PELHAM GODDARD was born in Clarence Street in St. James, Trinidad on December 12, 1946. The son of a seaman and a school teacher, he attended St. Crispin’s EC school. His love affair with music began early, with the first instrumental object of his affections being the piano which he played at school. Pelham remembers that ‘when the rhythm got the better of him’ and he ‘beat’ it out on the school benches, punishment followed because of the noise he created.
On a 1959 trip back from Germany, his seaman father brought back a piano to the Goddard household - and Pelham never looked back. With the rhythm in his soul, he had become very involved with the Tassa drumming for the Hosay festival, but as he puts it "the day the piano came, I made my choice, and started learning the piano." Pelham’s now-eighty-eight year old mother is a Graduate of Trinity and Royal School of Music, and his late father both read and played music by ‘ear.’ After a few tips from his mother, he started to pick up notes from songs then heard on the radio, some of which he says he can still remember. Pelham’s older brothers were already into steelbands like Tripoli, Crossfire, Starlift and Silver Stars, so music ran in the family, to say the least!
Replies
Sincere congratulations to Dr Pelham Goddard for a lifetime of contribution to Caribbean music!