really want to come in and sit down, because I was wearing a wedding dress over fabulous riding pants, but I’m glad I did, because it was great. I let Anthony open for my band that night.

[Later], Anthony had a habit at of making me come up [on stage to] sing a song we made up called “It’s a Po Mole”. They used to sing that song at the beginning, each time [Red Hot Chili Peppers] played…the Kit Kat Club in New York, all over L.A., and everything.

BW: How did you meet Flea and Hillel in the first place? What was the connection?

GA: I first met Flea because he saw Neighbors Voices play somewhere. He called me on the phone and we made a plan to play a gig together. That’s how I met Flea, and then Flea introduced me to Hillel. The rest is history.

BW: And so I get it right, the song you would perform together is titled “Po Mole”?

GA: “It’s a Po Mole / Aint got but one hole!”

*Neighbors Voices. Photo courtesy Gary Allen*

BW: So eventually, after the band Neighbors Voices, comes the idea for a Gary Allen solo EP?

GA: I left the band, went solo, and started recording my own thing. In White America is a compilation of four original songs that I co-wrote and co-produced. We recorded [Neighbors Voices song] “Mongul At Home” and “Itchy-Itchy Boy” on 24 tracks. Paul Lani produced “Mongul At Home” for our demo with Warner Brothers with the A&R superstar Felix Chamberlain. “Oops! It’s an Accident” and “What's So Atomic” were two new wave/disco dance songs produced by Russell Jessum.

In White America was offered as an alternative experience in disco, [and was] really considered to be new wave. The trending thing among Hollywood bands in the 80s was to use your genius and connections to record and produce your own record to get airplay in hopes of landing a record deal.

BW: What was the inspiration or idea behind the track “Oops! It’s An Accident”?

GA: I wrote that song about my life, because I felt at one point like my life was an accident. I was one of those kids who grew up [without knowing] his father. So I wrote the song about my life being an accident, from my point of view. I was allegedly born from an unfortunate act of lust, [so] it’s a dark comedy.

BW: The video for that track is so cool. Do you have any memories of making it?

GA: We made the video with the guy who ran the Rhythm Lounge, which is that first place the Red Hot Chili Peppers ever played. His name was Solomon Emquies. And also [we worked with] Matt Dike, the DJ. We did some of it on the street, some at a friend’s house, and some at UCLA. Solomon had just graduated from there, so we used the studio.

I met the black girl [seen] dancing in [the video] on the bus. Her name is Venus. I met her one day, and couldn’t forget her. She was just so special, so I called her up and invited her to be in the video, and [she’s] the girl who has the wedding dress on. Another girl in the video is Mikki Ilaw, who was David Jacobson’s girlfriend, and the third girl’s name is Malice.

BW: Besides the EP release show at Rhythm Lounge, were you performing your music live, or was that a one-time thing?

GA: I played live twice – both times at the Rhythm Lounge. You know, in the video, the girls are all wearing my dresses, making the point that I was really a fashion designer who decided to use music as a canvas, instead of fabric. I’m not a trained musician and I can’t read music. I design music.

I started my [design] company with $75.00. I made my first three designs, and sold them to Dagmar Petersson, the wife of Tom Petersson from Cheap Trick. My first three dresses brought in less than $1,000.

*Weirdo Music Forever’s copy of the 1982 EP, In White America: This Hollow Valley Broken Jaw of Our Lost Kingdom*

BW: I wanted to see if you could give me some insight into the personnel on the EP. First, there’s Russell Jessum, who is very involved.

GA: Russell Jessum is the very first person [to] produce a song with me; I think he’s a genius. Russell went to CalArts, which is where we recorded most of the music for “Oops! It’s An Accident” and “What’s So Atomic”. “Oops! It’s An Accident” is the song that got airplay. I think it was played on Stella’s Stray Pop at KXLU. In White America was a limited edition of 2,500 EPs on my own label.

Ava Cherry did vocals. She’s the ex-girlfriend of David Bowie and did [something] like three years of David Bowie’s recordings. There was also Helena Springs – who was singing backgrounds with Bob Dylan – and a girl from high school, Kapera Azizi. The amazing thing about those songs and all those people is that we were all Scorpios.

BW: It was meant to be! One more question about Russell: did he run a club in the 70s and 80s called Anti-Club?

GA: Yes, he did; I played there a few times. I saw a fantastic band there – Three Day Stubble. Russell was great, because bands would come from out of town, and they could get booked at Anti-Club. So he was introducing new bands [to people] all the time. He had a band called Blackout that I played with, which was the house band.

Russell’s first band was a great band called Quiet Children. Their first album was in tin instead of cardboard, so it was heavy. I don’t know anyone who has a copy, but it was great. The lead singer was Michael Sinatra.

*Gary Allen, August 2020. Photo: Cameron Murray for Weirdo Music Forever*

BW: That’s some great music history. I wanted to ask about a few other people on the album, if that’s OK. Someone named Larry Fishburne is credited on the EP. Is that Laurence Fishburne, the actor?

GA: Yes, it is. He and Taquila [Mockingbird] sang together with me on [the EP].

BW: How was that connection made?

GA: I believe the very first day I met him was in the studio, when he sang on “Itchy-Itchy Boy”. That was produced by Richard Skidmore, who was friends with him and Taquila Mockingbird.

BW: Taquila’s a legend as well – it’s a real all-star cast on the EP.

GA: Yeah – I believe Taquila and Richard were partners in Do Monkey Productions.

BW: I’m not familiar with Snakepit, the sax player on the EP.

GA: Snakepit is another legend – an outrageous musician. He is a saxophone player, producer, writer…he sometimes performs in drag, and he is something like a George Clinton type. He just moved to Mexico; I’ve stayed in touch with him for years.

BW: In addition to you, there are two people credited on the In White America as executive producers. One of the credited names is Jasbir Sandhu M.D. Was he really a doctor?

GA: Yes. He contributed financially [to the EP].

BW: And then there’s Marjorie Leserman…

GA: Maggie Leserman was Taquila’s and my friend. She was my manager for around a year.

BW: For music or fashion?

GA: Music.

BW: Besides Snakepit, are you in touch with any of the people of whom we’ve been speaking in our conversation so far?

GA: I’m pretty much in touch with everyone, even though we’re not in constant communication. I don’t have a clue how to get in touch with Larry Fishburne. I’ve known him since the 80s, and we were friends for a while in New York. The last time I saw Russell Jessum was three or four years ago, just by coincidence. I’m in contact with Ava Cherry and Helena Springs. I talked with Taquila Mockingbird today, as a matter of fact.

BW: Besides taking the cover photo for In White America, David Alexander has taken some famous photos, like the Hotel California album cover and The Terminator movie poster photo. Do you have any memory of how the concept, outfit, and photography for your EP came together?

GA: David Alexander was my mentor. I was a fashion model [when] David Alexander saw me in a fashion show, got in touch, and invited me to Hollywood to work in his studio. He photographed me and helped me get started in the print world. Half of the jobs I did during my career in Hollywood were with David Alexander. Did you know David Alexander had A&I Color Lab?

BW: No.

GA: [It was] the best color lab in Hollywood. Anyone who was a quality photographer would use his color lab. I owe my career to David Alexander.

BW: Jeff Lancaster did the art direction, and he too has a prestigious resume. In the context of the In White America EP, what did art direction mean? Was it the cover’s layout?

GA: David shot the photo at his new studio, which was on Wilcox, and Jeffrey Lancaster did the graphics and layout. Jeffrey was a very good friend of David Alexander’s, and it was a labor of love.

BW: Which is what makes this EP so special, I think. It seems like it was a labor of love for all involved, and artists who had done – and would continue to do – things for mainstream audiences came together to create this unique and wonderful recording. It’s really quite a remarkable achievement.

GA: I think it’s amazing that you are aware of all those intricate little things. I wanted to tell you about the title In White America. I named it that because in high school that was the production that my drama class had worked on all year. I had the lead role in the production called In White America.

I was also a dancer, and had five dances in the program. [While I was] rehearsing, I tore the cartilage in my knee. I had to get an operation, and I lost my part. I promised myself that I would name my first record In White America, and take my starring role back so that I had nothing to look back on and be disappointed in.

BW: What kind of modeling were you doing when you were in New York?

GA: I was trying to get print work, but it was at a time when there wasn’t really that much work for black models. I’m like a pioneer, because I was out there trying.

I worked whatever jobs I could get in New York. I went to tons of interviews and shot with great photographers like Maripol and her boyfriend Edo [Bertoglio], who turned out to be really hot. Maripol was the designer who did jewelry for Madonna, and worked with Grace Jones and Debbie Harry. I [also] worked for the designer Kohshin Satoh.

I got stopped on the street by André Leon Talley. It was summertime, and I was going around, trying to meet photographers, maybe a little too dressed to be a hard working model. But in the summertime, most photographers aren’t even in town, so André Leon Talley saw me walking with my portfolio, and just said, “Who are you?” That’s how I met him.

But I worked with great photographers: Antonin Kratochvil, Jean Pagliuso…I lived with David Kelmenson, a great photographer who did commercials and was my godfather. My godmother was a model, Anthea Alexis.

My mother was a model, and that was my introduction to fashion. I believe I was born to be a designer; I used to design clothes when I was eight or nine years old. I would lie on the floor and design women’s clothes and shoes. I knew that at that time, a man didn’t dare do that, so I used to hide the paper and sketches under my mattress, and take them out when it was safe to draw. I designed hundreds of ladies’ shoes and dresses.

BW: And where did you grow up?

GA: I was born in Little Rock, Arkansas in the early 50s, so I experienced the generational reactions and influences of slavery from my great grandparents and grandparents who raised me during the formative and impressive years of my childhood. [That was in] the Deep South – the bible belt. I grew up in Lonoke, Arkansas – a dry county – and later moved to Compton, here in L.A.

BW: So you have this fashion background with modeling and designing, in addition to your work recording and performing. I’ve seen YouTube videos that show you’ve continued to work on creative projects, and I’m curious what else you’ve been up to since the 1982 In White America EP.

GA: I have to squeeze this in: I was an original Soul Train dancer. Videos of me [have been] popping up all over the place, and a friend just [saw one] and called me. I love those stories when they come back.

BW: What year are we talking about for the Soul Train appearances?

GA: I was an original dancer, so ’71, and the last show I did was in ’74.

BW: Have you done much recording since the EP, or have you been doing mostly work with fashion? Or has it been work that doesn’t have to do with music or fashion?

GA: I’ve worked as a fashion designer, and put music aside. I lived in New York and was Billy Idol’s designer [with] an exclusive contract, only [designing] for him. I did everything – his personal wardrobe, his stage clothes, and [also designed for] his girlfriend at the time, Perri Lister.

I went on shopping trips to Tokyo, and we filmed “To Be a Lover” in London during the years I was working for him in New York. He was a fabulous person to work for and a great friend.

BW: What year was this around?

GA: It was somewhere between ’84 and ’86.

BW: That was a big era for him.

GA: Yeah, it was – Whiplash Smile. I still have the jumpsuit from the cover of one of those albums – it’s an outrageous leather jumpsuit with huge zippers up the front leg.

BW: What inspires you artistically these days?

GA: I’m easily satisfied; I love Portishead. I love a lot of music and bands, but I’m really impressed by their twenty-five year old debut, Dummy. I heard it in the 90s, and at the time, I took it to Japan with me.

I used to go back and forth to Japan as a performance artist, and I would bring new music with me to turn the city on [to it]. The most successful music that I brought over was Portishead, Nina Hagen, and Kate Bush. I noticed that they picked up on those [artists] quickly.

BW: You would give the music to artists, or to whom?

GA: I worked in a club, so I would meet DJs to give the music to. Eventually, you’d meet everyone, because you were American and the industry wasn’t that big.

There are other things that [I did as well]. I was once Frank Zappa’s chef.

BW: Woah!

GA: One more chef came after me, and then Frank died, so I was the next-to-the-last chef for Frank Zappa.

BW: How’d that happen?

GA: I’m a great cook, and I have a great friend named Sharon Davenport who worked for Sandy Gallin, managing his beach house. Sandy Gallin managed Michael Jackson, Patti LaBelle, Dolly Parton, and was best friends with Calvin Klein and David Geffen. I would cook for him every so often, when he wanted soul food.

[While] working for Sandy Gallin, word got around [about my cooking]. Dale Bozzio from Missing Persons – her husband was Frank Zappa’s drummer…

BW: Terry Bozzio.

GA: I met him because Dale was my friend. So when Gail Zappa wanted a chef, Dale called me up, told me that I should do it, and that she would put in a good word. So I called [Gail] up, made an appointment, and I got the job. It was fantastic working for Gail, Frank, and the kids: Ahmet, Dweezil, Diva…

BW: Moon Unit?

GA: I don’t ever remember seeing Moon Unit. She had moved out.

BW: What kind of food did you make for the Zappas?

GA: Organic, but they weren’t vegetarians at the time. [I remember] Diva wanted tacos and pizza for her birthday. I couldn’t make anything sweet – no cakes, no cookies, no pies. And no spicy food, because Frank’s condition didn’t allow him to eat sweets or spicy food.

Frank came to me one time, and handed me [something like] forty bucks. He said, “I need you to bring me some Louisiana hot sausages.” I said, “I’m not supposed to,” and he goes, “I pay you to do what I ask you to do.” So he gave me the money, I did it, and he hid them in the refrigerator in his studio. He stayed [in the studio] all day from the time he got up in the morning, and he’d still be there when I left [each day].

I was [also] Elton John’s chef.

BW: Really? Here in L.A.?

GA: Yes, in Beverly Hills.

BW: Wow – when was that?

GA: That had to be in the 90s. I don’t know what year it was, but I know that when I got fired, there was a story printed in The Enquirer about it, so it was documented.

Every day we would kiss goodbye on the cheek. [Then one] particular day, he just forgot formalities and put his tongue down my mouth. It caught me by surprise; I didn’t know I would have to prostitute myself to keep this job. I pushed him away and went, “Yuck!” I didn’t want to react that way, and I would never react that way now, but it was terrible…I left, and that’s when I got fired for a “lack of understanding.”

BW: I’m so sorry that happened.

GA: I had a lawsuit, but I’m not that kind [of person], and wouldn’t do that. But he is so well respected, a great guy, and the most fabulous person I ever worked for.

BW: It just ended on a really bad note.

GA: Speaking of notes…Elton knows Baptist gospel songs, and one day he was playing one on his piano in the foyer of his house. I was in the kitchen cooking, heard the song he was playing, and I loved it. I went out [of the kitchen], was at the top of the staircase, and I just started singing that gospel song. I came down, and we must have played three or four of those songs. That was the greatest day of my life.

BW: Did he know you did your own music?

GA: No – he was laughing at the way I sing! I’m not a singer, you know, so it had to [have been] very interesting for him.

BW: Getting back to the present and future for Gary Allen, what kind of projects are you up these days, and what lies ahead in 2021 and beyond?

GA: My new music is on all streaming platforms: Spotify, Amazon etc. I've been working on my next release on vinyl, and setting the pace with the several new releases. There’s [also] a collection of songs for my live performance, introducing Uncle Black Hands Hot Ass Band.

I'm serving a delicious salad of talent, working with Billy Idol’s son Willem, developing songs for a live performance.

My new “Man of God” single was [originally] recorded in the late 70's, written for me by Blind Liquid Bubba King. Flea is on bass, Olivier Ferrand engineered it, Blind Liquid Bubba King is on keyboards, Billy Idol did vocals and produced it, and backing vocals are by the great, fantabulous Bob Forrest.

I’m smack dab in the process of living my best life as a recording artist and fashion designer.

Gary Allen Instagram

Gary Allen Designs fashion shows on YouTube

Thank you to Josh Scholl of WHOLE and Skim Milk for introducing Gary’s music to us.