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Alton Ellis

Biography

Among the initial vocalists to enter the Jamaican music business, Alton Ellis was generally revered because the greatest & most soulful vocalist the united states ever produced — that’s, until Bob Marley arrived. Ellis got his first strike through the ska trend, but produced his true enduring mark because the definitive single vocalist from the rocksteady period. Sweet, soft, and deeply emotive, Ellis was similarly in the home on Jamaican originals or reggae-fied addresses of American R&B strikes. He cut some ska singles for Clement “Coxsone” Dodd’s Studio room One label, but reached his excellent during the middle- to later ’60s, when he documented a few of rocksteady’s personal music for Duke Reid’s Treasure Isle imprint. Ellis was created in Kingston, Jamaica in 1938 and was raised within the Trenchtown region within a musically willing family. As a young child, he discovered to sing and play piano, the last mentioned frequently by breaking right into a regional youth center to apply by evening. In his early teenagers, he teamed up with another vocalist, Eddie Perkins, to create the duo Alton & Eddie. In 1959, after earning a prominent skill show, they documented the one “Muriel,” which became a considerable strike in Jamaica. Shortly after reducing the follow-up “My Heaven,” Perkins still left to get one of these single career in america, departing Ellis a single act. Ellis documented for Dodd’s Studio room One label through the early ’60s, but produced little cash. Dissatisfied, he transferred to Reid’s Treasure Isle in 1965, and produced a backup vocal trio known as the Flames (the very first incarnation highlighted his sibling Leslie, and account would fluctuate). Ellis quickly have scored a major strike using the antiviolence plea “Dance Crasher,” and the next season, he released that which was arguably the very first rocksteady one, “PREPARE YOURSELF – Rock Stable.” Its innovative defeat grew away from a session where in fact the planned bassist didn’t arrive, forcing keyboardist Jackie Mittoo to try out the bass component himself; Mittoo’s still left hand couldn’t match the frantic ska defeat, therefore he elected to decelerate the tempo. The effect was a choppier tempo that finished up enabling the vocalist to loosen up more, and shortly the rocksteady audio had bought out Jamaican music, with Ellis leading the charge. He previously several other main successes in 1966, including “Cry Difficult” as well as the smash “Lady I’ve Got a Day,” the second option which became his biggest strike and personal track. He also slice many duets with Phyllis Dillon (producing them Jamaica’s response to Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell), in addition to his sister Hortense Ellis (including popular cover of Neil Sedaka’s “SPLITTING UP Is Difficult to do”). The traditional LP Mr. Spirit of Jamaica (later on reissued on Compact disc as Cry Difficult) gathered a lot of his greatest Treasure Isle songs. By 1968, Ellis experienced resumed doing work for Studio room One furthermore to his result for Treasure Isle, producing him mostly of the performers to bridge the space between your two archrivals. The majority of his biggest strikes from the past due ’60s arrived on Studio room One, like the American spirit cover “Willow Tree,” “I’m Only a Man,” and “Seated in the Recreation area.” In 1970, he released the recording Sunday Coming, one of is own strongest Studio room One models. Ellis later on teamed with maker Lloyd Daley for a limited period, which led to the greater Rastafarian-tinged strikes “Lord Deliver Us” and “Back again to Africa”; he also caused Keith Hudson. Nevertheless, he was still not really receiving proper economic compensation for many his achievement. Disillusioned, he spent time within the U.S. and Canada, after that relocated to Britain on the mostly long lasting basis in 1973. In Britain, Ellis set up his very own Alltone label, which he specialized in both brand-new recordings and compilations of his early classics. The worldwide reputation of Bob Marley as well as the rise of root base reggae intended that Ellis’ significant legacy was shortly overshadowed, but as time passes, he continued to be a fondly appreciated pioneer of Jamaican music. He produced triumphant comes back to Jamaica with well-received models on the Reggae Sunsplash Celebration both in 1983 and 1985, and documented a new one, “Man From Studio room One,” for Dodd in 1991. Many compilations of his function appeared through the CD period, illustrating his spectacular consistency.

Quick Facts


Full Name Alton Ellis
Date Of Birth September 1, 1938
Died October 10, 2008, London, United Kingdom
Profession Singer-songwriter
Nationality Jamaican
Children Christopher Ellis, Noel Ellis
Siblings Hortense Ellis
Music Songs You Make Me Happy, La La Means I Love You, Girl I've Got a Date, I'm Still in Love With You, Dance Crasher, Ain't That Loving You, What Does It Take, Why Birds Follow Spring, Remember That Sunday, I'm Just a Guy, Willow Tree, It's a Shame, These Eyes, Tumbling Tears, Baby I Love You, Too Late to Turn Back Now, I Am Still in Love, All My Tears Come Rolling, Lord Deliver Us, Can't Stand It, Don't Trouble People, If I Could Rule This World, Can I Change My Mind, I Can't Stop Now, Play It Cool, Never Love Again, Breaking Up, Hurting Me, Alton Blues, Let Him Try, Alphabetically Yours, Mad Mad
Albums Mr Soul of Jamaica, Sings Rock and Soul, Sunday Coming, Love to Share, Cry Tough, Workin' on a Groovy Thing, Alton Ellis' Dance Crasher, Valley of Decision, The Duke Reid Collection, Legend, The Aggrovators Present: Alton Ellis, Many Moods Of, The Best of Alton Ellis, Reggae Max, Be True to Yourself: Anthology 1965-1973, Legend Anthology, Pure Gold - Alton Ellis, Alton Ellis Sings Rock N Soul, Honey, I Love You, Cornell Campbell Meets Alton Ellis, Sons Of Jamaica - Alton Ellis, Black Label Reggae-Alton Ellis-Vol. 17
Movies Reggae in a Babylon


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Soundtrack

Soundtrack

TitleYearStatusCharacter
EastEnders 2014 TV Series writer - 1 episode
My Son the Fanatic 1997 "My Heaven"
Sid and Nancy 1986 writer: "Up Town Top Ranking" - as Ellis

Self

Self

TitleYearStatusCharacter
Reggae in Babylon 1978 Documentary Himself

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