Jack Allison (Malawi) . . . song writer
I just heard from Jack Allison, who lives in the Asheville area and has been a professor of health at…
Dr. Jack Allison served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Malawi 1967-69. His public health education was punctuated by many original songs and jingles which became quite popular with Malawians throughout the country.
Jack Allison (Malawi 1967-69)
Jack has had a distinguished career in academic emergency medicine, with an emphasis on public health. He responded to the earthquake in Haiti in January 2010 by treating hundreds of quake victims. In February 2012 he volunteered in Kenya and Somalia where he provided both emergency care and public health education to hundreds of Somali refugees; then in October, he volunteered in Zambia where he helped to install 112 shallow water wells. Since 2017 Jack has been a senior consultant to the Fulbright Association’s WASH project in Malawi.
Allison’s avocation is singing and songwriting. He has written over 120 songs and jingles, and recorded over 100 of those. Since 1967 he has raised $160,000 with his music, and he and his wife, Sue Wilson, have given away all of those monies to various charitable organizations, including $30,000 to help feed Malawian AIDS orphans.
Jack writes
Thank you so much for inviting me to list the highlights of the 150+ songs and jingles I’ve written and recorded since I was a PCV in Malawi, 1967-68-69.After each song, I’ve added (E) for English, (C) for Chichewa, (B) for bilingual, and others have more specificity.
I encourage readers to logon to my web site, doctorjackallison.com to hear some of my music. Additionally, if anyone would like to receive a free copy of any of my songs, I ask that they please email me at either eja1621@aol.com or drmoose123@gmail
I want to thank you for publishing my memoir, “The Warm Heart of Africa: An Outrageous Adventure of Love, Music, and Mishaps in Malawi,” for which I shall be eternally grateful. It can be obtained through amazon.com or Barnes and Noble for $16.00 including tax. If anyone sends me $20.00, I will sign the book and mail it back. I mention this because we are donating ALL proceeds. So far we’ve written $1,000.00 cheques to five separate NGOs. We RPCVs know that when that amount of protected money gets to the village level, small miracles can occur. My music has garnered >$170,000.00 over the years, and my wife, Sue Wilson, & I have donated every cent.
Sincerely,
Jack
4 Hickory Forest Road
Asheville, NC 28805-1400
828-299-0529 (h)
RPCV Malawi, 1966-69
Virtual Service Project Participant (VSPP), US Peace Corps/South Africa, 2022
Author: The Warm Heart of Africa: An Outrageous Adventure of Love, Music, and Mishaps in Malawi
About my songs
* Ufa wa Mtedza (C) the Peanut Butter Song, was #1 in Malawi for three years running
* K. I. N. D. (B) Kids in Need of Desks (in Malawi)
* Period. End of a Sentence. And Not the End of a Girl’s Education (E) for the PAD Project
* Hasa Twiga (Kiswahili), Especially Giraffes, a protection jingle
* U = U Undetectable = Untransmissible (E), one of two songs I did as a Virtual Service Project Participant with PC/South Africa
* The Cultural Rite of Circumcision (E), the other song
* Anti-COVID19 song (C)
* Think Vasectomy! (E)
* If You Cannot Love a Child (Why bring her into the World) (E)
* Feteleza (The wonders of Fertilizer) (C)
* Rabies is Fatal (C)
* Malawi Children’s Village (B)
* Deforestation (E)
* Marion Medical Mission (B)
* Warm Hearts Foundation (B)
* Song for Disability Rights (E)
* Signature song for CorpsAfrica
* Junk Food Jingle (E)
* Girls Not Brides! (E)
* Don’t Sleep in the Gully (English & Creole)
Jack’s story of service is one of my favorites of all time! Thanks for sharing, and thanks to Jack for the inspiring stories we can tell future generations of volunteers.
Jack’s story is legendary, how as a Volunteer in Malawi in the 1960s, he incorporated public health messages in songs he recorded and performed, that became Malawi hits and made him a national celebrity. His Peace Corps service became the foundation for a lifetime of public health education, advocacy and philanthropy. Every year about this time, I get an email from Jack asking me if I’d like to buy another copy of his book, the proceeds from which he donates to health-focused charities.
I just heard from Jack Allison, who lives in the Asheville area and has been a professor of health at the state university’s campus there. His message: “Sue and I are now safe in Charlotte with son.” Jack’s story is inspiring. As a health volunteer in Malawi in the 1960s, he determined that an effective way to disseminate public health messages was through music, and he wrote and recorded songs that became hits and made him a national celebrity. One of his hits, “Wash Your Hands With Soap,” was resurrected 50+ years later during the pandemic. Be well, Jack.