We enjoyed a classic Jouvert morning in San Nicholas, Saturday morning. I had no problem getting there at 4am, the road was wide open. We abandoned the car on a side-street at 4:07am, and found ourselves at the starting line, in time for the brass band. First and second beer at Winter Garden; a fast pit stop, in the men’s toilet stall at Carnival Village just before dawn, a third beer at Julio’s Bar. Don’t change a thing, we like it just the way it is.
We fell in behind N’Fusion Music. Of course we love Reynaldo “Rusty” Sprout. It’s an old love affair, since Climax and the New Climax, through Rusty Pot, Teolinda, Tighter and Barricade! My friends tell me he started beating the pans as a child, somewhere around Weg Seroe Preto, where mom still lives, with Gario, Mingo, Long Roy, and the rest of the players; they were called the Noise Next Door, and they still make great noise.
Rusty was relentless with Raise the Dead. Coming in from the graveyard, he threw in the Soca Train, and a few Woot-Woots for the sake of past Carnivals, and every time we decided to abandon our spot and fall in behind another band, he played Inside the Thing, and obviously, there is no better place than inside….the hope that Rusty would do Barricade when the sun comes up for the last lap, kept us in place, but alas, he never did.
It’s our first Jouvert Morning in which I don’t even know what the other bands played. We saw Steam streaming by at the head of the parade, with Mighty Reds, featuring Put Your Hands Up Right Now; we noticed Le Groove was super popular with the young and the restless, Tsunami had a substantial following, NBO with just a handful of diehards, and the poor Flashback Disco, the truck was barely alive and heaving on threadbare tires.
Most importantly, the Dushi ambiente was there, people hugging, kissing, greeting, waving, a super friendly, super creative crowd. We posed with pictures with some ISIS executioners, rag clad Zombies, baby powdered monsters, a man forking a monkey! There were more PJs than ever and more kids than ever, straight out of bed into the Jouvert Morning parade, fiercely protected by moms, out to make sure their kids get a first class Carnival education.
I always say: It doesn’t get any better than this.
And for those of you who want to know: I never even heard Slip and Slide, by Blacky, not even once, the winner of the Caiso and Soca Monarch competition, was judged in the people’s court of San Nicholas to be unworthy of his crown.
Jouvert Morning this year was dedicated to the late Nando Browne, a talented musician who just died unexpectedly. Nando participated in our Carnival many times and in the Calypso & Roadmarch contest, as Mighty Breaka, he was a singer, composer, a simply terrific entertainer who shared his knowledge with many aspiring young musicians. May he rest in peace.
No Jouvert Morning is complete without breakfast: Johnny Cakes, Queso Fresco, Herbal Tea, Coffee, Tropical Fruit and Scrambled eggs with peppers and onions! Thank you Mariza and Jonson!
