Random thoughts on experiences and matters of interest. Hoping to foster a vibrant community of readers and contributors. It's the next iteration of Buzzing Around, which began as a school project.
Well, it's the month to celebrate love. So, I'm going to show love to my readers by shouting out (as we say in Bajan parlance for recognising/greeting) readers from Indonesia, Grenada, Portugal, Switzerland, Russia, Germany. I am humbled that even one page of my writing is read by persons of such diverse nationalities and cultures. I'll just share a couple of my fave ballads on this occasion, but first here's to a gutsy young man, Wesu Wallace who wowed the judges, inclusive of Will.i.am at the Voice UK edition's Blind Auditions in which the judges do not see the contestant until a decision was made to keep him/her or not. This clip has made the rounds on local social media and we wish him well. So much singing talent in Barbados! I hope you enjoy it as much as we and the judges did. 😊
Credit: The Voice UK, 2018
Now, to a couple of ballads for the occasion. If you think I'm old school, well...I am. From the search for the next "The Voice" of the UK to the songstress known as The Voice, the incomparable Whitney Houston. I love more than 90% of her ballads, but this one is just timeless for me: "I Have Nothing" from The Bodyguard soundtrack.
Credit: whitneyhoustonVEVO, 2009 In trying to decide which other ballad to feature I thought of Luther Vandross, Celine Dion, Shania Twain, Toni Braxton, Babyface, Boys II Men - so many beautiful love songs by them all. Then I settled for NSYNC and "This I Promise You". If this sounds like a musical history lesson, google to your hearts content. If you like music that's easy on the ears, you'll enjoy them all.
Credit: NSYNCVEVO, 2009 Finally, I'll share a regional hit that was a fave on wedding lists over the year - so I understand. He's Nathanael and he hails from Trinidad: "For Better Or Worse".
Credit: RiddimcrackerTM Chunes, 2016 A Happy Valentine's Day to all.
This is the weekend of a national holiday in Barbados. January 21 is the birthday of the national hero, the Right Excellent Errol Walton Barrow (1920-1987). So, I'll reflect a little on his contribution to Barbados.
The Rt. Excellent Errol Barrow was the first Prime Minister of Barbados. He was the country's national leader at the time when Barbados successfully gained independence from Great Britain in 1967.
The
era of the 1960s saw the rise of remarkable national leaders throughout
this region. They were known for their no-nonsense approach to matters
of equality and imperialism. Here is a reported comment from his First
Financial Statement and Budgetary Proposal presented in Parliament in
1962: "I think that we in the West Indies should not be afraid to speak our
minds. I think that we in the West Indies should not be looking around
for somebody to lead and work out our own political and economic
philosophy and I do not think that it pays any West Indian politician to
either look too rapidly in the direction of Europe or Asiatic countries
for our basic philosophies of life.” (Barbados Nation, 21 January, 2016)
Check this clip from the Errol Barrow Freedom Fighter (2016) trailer in which a frankly-speaking leader throws down the gauntlet on perceived capitalist exploitation.
Errol Barrow: Freedom Fighter Trailer (Credit:
Dave Weekes, 2016)
However, much of the credit for this island's social engineering is attributed to his visions, althoughall political administrations have made a contribution to Barbados' socio-economic development over the last 51 years. This clip from the Barbados Government Information Service captures his contribution to this island state.
Barbados National Heroes Explored - The Right Excellent Errol Walton Barrow - Episode 2 (Credit: thebgis, 2015)
Known for his outstanding oratorical skills, one of my fave excerpts is his speech given before the United Nations in December 1966 - the month after the first Independence Day was celebrated.
"We shall not involve ourselves in sterile ideological wranglings because
we are exponents not of the diplomacy of power, but of the diplomacy of
peace and prosperity. We will not regard any great power as necessarily
right in a given dispute unless we are convinced of this, yet at the
same time we will not view the great powers with perennial suspicion
merely on account of their size, their wealth, or their nuclear
potential. We will be friends of all, satellites of none.” (Barbados Nation, 21 January, 2016)
One of the more charismatic of Barbados' national leaders, he has been honoured in song by more than one local artiste. This is one of my faves:
Errol Walton Barrow Tribute- Kid Site (Credit: Carson Howard, 2009)
Today, Barbados is at a crossroads - approaching national elections. What will be the vision of the next leadership of this island?
Well, it's 2018. For some the new year begins with trepidation. Who knows what it will hold? For others it's a time of anticipation...new possibilities, new adventures, new achievements. I'm usually rather blasé about it. Still to have reach the age I've reached, that's an achievement. So, this year, I'm going to use this blog to encourage, to inspire sometimes and certainly to showcase local talent.
Thank you to everyone from the different parts of the world, who've been viewing these posts. I see viewers from the UK for the first time. My writing's not viral, but it's good to know someone sees these posts - and views more than one sometimes.
Today, I'm going to highlight the work of three of Barbados' cultural ambassadors, so honoured for their body of work over the last 20-plus years and their contribution to national culture - albeit our Crop Over festival. I've highlighted their work before so I hope these are as enjoyable.
Our Soca Queen
This young lady has been making music since her teenaged years, when she was one of the lead singers of a popular band on the local hotel and nightclub circuit, Square One. Then in the 1990s, they forayed into Crop Over as a group. In 1996, their Crop Over hit and that year's road march tune, "Ragamuffin" with Alison on lead vocals took Barbados and the region by storm. In 1998, Alison led on the song "Faluma", which was rendered in the language of the Saamaka tribe of Suriname. That was another huge hit across the Caribbean. Then in 2004, Alison left the band and pursued a solo career. Here she is with "Faluma" and the 1992 Caribbean Song Contest-winning duet with John King, "Hold You In A Song".
Hold You In A Song, Alison Hinds and John King (Credit: Bajanbloom Bloom , 2010)
The Lyrical Master
Stedson "Red Plastic Bag"/"RPB" Wiltshire is a multiple winner of Barbados' national calypso competition, during the annual Crop Over Festival. He first won as a young man in 1982 with "Mr. Harding" and "Sugar Made Us Free". He continued to win the title several times over the next 30 years before moving on to the more recent Sweet Soca competition, which he has won as well.
Here he is with the song that marked his move into ragga soca, "Ragga Ragga" - a social commentary on the then emerging dancehall movement's effect on party-goers of the day. It was the first song, by him, expressing sentiments with which I agreed 100%! 😀
Ragga Ragga, Red Plastic Bag (Credit: Clayton Mann, 2012)
This one won road march (the most played song on the road for the parade of costumed bands, Grand Kadooment) in 1987! He strung together the name of almost, if not, all of the places in Barbados named Hall as he sang about the disappearance of a fugitive from justice, Winston Hall (now deceased).
Dr, Anthony "Gabby" Carter is another multiple calypso monarch having won a title or two in each of the last 5 decades. His vocal orchestration is one of his unique features. Very few calypsonians subsequently have been able to replicate his vocal skills - no matter how fine a rendition they give . Here he is with the classic, "Jack", which won the road march title in 1982. Today, he still rocks the house with it when performed nationally - and every bajan can sing along word for word with great verve.
Jack, Anthony "Gabby" Carter (Credit: Bajanbloom Bloom, 2012)
Today (January 7, 2018) tribute was paid to these three artistes as they were officially celebrated as Barbados' cultural ambassadors.
Wishing my readers a most fulfilling 2018 with success in your careers and personal life. May this be a fabulous year for you in which you achieve the goals you set and you overcome any challenges you may face. It blesses my heart to see I have readers from places like Austria, Ukraine, France and Haiti. That's awesome. Je vous souhaite une Bonne Année mes amis.
The year-end is a time for reflection and review for some. So, just for my readers not living in Barbados, I'll share five of my fave local songs of the year (well, one is regional). Crop Over is Barbados' annual summer festival featuring lots of fetes, music (soca, calypso etc.) competitions and ending with a parade of costumed bands that are judged for Best Band on the Road (in terms of creativity, representation of theme, colour, durability). For the young-at-heart, it's a great experience. My first 2 faves are taken from the 2017 festival.
First up is this sweet, melodious rendition by a talented, young man, Marvay, who has the antidote for those stressful days. Enjoy these scenes of life in Barbados in his lyric video...
Marvay ~ Antidote (Credit: JulianspromosTV |
2018 Music 2017)
Next up is the calypsonian dubbed the "Lyrical Master", Red Plastic Bag, one of Barbados' cultural ambassadors. He won the year's Sweet Soca Competition during Crop Over with this performance. Check here for the nicely recorded version in full effect. I think he wears white as well as he wears red. 😀
Red Plastic Bag ~ Boat Ride (Credit: JulianspromosTV |
2018 Music 2017)
Now to my favourite genre... This was gibberish to me until I saw this lyric video, still I couldn't resist the melody and sang along with the hook-line every time I heard it from day 1. Carry on de beat boi!
Blessed Messenger ~ Praises Tun Up (Credit: Nicholas R. 2017) Of my personal three faves for the year, there's no video of Sherwin Gardner's "Trouble" other than a clip so I'm choosing another Trinidadian native, who now lives in Barbados and is married to a Bajan. Blessed Messenger, Sherwin and this lady, Sherry Ann Maughan, all hail from Trinidad and Tobago.
Sherry Ann Maughan ~ Shine (Credit: Sherry Ann Maughan 2017)
The final song in my "countdown" of 2017 faves is this one by fellow Barbadian, Nicovia. Love it to bits and it's a toss-up between this and "Trouble" for my all time year's favourite. They were both in the top 2 of a couple of stations I listen to.
Well...Christmas 2017 is almost over. I hope you all had a wonderful day filled with the warmth of family, good cheer and beautiful memories.
I welcome viewers from Portugal to these postings. I hope you enjoyed the visit.
Today I'm going to share my fave Christmas songs that give me chills. Like this one by Peabo Bryson.
Peabo Bryson "Born On Christmas Day" (Credit: arshcenter 2014)
These songs speak to the glory that was manifested in the birth of this child more than 2,000 years ago and I'm more interested in the fact that Christ walked the earth than in the actual date of his birth.
Mariah Carey "Jesus Born On This Day" (MariahCareyVEVO 2015)
When a child is born, no-one knows his/her potential, that's why it is so very important for parents to provide a nurturing environment for their children.
Pentatonix "Mary Did You Know?" (Credit PTXOfficial 2014)
While there may be an inkling as leadership traits emerge over the years, no-one knows when they are raising a future world leader, a future Olympian (and I don't mean one who shoots his girlfriend through a bathroom door thinking "it's an intruder" 😠) or a future Nobel Laureate in Literature or Economics or Science. Similarly, if someone ends up on the streets or in prison, we need to
remember that all babies begin with a clean slate and its the
experiences they have that mould them into the men and women they
become. If any of you are parents, it is wise to remember that. I'm sure most parents want to raise children of light not darkness.
So, as I sign off with "My Christmas Prayer" I ask you to remember the reason for this season of hope, peace, joy and good will. It's not Santa Claus, it's the birth of the Christ child, as these songs all say. Until next time...
Bebe Winans featuring Rob Thomas "My Christmas Prayer" (Credit: One UnconditionalLove 2014)
Having discovered that readers of this blog have hailed not only from Barbados, but Poland, Ukraine, Germany, The United Kingdom, France, St. Lucia, Grenada, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Thailand, Ireland, Venezuela as well as the United States, I'm going to focus on Bajan talent - music, arts and craft, success and survival stories - instead of my original intent, which was to share my random thoughts, musings...and the occasional rant. You will not find the salacious here, but perhaps some inspiration.
This means that nearly half of this blog's readers know little of Barbados' culture. So, to put some of our traditions into context, I'll give a little history.
Of course, we're a tropical island - so it doesn't snow. It's the music that makes the season for me.
Food and merriment are hallmarks of the Bajan Christmas. Baked ham is a favourite dish in many homes. During slavery (and remember slaves were chattel, that is property), Massa gave the slaves a Christmas holiday. He and his family celebrated in the European tradition. The slaves were given extra rations of meat, extra flour/meal (or whatever the carbohydrate of the day was), extra rum and they were allowed to party, so they danced and the drums beat well into the night. So there are lots of parties and family gatherings at Christmas.
Then, during the colonial era, people were so poor, they could only afford new socks and ribbons for the children, a new suit for the males and a new dress for the females at Christmas. They went to Church and then they went to Queen's Park in the city of Bridgetown for the Exhibition with its displays of livestock, a merry-go-round for children and sweetmeats to snack on. So Christmas was a day to look forward to. Today, people still shop for that new outfit and matching accessories. Churchgoers wear their new outfit to the 5:00 a.m. services, some also go to The Park (Queen's Park) where the Exhibition has given way to a free performance by the internationally-acclaimed Royal Barbados Police Force Band and a few accomplished vocalists rendering seasonal favourites.
Let's listen to the Mustard Seed Kids featuring the Queen of Soca, Alison Hinds, as they tell us about what happens at Christmas in Barbados (set to the tune of a very popular Crop Over song "Something's Happ'ning"). You'll hear about the ham, the shopping and the real reason for the season...the birth of Jesus.
"Christmas Happ'ning" (Credit: Russell Watson - 2012)
There is so much talent in Barbados per square mile. Here's another of our excellent vocalists with one of my seasonal local faves - Kimberley Inniss, with "It's Christmas Fa La La La La". Not sure if there's an official video of this one. But enjoy nonetheless. Her look may not be as marketable as a Rihanna or Shontelle but she
has a very fine voice.
Credit: bwe music (2016)
I've already featured, Tamara Marshall, whose vocal ability is outstanding. In this song, she wonders why her significant other only dotes on her at Christmas. A guilty conscience for a year of neglect...perhaps? It's a pity there's no official video around of this one.
Tamara Marshall - "Why Can't It Be Like This?" (Credit: Tsunami Tsam 2010)
Finally, I'll sign off with this one by Pastor John featuring Bevil Joseph, which I find totally infectious. Why don't you hug somebody and wish them "Merry Christmas"? 😉
John Yarde featuring Bevil Joseph - "Caribbean Christmas" (Credit John Yarde, 2017)
Merry Christmas from Barbados where we don't have snow but "plenty sunshine and de beach!" 😀
Wishing everyone the joy and peace of Christmas this year.
Today I'll share a few of the more humourous Barbadian Christmas tunes. Some will surely bring a smile to your face - after all we need a light moment amid the hassle and hustle that invariably comes with Christmas.
As I didn't feature Barbados' lyrical master in my Independence Day tribute to Bajan music, I'll start with the "Bajanised" (yes, I'm coining a word, that's why I studied linguistics 😉) version of Mummy kissing Santa Claus - except that it's not Mommy but Maizie, a chap's girlfriend. This one warrants a chuckle.
Red plastic Bag: "Maizie" (Credit: Bajanbloom Bloom)
Clearly Maizie totally bamboozled (that's a Bajanism for completely fooling someone) her local sweetheart.
If you're in the cold, a punch a crema would warm the insides. Here's Barbados' first major musical ambassadors with "Drink A Rum" - and for those who've not yet heard, rum was first produced in Barbados apparently.
The Merrymen: "Drink A Rum" (Credit: Edward Spencer)
Well, this one by Sach Moore and the Sandpebbles is very funny - it doesn't show Bajan women in a nice light however, so feminists will cringe and may complain that this form of quid pro quo is really the world's oldest profession for a woman. Still, the music is sweet for days!!
Sach Moore & The Sandpebbles: "Wha Yuh Gotta Gimme Fuh Christmas?" (Credit: bajanmusicfan).
The modern version of this is by Eric Lewis of MADD, a local comedy group, also popular for their Crop Over contributions. He declared: "She Mistake Me Fuh Santa Claus." I always thought it was "she musee tek me fuh Santa Claus"!
Eric Lewis: "She Mistake Me Fuh Santa Claus" (Credit: bwe music)
If you're thinking Bajans too commercial with this Christmas thing, two of our most beautiful voices have the right spirit for the season...I've declared myself a Biggie fan, so enjoy his reggae version of "Little Drummer Boy".
Geoffrey "Biggie Irie" Cordel: Little Drummer Boy: (Credit: Bajanbloom Bloom)
And here is Tamara Marshall, who began singing gospel and then moved on to more secular material. She sings: "Do You Hear what I Hear?"
Tamara Marshall: Do You Hear What I Hear? (Credit: bwe music)
I'll sign off with the Merrymen's "Happy Birthday Jesus" to show we know the reason for the season isn't gifts and themed parties but the entrance into our time of the Saviour of the World. "For God so loved the world that he gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believes in him shall not perish but have everlasting life." (John 3: 16).
The Merrymen: Happy Birthday Jesus (Credit: Bajanbloom Bloom)
