Allan Caswell
Australian musician
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
David Allan Caswell (born 9 March 1951), publishing under the pen name Allan Caswell, is an English-Australian songwriter and performer, author, record producer, freelance journalist and teacher. Caswell wrote "On the Inside" (the theme from the television series Prisoner) and recorded by Lynne Hamilton.[1] It was a hit record in Australia and New Zealand in 1979.
9 March 1952
- Songwriter
- singer
- guitarist
- author
- record producer
- journalist
- teacher
Allan Caswell | |
|---|---|
| Born | David Allan Caswell 9 March 1952 Chester, England |
| Genres | Country |
| Occupations |
|
| Instruments | Vocals, guitar |
| Years active | 1966~present |
In 1983, the single "The Australia's Cup" peaked at number 17 on the Australian charts.[2]
Biography
Early years
Allan Caswell was born as David Allan Caswell to Harry Caswell (Steve Castle) and his wife Jean in Chester, Cheshire[3] and grew up in North Wales, Berkshire, and South London (Mitcham) before migrating to Australia in 1966. He was educated at Wimbledon County Secondary School and later at South Sydney Boys High School.
Music career
Caswell's songwriting career started in 1973 when Chris Gilbey signed a song he had written with his brother Brian Caswell to Albert Music in Sydney. However, it was 6 years later when Allan Caswell had a song recorded.
In 1979, Caswell wrote "On the Inside", which became the theme for the television series Prisoner and later a major international hit song. The success of "On the Inside" triggered a succession of recordings by stars such as Patti Page, Cilla Black, The Irish Rovers, Max Bygraves, Acker Bilk, Slim Dusty, The Living End, Chad Morgan, Lynne Hamilton, James Blundell, Anne Kirkpatrick, Don Spencer, Graeme Connors, The Delltones, Doug Ashdown and Ricky May.[citation needed]
Caswell won his first Golden Guitar in Tamworth for Best New Talent in 1980.
In September 1983, Caswell released "The Australia's Cup", which peaked at number 17 on the Australian chart. His first and only top 100 single.[2]
In 1995, Caswell was asked by Don Spencer, on behalf of his Australian Children's Music Foundation, to work with children in Juvenile Detention teaching music and songwriting. He has helped set up similar programs in other centres. He also worked with the Foundation in their aim of making music accessible to underprivileged children.[citation needed]
In 2006, Caswell published his first book, "Writing Great Song Lyrics".[4]
In 2014, Caswell announced he had lost a 10-year legal battle with Sony music over similarities between his song "On the Inside" and Alabama's "Christmas in Dixie"; a song from which Alabama are estimated to have earned over $700,000.[5]
In 2016, Caswell celebrated the 50th Anniversary of his arrival in Australia in 1966 with an album called 50 Years in Oz.
In 2019, he released his autobiography My Version Of The Truth and moved to Queensland where he lives with his wife Marian in Varsity Lakes.
In 2020, Caswell released his 20th album, Tequila Amnesia.[6] He also released his third book, Secrets of Stronger Songwriting.[citation needed]
Discography
Studio albums
| Title | Details |
|---|---|
| What Happened to Love? |
|
| Handwritten |
|
| Heart Written | |
| Different Eyes |
|
| Caswell Sings Caswell |
|
| Don't Count on It |
|
| Al's Bar And Grill |
|
| Rules for Love |
|
| Behind Bars |
|
| Just Kidding |
|
| It's a Country Song |
|
| Sometimes When Lose When You Win |
|
| My Version of the Truth |
|
| 50 Years in Oz |
|
| Carpenter Caswell (as Carpenter Caswell) |
|
| Mexico |
|
| Tequila Amnesia |
|
Live albums
| Title | Details |
|---|---|
| Warm January Morning |
|
Singles
| Year | Title | Peak chart positions |
Album |
|---|---|---|---|
| AUS [15] | |||
| 1979 | "Take Me Back to Yesterday (Dedicated to a Decade Without The Beatles)"/"King of the Rodeo" | - | non album singles |
| 1980 | "We Used To Call It Heaven"/"First Time in My Life" | - | |
| "Sign on the Dotted Line"/"Poor Side of Heaven" | - | ||
| 1981 | "One Armed Bandit"/"Loco Friday Night" | - | |
| 1982 | "Used to Be a Gold Song"/"Isn't That Like You" | - | What Happened To Love? |
| 1983 | "What Happened to Love?"/"It's Not Such a Bad Idea" | - | |
| "The Australia's Cup"/"Lonelyheart's Waltz" | 17 | non album single | |
| 1984 | "Moruroa"/"Beyond the Blues" | - | non album single |
| 1985 | "Bulldust"/"Spirit of the Green & Gold" (with Trevor Knight) | - | non album single |
| "The Garden" (with Australia Too) |
27 | non album single | |
| 1987 | "(You Can Be) Somebody's Shadow"/"Black Jack Blues Again" | - | Handwritten |
| 1988 | "Have You Read to Your Children Today?"/"This is Gonna Be the One" | - | |
| "Are We Having Fun Yet?"/"Funny Thing About Rainbows" (as Allan Caswell Band) |
- | non album single | |
| 1989 | "You Still Take My Breath Away"/"Bald Is Beautiful" | - | Heart Written |
| 1990 | "I'm Gonna Take a Heartbreak"/"Still Crazy Over You" | - | |
| "Proud"/"(I've Got Those) 12 Bar Blues" | - | ||
| 2006 | "A Little Bit of Country in Us All"[16] | - | Al's Bar And Grill |
| 2007 | "Strong Enough"[17] | - | non album single |
| 2008 | "Rules for Love"[17] | - | Rules for Love |
| 2011 | "It's a Country Song" | - | It's a Country Song |
| 2012 | "I'm an Aussie Shark" | - | Just Kidding |
| "Brave Enough to Dream"[18] | - | It's a Country Song | |
| 2015 | "One Last Muster" | - | My Version of the Truth |
| 2016 | "Back When I Was Older" (with Michael Carpenter)[19] | - | Carpenter Caswell |
| 2017 | "Life Like It's a Trainwreck" (with Michael Carpenter)[20] | - | |
| "High Hopes" (with Michael Carpenter)[21] | - | ||
| "Want That Back Again" (with Michael Carpenter featuring Felicity Urquhart)[22] | - | ||
| 2018 | "The Roses Fall" (with The Weeping Willows)[23] | - | Mexico |
| "Feeding the Crew"[24] | - | ||
| 2019 | "Train to Godforsaken"[25] | - | |
| "Country Copper"[26] | - | Tequila Amnesia | |
| "Bad Politics" (with Damian Cafarella)[27] | - | ||
| 2020 | "Hard Times and Struggle"[28] | - | |
| "Bordertown"[29] | - | ||
| "I Do" (with Donna Fisk)[30] | - | ||
| "That Holden Saved My Life"[31] | - | TBA | |
| "Spin" (with Damian Cafarella)[32] | - |
Awards and nominations
Country Music Awards of Australia
The Country Music Awards of Australia (also known as the Golden Guitar Awards and originally named Australasian Country Music Awards) is an annual awards night held in January during the Tamworth Country Music Festival, in Tamworth, New South Wales, celebrating recording excellence in the Australian country music industry. Caswell has won eight awards (wins only).[33]
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1980 | "King of the Rodeo" | New Talent of the year | Won |
| 1981 | "One Armed Bandit" (with Brian Caswell) | Song of the Year | Won |
| 1983 | "Used to Be a Gold Song" (with Keith Potger) | Song of the Year | Won |
| 1986 | "The Garden" | Song of the Year | Won |
| 1988 | "Black Jack Blues Again" | Male Vocalist of the Year | Won |
| 2007 | "A Little Bit of Country in Us All" (with Drew McAlister) | Vocal Collaboration of the Year | Won |
| 2016 | "One Last Muster" | Bush Ballad of the Year | Won |
| 2020 | "Country Copper" | Bush Ballad of the Year | Won |
Tamworth Songwriters Awards
The Tamworth Songwriters Association (TSA) is an annual songwriting contest for original country songs, awarded in January at the Tamworth Country Music Festival. They commenced in 1986. Allan Caswell has won sixteen awards.[34]
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result (wins only) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1988 | "Black Jack Blues Again" by Allan Caswell | Contemporary Song of the Year | Won |
| "When We Were Kids" by John Williamson and Allan Caswell | Country Song of the Year | Won | |
| 1989 | Allan Caswell | Contemporary Song of the Year | Won |
| 1990 | "You Still Take My Breath Away" by Allan Caswell | Contemporary Song of the Year | Won |
| Country Song of the Year | Won | ||
| 1991 | "Panda" by Allan Caswell and Don Morrison | Children's Song of the Year | Won |
| "Proud" by Allan Caswell | Contemporary Song of the Year | Won | |
| 2011 | "Behind Bars" by Allan Caswell | Country Song of the Year | Won |
| Contemporary Song of the Year | Won | ||
| 2012 | "The Road That Brought Me Here" by Karen Lynne and Allan Caswell | Contemporary Song of the Year | Won |
| 2013 | "Skin" by Allan Caswell | Comedy/ Novelty Song of the Year | Won |
| 2017 | "Golden Days" by Andrew Wriggleswroth and Allan Caswell | Contemporary Song of the Year | Won |
| Country Song of the Year | Won | ||
| "Back When I Was Older" by Andrew Wriggleswroth and Allan Caswell | Contemporary Song of the Year | Won | |
| 2019 | "The Roses Fall" by Andrew Wriggleswroth and Allan Caswell | Country Ballad of the Year | Won |
| 2022 | "Youngie" by Allan Caswell | Local Heroes Song of the Year | Won |