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  Cecil hinkson November 14, 2011 at 12:24am

  Barry  you should be Starlift arranger,they should invest time in you as a young arranger in the band but I guess management want to win panorama so they choose an experience arranger, this is what young arrangers are up against. I guess arranging is like any other job they want experience but no one is willing to give the opportunity for some one to gain experience. 
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  Barry Mannette November 13, 2011 at 8:45pm

  I agree with some of this Cecil and Glenroy, but Cecil mentioned Ray, LaPierre, Haffers, and Salah. I have the utmost respect for all these arrangers and have interacted with them all but Ray has been given many opportunities with several bands such as Exodus, Starlift, Invaders, Tokyo, Humming birds, Phase 2 and on and on, I stand to be corrected but I think LaPierre was at the helm of Harmonites for a while, Haffers had opportunities with Starlift and Skiffle Bunch and Salah does Flamingoes. So they have all been given opportunities, some used them better than others but how could those of us who invest time, money etc to get a higher education in the thing we love so passionately and still have to create a big brake too, well sometimes its just unfair in my opinion. I agree Glenroy but sadly people only recognize Panorama in Trinidad and that's it so much so that someone I know was doing research on classical music and tried to get a listing of all the Festival winners and their selections from inception of the festival and sadly this was not even listed on pantrinbago's site but all the Panorama winners were. 
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  Glenroy R Joseph November 13, 2011 at 8:30pm

  You make some good points Barry.

  We challenge our youth to get educated to advance the artform, but unfortunately when they do, there are not enough opportunities for them to show their stuff.

  I'm not saying anything bad about the Panorama, but as it remains the main focus of the steelbands, it limits opportunities for young  arrangers,and  since human nature favors proven commodities especially when money is at stake.

  Also, the Panorama tune is only one tune, occupying for the most part only one arranger per steelband.

  And there is a finite number of steelbands.

  As steelbands hopefully diversify their music into other activities apart from Panorama , the demand for arrangers will grow.
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  Cecil hinkson November 13, 2011 at 7:38pm

  Barry as you can see the pool of arrangers are more than the steelbands, what about the arrangers who are standing in line, are you saying that because the young arrangers went to university they deserve special treatment? Getting to arrange for a big band is not easy, I have used Boogsie example to show what he did, young arrangers have to create there own BIG BRAKE bacause I aint think Boogsie or Professor is going to retire any time soon.
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  Barry Mannette November 13, 2011 at 6:20pm

  This is good music as usual from Ray. I wonder though, in this 21st century where people can go to a university and study the arrangements of the masters such as Ray Holman, Dr. Samaroo, Boogsie and even Bradley, some feel that we shouldn't be given a chance to show what we have learnt together with our own touch. At university now, we study arrangements, voicing, modulations, harmonizing and even re-harmonizing etc.and it is done by analyzing what the GREATS in steelpan have done already, young arrangers add a new dynamic and freshness to the panorama, all you have to do is look carefully at the competition in the medium category of the panorama and you will see. People need to move on and remember that life is a cycle, don't you think people in Renegades would have wanted Dr.Samaroo to arrange forever afterall he has won 9 times (more than any other arranger) but when he retired, the band supported the new young arrangers they have tried including his son Amrit (who went to university), Guppy and now Duvonne. And that's one of the reasons why some bands are so much more successful than others. How long have we heard that the big bands in panorama finals always sounding the same, over and over, come on!!!!! The young arrangers deserve a chance too instead of having to "take a number"
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  Pan Times November 13, 2011 at 5:20pm

  Hi Ian

  Please check below for Ronald C. Emrit post.  He was a member of Starlift during this period and played on this album I believe.
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  Ian Franklin November 13, 2011 at 5:11pm

  Dear Pan Times,

                           I stand to be corrected, but is this not the CAN CAN from "Orpheus of the Underworld."

  I have a tune by Starlift of which I do not know the name. I wonder the is Opheus in the Hades"
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  Gerard Clarke November 6, 2011 at 6:46pm

  While there were many very good bomb tunes around, this one really stood out.With the help of Louis "Mano" Flores and Eastlyn Hinds, was able to learn it for my first year on the road in 1965.It was brought back again in 1995 for the road and did well at the bomb competitions, with a requested anchor from the downtown judges.The youth in the band, not understanding this type of thing scrapped it from the repertoire  later that year.
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  Cecil hinkson November 6, 2011 at 3:28am

  The arranger of this tune is still around working as a drillmaster in PhaseTwo, Although I thank God that, it bothers me to see one of the great composers//arrangers of our time reduced to working out a steelband. Can we "Do Something For Ray? I have been told that Ray aint win ah panorama in 40 years, he old, he never win wid he own tune, he is difficult to work with, that have nothing to do with the fact that  the man is a MASTER COMPOSER/ARRANGER. Bradley said that  the only man he respect is Ray, Boogsie said that he learn a lot from this man. if Miles Davis was alive today he would ah still be kicking it, why do we want to put this man out to pasture? I an sadden that for the last couple of years there was no panorama tune from Ray. These days we have a lot of young arrangers who feel because they went or are going to college their time has come the older arrangers should step aside, what I say to them is when Boogsie was faced with that situation he started his own band, we have arrangers like Earl Lapierre, Haffers, Salah Wilson to name a few who are standing in line, take ah number. 
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  Glenroy R Joseph November 5, 2011 at 9:40pm

  Another fabulous Bomb tune from the golden Age of Pan On the Road.!