Ira Allen, a rockabilly and country musician who was inducted into the Maine Country Music Hall of Fame, died July 25 in Nashville, Tennessee. He was 83.
Allen was best known for the 1962 classic country song, “Just Enough To Keep Me Hangin’ On,” which he co-wrote with Buddy Mize.
Allen was remembered this week for his signature smooth voice and professionalism. His motto, which will be engraved on his headstone, was “It’s not about me. It’s not about you. It’s about the music.”
“He lived it and he loved it,” said his wife, Judi Martin of Murfreesboro, Tennessee. “He was a legend. He could handle a microphone like no one else. He would hold it a certain way and go down as low as you could go. He and his band always wore suits with rhinestones. That was a part of it. He said you had to dress the part and be professional. He was so professional and so perfect in what he did.”
