All That is Not Jazz
The Plymouth Jazz festival is coming up on 25th April in Tobago, looks like an event not to be missed.
Featuring major acts like Rod Stewart, Shakira, Whitney Houston, Diana Ross, Smokey Robinson, Peabo Bryson, En Vouge, James Ingram and Steel Pulse.
Whoa, that’s quite a line up!
My first question, what do any of those above mentioned artistes have to do with Jazz?
Rod Stewart with his “if you want my body and you think I am sexy” no jazz there…
I love to see Shakira shaking those hips of hers while she is singing but she don’t do Jazz.
Whitney Houston belting out how I am all the man she will ever need, but no freaking jazz there either.
I challenge you to identify one of those acts that are even remotely connected to Jazz.
Is it that promoters are “selling out” by not booking jazz purists in order to attract more patrons?
At least when Chris Harper of Notes to Note puts on his Jazz events at the Plantations, he features “real” Jazz acts, and so does Gilbert Rowe with our Barbados Jazz Festival.
The next question I would ask is why do they call an event such as this a “Jazz Festival”?
When you to come to Bacchanal Time calypso tent don’t you expect to hear calypso? So when you go to a jazz festival should you not hear jazz?
If you will not be hearing Jazz not even once, why not change the name to more accurately reflect the musical fare offered,So it should be the “Tobago International Music Festival” then every thing would be covered, including Shakira shaking those hips!
If during the reading of this blog there is any thing I might have written which might have incensed or offended you, GET OVER IT! There are many things I read and hear in the media on a daily basis that I don't like either. SO DEAL WITH IT! You are welcome to leave your comments though. Make sure and come back yuh hear !!!...
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March 16th, 2008 at 5:52 pm
I wonder if Diana,Whitney and Steel Pulse would be rooming together they could buy 1 huge bag and have a good party lol……
March 16th, 2008 at 6:45 pm
Well Peter, jazz music to me is not as clearly defined as other genres. That it why it is almost limitless in its expression. Certainly jazz has had at least a little to do with the existence of a few well known genres like rock and R & B. Lableing music is what the records labels are there for (hence the name).
This reminds me of when Edwin was in the Pic o de Crop and Andy Williams (a man I still respect) was constantly judging (as commentator) every aspect of Edwin’s music, saying “it is not calypso”. “The bass is not calypso bass” and “the horns are not calypso horns”
So stop categorizing the music and allow the jazz genre to evolve even further.
March 19th, 2008 at 3:22 pm
I actually think this festival is not really marketed as a Jazz festival but as a music festival. Hence the different genres. Could be wrong.
March 21st, 2008 at 12:21 pm
It is hard to believe our little island Barbados now attracts such big names in music. Years ago it would have been treated like the island must be put on a stop to accommodate some of the names back then and in fact, not many of them ever came here to perform. If the had, I’m not sure what we might have done back then, suffice it to say, Mario Lanza, Tom Jones, Elvis Presley and so many others were wise not to set down in Barbados.
All That Is Not
…
An enormous amount of things used to bother me
Lots of them may have only surfaced in soliloquy
Like all that is not beautiful or of my race
The wasteful way people go at such a slow pace
How often I internalized them in monologue
And the wickedness for which I deserve to be flogged
These many private and personal pleasures
Include listening to music from all genres
So many years I was trained to reject all that is not classic
Now I can enjoy most forms of music
Once Shakira with her hip tossing starts her pizzazz
There is little that matters besides All That Is Not Jazz
Over 600 Acrostic Poems now. See the variety at
The Bajan Poetry Society
By Khaidji