For those who have heard Allen Stone without ever seeing him, the first visual encounter will be surprising. The 29-year-old singer who sounds like Stevie Wonder is in fact a pale, blond guy hailing from America's rainy state Washington. Yet the number of soul fans who don't know Stone will be small; the singer-guitarist has already released three successful albums, is a popular guest in the talk shows of Ellen DeGeneres and Conan O'Brien's, and has given 600 performances in the past two years. In 2014, North Sea Jazz already met this extraordinary musician who likes to describe himself as a hippy with soul. Just like the flower power generation, where he seems to hail from, he doesn't shy away from tackling socio-political subjects in his songs. But during his live shows he keeps up the spirit: “Basically my job is to throw a party for people every night.”
