Roland Alphonso

Roland Alphonso OD or Rolando Alphonso a.k.a. "The Chief Musician" (12 January 1931 – 20 November 1998) was a Jamaican tenor saxophonist, and one of the founding members of the Skatalites.

Biography

Born in Havana, Cuba, Alphonso came to Jamaica at the age of two with his Jamaican mother, and started to learn saxophone at the Stony Hill Industrial School.

In 1948 he left school to join Eric Deans' orchestra and soon passed through other bands in the hotel circuit and first recorded as a member of Stanley Motta's group in 1952, going on to record frequently as a session musician.

In 1956 he first recorded for Clement "Coxsone" Dodd, although these early recordings were lost before they were mastered. By 1958, he was a part of the stage-act of comedians Bim and Bam, who toured Jamaica sponsored by "McAulay liquor". Alphonso's dynamic version of Louis Prima's "Robin Hood" was one of highlights of the act. Following this, Clement Dodd and Duke Reid made him a regular member of their in-house band of session musicians. In 1959 he joined the band of Cluett Johnson named Clue J & His Blues Blasters and backed many of Dodd's recording sessions in a typical Jamaican R&B style. He also...

Read full biography on Wikipedia →