I an not one to try to whitewash the past , but the era of the late nineteen fifties into the early seventies seems to be defined in the minds of some as an era of "old pan and cutlash " and steelband clashes.
There were clashes indeed , mostly in the mid to late sixties and some were serious, but by the seventies for the most part that behavior had ended.
And if you remember , of the hundreds of bands around at the time how many were involved in clashes?
I cannot remember more than a half a dozen or so clashes in POS that were newsworthy, and only a few bands were involved , representing community rivalries more than anything.
Most clashes , like one between Southern Marines and Gondoliers on the Coffee in Sando, were relatively minor affairs, and resulted in few if any serious injuries .
And that was a big one by south standards
Now , the steelband clashes are a blemish on the history of our beloved art-form , but it is part of our history , and cannot be denied.
But my experience tells me that , though there were a few major clashes in Port of Spain, the severity and frequency of those clashes have been exaggerated.
Only a handful of bands , the names many of us are familiar with , were involved in those clashes . and ironically, several of those bands survive today, and are among the most esteemed steelbands in the world
And serious clashes were almost nonexistent in other parts of the country.
These are my opinions.
However , we have many old timers on this forum who where there when these events happened.
So , for the record I pose these questions.
How many serious steelband clashes actually occurred?
And how many bands were involved?
And , if anyone knows this , how many people were seriously injured ?
Was anyone killed ?
These answers should give us a better idea of how violent the "steelband clash " era really was.
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At one time, it did seem most everyone was a "barber" of some sort and it was rumoured that the modus operandi at the time was to rub the blade of your razor with garlic. I'm sure many can attest to hearing about the 'benefits' and advantages for so doing. :-)
To me it appears that most of the violence at that time was directed towards another band's instruments. At least, that's what I would prefer to think, and in so doing, prefer to relegate that part of history to the past.
We've come a LONGggggg way, man.
So as of now, if I may reminisce of that era let me do so musically by enjoying yet another recording of history by the GM of our time.
No! Not the General Manager – But the GrandMaster himself.
Thanks for posting, GJ.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=tQMmrU_QdDM
ps. You undoubtedly steeled yourself to undergo that knee surgery. Wishing you a speedy recovery.
When you look at it from today's perspective with the different types of guns that there are today, the clashes pale in comparison. They were real and certainly not exaggerated. Nobody was really into the killing thing. A few chops, iron bolts, bottles. Looking back, I'd say it was fun.
Cultural scholar Gordon Rohlehr, in his book Calypso and Society in Pre-Independence Trinidad, notes that 1946 to 1956 saw an increase in cases of wounding and robbery with violence and murder. He writes: "Some of this violence took place between gangs or groups of youths in the city and its environs, and was related to the emergence of the steelbands as social organisations to the legendary stick-fighting bands of the 19th century."
These groups were even more defiant, if not so murderous, as today's criminal gangs. The 1948 Annual Report of the Commissioner of Police records that "Hooliganism broke out in Port of Spain and a section of the North-West Division's areas when steelbands, in defiance of the law, came out and played in the streets; they attacked small squads of the police who tried to disperse them."
I would not say that its been exaggerated, when I was growing up, I remember Steelband clashes with certain Bands, like Casablanca, Invaders,Crossfire, Desperadoes, City Syncopators, Joyland, Renegades, Sunland, plus Gang warfare between The Marabuntas, then the youths from Lawbrakers, Spike Jones, Silk hats, and another group from Belmont, cant remember the name.
If you ask another person they will remember clashes from other Steelbands and Gangs, when you add all them together, they are a lot..
I remember seeing ah fella from Renegades on Calvary and Bazilon Street in the early 1960's name Cross eye, cut ah fella with ah Razor and the man holding his Guts from his Belly outside.
Those days wasn't easy.
This is great oral history. Bede Lopez I fully appreciate your memory of the names of the bands from that era.
But I don't remember anyone dying.
not exaggerated at all! i still remember the bottles raining down on park street, when despers had sunland retreating. they were not sweetdrink bottles, but vat nineteens, family sizes, that exploded like bombs when they hit the asphalt. i remember the crowds scampering, the bodies trampled on the narrow pavement, those who could scaling the high fence adjoining the bakery. i can still hear the pans clanging as they dropped to the street, the elbow of a young man distended and swollen from the blow he received. i can hear the sudden change in tempo from garrot bounce, to the sounds of screams and running feet...
Yes Mervin , that must have been one of the major clashes.
The question is , how many times did this actually happen ?
Great TOPIC, Glenroy!!! For whatever reasons, I always end up on the WRONG SIDE of this forum. So I will withhold my opinion and deal with the headache that follows. But I have been grinding about the WHITE WASH for decades now.
Glenroy, I think the actual clashes were exaggerated, but there was always that tension that anything could happen anytime, especially when bands pass one another, I know of times when a pan fell everybody scatter, that's to tell you how yuh was always ready to run. This era also brought some of the sweetest steelband music.
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