LORD KITCHENER has always taken great pride in saying that he composed his own CALYPSOS. However, what was certainly his BIGGEST GLOBAL HIT in a storied CALYPSO CAREER was NOT COMPOSED by LORD KITCHENER – but instead by FAMOUS MUSIC ARRANGER ED WATSON. Now, KITCHENER did write the lyrics for the song on direction from ED WATSON. Even so, he had to be shown a technical approach in song writing in the process of selecting the name of THE WOMAN with the SUGAR BUM BUM.
As the background story goes, ARRANGER ED WATSON got a BEAT and MELODY buzzing in his brain. A few days later, Lord Kitchener came over to ED WATSON’S house to go over some music and ED mentioned that he had a nice MUSICAL IDEA with a good beat and sweet melody – and suggested that KITCHENER come up with some lyrics for the POTENTIAL CALYPSO.
So they went to the KEYBOARD and ED started playing the BASS LINE with his left hand and strumming with his right hand and then he picked out THE MELODY and KITCHENER started improvising the lyrics. Having walked around with THE TUNE in his head for days and now hearing it take shape with the KEYBOARD and KITCHENER’S LYRICS – ED suggested that they should tape it so that they don’t lose it. So ED TAPED the DEMO SESSION.
According to ED WATSON, LORD KITCHENER did not like TAPE RECORDERS and never taped his music as he composed. It turned out that ED’S idea to tape the song ended up saving the day because KITCHENER called up ED the next day to tell him that he had FORGOTTEN THE SONG: How did it go again?
From that point forward, these two GIANTS OF CALYPSO worked together to complete the song – which turned out to be the LAST SONG on the ALBUM since KITCHENER was one song short and had been trying for weeks to come up with a song to complete THE ALBUM. As the song developed and ED WATSON gained confidence in the production, he turned to KITCHENER and said: This will be the BEST SONG ON THE ALBUM.
KITCHENER’S RESPONSE: "JOKE!!!" But he had NO IDEA where ED WATSON was going with his “NEW ARRANGEMENT.”
To any lover of CALYPSO LYRICS, the most fascinating part of the this story is that KITCHENER called the SUGAR BUM BUM woman “BETSY” as he composed the lyrics. But ED WATSON corrected him by changing the name to “AUDREY” because he thought (KNEW) that the “BETSY” vowel sound was TOO WEAK to OPEN THE VERSE.
ED WATSON showing THE LORD KITCHENER a subtle technical aspect of SONGWRITING. You have to LOVE IT!!!
When they got to CORAL STUDIO and started RECORDING THE SONG – the STUDIO STAFF broke out in a FRENZY. They knew that they had a MAJOR HIT on their hands. But the best partt of the story was that when ED WATSON called up KITCHENER and played the FINAL VERSION of the song for him, a shocked KITCHENER could only say: OH GOD!!!
They had just taken THE EVOLVING SOCA MUSIC to GLOBAL HEIGHTS!!!
ART IMITATING LIFE
The developmental report by KITCHENER on where his passion for SUGAR BUM BUM was taking him CLIMAXED with this COUPLET “GIH WAY MEH LAND; GIH WAY MEH CAR/BUT LET NO MAN; TOUCH MY SUGAR” is akin to the intoxication of a DRUG ADDICT. THE MESSAGE ECHOED LOUDLY to those who have traveled THAT ROAD!!!
But, shockingly, after Kitchener’s death in 2000 -- his wife and children soon found out that the HOUSE he lived in and the car he was driving were not in KITCHENER’S NAME. A woman named Betsy Ann Howell-Pollard had TITLE to both HOUSE AND CAR!!!
One might speculate that BETSY (his mistress -- renamed AUDREY by ED WATSON in the CALYPSO) was indeed THE REAL SUGAR BUM BUM and THE LORD KITCHENER was not so much COMPOSING as he was REPORTING!!!
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