as mentioned, Dennis Alcapone, also Ken Boothe, Big Youth, Jackie Mittoo's daughter Cheryl who happened to be in New Jersey all called in to Jeff Sarge's show. Alot of those guys (Alton, Leroy Sibbles, Jackie Mittoo moved to Toronto in the 1970's) and were all close. To immigrate to the US wasn't so easy, but to move to Toronto and Brixton was a little bit easier. Dennis Alcapone sounded extremely articulate in explaining the really hard work that Alton was doing until his collapse in London, and that he was just too weak from exhaustion to continue on with the arduous touring schedule that he had set himself up for, and consequently was just too weak to resume the chemotherapy that his doctor's had him scheduled for.

I haven't had the nerve to call my friend (a relative who lives here) -- he actually played this afternoon in one of the apple orchards with a big amount of Jamaican apple pickers working at this place. At least he was scheduled to perform there, quite possibly he was too filled with grief to perform.

I know Hortense was buried in Jamaica and that was huge. Because Alton Ellis was given a Jamaican Order of Distinction a few years back, I think that the funeral will be in conjunction planned in conjunction with the Jamaican government. So MANY of these guys who worked SO hard in the early days of reggae never really received their [financial] dues. This news is just too sad, but to live to be seventy years old is a fairly long life, and he is no longer suffering. I'm so glad that I was able to see him perform about fifteen or so times. He always looked really SO happy to be performing and watching the response of the audience who knew all of his hits, when performing in Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx, Long Island or Hartford.