April 26, 2004 – An international showcase of musical talent graced the stage of the Lionel Roberts Stadium Saturday night as the annual, calypso review played before thousands of Carnival fans.
Eleven acts, representing close to half-a-dozen Caribbean countries, lent their talents to the show. Some performed old favorites; others stirred the crowd with tunes made popular over the past few years. The highlight of the night was the return of the Trinidadian talent — the Baron. He put the crowd in a dancing mood.
The Heineken Calypso Review took place on two nights in the past, but this year the V. I. Carnival Committee, citing low attendance on the first night of the show, opted for one night, Saturday night.Music fans filled the seats in front of the stadium stage and sections of the covered grandstand. Hundreds more ringed the field, choosing to stand for the entire six-hour performance and giving the event a party atmosphere.
Most of the calypso events up until this weekend have been centered on the competition that will yield a new V. I. calypso monarch. The only signs of that this weekend were two performers, Brother Mudada and de Lollipop Man.
Brother Mudada scored big among local fans of calypso in a recent series of elimination tents. On Saturday night he tried his luck before a larger audience, away from the clubby camaraderie found at some of this year's preliminaries. Lollipop Man spoofed the current craze for sex enhancing drugs with a song called, "Something Wrong with the Rooster."
But the more common themes of calypso music were also generously displayed at the calypso review. There was lyrical commentary, bouncy jam and wines and saucy send-ups for adults at play.
Mixing sex with music, Dominican calypsonian Hunter stripped off his shirt and invited two women from the audience on stage for a sandwich dance across the stage. Claudette Peters from Antigua also paid tribute to calypso's racy side with a hip-grinding version of "Something's Got a Hold on Me."
One of the smoothest crooners in the business, perennial favorite, the Baron, returned to Lionel Roberts Stadium after a few years' absence. Once described as "the sweet soca man," fans danced as he kept the party going.
"That's my absolute favorite, the Baron. I didn't realize he was going to be here," said St. Thomian Clarice Joseph.
Away from the crowd, one fan, instead, praised Express Band from St. Croix, the house band for the show. Terry Dore said he liked to listen to the show out by the parked cars, so he could focus on the music. "The best thing is the Express Band. They're really good. I have to give them credit. There were two calypsonians who were off key. They picked them up, from one key to another. I was really impressed with that," he said.
Although he has more than once been crowned the best in his native, Trinidad, Dr. Hollis Liverpool, better known as Chalkdust, has spent the past few years teaching at the University of the Virgin Islands, where he has been taking in current events. On stage on Saturday night he offered a commentary on what can be found at the St. Thomas landfill, where discarded government records, reportedly, were recently found.
In a similar tone, the 2003 Calypso Queen of Trinidad, Singing Sandra, won the hearts of her fans on St. Thomas with her lyrical commentaries on humanity, peace and dignity.
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