Please call 512-843-5653 and leave us a message about your favorite memory of Sammy Allred. Make sure you leave your name and where you are calling from, and please keep your message under a minute. Memories will be shared on air and at Sammy’s memorial service on Friday.
VISITATION:
MAY 17. 06:00 PM – 08:00 PM
SERVICES:
MAY 18. 01:00 PM
Harrell Funeral Home of Austin
4435 Frontier Trail
Austin, TX, US, 78745
OBITUARY:
Sammy Allred, a native Austinite who was a humorist and country music entertainer, passed away on Wednesday, May 9, 2018. He was 84. Sammy was born May 5, 1934 to the late Sam Nelson Allred and Viola Prather Allred.
Sammy first gained national fame in the early 1960s when he and sidekick Dewayne Smith were regular guests on Arthur Godfrey’s radio program. Allred’s band, the Geezinslaw Brothers – who once opened for Sun Records-era Elvis Presley – were regulars on the “Louisiana Hayride” radio show based in Shreveport in the late 1950s.
James White, owner of the Broken Spoke restaurant where the Geezinslaw Brothers played, told the American-Statesman in 2007 he remembered the first time he saw them perform on a flatbed truck in 1954 at the opening of the Twin Oaks shopping center in South Austin. The band was the first Central Texas act to land a major record deal – first with Columbia before moving to Capitol Records. They were tagged by a talent scout for Arthur Godfrey as up-and-comers in the early 1960s and knocked around Manhattan for 10 years after they were signed, making TV appearances on network shows that included Ed Sullivan’s and Jackie Gleason’s variety shows, as well as NBC’s “Tonight” show with Johnny Carson. They also toured with musical giants Roger Miller and Perry Como.
Allred, a member of the Texas Radio Hall of Fame, joined KVET-FM in 1969, and in 1990 joined Bob Cole for a morning show that played country music. Sammy’s radio persona often raised eyebrows and made headlines. He was known for his use of broad humor that touched on many sensitive topics. Allred later would make appearances on KDRP in Dripping Springs, a nonprofit community radio station with listeners in Hays, Blanco, Williamson and Travis counties. He will be missed dearly.