Manuel Ramos

Manuel "Lolly" Ramos lived in Milford, Connecticut. He played the twelve-stringed viola. This guitar-like instrument, one of the components of the traditional island string band, provided the soft background rhythm; Lolly's viola was made in Cape Verde. He toured with the Cape Verdean dance band Irmaos (Brothers), also featuring Edmund, Charlie, and Jimmy Ramos; Larry Fernandes; Steve Almeida; Billy Dias; and Lloyd Gonsalves, until the early 1990s. The Ramos Brothers often visited the homes of family and friends in the Bridgeport area to perform canta reis at New Year. Lolly served as emcee for many of the Cape Verdean Womens Social Club events in Bridgeport through the years.