The names Foster and Allen go together like coffee and cream, ham and cheese or tea and toast.
Like all good pairings, the musical duo has stood side-by-side on stage for over 40 years and their friendship has not staled, nor has their music.
Mick Foster and Tony Allen have once again taken centre stage, this time for a television series High Road, Low Road, currently broadcasting on RTÉ.
The show sees two people travelling to an unknown destination, where one person gets to holiday in the lap of luxury, but the other passenger travels separately on a very small budget.
When it came to Foster and Allen’s turn, it was Tony who took the high road, in Malta.
Tony and Mick discover who will be taking the high road, and who will be left catching a bus.
He tells Irish Country Living about his experiences as an entertainer and being lifelong friends with Mick.
“We had great fun recording the show, it didn’t matter about who got the better hotel as there was very little time for sleep on the first night,” recalls Tony.
“We met up with Mick a few times over the holiday, we were out on the streets with a golf buggy and it was great craic.”
Not ones to shy away from the spotlight, it wasn’t long before Foster and Allen were a hit on the streets of Malta. “They (the show producers) took us out busking on the street, sure nobody had a clue what we were at,” laughs Tony.
No matter where they're found, Mick and Tony are always ready for a session.
As the lucky recipient of “the high road” version of the holiday, Tony enjoyed sights such as The Silent City by horse and carriage, bread making in a traditional bakery and he was treated to a trip to a winery.
Although the two men had very different holidays, there wasn’t a complaint between them.
Gigs
“We started as Foster and Allen nearly 46 years ago and we have a very unique record in that we have never had a row or an argument in all those years,” says Tony.
He explains that they had actually been working together in a band called The Mary Landers for 10 years prior to forming their own group.
“We played together locally at that time during the 60s, in schools and halls around Mount Temple in Co Westmeath, where I’m from.”
Tony's musical highlight was appearing in Top of the Pops.
Tony eventually went on to replace Brendan Shine in the Kieran Kelly Band, before Mick Foster was brought on board.
Between marriages and moving house, band members came and went, but Tony and Mick found themselves wanting to continue. Foster and Allen officially came together in 1974. The following year, they found themselves in London.
“There was an Irish man over there who was just opening a pub and he asked us to do a full week for him, so that’s what we did – a full six or seven nights.
“We came back to the place we were staying and thought, ‘That’s it, time for Foster and Allen to go on the road’.”
The two never considered at the time that they would be still touring and entertaining thousands of fans together more than 45 years later.
Although much time has passed, the style of music they play is still relevant and the country music scene is as popular as ever.
“In ways, it hasn’t changed at all, although the system has,” says Tony.
“The old dance halls are all gone. When we started, you could play seven nights a week in pubs and get big crowds, but that’s all gone. The times have changed, but the music really hasn’t.”
Highlights
You would think that Tony would be stepping back from the stage at the age of 68, but there’s no sign of that yet. He married his wife Catriona just 10 years ago, after they met at the Roseland Studios in Moate.
“Catriona was a backing singer to Daniel O’Donnell, in fact, she still is.
“We were in the studio recording a new album, and she was doing the backing vocals on our album, that’s how we met,” smiles Tony.
He says that it’s not difficult to maintain a home life, as Caroline is used to touring and they both have an understanding of the business.
The people of Malta were treated to an impromptu Foster and Allen hit.
“Last year I was touring Australia while she was on a cruise with Daniel at the same time. It’s always nice that when we get home, we have a couple of months together.”
As friends and colleagues, Tony and Mick have spent a very long time together too. They played side by side during one of Tony’s most memorable gigs.
“We did a gig in Sydney in Nova Scotia, Canada, way back about 30 years ago to about 6,000 people.
“It was held in an ice-rink, there was a huge crowd. I really enjoyed that, but the most memorable gig has to be when we played Top of the Pops in 1982.”
Through their combination of talent, personality and friendship, Foster and Allen has had a hugely successful career; they have had an album in the UK top 100 album charts every year since 1984, with the exception of the year 2000.
Their motivation to entertain is unstoppable, with a UK tour postponed until October. Until then, you can catch the series of High Road, Low Road, every Thursday on RTÉ1 at 8.30pm, or you can watch it back on the RTÉ Player.
Read more
Living Life: she is the dancing queen
Living Life: walk this (green)way
The names Foster and Allen go together like coffee and cream, ham and cheese or tea and toast.
Like all good pairings, the musical duo has stood side-by-side on stage for over 40 years and their friendship has not staled, nor has their music.
Mick Foster and Tony Allen have once again taken centre stage, this time for a television series High Road, Low Road, currently broadcasting on RTÉ.
The show sees two people travelling to an unknown destination, where one person gets to holiday in the lap of luxury, but the other passenger travels separately on a very small budget.
When it came to Foster and Allen’s turn, it was Tony who took the high road, in Malta.
Tony and Mick discover who will be taking the high road, and who will be left catching a bus.
He tells Irish Country Living about his experiences as an entertainer and being lifelong friends with Mick.
“We had great fun recording the show, it didn’t matter about who got the better hotel as there was very little time for sleep on the first night,” recalls Tony.
“We met up with Mick a few times over the holiday, we were out on the streets with a golf buggy and it was great craic.”
Not ones to shy away from the spotlight, it wasn’t long before Foster and Allen were a hit on the streets of Malta. “They (the show producers) took us out busking on the street, sure nobody had a clue what we were at,” laughs Tony.
No matter where they're found, Mick and Tony are always ready for a session.
As the lucky recipient of “the high road” version of the holiday, Tony enjoyed sights such as The Silent City by horse and carriage, bread making in a traditional bakery and he was treated to a trip to a winery.
Although the two men had very different holidays, there wasn’t a complaint between them.
Gigs
“We started as Foster and Allen nearly 46 years ago and we have a very unique record in that we have never had a row or an argument in all those years,” says Tony.
He explains that they had actually been working together in a band called The Mary Landers for 10 years prior to forming their own group.
“We played together locally at that time during the 60s, in schools and halls around Mount Temple in Co Westmeath, where I’m from.”
Tony's musical highlight was appearing in Top of the Pops.
Tony eventually went on to replace Brendan Shine in the Kieran Kelly Band, before Mick Foster was brought on board.
Between marriages and moving house, band members came and went, but Tony and Mick found themselves wanting to continue. Foster and Allen officially came together in 1974. The following year, they found themselves in London.
“There was an Irish man over there who was just opening a pub and he asked us to do a full week for him, so that’s what we did – a full six or seven nights.
“We came back to the place we were staying and thought, ‘That’s it, time for Foster and Allen to go on the road’.”
The two never considered at the time that they would be still touring and entertaining thousands of fans together more than 45 years later.
Although much time has passed, the style of music they play is still relevant and the country music scene is as popular as ever.
“In ways, it hasn’t changed at all, although the system has,” says Tony.
“The old dance halls are all gone. When we started, you could play seven nights a week in pubs and get big crowds, but that’s all gone. The times have changed, but the music really hasn’t.”
Highlights
You would think that Tony would be stepping back from the stage at the age of 68, but there’s no sign of that yet. He married his wife Catriona just 10 years ago, after they met at the Roseland Studios in Moate.
“Catriona was a backing singer to Daniel O’Donnell, in fact, she still is.
“We were in the studio recording a new album, and she was doing the backing vocals on our album, that’s how we met,” smiles Tony.
He says that it’s not difficult to maintain a home life, as Caroline is used to touring and they both have an understanding of the business.
The people of Malta were treated to an impromptu Foster and Allen hit.
“Last year I was touring Australia while she was on a cruise with Daniel at the same time. It’s always nice that when we get home, we have a couple of months together.”
As friends and colleagues, Tony and Mick have spent a very long time together too. They played side by side during one of Tony’s most memorable gigs.
“We did a gig in Sydney in Nova Scotia, Canada, way back about 30 years ago to about 6,000 people.
“It was held in an ice-rink, there was a huge crowd. I really enjoyed that, but the most memorable gig has to be when we played Top of the Pops in 1982.”
Through their combination of talent, personality and friendship, Foster and Allen has had a hugely successful career; they have had an album in the UK top 100 album charts every year since 1984, with the exception of the year 2000.
Their motivation to entertain is unstoppable, with a UK tour postponed until October. Until then, you can catch the series of High Road, Low Road, every Thursday on RTÉ1 at 8.30pm, or you can watch it back on the RTÉ Player.
Read more
Living Life: she is the dancing queen
Living Life: walk this (green)way
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