He also received lessons from his stepmother, Leila Collins. Sissons wife says, Allen, you eejit! I saw the plane smack the ground. Agilize seu fluxo de trabalho com nosso sistema de gerenciamento de arquivos digitais. Reynolds and Collins picked Price and me up to bring us to Collins estate in Mandarin. Reynolds says Larkin told him both Collins and Watts were ejected out the passenger side and that Collins went out the windowbeforeWatts. When we were in Japan and Jack Daniels was $75 a bottle, Ronnie said, Im buying. Why? Michael Ray FitzGerald is a media historian, musician, and former journalist based in Jacksonville, Florida. ", "Everyone felt safe with him. Earlier in 1979, he performed at Volunteer Jam V at Skynyrds first stage performance since the plane crash. Peter Rudge, whom I worked for, was a tough guy too. Collins wanted to put a new Allen Collins Band together, and he wanted me as lead singer and second guitarist. But it was one of those things where intuition should have been followed. The bandmates, almost to a man, had lost their fathers early on. You know how they always say, Who died and made you boss? Lynyrd Skynyrd guitarist Gary Rossingtons soft Florida drawl is made even softer by 3000 miles of phone line. Studio trickery squeezed the ninth song on by pressing the groves closer together. Lacy was in denial on the plane and hoped that there was a mistake and that his son was not dead. All the women, wives and girlfriends of the band and the crew gathered at Judys house there must have been a dozen women there. The property once housed the studio where much of Collins' post-Lynyrd Skynyrd work with the Rossington Collins Band and the Allen Collins Band was written. In addition to probation, the judge ordered Collins to organize and participate in an anti-drunk-driving campaign. Jittery types like to avoid the still waters of Lake Delancy, one of Van Zants favourite fishing spots, where people have claimed to have spotted his ghost, dressed in black and striding purposely towards the water with the yellow cane fishing pole he was buried with tucked under his right arm. Allen Collins, another guitar player for the group, had cracked two vertebrae, and the cut to his right arm was so severe, that it almost required amputation. He pleaded no contest to vehicular manslaughter and to driving under influence of alcohol. He slapped me in the elevator, and I just looked at him and said Slap the other side, Im lopsided.. I was there that day and that was not a pretty day. The drugs led to the car accident. However, that resulted in 200,000 faulty albums that had to be returned. Probably because it was one of the songs they're best known for. His wife Kathy, who had been his high school sweetheart, died suddenly following a miscarriage in 1980, when she was 27. But after his wife died, he became real bitter, even with me He never knew how many people he inspired because he died too early.. Maybe they got into a tussle doing 80 miles per hour. Ronnie had this here charm about him, remembered his mother Marion in 1996. https://www.instagram.com/p/Bquoa_hAqUA/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=, https://www.instagram.com/p/Bv4TKVmHuA5/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=. They took anything that said Lynyrd Skynyrd. A very friendly greeting and I have a 10 minute tour of the "archives"--gold records everywhere, original awards, guitars, etc. From the Whos Quadrophenia tour, where Skynyrd hit their big break and made a name for themselves, until the crash heard round the world, Collins remained a steady and indispensable piece of the southern rock legacy. In the early days of Lynyrd Skynyrd, Collins used a black Gibson Flying V. This guitar was stolen, along with Gary Rossington's white Gibson SG, when the band's van was broken into after a gig. Thats what destroyed him, Skynyrd keyboardist Billy Powell (who died in 2009) told interviewer Marley Brant. He would never play guitar on stage again as a result of his injuries. Later reports would insist that the singer was decapitated, causing his widow, Judy Van Zant to publish her husbands autopsy results on the internet. Her death devastated Collins. Allen Collins joined Skynyrd in Jacksonville, Florida, just two weeks after its formation by Ronnie Van Zant and Gary Rossington, along with Bob Burns and Larry Junstrom. Still wanting to pursue music however, Allen formed the Allen Collins Band in 1983 and released only album Here, There & Back with Skynyrd members Billy and Leon. The physical wounds would eventually heal, but the psychological scars from watching his friends die while Collins survived would plague him for the rest of his life. "I would have five more girls if I could. Theres a short-cut on State Road 15 running through Blackshear that leads back to U.S. 1. The two released two successful albums and racked up the charts with singles like Dont Misunderstand Me, but unfortunately for Allen, he lost his wife due to a brain hemorrhage just at the beginning of their debut tour. Gary and Allen werent ready.. Collins and his new band were refreshed and ready to go on their debut tour, so they hit the road. After healing up from the plane crash, he got together with Gary Rossington and other former Lynyrd Skynyrd bandmates and formed the Rossington-Collins Band. Ronnie used to say, youre in charge of the crew and whatever you say goes. I think it was because he lived hard every day and anyone who does that like Janis Joplin and Jimi Hendrix is gone by the time theyre 28 or 29. We dont hear a thing that night or the next day from either of them. Collins taught me how to play the riff to the The Last Time the correct way. There was a scuffle; some local rednecks had invaded. Previn and Allen were married in 1997. The solo on the songwhich was played by Allen Collins and Gary Rossingtoncomes it at Number 3 on Guitar World's list of the 100 Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time. Collins was seriously injured in the crash, suffering two broken vertebrae in his neck and severe damage to his right arm. Rossingtons broken bones healed long ago, but they still ache when the weather turns cold or rainy. By rejecting non-essential cookies, Reddit may still use certain cookies to ensure the proper functionality of our platform. Knowing that Collins played guitar and owned his own equipment, the band decided to approach him about joining them. He was not supposed to be driving. Atlanta label Hottrax, which distributed my record, Fuck Everybody, called and said the song was building a buzz and that I should get my own band together and bring it to Atlanta for a showcase. Like his original instrument these are made of African limba wood (korina) and feature an aged finish and a Maestro vibrola. It wasnt only the tragic prophecy of the song thats chilling. Or when Ronnie caught Wilkeson drinking wine during Free Bird. Rossington doesnt need aches and pains to remind him of that day its something that will haunt him forever. Van Zant had written the song as a cautionary tale to his band members, inspired by Rossingtons near-fatal 1977 car crash and the feeling that some of them were pissing away their future with excessive drinking, drugging, and carousing. The press and hangers-on were out of their chairs from the very first assault of MCA to the final lingering note of Free Bird. Initially the band was named My Backyard, then The Noble Five and by 1968 it was called The One Percent before finally zeroing on the name Lynyrd Skynyrd in 1969. The band existed till 1984. Keith Richards, he said, had shown it to him personally (this was a credible claim since the Stones and Skynyrd at one point shared a manager, Peter Rudge). Her death devastated Collins. Hess said the first album had nine songs and was too long to fit a normally pressed vinyl album. Incredibly, she survived the whole horrific ordealbut she wouldn't survive going back home. But before that, he went up to Honkette Jo Jo Billingsley, and did something that unnerved her. "For us, the arts were as much a part of life as climbing trees," Phylicia Rashad says of the childhood in . She was a sweet lady with lots of friends & a southern accent. Substance abuse would only cause him more problems in the future. Collins along with his manager-father then made effort to reform Skynyrd and started inducting former Skynyrd members. Here's a little bit about the tragic life of Lynyrd Skynyrd guitarist and founding member Allen Collins. I know it sounds silly now. He had uncanny powers while he was alive. The plane, according to History, was previously passed over by Aerosmith because the plane's crew made them wary. They approached and convinced Collins to join them. Billy Powell, the band's keyboardist, received extensive facial lacerations and a broken right knee. This is the tale of Ronnie Van Zant and Lynyrd Skynyrd. Later members included guitarist-vocalist Michael Ray FitzGerald and bassist "Filthy Phil" Price. Cassie said, Im going to ride in the truck, but she changed her mind at the last minute. Artimus, with a broken sternum and three of his ribs poking out of the skin in his chest, made his way to a farm house a painful three-quarters of a mile away, impelled by one thought. He was always the first one to reach into his pocket.. Collins and lead singer Ronnie Van Zant co-wrote many of the biggest Skynyrd hits, including "Free Bird", "Gimme Three Steps", and "That Smell". All my T-shirts were taken, all my jewellery, a skull and crossbones coke spoon. Press question mark to learn the rest of the keyboard shortcuts. Collins has also been filmed playing an all-black Stratocaster with a rosewood fingerboard, white pickups and white control knobs. No one could mess with Allen. One story has it that Ronnie would point his finger at a spot in water and tell his fishing companion to put his pole at exactly the spot and within minutes a fish would be flapping on the hook. Collins was leaning against a wall outside the club, long and lean, dressed entirely in white, looking like John Lennon on the cover of The Beatles Abbey Road. The band toured and released the albums "Anytime, Anyplace, Anywhere" in 1980, "This is the Way" in 1981 and as the Allen Collins Band, "Here, There and Back" in 1983. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Im on the bandstand; Collins comes rushing toward me with a key-lime pie; I duck; he misses me and flings key-lime goo into my Echoplex. Lynyrd Skynyrds Pronounced Lh-nrd Skin-nrd & Second Helping Live is available now on DVD, Blu-ray and digital formats its the perfect gift for the Lynyrd Skynyrd fan in your life. He knocked Billys teeth out, remembered Judy Van Zant Jenness, Van Zants widow. I asked the lady in the office about where they were all buried. Fuck you, Allen! the audience roars in unison. This was late summer in 1985. He was catapulted at about 80 mph into a tree. The wedding is kind of a light page in the dark book of Collins's life. A wooded area leads to a small dock on Julington Creek. The Swingles have three grown children and decided to downsize. The Swingles bought the home in 2004 for $665,000 from Amie Williamson, Collins daughter, and his father, Larkin Collins Sr., who owned the house at the time. According to her Instagram, she says that someone named Les Collins is her father, NOT Allen Collins. Her youngest daughter really resembles Allen. Collins and Reynolds drove up from Jacksonville to see us on a Saturday. The offending driver was Collins, of course. They plan to remain in Jacksonville. . They were harassing hippies and got into a battle with an off-duty cop who served as a security guard. Gary doesnt have the same authority Ronnie had. This forced the tour's cancellation. We swore we would never again get into a car with Collins at the wheel. Here we are, doing 50 miles per hour through a 7-11 parking lot. Press J to jump to the feed. "The entire operation is lopsided. He would stomp his foot down on top of mine [on the gas pedal], Reynolds says. Allen decided to drive home, Reynolds replies. Ill kick anyones ass in this room right now.. Both were thrown through the drivers-side window. Then of course, there was the lyrics to That Smell, one of the last songs Van Zant wrote for Street Survivors. With their take-no-prisoners attitude, Skynyrd earned themselves a formidable reputation as contenders. As he leaned over to spit the bug-coloured juice from his Red Man chewing tobacco into an empty plastic milk carton, he looked me straight in the eye to see if I believed him. He also needed a bass player; Price was offered the position. Collins's injuries from the crash included broken vertebrae and a wound to his arm, according to Rolling Stone. You could hear it in the antebellum taunt of Sweet Home Alabama, to the prosaic plea of Gimme Three Steps, and the stately requiem of Free Bird. He was 37 years old. He was so funny, so happy-go-lucky and crazy, says Rossington. Collins is now in the difficult position she's in not just because of what she wrote in 2016, but how she handled matters when confronted on it in 2021. via pinterest.com & lynyrdskynyrddixie.com. It seemed fate was not done with them yet. Colecione, selecione e faa comentrios em seus arquivos. Following the loss of Ronnie and Steve, Allen and fellow guitarist Gary Rossington joined together to form The Rossington- Collins Band in the 80s. Introduced by Al Kooper as the American Rolling Stones, Skynyrd proceeded to sing about how the former Blues Project founder had discovered them. A year after the plane crash, Gregg Allman wanted to form a band with Gary Rossington and Allen Collins. The accident killed three band members, Ronnie, Steve Gaines, and Cassie Gaines while Collins suffered two broken vertebrae in his neck and serious damage in his right arm. They all looked at Lacy through stitches and swelling and he told me not to say anything about Ronnie. Finally, late that afternoon Allen called me back. They all grew up in the house with Lacy. From this accident, he was paralyzed from the waist down with limited arm . Guitarist Steve Gaines. Acesse o melhor da Getty Images com o nosso plano de assinatura. This would not be the last time the spectre of Ronnie Van Zant would pay a visit to friends and family. With the lingering effects of losing his friends in the plane crash, Kathy's death devastated Collins. What set him off? He was posthumously inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of Lynyrd Skynyrd in 2006. I called everybody on the list. These were guys who never expected anything, but wanted everything. He was born in Jacksonville, Florida. I had been trained never to stop playing in the middle of a song no matter what happens, because if theres a melee, stopping will draw everyones attention, whereas if you keep playing, a lot of people wont notice. Van Zant and Burns both had a reputation for trouble, and Collins fled on his bicycle and hid up a tree when he saw them pull up in his driveway. For most of his tenure in Skynyrd, Collins used a Gibson Firebird fitted with a chrome-covered, "dog-eared" P-90 pickup in the bridge position and a Gibson "teaspoon" nickel vibrato arm. The members of Lynyrd Skynyrd were strangely united by one thing. Allen Collins suffered another gut punch while he was onstage with his new band. Theyre haunted by the spectre of what could have been. Skynyrd received international recognition for popularizing Southern rock genre during the 1970s. Em were my burf-control pills. Allen grins like the Cheshire Cat and shrugs. On the sneeringly sarcastic of Working For MCA, a song he wrote for the Sound Of The South launch party held at Richards in Atlanta on Sunday July 29, 1973, where the band played in front of jaundiced record executives, radio programmers, disc jockeys, promoters, rock critics and T.Rexs Marc Bolan, all of whom flew in on MCAs tab. All the money that was in my pockets was taken. They were contenders. She told me that the Collins family didnt want the local given out to Allen Collins grave. I didnt want to hold the funeral until Allen and Gary got out of the hospital. Five years after his wifes death, Collins car plunged over a ravine, killing his girlfriend, Debra Jean Watts, and paralysing him from the waist down. He was one of the founding members and guitarists of the southern rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd, and co-wrote many of the band's songs with frontman and original lead singer Ronnie Van Zant. To the effect that he started with very little and he was getting somewhere and although he still had a bit to go, he still thought Well if I continue to do it my way Ill do okay. And then Judy [Van Zant, Ronnies widow] told me, Just quit. His beautiful Les Paul is broken, the headstock severed from the neck, dangling by the strings. I saw all that on google. While nothing outwardly marks that the house was owned by Collins, Catherine Swingle said fans find the address on the Internet and come by to take photos. Collins later founded The Rossington Collins Band with Gary Rossington and following its disbandment he started the short-lived Allen Collins Band. Musical career of Collins was affected by his personal tragedies at different points of time. It was clear to most people who knew him that it was not safe to get into a vehicle with Collins, even if he wasnt driving. All of his bandmates were in his wedding party, but Kathy worried that the band's long haired appearance would disturb her parents. By the next day, the injured were scattered over three hospitals where some would remain for weeks. Larkin Allen Collins Jr. showed interest and promise in the guitar from the young age of 12 with stepmother Leila, a country guitarist, and father Larkin handing him over his first guitar and amp well before high school. An open house is 11 a.m.-2 p.m. Feb. 22. When we get on that stage its war, Van Zant told me in 1975. The main home has five bedrooms, three full bathrooms, a screened pool and a two-car garage. Collins pleaded no contest to vehicular manslaughter as well as driving under the influence of alcohol. There was not another scratch on him, except a small bruise the size of a quarter at his temple.. Arm was so damaged from the plane crash that doctors recommended amputation. If you dont want Gary to know it, dont do it in front of me. At the end of Lynyrd . But it was a fools paradise. Why don t I just meet you there? And he said, Good, bring all your stuff. I went back to sleep at my moms, and that night I had the most vivid dream. 2022-06-30; I told Sister about meeting Collins at the chicken place. Here is Allen's wife, who he had his two daughters Amie & Allison with, Kathy in yearbook of Robert Lee HS. And damn that hurt, Van Zant said at the time. Assuming this is some kind of redneck humor, I grab the mic and say, Can yall say Fuck you, Allen?. It was last year and Allen [Collins, Skynyrd guitarist] and Billy [Powell, keyboards] also were in car accidents all in the space of six months. During the early 1980s, Collins continued to perform on stage in the Rossington-Collins Band which enjoyed modest success, releasing two albums (Anytime, Anyplace, Anywhere, and This Is the Way), and charting a few singles (notably "Don't Misunderstand Me"). Marrying young love Kathy in 1970, just 6 years into the struggling bands timeline, the couple raised two loving daughters, Amie and Allison. Allen and his wife Kathy had 2 daughters, Amy and Allison. | She looks off into the distance, pushing a strand of blonde hair off of her eyes. More cops materialized. We then went to the hospital and saw all the other people who were hurt. Allen pled no contest to vehicular manslaughter while driving under the influence and spent the rest of his life preaching of the dangers of drinking and driving. There is a thick, black steak scorching in a skillet, filling the kitchen with smoke. The survivors werent aware that the cause of the crash was due to the pilots running out of fuel, so they feared the plane would burst into flame at any moment. And the third was he wanted me to know that he was okay. Billy Powell, the band's keyboardist, received extensive facial lacerations and a broken right knee. Buy it here on Amazon! To solve this problem, she required all the band members to keep their hair under wigs at the wedding ceremony. He chose Randall Hall, who had been in the Allen Collins Band, as his replacement. Silver bullets from Gimme Back My Bullets. Larkin Allen Collins Jr.Brant 2002, pg. The property has a small dock on Julington Creek. The tale boasts all the elements of a southern gothic soap opera. Like the time Leon Wilkeson was caught staring at a girls breasts. Lacy Van Zant was a Golden Gloves boxer, with no less than 36 bouts under his belt. Craig was roadie, stage-guitar-drum tech, drink meister, extraordinaire for LS, RCB, and ACB. Collins's family grew with the birth of his daughter Amie, followed quickly by Allison. Pianist Billy Powell of Lynyrd Skynyrd poses backstage at a music festival in October 1976 in California. He first developed interest in the guitar in 1963 when a friend received a guitar as birthday gift. They wanted to be crazier than [Keith] Moon; they wanted to be more everything than The Who. He continued to use this guitar into the Rossington Collins Band as well. Collins was to sit in with us that night at the club. But, if my brother was really so sure he was going to go, dont you think he would have made a will?. According to thePeoria Journal Star, Kathy had been pregnant, and it was hemorrhage following an unfortunate miscarriage that ended her life. He and [assistant road manager] Dean Kilpatrick were the same. In his own circle, it was common knowledge that Van Zant didnt expect to live much longer. Craig Reed's wife in back. Allen Collins, Ronnie Van Zant When Allen Collins and Bill Massey, Jr. co-founded ROLL FOR ROCK in 1988, they did so in loving memory of Allen's friend, Ronnie Van Zant. Milhes de imagens, vdeos e msicas de alta qualidade esto a sua espera. We go into the rehearsal room; Collins is there with a beautiful sunburst Rickenbacker. He already had a drummerwho doubled as his chauffeurso De Blasio was left out. It was so weird because some of them thought that maybe I had something to do with it, but I had nothing to do with it.. He died on January 23, 1990 in Jacksonville, Florida, USA. Because people just steal them the same day. It doesnt hurt and freak me out like it used to, but its in the back of my mind and hard all that day. By accepting all cookies, you agree to our use of cookies to deliver and maintain our services and site, improve the quality of Reddit, personalize Reddit content and advertising, and measure the effectiveness of advertising. Is Allison Collins from The Allison Collins Band Allen Collins daughter? On January 29, 1986, he was involved, as the driver, in a one-car accident, killing a passenger. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur. Fist fights, premonitions and a plane that fell from the sky. On the studio version of "Free Bird," which appeared on Skynyrd's debut album, Collins played the entire solo himself on his Gibson Explorer, with Rossington playing rhythm on his Les Paul ("Bernice") and adding the slide . That wound wasn't just a "few stitches and call it done" kind of wound. Before you knew it, Rudge was managing Skynyrd. I'm a girl . Paralysing car wrecks. Bassist Larry Junstrom also joined in. The first of course was to take care of Melody [the couples daughter]; the second was not to worry about Allen and Gary, that they could take care of themselves. I was touring with them quite a bit in Europe and I felt this was a band that could have gone all the way. He recalled when their first drummer Bob Burns snapped in a northern England hotel room in late 1974 on the bands first overseas trek, a breakdown the others say was triggered by an unhealthy number of viewings of the hit film, the The Exorcist. I read somewhere that Amie is living in South Carolina, but no one seems. Billy Powell, Amie Williamson, daughter of late guitarist Allen Collins (at podium), Judy Van Zant, widow of late singer Ronnie Van Zant (C) of Lynyrd Skynyrd, inductees, and other family members (Photo by Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic, Inc) PURCHASE A LICENSE Get personalized pricing by telling us when, where, and how you want to use this asset. I was to co-write some songs with him, which meant he would come up with the germ of an idea and I would flesh it out. If he couldnt get his way, hed run across this room and butt a hole right in the wall. Its still a money machine, and the southern-rock style forged in Jacksonville refuses to die. It may not be Elvis Presleys Graceland, but the home of a Jacksonville rock star is for sale. Rated #1038 in the best albums of 1981. Although Allen was blessed with talent and opportunity, the lost rock star and guitar legend suffered along the way with personal devastations that many fans may not be aware of. Larkin Allen Collins Jr. was an American musician and songwriter known for his association with southern-rock bands Lynyrd Skynyrd, The Rossington Collins Band, and The Allen Collins Band. He was a founding member and guitarist of Lynyrd Skynyrd. He co-wrote many of its hit songs like 'Gimme Three Steps' and 'Free Bird with its late frontman, Ronnie Van Zant. All rights reserved - 2018. We had been playing poker right before the crash, and I was winning big. When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, Those at the back were less badly injured. Are you the guy thats trying to sound like me?. He rang me and said, Weve got some trouble in this hotel. He told me theyve got hold of the managers wifes cat and they skinned it. The music was incredible. She said Collins was a disaster behind the wheel and told me a story Johnny Van Zant had related: he had been pulling out of the Krystal on San Juan Avenue recently and was run off the road, nearly hit, by a crazy driver coming around the corner too fast in the wrong lane. It also included Skynyrd members Billy Powell and Leon Wilkeson, in addition to female lead vocalist, Dale Krantz. He told me, Daddy, that pilot can fly through the eye of a hurricane and land in a corn field. It turns out that he was wrong., The funeral wasnt held for Ronnie Van Zant until almost a week later, mostly because his wife Judy was falling apart. He never ever changed, either. feline500 . BA1 1UA. View agent, publicist, legal and company contact details on IMDbPro, I Love the 70s: Volume 2: Guitar Gods of the 70s. Charlesworth, however, chalks the plane crash up to just dumb bad luck. Larkin Allen Collins Jr. [1] [2] (July 19, 1952 - January 23, 1990) was an American guitarist. You know, prior to starting the Survivor tour, Ronnie gave my brother EC his best black hat and a beautiful ring that he used to wear. Price looks over at me, eyebrows arching. It did nothing to deter Pyle, who still contends that Mote shot him in his right shoulder a claim Mote denies. We were in Tokyo at some bar and we were drinking lots of sake. It didnt then. He along with his sister and mother Eva went through a tough time when his parents divorced. .38 Special guitarist Don Barnes accompanied Ronnie Van Zants father to Mississippi and was with him when he went to identify his son. And it didn't have to be this way. Former Skynyrd guitarist Ed King drove through the night arriving the next morning to see the members of the band he left in the middle of the night two years before. So cute. So cute. Looters reached the site, pilfering the pockets of the dead and the living alike. Although all three Honkettes were stunning, there wasnt a man in miles who would come near them if Van Zant was around. Publicity Listings Allen Collins was born on July 19, 1952 in Jacksonville, Florida, USA. He is out cold with his feet still up on the railing, sort of hanging there. I was wise to his pranks and could see them coming, but she wasnt ready for that.. Everyone was sort of wary, though. Rock And Roll Bands Rock N Roll Rock Bands Southern Rock Southern Style Atlanta Rhythm Section Allen Collins Lynyrd Skynyrd Band Ronnie Van Zant More information . [deleted] 1 mo. I thought, well, thats music to my ears, Billingsley told a reporter from swampland.com in 2003 (opens in new tab). Rossington's accident ended up inspiring the gloomy Van Zant/Collins song "That Smell." Source: ultimateclassicrock.com Collins gets up and dusts himself off. Burns, whod been playing poorly and suffering Van Zants wrath regularly, freaked and tossed the hotels beloved resident cat out his fourth floor window, making for a grisly kitty cat splat outside the establishments front door. So devastating was Skynyrds assault that the other acts showcased at Sounds Of The South, Mose Jones and Elijah, were forgotten. Future Publishing Limited Quay House, The Ambury, Just two years after the bands rekindling, Allen andhis girlfriend at the time, Debra Jean Watts,got into a horrific car accident that left Collins paralyzed from the waist down, while taking her life. Collins married Kathy Evelyn Johns on October 10, 1970 with whom he had two daughters, Amy and Allison.