3canal’s spirit of J’Ouvert

THOUGH many know 3canal as a rapso band made up of three members – Wendell Manwarren, Robert Roberts and Stanton Kewley, few know that they began as a J'Ouvert band.

Twenty-five years ago in 1994, Manwarren, Roberts and Steve Ouditt – who were making mas with Peter Minshall at the time – decided to form a J'Ouvert band called 3canal.

The then trio called themselves a, "Performing and visual arts collaborative." Kewley and the late John Isaacs later joined the group, and Ouditt moved on to new ventures.

"J'Ouvert was our arena of investigation. We were always intrigued by J'Ouvert. J'Ouvert was the time we could free up ourselves," Manwarren told Sunday Newsday in an interview on Friday.

Manwarren said under Minshall the three learned a lot about mas including the origins of J'Ouvert which came from the Canboulay riots – so that first J'Ouvert they wanted to go back to the origins of a time he calls the "spiritual moment" of Carnival.

"J'Ouvert is Canboulay and re-enacting of that moment. We were going back to the ritual's beginning of stripping off our clothes," he said.

The first three J'Ouvert bands 3canal had were all called Jocks tuh Pose – Bring Yuh Drawers and Come. They have had more than 15 presentations since their first band in 1994. That year, their theme was based on white to symbolise their "virginal" debut . They started off with approximately 50 people and eventually joined forces with Mudders International – another small J'Ouvert band.

3canal also partnered with the Laventille Rhythm Section, a union they described as the pulse of their movement.

"The Laventille Rhythm Section is a critical part of our J'Ouvert. They are the heart and soul. That raw iron and percussions designed to chip down the road and move people to free up themselves. That rhythm defines who we are," Manwarren said.

One trend that disturbs 3canal is the growing all inclusiveness of contemporary J'Ouvert bands – which he says takes away from the vendors on the street. He said 3canal does not want to contribute to the demise of street vending during Carnival.

"There are plenty of vendors selling at the side of the road. We don't subscribe to the idea that J'Ouvert is a service," he said.

Manwarren said one year they decided to have a water truck, and the truck was raided by very thirsty people.

"We have so many things organised. We don't need to hut up our head with a bar," he said.

Their official musical début as a rapso band came in 1997 when they launched their iconic song, Blue, which also inspired their J'Ouvert band that year.

Manwarren describes blue as a cleansing colour – referencing blue soap as one of the cleansers to cut maljo – a blight or misfortune.

"When we did Blue, the situation in TT was getting pretty heavy. We wanted to invoke the power of blue to cut the maljo," he said.

From then, their rapso music and J'Ouvert band have gone hand in hand.

This year's J'Ouvert is themed Zingaytalala – The Jouvay Imperative: In Spiritus Mundi.

Spiritus Mundi is a Latin term meaning world spirit. 3canal was inspired by the poem The Second Coming by William Butler Yeats which discusses the collective soul of the universe containing the memories of all time.

Zingaytalala is an old French-patios folk folk song and chant from stick fighters, and is the theme of their three-night production which begins tomorrow at Queen's Hall, St Ann's.

3canal hopes to revive the spirit of Canboulay through their band and promises plenty vibes, live music from both themselves and the Laventille Rhythm Section, paint and "pigment in yuh pweffen," coffee and doubles after the J'Ouvert, but don't expect drinks to be included.

"The fact that we have been able to do this for for 25 years and are still standing is a cause to pinch yourself. For us, it is a blessing," Manwarren said.