June Carter Cash
Famous Fiction Authors
Donna Summer
Angelina Jolie
My Ghost Story
I Survived
Babe Ruth
Johnny Cash
Georgia O'Keefe
I Survived
1 photo
Quick Facts
- NAME: Alton Ellis
- OCCUPATION: Musician
- BIRTH DATE: September 01, 1938
- DEATH DATE: October 11, 2008
- PLACE OF BIRTH: Kingston, Jamaica
- PLACE OF DEATH: London, England, United Kingdom
- Full Name: Alton Nehemiah Ellis
- AKA: Godfather of Rocksteady
- AKA: Alton Ellis
Best Known For
Alton Ellis was a Jamaican singer and songwriter with a smooth vocal style, known widely as the "Godfather of Rocksteady," a slow, soulful Jamaican music genre.
Quiz
Think you know about Biography?
Answer questions and see how you rank against other players.
Play NowAlton Ellis. (2013). The Biography Channel website. Retrieved 03:05, May 18, 2013, from http://www.biography.com/people/alton-ellis-20906145.
Alton Ellis. [Internet]. 2013. The Biography Channel website. Available from: http://www.biography.com/people/alton-ellis-20906145 [Accessed 18 May 2013].
"Alton Ellis." 2013. The Biography Channel website. May 18 2013, 03:05 http://www.biography.com/people/alton-ellis-20906145.
"Alton Ellis," The Biography Channel website, 2013, http://www.biography.com/people/alton-ellis-20906145 [accessed May 18, 2013].
"Alton Ellis," The Biography Channel website, http://www.biography.com/people/alton-ellis-20906145 (accessed May 18, 2013).
Alton Ellis [Internet]. The Biography Channel website; 2013 [cited 2013 May 18] Available from: http://www.biography.com/people/alton-ellis-20906145.
Alton Ellis, http://www.biography.com/people/alton-ellis-20906145 (last visited May 18, 2013).
Alton Ellis. The Biography Channel website. 2013. Available at: http://www.biography.com/people/alton-ellis-20906145. Accessed May 18, 2013.
Synopsis
Alton Nehemiah Ellis, better known as Alton Ellis, was born on September 1, 1938, in the Trenchtown area of Kingston, Jamaica. He was a prominent singer, songwriter, producer and concert promoter, referred to by many as the "Godfather of Rocksteady," a romantic, R&B-styled Jamaican music genre. Ellis died of multiple myeloma, a form of bone cancer, on October 11, 2008, at the age of 70.
Contents
Early Life
Alton Ellis was born on September 1, 1938, and grew up in Trenchtown, an impoverished area of Jamaica that was home to other leading musicians, including Bob Marley. Ellis excelled at both sports and music at the Boys' Town school, and made a habit of breaking into the school after hours to teach himself to play the piano. He and his younger sister, Hortense, started out like many other Jamaican performers, by competing on well-known talent shows like Vere John's Opportunity Hour.
The 1959, the R&B song "Muriel," which Ellis recorded as part of the duo Alton & Eddie and with producer Clement "Coxsone" Dodd, topped the Jamaican charts. Ellis was working as a construction worker at the time. Due to the success of "Muriel," he became a constant presence on Jamaica's music charts throughout the 1960s and early '70s.
Musical Career
Many of Ellis's follow-up tracks became instant classics, including the love songs "I'm Just A Guy," "Girl I've Got A Date" and "Get Ready Rock Steady," which started a dance craze in 1966 and became Ellis's signature tune. "Rocksteady" music was more like American R&B, producing songs of love and longing, and blazing a trail in a Jamaica dominated by hard-edged, horn-driven ska music and its spiritual, rebellious cousin, reggae. Ellis also used his distinctive tenor to infuse new life into cover versions of hits like Johnny Taylor's "Ain't That Loving You" and the Delfonics' "La La (Means I Love You)."
Ellis spent several months living in the United States and three years in Canada, finally moving to the United Kingdom in 1973, where he continued to record. In 1970, he was inducted into the Hall of Fame at the International Reggae and World Music Awards. In 1994, he received the Order of Distinction from the Jamaican government, in recognition of his contribution to the island's popular culture.
Death and Legacy
Ellis died of multiple myeloma, a form of bone cancer, on October 11, 2008, in London. He was 70 years old at the time, and was given a state funeral in honor of the legacy he left to Jamaican music. He was survived by several children, 20 or more from different relationships, and many grandchildren.
© 2013 A+E Networks. All rights reserved.
profile name: Alton Ellis profile occupation:
Your Connections
Sign in with Facebook to see how you and your friends are connected to famous icons.
Profile Connections
Included In These Groups
-
Reggae Artists
View groupFrom Babylon to Zion, they are the international artists who have revolutionized reggae, a musical genre that originated in Jamaica in the 1960s. At that time, the genre took on a more pop-based sound. Over the past several decades, however, reggae music has transformed to include various sub-genres such as rocksteady, roots reggae and steppa. Our list of Reggae Artists includes musicians of various styles and experiences, from Rastafarians to raggamuffins to sapps, to everyday mon; read about world-renowned musicians like Toots Hibbert, Peter Tosh, Judge Dread, Alton Ellis and Bob Marley.
Reggae Artists 19 people in this group
-
Famous Virgoans
View groupMichael Jackson is one, so is Stephen King and Greta Garbo. Some say typical traits of Virgoans are helpful, critical, shy, and meticulous. Meet some famous people who share the astrological sign Virgo.
Famous Virgoans 561 people in this group
-
Famous People Born in 1938 48 people in this group
