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Pan jam wraps St. James Fest
Posted: Friday, June 10, 2005

By Terry Joseph

The seven hours scheduled for last Saturday's steelband parade, curtain-closer of the St. James community festival, WeBeat, utilized about one third of that time waiting for its first live performance and later sorting out a log jam; then found itself scrambling to complete the event within the prescribed period.

Patrons who naively expected the pan procession to begin at 7:pm were left to mill around and mingle on the Western Main Road until 9:05pm, some say waiting on the football crowd. Those gathered at the event's focal point, the St. James Amphitheatre, were entertained by the comedic four-man Dixieland-jazz group Choc Trio Cle and the Ice Water Pan Ensemble, before PCS Starlift arrived.

The Mucurapo based band certainly livened up the roadway outside the amphitheatre, rendering in fine style the Miller/Murden composition "For Once in My Life" (made popular by Stevie Wonder) and Tony Hatch's "Downtown", mild applause following the band as it moved away playing "Body Water" by Mini-Priest.

As was the case during the long interim awaiting the first road performance, the Ice Water Pan Ensemble filled the ensuing gap with a number of bouncy selections until Kool and D'Gang, a St. James staple (although not on the night's programme), further surprised officials by also traveling in the wrong direction playing Lionel Richie's "Endless Love", which only meant they would soon impose themselves on us for the return trip.

St. James North Stars was up next, founder of the original version, Tony Williams, sitting in the enclosure to take in their selection, although none among us could identify its title but the mood in St. James was predisposed to dancing, thousands crowding the street by this time, many of them showing evidence of having supported the home-team that earlier trounced Panama at football in the nearby Hasely Crawford Stadium.

Junior Culture Minister Eddie Hart, still dressed for the gae, entertained a small group on the opposite sidewalk as St. James Tripolians came under the spotlight, doing "WannaMake Love to You", musical director/manager Keith Simpson in trade mark fancy-sailor outfit urging players on as the band switched to "All the Love in the World" and rolled east on Destra's "Carnival Again."

But it was already 10:15 pm and Harvard Harps, with former Petrotrin Chairman, Lawford Dupres on lead tenor pan, had only now come into the frame, playing "Come Back to Sorento" and "This Melody Sweet;" a heavy police contigent making its way west as the band proveeded in the other direction.

Their departure made room for HCL Valley Harps for their rendition of "This Feeling Nice", band manager KalaAki Buaatop the rack exchanging a greeting with legendary bass pan tuner Kelvin "Zuzie" St. Rose on the street below, the Valley Harps set clearing the space for Tobago-based RBTT Redemption Sound Setters, arranger Winston Gordon bringing the crowd to dancing with Scrunter's "Trombone" as the clock struck 11: pm. They would also play "Come Back Home (for Carnival)" and then roll out on BlueBoy's "Soca Baptist."

Pan Maestros, who would later prove even more annoying, presented an aurally irritating version of its steelpan and vocal collaboration, doing Explainer's "Lorraine" and "What Happens in the Party", making way for Solo Pan Knights, who opened sparklingly with Shurwayne Winchester's "Dead or Alive" and followed in the same vein with KMC'S "First Experience".

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