Soca party starts for Rocky & Terry

Have you ever found yourself at a fete, enjoying the new soca of the season, but it’s when you hear an old, familiar, well-loved tune that you start to “bruk out”?

George “Rocky” Clarke and Terrence “Terry” Seales noticed the trend, combined the old and new, and released The Party Now Start.

The soca song could be labelled as groovy or old school, but whatever you want to call it, it’s catchy, take a wine kind of tune that makes you tap your feet and bob your head.

It is no hype song but with lyrics about alcohol, women, wining, bacchanal, and your posse is a reminder of how it was to have fun at a fete.

Written by Dynice, produced by Nyce Nation, and mixed and mastered by The Ultimate Rejects, the melody is that of Johnny’s King’s 1988 hit, Wet Me Down, with a faster beat, live instruments and new lyrics.

Seales told Sunday Newsday since he and Rocky started making music, they wanted to make a song with “that whole live music kind of feel.” So, he explained, The Party Now Start used live instruments including the bass, guitar, horns, and drums.

He said they had been trying to get together to do a song for about five years but various circumstances did not permit it until now.

“Rocky and I always love the kind of lavway, that kind of old school music. But most of the producers nowadays not feeling it 100 per cent, they are not comfortable with it. This year seems to be the year for it because artistes like Patrice Roberts and Lord Nelson, Swappi, and Blaxx, their songs have the influence.”

Released on January 5, he said the song was not dominating the airwaves as they would like. However, he said because other artistes were releasing albums and multiple singles for Carnival 2020 it was difficult for them all to get attention. He said he heard about 9,000 were recorded this year and is he is grateful for the exposure The Party Now Start is getting.

“It (the release) was a bit late but the response to the song is good. We’re getting some love from the radio stations that are playing it, and a lot of people are calling and saying they love it. It’s just feel-good music. It’s about dancing in a crowd and having a good time.”

Seales said often, at fetes, only the people in front of the stage are usually seen “jumping up” while others are taking selfies and posting on social media about how much they are enjoying themselves.

“They ain’t break a sweat in the party, their make-up still on after spending $3,000 on an outfit and $1,000 for a ticket and they say they had a good time?”

He said it is unfortunate that a number of local soca songs are not moving the people in fetes. He said after the few good new ones, DJs tend to play older songs and he believes these older songs move the crowd because people are familiar with them.

The Party Now Start, he said, is reminiscent to how parties were in the past – liquor and ice, people moving to the left and right, jumping up until a shoe heel broke, and T-shirts or dresses wet with sweat from dancing.

Seales and Rocky plan to continue making music like The Party Now Start, using old tunes as well as making new melodies to keep that vibe alive.

“We rebooting the music by bringing back the live instruments. That live element is what’s missing in a lot of the music.”

He said, unlike the current song, the track will not be rushed so the production will be of better quality.