Allen Toussaint

American producer, songwriter, arranger, session pianist, solo artist, and label owner. Born on 14 January 1938 in New Orleans, Louisiana. Died on 10 November 2015 in Madrid, Spain, after suffering a heart attack while on European tour. Younger brother. Inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1998, inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2011. Received the National Medal Of Arts from US President Obama in 2013.
Active in New Orleans’ music industry since the late 1950s, he wrote, arranged and was the house producer with Minit, Instant Records, and Alon. His early production successes were the U.S. Top 5 Ooh Poo Pah Doo (US 1960) (opens in a new tab) by Jessie Hill, and Ernie K-Doe’s 1961 no. 1 Hit ‎Mother-In-Law (opens in a new tab) which he wrote. He has worked with artists such as Irma Thomas (“Ruler Of My Heart”, 1963), Lee Dorsey (Working In A Coal Mine, 1966), The Meters, Dr. John, The Band and Elvis Costello. He often wrote under his mother's maiden name Naomi Neville.
Toussaint entered the U.S. service in 1963, serving at Fort Hood, Texas; he was discharged in 1965. After discharge he teamed up with Marshall E. Sehorn to form Sansu Enterprises Inc.. Their record labels Sansu Records,,, and recorded Lee Dorsey, Chris Kenner and Betty Harris, among others. In the 1970s he was producing at the Sea-Saint Studio with Sehorn.
In 1996 Toussaint formed NYNO Records, with the goal to record New Orleans talent. From 1996-1998 NYNO released 15 projects on diverse artists from jazz, gospel, reggae, brass bands and R&B genres, including one on himself and a Christmas sampler from the label.