Trinidad Express Newspapers
Trinidad & Tobago, W.I. - ..... Another creative genius who is still alive and living in the deep south is a man who is widely regarded as one of the greatest steelband arrangers of all time, Earl Rodney of Point Fortin.
Under his guidance, Solo Harmonites dominated the Panorama scene capturing four championship titles between 1968 and 1972. With his very first Panorama title, Rodney demonstrated his brilliance with a masterful arrangement of “The “Wrecker’’ by Lord Kitchener.
In a recent interview he admitted that his choice of tune was not popular with some members who would have preferred something that reflected the joy of Carnival instead of a calypso about “wrecking old cars”. He held firm and Solo’s “The Wrecker’’ took the town by storm, running away with the top prize.
The following year Rodney chose Sparrow’s “Bongo’’ to defend the title but had to settle for third place although he maintains that “Bongo was my ‘baddest’ arrangement”.
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