Customer Reviews

2 reviews

• Garth J. Cameron

  The story of Trinidad All Stars Steel Orchestra is the story of the growth and evolution of the steelband movement in Trinidad & Tobago. If you grew up in the fifties, sixties or seventies when Pan ruled the road, or if you listened to the stories of those colourful, legendary Pan pioneers of old, then this book is a must-read. In lots of ways, Bukka sets the record straight, not just about All Stars and the influence the band had on Pan in general, but about who the real movers and shakers behind the movement were. 'Neville Jules', for example, that illustrious former captain of the band, and creator of the “bomb” genre in Pan Music, is properly recognized as the ace arranger, band captain and leader that he was. Bukka’s attention to detail when treating events and other occurrences has provided Pan with a proper formal historical reference document. It also brings closure to many arguments and misconceptions that have been around forever. A job well done.

• Daily Express

  The author never misses a beat. The title of the book links the mettle of the inventors and exponents of the pan and the metal of the instrument. This is an insightful link because the inventors and innovators were essentially scientists skilled in metallurgy and acoustics. Consequently, Trinidad and Tobago has a significant scientific patrimony derived from the invention of the pan. The book enhances our understanding of that scientific patrimony. Bukka puts the history of All-Stars on a vast canvas. Chapter One begins with the history of the mid-1800s and includes telling us of the Alguazils, those “free coloreds” forced to be policemen, employed to do the discriminatory work of the colonial police and other persons who maintained the significant hostility shown to the people’s culture. By the time the book closes at Chapter Six, we have had a detailed account of all that happened in the East Port of Spain area taking the development of our unique form of music forward, out of the creative use by percussionists of discarded pieces of steel and iron and other material into pan as it is today. Bukka deals as well with reforming the administrative structure of the institution and states the case for making Port of Spain the creative city of the English-speaking Caribbean. Bukka’s passion for All Stars leaps off the pages. It is a counterpoint to the scholarship richly embedded in the book. The main focus of the book is a description of the work and leadership of the late Neville Jules, the lynchpin of All Stars, in both the development of and innovation with the instrument and the arrangement of All Stars’ music. His passion overflows in his dedication of the book to Jules together with the reproduction of his award-winning poetry about Jules.

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