When, with a moving and evocative rendition of Shadow’s “One Love”, Count Robin and a host of artistes including Ajala and Dr. Witty, brought down the curtains around midnight, the audience didn’t leave. Robin’s ability to invoke Shadow’s spirit while capturing the master’s persona, not just the broad-brimmed hat and all-black attire but his distinctive moves, left attendees speechless and motionless as if possessed by Shadow’s “Jumbies”… wanting more calypso. And, as if in a Shadowesque trance, Yvette Rennie, president of the J’ouvert International; Dr. Lawrence Waldron, facilitator of the Shadowlingo blog; Donna Cox, T&T NY Consulate; Roger Toussaint, leader of the 2005 Transit Strike which brought the city to a standstill; and many of the 350-plus crowd lingered at the November 14, Brooklyn Tribute to Winston (Shadow) Bailey and Winston Scarborough, De Original De Fosto Himself.
Even five hours of calypsos, speeches, poetry and, yes, steel, didn’t seem a sufficient honor for our recently departed titans. Everybody had a unique De Fosto or Shadow story to relate: In telling hers, Penelope Beckles, T&T’s Ambassador to the UN, placed Sparrow, who was in England for the London Windrush Celebration, center stage at the Tribute with her stellar, impromptu a cappella performance of “Memories”, inducting Shadow and DeFost into Sparrow’s evergreen anthem. And, not unsurprisingly, a riddim section added a touch of irony to her soloing!
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