TNN 51

Oh lorse.. too soon!  Too soon!  Meh Carnival finish too quick…… ah nearly cry when ah realise was Las’ Lap ahready..!   Like de festival gi’ meh ah heavy horn dis year…  ah really feel sad after de jump up, boy…. anyway, wit’ some news of Carnival….. (deep voice)… This is TNN……  Is total disorder…… If yuh social doh bother… Is total disorder tonight!…  Part like yuh maaaaaaaad!……. ah want yuh to really get on baaaad! (background music, Duke)..

DEY T'IEF! ....DEY T'IEF!

Ah boy, what is Carnival wit’out de usual cry...?   Well, Mr. Iwer George an’ Superblue in ah battle (actually Iwer in ah battle wit’ heself, really, because Supers eh takin’ he on!).   Anyway Iwer say dey rob him in de Soca Monarch Finals, how he shoulda come 1^st, not 2^nd  and same t’’ing wit’ de Road March…de judges eh count correct (seems dat Supers beat him by one point).  

Now, I eh have no problem wit’ ah man feelin’ like he shoulda do better, but oh gorrrrmmm…… If yuh hear de songs he fightin’ over……!   In ah perfect country dem songs would ah never get airplay… check out de chorus…..

Show meh yuh rag! Wey yuh rag! Wey yuh rag! Wey rag! 
Wey yuh rag! Wey yuh rag!  Leh meh seeeeee it! (repeat)

Note de originality  an’ strength of lyrics…note the use of rhyming couplets……. note de melodic integrity an’ subtle play on words….. an’ especially de exquisite phrasing!

Oh shucks ah forget de verse….

Me  say yuh wake up in de mornin’ …
An’ yuh jus’ realise…
Carnival come back again..
An’ yuh lookin’ for yuh rag…
An’ yuh cyah find yuh flag…
Mas start…man ready tuh wave…. (go to chorus ..)

Now, how or what could possess you to ARGUE over ah composition (an’ ah bein’ nice!) like dat?! Tell meh…!  If I was he I woulda be happy if ANYBODY play dat song atall…… but mankind want tuh go to court an’ lawyer tuh get he just desserts…. what ah  t’ing!  ….An’ if yuh hear him bring off.. “I is de baddes’ soca fella aroun’” (ah quite agree!)….. not dat Supers was any better, at least he had some verses… but if yuh hear de chorus line…

Ah wish ah could…
Ah wish ah could…..
Ah wish ah could…..
Wine on yuh
Ah wish ah could….
Wine on yuh 
(repeat 2 more times)

Now if I did make up song so an’ sing it, alyuh wouldna take me on….ent?   Alyuh woulda run meh out de studio wit’ ah bullpistle….!   

In reality, de fellas have de l’il beat an’ t’ing eh (or it wouldna play) but ah beggin’… put some kinda lyrics in de t’ing nah… because when people abroad hear dat, yes dey might jump, but dey eh go pay we culture no mind, if dat is all we could dream up……come on, leh we do do better dan dat, an’ stop all de fightin’ an’ all dat, okay…

De judges decision is final , even if yuh eh agree tuh it.   But leh we lift de t’ing upwards okay, odderwise de Road March go turn out to be ah Death March for Soca……

OUT OF DE SHADOWS....

Yes, ah suppose alyuh know Shadow is de new Calypso Monarch… well congrats to de man… it was one ah de better Monarch shows in terms of compositions, but (an’ ah know some people go want tuh jump dong meh throat…but de truth is de truth…), ah doh t’ink dat was de bes’ songs for de winner…

Okay ah say it… go ahead.. lynch meh!   Ah mean ah like de Shadow an’ all dat, an’ he really give ah excellent performance but lyrics, man, lyrics…. coulda do wit’ some beefin’ (or porkin’) up… (I shoulda have meh own tv show, yes! I real funny).  

Yuh see I does always t’ink ‘bout de ouside, an’ if is regarded as de bes’ we have, again we could be in trouble in terms ah tryin’ tuh push we music…..  If yuh singin’ somet’ing an’ yuh know yuh have ah wide audience, try an’ reach dem wit’ somet’ing dat de younger ones (especially) go be able tuh carry on further…  Like ah say, good concept, delivery etc., but ah little low on de lyrics.  It have ah young fella call Stinger, he lookin’ good, an’ ah fin’ he hold he own too…..  Leh we keep on keepin’ on..!

PAN COME FROM DE HILL....

Well pan come from Laventille, an’ is like dey intend tuh keep it…. boy, if yuh hear Despers play dem pan!   Look nah, dey beat de second place band by 11 points (normally man does lose by ah little 2 point or 3 point).    An’ of course de man Bradley take it all de way..  de man come on stage with ah TUXEDO outfit an’ dancin’ up while de band playin’… de man dress for royalty dread, an’ Despers was king dat night!   

But ah fin’ dat we should change up de t’ing lil bit tuh help out dem small bands… check de scene..   Renegades  have people like BP AMOCO sponsorin’ dem, so dem could get new pans, well tuned at ah moments notice… what about dem small band like Cordettes who reach de final, but strugglin’ wit pan dat more dan 12 years old?   

Ah t’ink dat once yuh band make it to de finals, an’ yuh have less dan ah certain amount of sponsorship, de government should help sponsor dem de nex’ year so dat dey could get some encouragement….d en odder people would join in wit’ ah sponsorship, since dey know dey go get dey name seen or tax credits because de band most likely go make it to de finals… who backin’ ah losin’ side, eh?

Over de las’ 20 years check de number of steelbands dat win Panorama……. yeah man, we need ah little more variation and competition to take de music to higher heights… beat dat song in PAN TRINBAGO head for meh…..

LEGENDARY BAND....

Well for de second year runnin’ Legends win Band of de Year (Big Band).. an’ again ah say we need tuh improve dem mas designs… 

Look, ah eh go call name, but dis year ah askin’ people…. what band is dis?….  What band is dis?.. Because everybody wearin’ bikini an’ feather or foil headpiece (except for Minshall & Berkely most noticeably)..

Yuh coulda leave band X an’ go to Band Y (no names please!) an’ den Band Z an’ jump wit’ all ah dem, an’ nobody woulda know de difference…

Come on man, leh we put we brains tuh work…. maybe dey coulda check out Rosalind Gabriel's children Band of de Year, which had all de great pan men portrayed, etc.… which show research, concern for de culture, an’ educate de public….  

Ah mean, yuh have technology,exposure an’ knowledge available like never before, so leh we use it in we mas.. doh jus’ use de technology tuh sell yuh mas over de Internet!  

TILL NEX' YEAR....

Well de Cobra had ah good time dis year in de Mas, but ah go give alyuh some tips…make sure yuh get tickets for yuh fete beforehand..   Tickets does move from $60 to $120 at de door, an’ doh wait on yuh frens tuh buy it..  ah figure dat out de hard way…!

HOLLYWOOD....

Well Manday leave de country late las’ week an’ he leave he new Minster of  Implementation, de razor sharp boy, Gillette, tuh act for he….. which eh fair because nobody could act like Manday.. he in ah class by heself (apparently wit’ no teacher….!

Now Gilly never face de polls, get he appointment 4 months ago, an’ is now Acting PM…..  Rumours flyin’ like corbeaux around town….

Yuh would t’ink yuh woulda put somebody who at least experienced in politics or is ah party member…J ohn Boy (de nex’ in line from Manday… or so we t’ought) get leave out in de rain…. an’ now Gilly goin’ an’ sign de controversial, multi billion dollar Natural Gas Project which have so much controversy (Atlantic LNG)..  apparently it couldn’t wait till de PM come back…. what is ah couple billion US$ contract?  Small change….ent?…   Dey need de  gas dis week, I suppose….. so now he actin’ like ah Minister of Finance, because he dealing with billions…

Wit all dis actin’ ah hope de play doh turn out to be ah tragedy……..! 

IN REMEMBRANCE....

Dis one shock de country yesterday… Archbishop Anthony Pantin dead in he sleep on Sat. night/Sun. mornin’… an’ just ah month ago de man went for operation an’ get all kinda tests, de doctors tell him he okay now an’ jus’ take it easy for ah while… he was back at work again.. an’ den jus’ so–jus’ so de man dead boy…!  When yuh number call, it really call, eh. 

He didn’t hesitate tuh get involve in ah political situation if he t’ink people was being taken advantage of, or it had somet’ing funny goin’ on… he ask for an investigation into the near billion dollar airport we was buildin’ because he fin' too mucha people was sayin’ somet’ing wrong wit de tendering process

He did tell de PNM gov’t years ago “houses before horses” when dey was plannin’ tuh build de horse racin’ complex (it so complex it still eh finish yet…only de foundations still stickin’ out almost 20 years after)…  

He help de Black Power an’ Trade Union movement to get ah voice, an’ he ensure dat de schools under de church administration retain certain rules, regulations an’ discipline (which is why all dem denominational schools, regardless of religion still way in front of gov’t schools…. even though dey have less money)

An’ he really try an’ take de church forward to match an’ deal wit’ de times… if is one t’ing people sayin’ all over de place…even if yuh didn’t agree wit’ what de fella say, yuh know wey he stand on any issue…. an’ like ah true Trini he had ah good sense of humour an’ enjoy ah good lime…

What ah could say…. in we own way… “Dat was ah good fella!”

WEB EDITOR'S NOTE:  TNN's Web Editor, along with the Cobra, would like to extend our sincerest wishes of condolence to the Pantin family on the loss of another one of TnT's greatest men.  May eternal rest be granted onto him and may he rest in Peace, Amen!

Dat’s all for dis week folks, t’anks for tunin’ in.. ah go see alyuh on Friday…….. Anito, stay up, hail out! ….. take care!   Any questions, comments, queries, ole talk etc…write to we anchorman Cobra at ttcobra1@hotmail.com    Ah gone, Peace,…….  What we need is Love, yes love, I say……. not greed not hate, no way… Is signs of de times I say…. oh yeeeeaahhh.. is signs of de times I say (background music, Rootsman.. ah bet alyuh eh know dat one)……