39. Theresa Alfonso Tucker

Tess (Theresa) is the youngest Alphonso sister of a family of sensational singers and musicians: Fabiola, Max (harmonica), Rufina, Delfine, Lolita, Mervyn (guitarist). This is her story:

Whilst living with Rufy, Skip, Andy and Leon in Leicester, I started my singing career with a small Goan band doing working men’s clubs, singing Country and Western, Rock & Pop. Initially they did not think I would be capable so did not want to know and I had to keep begging and pestering them to just listen to me and then decide.

I moved on to a terrific Soul and Funk Western Indian band (Sister Big Stuff), doing night clubs all over England. I was asked and moved on to a semi-professional band that was struggling to cut their first record.

I gave up my secretarial career to become a full time professional singer when I was spotted and asked by Terry Reaney to join his full time band, working all over the country as well as seasons at Pontins, Blackpool, doing everything from Country & Western, folk, Rock & Roll, Pop, Soul. Meeting and working on the same circuits, with stars like Les Dawson, Ken Dodd amongst others.

I soon bought my first house.

I went freelance doing cabaret on my own as well as working with different bands regularly singing at Blackpool Tower and the Blackpool Winter Gardens. I also worked with Les Howard and the Northern Dance Orchestra, doing many venues with them all over England. One evening, while driving two of the musicians, our car broke down in heavy snow over the Yorkshire Pennines on the way to a concert and we were finally rescued on a farmer’s tractor … arriving at the venue at midnight.

Worked for a short time as one of three of Freddie Starr’s backing vocals.

I later worked all over Finland, from Helsinki in the south, right up north to Rovaniemi in Lapland, having wonderful experiences including flying in a sixseater twin-engined propeller aircraft to a small town north of Roveniemi which

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had a very small landing strip. I did cabaret on the ferry from Pori, Finland, (where famous Jazz festivals are held featuring world famous Jazz artists) to Stockholm, Sweden.

I also worked for four months singing in Zermatt Switzerland.

After about 7 years of professional singing and lots of travelling and wonderful experiences I decided it was time to give it all up while I was still at the top so I could cherish the memories of all my wonderful experiences. I also had had enough of being on the road and longed for a homely life and decided that it was also best while I was still young enough to start a new career.

While I was deciding which direction I wanted to take, I worked as a Temporary Secretary and Personal Assistant in the City of London’s financial district for a while before landing a job as a Public Relations Officer for the famous Lloyd’s Register of Shipping when I met my husband.

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