Jamaican Halloween Spooktacular 2009 - Track Twenty - Roland Alphonso's "Devils Disciple"

Roland Alphonso & The Bunny Lee Allstars are up next in the Spooktacular with a tune called "Devils Disciple" taken from the Black Magic Reggae CD set on the Sanctuary label.

Roland Alphonso (born January 12, 1931, Havana, Cuba) moved to Jamaica at the age of 2 and started out in the music business in 1948 when he left school to join Eric Dean's Orchestra and first started recording for Stanley Motta's MRS label in 1952 during the heyday of mento music. He went on to record for Clement "Coxsone" Dodd in 1956 but sadly the master tapes were lost and never made it to mastering. In 1959 he joined up with Cluett Johnson and his band Clue J and His Blues Blasters all while recording for producers such as Duke Reid, Lloyd Daley and King Edwards, playing alto, tenor and baritone sax as well as the occasional flute. He went on to become a founding member of the legendary Skatalites, the first session band at Coxsone's newly opened Studio One studio in 1963.

When the Skatalites disbanded in 1965, Alphonso formed his own band The Soul Brothers with Dizzy Moore and Jackie Mittoo and who would later become known as The Soul Vendors in 1967. He continued working throughout the 60's and 70's and received official recognition for his contributions to music in 1977 when Jamaica awarded him the Officer Of The Order Of Distinction.

Amazingly Roland Alphonso continued to record throughout the 80's and the 90's until his death on November 20, 1998.

Spooktacular Track Twenty