Global - Highlanders Steel Orchestra is pleased to announce as a success, their efforts to have renamed - the ‘Old St. Joseph Road’ located in Success Village, Laventille, Trinidad – to: ‘Old St. Joseph Road / Bertie Marshall Boulevard.’

In recognition of Bertie Marshall’s contribution to the development of the steel pan, the national instrument of Trinidad & Tobago, the executive committee of Highlanders Steel Orchestra organised the Success Village Laventille community, and petitioned the government to recognise Marshall by renaming the Old St. Joseph road in his honour. Bertie Marshall is widely regarded, both nationally and internationally, as one of the greatest innovators and researchers of the steel pan.
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  • Hey Glenroy, I have to tell you about the time there was a music festival in Naparima Bowl and the adjudicators were from England and couldn't understand how the bands were playing those great classics and were not reading music . So the next time the came Silvertones got these little music stands and put it in front their pans and pretended to read music . We couldn't stop laughing because none of us could read music . We used to learn to play those classics by listening to the record . Getting the first part memorized and then second part and so on until it was perfect . Hey Bede is this how the guys up North did it too? Those were some really talented arrangers . BTW those of you who live in NYC know of the Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir. They have won so many Grammys and their music leader Carol Cymbala can't read a word of music but she sure can arrange. You think all those Trinis in Brooklyn rubbed off on her.Blessings.
  • Here are the names of some of my south Pan heroes , Irwin "Tacky" Donovan" Calvin "Benji" Joseph , Theo Whitehead , Carlton "Joe Young" Cooper , Joe Naked , Jocolo , Variety, Pedro, Errol "Stork" St. Hill, Mikey Green, Jameel "The Syrian Whiby, Steve Lalsingh, The Chadee's , Lennox Bobby Mohammed, Alan "Laddie ", Rupert "Sands" Archibald , Clarence Matthews, Toonkie Boy , Nick "Breadwin", Milton "Wire, tuners Webb, Moore. Burch, AlanG, just to name some there are lots more who put South on the map through their love for this instrument . Wherever you are today here or in Pan Heaven I thank you for a you have done. Blessings.
    • I remember Joe Young and Joe Naked. And I knew Stork St. Hill when he worked at Pointe-a-Pierre.. He was a well known cultureman and all round artist.

      Wasn't Tacky captain of All Stars?

      Most of the Sando panmen I knew were some pretty good ones from Silvertones.

      Carly, Ted "Teddy Loco" Belgrave, Mus Mus , Ben Bachu and bassmen like Boy Grant, Picket, Jonesey, Johnny Cool, Raymond-

      A lot of good panmen in Sando back then.

      All of these guys played with Silvertones when they came second to City Symphony in the unsponsored category of the 1967 music festival, when they had the town talking with their performance of  "The Barber of Seville"

       

      • Hey Glenroy, I now know how it feels when we Town men commenting on Bad johns, and Pan from Port of Spain allyo South people just read and keeping quiet, That's what I am doing, just reading, keeping quiet and enjoying every paragraph of it, lol   

  • I think he was Metronomes before Free French. The guy with the stiff neck was my protector Theo Whitehead . A real marketboy. Whenever there was a fight he would make sure I was safe as I was the youngest in the band so he let my dad know he wod look out for me. His brother was the famous Police Inspector Whitehead .Do you know Harold Hosein from Naps? He is a meteorologist with the TV and radio stations here . Blessings.
  • That's right GRJ the South is full of decent people, we borrow but never thief and as you know we have a special culture of Love and Kindness.

  • Yes Gons I do remember Ramba very well and his Mas. They had a very big house with a very big yard and his elder brother "Pablo" was our Spanish teacher. I know some of the guys you mention quite well and they were excellent Panmen. We lent Kowlesser a Tenor for him do a gig with some instrumental band and I had to go get it after at his home. Andrian and Tony were are Brothers and if you look in the pics of Cavaliers you would see him there playing and Tony went on to Hatters on the Double Tenor. I myself spent some time in Hatters with Corey at the helm in the engine room. One thing I can say is that Bobby Mohamed knew probably every Panman in the South for once he met you he would say the he has a Pan waiting for you especially around Carnival time. I remember in 1965 when we won the South Independence Festival Southland took part and you are correct "Sweet Pans".

  • Yeah Glenroy , we were young guys and V did not want to have a fight with them but they knew his reputation and they brought them back the next day . I knew Steve Drayton well , Do you remember Emile Zola from Metronomes? Remember they used to have the big working metronome in front the band on carnival days. They should make a calypso on all those past Badjohns. I saw some real fights back then, which reminds me of that calypso lyrics " and when two steelbands clash , mamaio if you see cutlass, never me again to jump up in a steelband in Port of Spain". This will never happen again because there are no more steelbands on the road. Blessings.
    • I thought Emile Zola was Free French, Gons.

      And BTW, who was the bassman with the stiff neck? He was a fixture in Sando steelbands for many years..

      And fellas, I enjoy talking about San Fernando pan.

      Some of "those people" ( you know who I mean) think that all Sando ever had was Cavaliers, Hatters and Fonclaire!

      I don't remember Metronomes, but there are so many bands that were around in the sixties and seventies, I've forgotten many of them. I remember Motown, Teenage Symphony, Sundowners, West Stars, All Stars, Antillians, Free French, Rogues Regiment, Sea Bees, Hillside Symphony, Southern Marines, Scarlet Symphony but I've forgotten quite a few.

      Remember the days when steelbands were backed up on Harris Promenade until almost 10:00am on J'ouvert morning?

      Those were the days! 

  • Yeah Peter Iron men and Scratcher men . We had a good one in Antilleans Junior Bailey . He used to make his own scratchers . They looked like huge graters . Blessings .
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