Friday Night YouTube Music Returns
The versatility of Allison Young
I’ve been a YouTube user for about 15 years. In the beginning, YouTube served as a reference tool: I searched for how-to tips on various subjects, from repairing my laptop, learning woodworking procedures, and even folding a fitted sheet. While I did watch music videos occasionally, it wasn’t until I got back into playing bass guitar that I started seeking tutorials on YT. When I moved on to learning to play jazz with ad-hoc rehearsal groups a few years later, I used YouTube to find various versions of jazz standards to learn from. My own curiosity and YouTube’s algorithms led to the discovery of new artists. And as algorithms are wont to do, listening to new artists led to recommendations of other new artists. This was the path that brought the delightful Allison Young to my attention.
I cannot recall the first video of Allison’s I came across, but most of them were of her doing solo covers of older material. I was struck by how a person so young was so familiar with older music. Many of her videos were of standards, such as this cover of the Gershwin classic, Our Love Is Here to Stay:
Allison also covered more contemporary songs, like Stevie Nicks’ Dreams :
She showcases her vocal flexibility by overdubbing harmonies herself.
Allison is an example of an artist who’s built a following on YouTube. It was through YouTube she connected with guitarist/ vocalist Josh Young. They are a formidable pair. Check out this beautiful version of Hoagy Carmichael’s Stardust:
Or this rendition of Willie Nelson Crazy, made famous by Patsy Cline:
Allison and Josh have just finished touring the UK.
One of Allison’s other projects is singing with Scott Bradlee’s Post-Modern Jukebox, a loose ensemble that performs campy covers of pop tunes. (You can check out PMJ’s version of Meagan Trainor’s All About That Bass here.) Allison exhibits a confident maturity in this performance of another Patsy Cline hit, backed here by a trio version of PMJ with Bradlee on piano :
Let’s close out with a little more Allison and Josh. There’s nothing like a novelty tune to bring a smile to your face.
168 is a newsletter emailed weekly on an unscheduled basis in which I share my thoughts on various topics for the purpose of discussion. Your comments are welcome so please feel free to post them..
You can visit www.1hundredsixty8.substack.com to view archived newsletters.
If you would like to support my efforts here, please consider becoming a paying subscriber for $5.00 per month.
If you don’t wish to become a regular subscriber, please consider making a contribution from time to time by leaving a tip. Click below:
If you would like to submit a piece of your own for 168, please email me at nicrosato2@gmail.com.
And please remember to click the Like button.