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Generation Next vs Veterans Tent
Veteran Calypsonian, Baron, the 'Sweet Soca Man'
TriniSoca.com Reporters
Event Date: February 15, 2007
Posted: February 24, 2007
The clash between the Veterans Calypso Tent and the NACC Generation Next Calypso Tent was held on Thursday 15th February, 2007, at the home of Generation Next Calypso Tent, St. James Amphitheatre. Despite the competitiveness that accompanies the term 'Clash' in traditional tent culture, the evening seemed to be more one of celebrating the talents of both generations of Calypsonians. The evening boasted a range of musical themes, from serious social commentary, to humour, to gospel to chutney. While the Veterans seemed to have had the edge on the Generation Next in terms of crowd response, all artistes maintained high standards of musicianship and made the evening quite enjoyable.
The evening got off to a late start, beginning almost an hour after the scheduled time. The Generation Next band, Earl Knight Services Brass, played the National Anthem and MC Kwesi Jeffers welcomed the audience and immediately set the mood for the traditional tent atmosphere, interacting with the audience, and encouraging 'picong' and cross talk, between the MC and more vocal audience members.
Youth took the stage first as Generation Next performers began the night. Cindy Alleyne's "Caribbean Melody", Andrew Lincoln's "Work to Do", Steven Marcelle's "Who Feels It Knows" and Sea Breeze began the evening with entertaining performances commenting on social issues. The Veterans were up next with great performances by Calypso greats such as Baron with "Sweet Soca Man", Conqueror with "Fresh Water Yankee" and Poser with "Think About It". Singing Francine brought the house down with her dynamic performance of "Cultural Controversy", a classic song that dealt with her desire to keep the mas in the Savannah despite plans by other interest groups to have it moved. It was interesting that this vintage song reflected a current issue that certainly resonated with the audience given the current moving of the Carnival stage from the Savannah to facilitate reconstruction of a new facility. Francine received no less than five encores with the crowd calling her back time after time with cries of "One more, Francine! One more!"
Generation Next replied with Andrew Prescod's moving "Beauty", Jadee's gospel inspired song "Lady, Keep Your Head Up", Young King finalist Jervae Caesar's powerful song "Carry Me" and Alicia Massey's chutney influenced "Pepper Pot". Each artiste received requests for encores by the crowd and was thoroughly entertaining.
The Veterans again took the stage with another masterful performance that showed that Calypso has the power to see to the heart of issues that are always relevant with Valentino's "Trinidad is Nice". This Calypso classic bemoaned the influence of big business, capitalism and people's material desires. Funny's "No Means No", Mudadah's "Ever Living Calypso", and Power's "Line Up" were also well-received.
In attendance at this event were students from the St. Michael's Home for Boys of Diego Martin. Fifteen students aged 11-18 were invited by the organizing committee as a way to expose the youth to this wonderful and evolving art form that is Calypso. Ann Marie Thomas, their teacher, told TriniSoca.com that the students participate in many Carnival activities - attending Calypso tents, playing steel pan, viewing the mas on Victoria Square on Carnival Monday and Tuesday as well as playing mas with the band, Mt. Hope Connection. This was indeed heartening to see organizers making an effort to keep the traditions alive by ensuring that youth in the country have the opportunity to see such excellent displays of the national art form. While the students had to leave at intermission given the lateness of the hour, Ms. Thomas indicated that they enjoyed themselves thoroughly and that she was looking forward to bringing another group to the show the next evening.
The second half of the evening mixed performers from both tents, which made for an interesting blend of Calypso styles. National Queen's Finalist, Karene Asche of Generation Next performed "Conversion", Conqueror of the Veterans debuted a new song "Mini Skirts", Sheldon Blackman, son of the late Ras Shorty I performed "Blessed are the Elders" in tribute to the Veterans and Contender thrilled the crowd with his humourous commentary on the Digicel/BMobile Telecom 'war' in "Let The War Continue". Terri Lyons' usually strong performance of "Ah Feel It" was hampered by vocal problems possibly brought about by illness or voice strain from the hectic season. Mr. King's Calypso version of his reggae hit "Borderline" received great crowd response and was a testament to his versatility as an artiste.
Monique Hector's "Why We Lost", Funny's "Hokey Pokey" and Ancill Valley's "Father" rounded off the highly entertaining evening. The MC thanked sponsors Republic Bank, bmobile, and British Gas for their contributions and also thanked Robert Amar, CEO of Guardian General Richard Espinet and 104 FM for their support of the arts over the years. The evening ended well and was a fitting tribute to the successful run of both tents for the duration of the Carnival season.
Generation Next vs Veterans Tent in pictures:
www.trinisoca.com/gallery2/main.php?g2_itemId=60399
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