Tobago
Pan Player, Arranger, Composer
One of this country’s accomplished pannists from the Sister Isle of Tobago.
He has lived in the USA since 1969.
One of his early achievements was the fact that he was the first pannist to record with the Grammy Award winner Ralph McDonald on the album entitled The Path.
In 1987, he arranged Pan in A Minor for the Trintoc Tobago All Stars and then took them to the National Semi-finals of Panorama.
Earlier in 1984, he arranged for Desperadoes Tourist Elsie, having started playing with this band sine 1968.
Jack is a member of the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers as well as the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists.
Alston Jack was one of the musicians in the sound track in the movie Fatal Attration. In this sound track, he teamed up with Desperadoes member Hilary Borneo and fellow Tobagonian Roger Sardina.
1990 proved to be a landmark in his career when he ventured into the field of acting, for he did a role in one episode of the Cosby Show playing the double second pan.
The son of Tobago, Alston Jack, has clearly left his name on the instrument and has shown that with opportunity and commitment, this percussive instrument is set to take over the world.
© 1997 Gideon Maxime: Pg 203; PAN THROUGH THE YEARS (1952 - 1996)
