How the Caribbean sings its love

FILE PHOTO: Event producer and musical director Carl
FILE PHOTO: Event producer and musical director Carl "Beaver" Henderson, left, with frontline singers Ajala, Jason Fridge Seecharan, Kay Alleyne, Michelle Xavier and Derek Patience. -

LOVE is a universal language among humanity. In TT and the Caribbean, local music has also expressed what it feels like to love in its many ways.

Newsday took to its social media communities to find out what readers' favourite Caribbean love song was in the genres of calypso, soca and reggae.

The selections varied from Shadow’s One Love to Machel Montano’s Fast Wine and Patrice Roberts and Zan’s Always Be.

Some of the responses recalled the period of local pop ballads. Readers suggested songs like Mavis John’s How Can I Love Again, Kalyan’s Can You Love Me, You Are What Love Is by Mavis John and Dave Elcock and Tony Wilson’s Part of What You Get as some of the best local musical expressions of love.

Mavis John -

Tessanne Chin and Billy Ocean were among artistes whose names were repeated on all social media platforms as having created some of the best Caribbean/local love songs.

Musician/producer Carl “Beaver” Henderson did not differentiate whether love was sung about in the genre of calypso/soca or reggae, because to him, “A love song is a love song anywhere on the planet.”

Henderson said any love song had two levels of emotion – the music and the lyrics – and one could sing about one’s love for their parents or love for humanity.

Over his 50-year run in the local music industry, Henderson recalled local singers and musicians, especially in the 60s, 70s and 80s, creating ballads just as other musicians the world over were then doing.

He said it was only in the last ten to 15 years that “we stopped doing that.”

Henderson remembers Fireflight recording Fool in Love at Miami's Criteria Studios with live strings – the same string section used by the Bee Gees. Criteria Studios was founded in 1958 by musician Mack Emerman and produced many hit records, especially in the 1970s.

Henderson believes TT’s music has strayed away from love songs and gone into what he called hardcore soca.

He recalled, about six months ago, doing a talent search and asking a group of young musicians if anyone had a love song. He said the whole room went silent for about five minutes and then one young lady said, "Yeah," and began to sing a reggae song about “Jah’s love.”

While there was an understanding of spiritual love, Henderson felt no one in that room could begin to craft a love song about “relationship/romantic love.”

But it is not just TT’s music/song that has changed, but how people interact with each other. Using dance as an example, he said more youthful generations do not dance but rather “flex.” This is indicative, he said, of the lack of closeness in society.

“We talk love but we do not live it.”

A lot of the time, he added, love is expressed only in a very sexual way. While there are a lot of love songs in the world, Henderson said, for “some strange reason" the Caribbean was disconnected from it.

“If you go into the Latin market, it still exists – very much so. There are still people who are singing very emotive love songs in Spanish, French and different languages. Even in English. But we have disconnected from love.”

He suggested the reason for this was that much of TT’s music was only being produced for Carnival, which did not lend itself to the creation of songs outside of that.

“It is a carnal love. It is fight to get into the Carnival into that two-three-month period, that high energy, which is not really an emotional love. It is a carnal love.

"I am not trying to be negative, but I am just trying to explain it is a carnal environment and there needs to be some kind of balance.”

He added that even in the gospel industry there was a lack of support.

“It is an all-round thing where there is no support for love.”

But Anson Soverall, music producer and Nailah Blackman’s manager, says he sees and hears many contemporary musical expressions of love in TT and the Caribbean, on topics that range from love for one’s country to one’s parents.

Music producer Anson Soverall says there are many contemporary examples of Caribbean love songs like Nailah Blackman's Iron Love and Farmer Nappy's Hookin' Meh. -

He denied the claims that today’s music is very carnal, saying it can be argued that the music of the past was the same.

“There was a lot of double entendre. There were many love songs that had double meaning, that were carnal and sexual,” Soverall said.

While from his own perspective, he agreed that songs were more carnal and sexual and society has become more tolerant of the message of sex, he believes “there are still many love songs talking about genuine love.”

He highlighted Blackman’s Iron Love, Montano’s Falling and Farmer Nappy’s Hookin’ Meh as examples of soca love songs.

Soverall said love songs will always be written and made, as it was one of the easiest topics to sell.

Charmaine Forde is a very popular name among Trinis and many will remember her cover of Bobby Caldwell’s What You Won’t Do For Love and Waiting for Love, written by Carl Jacobs and produced by Michael Boothman.

Forde said both Henderson and Soverall were correct in certain regards. Having just worked with six “gifted, talented performers” who were singing love songs, she believes
there are many young musicians singing and creating love songs.

But, she added, there were also those who sing songs that are very carnal, wild, explicit and raw, because “that is the era we live in.” This was not exclusive to calypso/soca or dancehall and reggae, but also existed in other genres like hip hop and rap.

For her, Nadia Batson’s 2019 So Long, Blackman’s Iron Love and even Road March winner Famalay were Caribbean and local expressions of love.

“All of these songs portray love in different ways, and it becomes unique because of the performer,” Forde said.

Share with us what your favourite Caribbean love song is and post a video of yourself singing your favourite love song.

Here are our top 15 Caribbean love songs (Click to listen) :-

1 You Are What Love Is – Mavis John and Dave Elcock

2 Suddenly – Billy Ocean

3 Access Granted – Chronixx

4 Wait in Vain – Bob Marley

5 How Can I love Again – Mavis John

6 Can You Love Me – Kalyan

7 Wanna Make Love To you – Nadie La Fond

8 Always Be – Patrice Roberts and Zan

9 My Side – Patrice Roberts and Sekon Sta

10 Only A Fool – Mighty Sparrow

11 Affairs of the Heart – Damian Marley

12 Hideaway – Tessanne Chin

13 Caribbean Queen – Billy Ocean

14 Too Early For Your Love –Machel Montano and Rachel Fortune

15 Hold You In A Song – Allison Hinds and John King

Bonus: You Sexy Thing – Hot Chocolate

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