Alan Glen
Alan Glen (born 21 December 1951) is a British blues harmonica player, best known for his work with The Yardbirds, Nine Below Zero, Little Axe, and his own bands, The Barcodes and The Incredible Blues Puppies.
Alan Glen

Phil Davison · CC0
- Name
- Alan Glen
- Born
- 21 December 1951
- Died
- YYYY MM DD
- Occupation
- * Musician
- Nationality
- United Kingdom
- Fields
- blues
- Languages
- English
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Documentary summary
Alan Glen (born 21 December 1951) is a British blues harmonica player, best known for his work with The Yardbirds, Nine Below Zero, Little Axe, and his own bands, The Barcodes and The Incredible Blues Puppies.
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Note VALÉORINE
Alan Glen (born 1951) is a musician, of British nationality. The musician was born in Wuppertal.
The work spans blues. Languages used include English.
Composed from admitted, traceable facts · 01 October 2026
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Key facts
Key facts
• Name — Alan Glen • Landscape — yes • Origin — Wuppertal, West Germany • Born — 21 December 1951 • Died — YYYY MM DD • Instrument — * Harmonica • vocals • guitar • percussion • Genre — * Blues • rock • roots reggae • Occupation — * Musician • songwriter • Label — * China • Favored Nations • I.R.S • M&G • Fat Possum • Big Cat • Real World • Note • Associated Acts — Nine Below Zero (1991–1995) The Yardbirds(1996–2003 and 2008–2009) The Barcodes Little Axe The Incredible Blues Puppies Steve Morrison
Career
Career
Glen started playing harmonica after seeing Muddy Waters, and the 'American Folk-Blues Festivals' which visited London in the late 1960s and early 1970s. His early influences being Little Walter, Sonny Boy Williamson, and Junior Wells. Early bands he was involved with were Crowjane Bluesband, The Radical Sheiks and Brothers Grimm, before going on to join Nine Below Zero (1991–1995), and The Yardbirds (1996–2003 and 2008–2009). Glen has played on over 50 albums and recorded/performed with: Alannah Myles, Jeff Beck, Steve Vai, Slash (on the Yardbirds' album Birdland), John Mayall, Steve Lukather, Skunk Baxter, Lee 'Scratch' Perry, Horace Andy, Junior Delgado, Bernie Marsden, Papa George, Geoff Everett, Gary Fletcher, Gordon Smith, Micky Moody, he has recorded eight albums with Little Axe. In addition he appeared alongside Alan Barnes, Jim Mullen and Roger Cotton on the With Friends Like These album for the Barcodes, which also included Zoot Money. He played with Peter Green, Mick Taylor and Hubert Sumlin at the Long Beach Blues Festival. He recorded the album On The Road Again with Dr. Feelgood. Other collaborators include Art Themen, Pee Wee Ellis, Dub Syndicate, Paul Cox, Archive (band), Alan Barnes, Little Axe and Gypie Mayo. Glen has played at Brecon Jazz Festival and Nice Jazz Festivals, Hollywood House of Blues, the Hilton, Las Vegas, Sporting Lisbon Stadium, Wembley Arena, Ronnie Scott's Club and The Royal Albert Hall, as well as various television and radio performances.
Tours
Tours
Nine Below Zero - 1993 - Spain, Portugal & Scandinavia (with Sting) Nine Below Zero - 1993 - USA (with Alvin Lee) Nine Below Zero - 1994 - USA & Canada (with Alannah Myles) Nine Below Zero - 1994 - 12 Nights at the Royal Albert Hall with Eric Clapton) Nine Below Zero - 1994 - UK tour (supporting The Kinks) Nine Below Zero - 1994 - UK tour (supporting Brian May) Little Axe - 1996 - European tour The Yardbirds - 1996 - Australia tour The Yardbirds - 1998 - USA & Canada The Yardbirds - 2000 - USA & Canada The Yardbirds - 2001 - European Tour The Yardbirds - 2003 - 'Birdland' tour - USA & Canada The Yardbirds - 2008 - European tour Soundcheck magazine referred to Glen as "one of the finest blues harp players and slide guitarists of his generation," and also received praise from Net Rhythms for his harmonica playing. Glen's original music was used on the soundtrack of the BB King Biopic "Life of Riley"
Selected discography
• The Yardbirds - • Birdland (Favored Nations) - 2003 • Nine Below Zero – • Off the Hook (China Records) - 1992 • Hot Music for a Cold Night (I.R.S. Records) - 1994 • Best of Nine Below Zero (I.R.S. Records) - 1994 • "Ice Station Zebro" (Pangea Records) - 1995 • "'Live' in Europe 1992" (Floating World Records) - 2011 • Dr. Feelgood – • On the Road Again (Grand Records) - 1994 • Little Axe – • Slow Fuse - (M&G Records) - 1996 • Hard Grind - (Fat Possum Records) - 2002 • Champagne and Grits - (Real World Records) - 2004 • "Stone Cold Ohio" (Real World Records) - 2006 • Bought for a Dollar, Sold for a Dime" - (Real World Records) - 2010 • "If You Want Loyalty, Buy a Dog" (On-U Sounds) - 2011 • "Wanted Live" (LA Records) - 2012 • London Blues (On-U Sounds) - 2018 • Junior Delgado – • Reasons (Big Cat Records) - 1999 • Dub Syndicate – • Acres of Space (Lion & Roots) - 2001 • Rasta Far I (Collision Cause Chap) - 2006 • The Barcodes - • Keep your Distance (Note Records) - 2000 • Independently Blue (Note Records) - 2004 • With Friends Like These (Note Records) - 2006 • Live - In Session for the BBC (Note Records) - 2007 • "Be Cool - The Best of The Barcodes" (Note Records) - 2011 • Incredible Blues Puppies - • Puppy Fat (Note Records) - 2005 • In The Doghouse (Note Records) - 2008 • Roger Cotton and Alan Glen - • Born in Black & White (Note Records) - 2003 • Gordon Smith - • "The Essential Gordon Smith" (Note Records) - 2009 • "Gordon Smith - Live" (Brooks Blues) - 2011
Primary material
Documents and archives
reference work
- “Alan Glen”, English Wikipedia, consulted as further reading
Reputable secondary · Wikipedia
authority record
- Wikidata, structured authority record Q2636703: Alan Glen
General reference · Wikidata
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.Umlauf, Simon. The British are coming! The British are coming!. CNN. 15 April 2003.
- 2.Headsights.com. Alan Glenn.
- 3.Blue, David. NetRhythms: A to Z Album Reviews. NetRhythms.
- 4.Anderson, Rick. Rasta Far I - Dub Syndicate. AllMusic.
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The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 18 August 2026.
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