JULY 29, 2022

Our Caribbean Quintessence

Despite my daily telephonic communication with my father, Basil, on every manner of topic, it is always inspiring to hang with Dad in-person, especially after a couple years of lockdowns.

Not only is it a blessing to continually benefit from the sage counsel he dispenses on a staggering range of issues, connecting with Pops is an unfailingly positive reinforcement, and conjures childhood memories of life growing up in the Caribbean.

While having a chat in the kitchen earlier this week, I asked Dad how he was feeling. His response? “Superb, Skipper!”

The word Skipper (not to be mistaken for The Dipper) reminded me of one of the soubriquets of the late Errol Walton Barrow, the founder of an independent Barbados in 1966, and a national hero of my little 166 square-mile island nation. 

That subsequently triggered a fond memory of Barbadian musical icon, Senator John King, who recently served as Barbados’ Minister of Culture. It was Johnny Ma Boy’s “Tribute to the Skipper”, a national masterpiece (co-authored with Anthony Walrond), that helped John win the calypso monarch competition in Barbados in 1986.

I most likely was at the Waterford grounds at the finals since I also had the honor and duty of accompanying my West Indian musical aficionado mother, Kean, to competitions where she served as both judge and radio/television commentator.

Fast forward a few years, I remember Mum and John … and the musically versatile Alison Hinds visiting our Christ Church home on a regular basis rehearsing for the 1992 CBU Caribbean Song Festival. The “Hold you in a song” duet, written by Andre Woodvine and Stedson “Red Plastic Bag” Wiltshire, sent them into winners’ row.

It’s amazing how a “Superb, Skipper” could evoke such strong memories, allowing me to capture them in writing this week.

The history of Caribbean independence is an accomplishment about which we should be very proud, but we should also celebrate the people component, what the late Professor Rex Nettleford described as the “creative genius” of the Caribbean.

Intellect transcends leadership, academia and business. It also includes some of the great musicians of our generation – from Bob Marley to Slinger “The Mighty Sparrow” Francisco, and Celia Cruz to our very own Rihanna.

Imagine if our Caribbean institutions fully embraced and marketed – at home and abroad – this distinctive Caribbean quintessence, which we so woefully take for granted.

Bevan Springer is the President and CEO of Marketplace Excellence, a global public relations, marketing and media company.