CHRISTOPHER LAMOUR ELLIS was born the youngest male progeny to “The Godfather of Jamaican Rocksteady”, the late ALTON ELLIS. Talented in his own right, the soulful 28 year-old Roots Reggae, R&B crooner has been astounding audiences with his incredibly natural, smooth vocal stylings since the age of 11. The Jamaica Gleaner notes, “His look and sound closely mirror those of his dad, he has beyond a doubt inherited the soulful vocals of his father.” Born on March 12, 1982 in London, England, CHRISTOPHER ELLIS frequently performed with his legendary father on world tours, leaving lasting impressions on international audiences across the globe, including in the territories of : Jamaica, New York City , Italy, Germany, London, Spain and Canada, to name but a few. But, it wasn’t until the fledgling songbird was about 14 years old that he started to realize how groundbreaking his father’s legacy was, what his father meant to the country of Jamaica and the enormous influence that his father had on the development of the reggae and dancehall music genres. Christopher humbly comments, “I feel privileged to have this great man as my father, to be involved with and learn from such a great man is completely an honour for me.” The talented singer-songwriter looks at the time that he spent touring with his famous father as a period of learning. Christopher reminisces, “For me, singing with my father was more like schooling; it prepared me immensely for my own career.” During his learning curve years, Ellis found himself perfecting his song writing talents and passion for music by performing regularly at venues such as the Jazz Café near his home in London, England.
Christopher Ellis – Left Unsaid
On October 11, 2008, ALTON ELLIS passed away in London, England. About six days before, the reggae legend handed his musical torch to his youngest son. Ellis confides, “Dad said to me, Christopher, you need to take it up’, and him saying that ignited a fire deep inside of me.” 24 hours after Christopher painfully witnessed the passing of his father, he went into a studio in London and recorded a tribute song to his father, the recording would later be released on the 2009 ‘Old School Young Blood’ reggae dancehall compilation through the U.K. based Peckings Records, which also featured the track ‘Young Hearts’ by Tarrus Riley. On October 27, 2008, CHRISTOPHER ELLIS and his family arrived in Jamaica to bury and attend their beloved Alton Ellis’ funeral. During the service, dancehall artist Lincoln Barrington Minott a.k.a. the late ‘SUGAR MINOTT’ paid tribute to Alton Ellis by singing over his grave. After the service, Minott invited Christopher to record music with him at his studio. Christopher accepted the invitation and extended his stay to remain in Jamaica. During that time, Christopher went to Minott’s studio every day for six months, and ended up recording a few unreleased songs. The versatile singer notes, “What transpired in Sugar Minott’s studio over that period of time was sensational and healing; a building block of inspiration which acted as a catalyst for my debut album.” During his time in Jamaica, Ellis also took the opportunity to perform a few shows including the 2008 Waterfront New Year’s Eve show, Rebel Salute 2009 and the November 2009 Stars R Us Vintage Stage show which was a celebration of Alton Ellis’s life and career. The tender-aged Ellis presented a show stopping performance that left the audience and local journalist’s awestruck. The Jamaica Gleaner commented, “Christopher Ellis, one of Alton’s youngest children and who has been entrusted with carrying on his father’s legacy as a pioneer in Jamaican music, stole the show.” Though coping with his father’s death, CHRISTOPHER ELLIS was finding himself in a good place. Sources of energy such as leaning on his mother and siblings, was helping him to get through this heartbreaking time in his life. His musical inspirations also continued as he absorbed the organic surroundings of Jamaica. Christopher recalls a day that his brother’s childhood friend named Rohan ‘Koolie’ Smith approached him about going to Hope Road to meet STEPHEN MARLEY. Ellis notes, “Koolie is a close friend to Bob Marley’s son, Stephen
Christopher Ellis – Left Unsaid Lyrics:
Oh, oh, I should have never no, no, no
Yeah! Oh, oh, oh
I said yeah, oh yeah, oh yeah!
I express my affection,
Some might say prematurely
But now I’ve learned my lesson
Sometimes a lesson means more
The moment that I said those three words
Is like everything don’t change!
No she’s got the upper hand
Acting over confident
This ain’t what her brother planned, oh no!
Pre-chorus:
So many things are better left unsaid, unheard
I might have said too much, too soon
Now I’m looking like a fool, yes!
I should have kept my feelings to myself!
Chorus:
Be careful who you give it all!
They might not feel the same at all
About you (about you) about you!
Oh yeah!
I used to cut my sleeve and my heart
I was only sharing my thoughts
(Sharing my thoughts and ever since that
She’s taking advantage
And I just can’t stand it, no, no, no!)
Think about when we started,
Things weren’t so different then
We’d spend the whole night talking
Now she ain’t listening!
From the moment that I said that L word
It’s like everything done change
No she’s got the upper hand
Acting over confident
This ain’t what her brother planned, oh no!
Pre-chorus:
So many things are better left unsaid, unheard
I might have said too much, too soon
Now I’m looking like a fool, aha
I should have kept my feelings to myself!
Chorus:
Be careful who you give in your all
(Be careful who you give in your all)
They might not feel the same at all
(They might not feel the same at all)
About you (about you) about you!
I used to cut my sleeve and my heart
I was only sharing my thoughts
(Sharing my thoughts and ever since that
She’s been taking advantage, advantage of
So many things are better left unsaid, unheard
I might have said too much, too soon
Now I’m looking like a fool, aha
I should have kept my feelings to myself!
So many things are better left unsaid, unheard
I might have spoke up way too soon
I’m looking like your fool, aha
Should have, I should have said it, no, no
So many things are better left unsaid, unheard
I should have never said it to you
Those three words, I love you, yeah!
