Well, boy, Independence Day come and gone; or should I say the entire month of November leading up tuh Independence Day gone long just so and evahbody now getting ready fuh Christmas.
It look tuh me dat a lot uh people was waiting ’til Independence Day pass before they started putting up Christmas decorations and selling Christmas trees.
But some people, especially the merchants or the business people, whatevah you choose tuh call dem, like dem couldn’t wait fuh the first o’ December tuh step in tuh display duh Christmas merchandise and start playing the music tuh get duh customers excited and in the mood tuh spend wha’ duh ain’t got.
But before I get into the Christmas thing doh, if ya’all ain’t went tuh the Wendy Alleyne Show at the Gymnasium on Independence Night, wunna miss a wonderful evening, one tuh remember. It was bare nostalgia, hear?
I think duh say dat it was at least 19 years dat Wendy Alleyne ain’t appear pon any stage ’bout here, dat she like she just drop outta sight. Some people knew dat she was away singing pon a ship all these years, but some didn’t know dat and probably thought dat she had left the stage fuh good.
But leh muh tell ya something: duh track she down and get her tuh agree tuh do this concert at the Gym, and I gine tell ya something now, she ain’t lost a thing; she still got it and more.
Ting, dat li’l girl could still sing as sweet as evah, hear? I tell ya, she sweet fuh days.
You would remember dat she used tuh sing wid a li’l innocent voice back in the day wid Mike Grovesnor and the Dynamics band; but boh, the voice now bigger, sweeter and much more mature.
She belted out tuh the delight o’ the crowd’ a whole set o’ her hit songs like Gimme Music, Can’t Control My Emotions, I Put My Trust In You, and This Time I’ll Be Sweeter, and a good few more. She even step away from her many hits and did Crazy from Patsy Cline and the Etta James hit At Last.
All this time the crowd was singing, dancing and screaming; man look, duh had a ball.
But the show would not have been complete without the supporting acts like Tanya Clarke, Dwayne Husbands and Adrian Clarke, the younger entertainers.
Then there was the stalwarts or as the guy pon the radio called dem, the oldsters – Richard Stoute, Tony Grazette, Mike Grosvenor, Desmond Weekes from The Draytons Two and Carlyn Leacock. They were in their element; all decked out and represented well. They did not disappoint.
In the last part o’ the second half o’ the show Wendy teamed up wid Tony Grazette tuh do Let It Be Me, then the “Queen of Song” got together wid the “First Lady of Song” Carlyn Leacock tuh do Carlyn’s hit song, Hello There Baby.
She finally got tuhgether wid her long-time partner Mike Grosvenor and did Dream Of Me.
Up to now I ain’t hear one negative comment bout dat show. As a matter o’ fact, I hear people saying how it was the best show fuh the year and wait, I talking bout evahthing except the crowd.
Look, the young people nowadays think dat dem know something ’bout dressing? Looka, the oldsters did look hot; duh did decked out fuh dat occasion. They had on their finest and was looking sharp.
All o’ dat lend tuh the whole evening turning out the way it did. They came prepared and expecting a lot and they were not disappointed.
• Mavis Beckles was born and raised in The Orleans. She has an opinion on everything.