'even the newest stars are honored'
Roy Shirley - the High Priest Sings on High
WE Lost another Reggae Great last week - the High Priest of Reggae, Roy Shirley.
This week we Honor our Bredren - Roy Shirley with an electronic memorial pod.
Click Here to Enjoy our Tribute to the High Priest of Reggae - Roy ...
Jamaica Gleaner News - 'High Priest' remembered - Tuesday | July 22...
Roy Shirley goes down on his knees as he wows the audience at the palace Theatre. - file
ROY Shirley, the theatrical singer known as the High Priest of Reggae, has died. An entry on the Trojan Records website said Shirley passed away last week in Britain.
No cause, or date of death, was given.
Shirley was best known for the 1967 hit song, Hold Them, which was produced by a young Joe Gibbs. Several musicologists consider Hold Them to be the first rock steady song.
Although he had other songs of note including I Am The Winner and Heartbreak Gypsy, a cover of soul singer Ben E King's hit.
Hold Them was the Kingston-born Shirley's signature song. Early in his career, he worked with Jimmy Cliff and Ken Boothe, but never matched the chart success of those singers.
Shirley's penchant for drama (wore capes, 'wept' during performances) overshadowed his talent, but reggae historian Roger Steffens said there should be no disputing the mark he made on Jamaican music.
"As an artiste, he was unique and inimitable. He had a voice like a squeezed mango, a stage manner that bordered on the absurd, and a strange offbeat sense of humour that found expression in odd songs like Dance the Auna and Music Field," Steffens told The Gleaner.
Shirley, who was 64, last performed in June at the Sierra Nevada World Music Festival in Boonville, California.
He immigrated to England in 1973, and like many of his contemporaries, developed a cult following in that country. He last performed in Jamaica in 2004 at the Stars 'R' Us show.
Roy Shirley facts
Was born Ainsorth Roy Rushton Shirley.
First song, Shirley, was done for producer Leslie Kong in 1962.
Was founding member of vocal group The Uniques with singer Slim Smith.
Founded the British Universal Talent Development Association.
This week we Honor our Bredren - Roy Shirley with an electronic memorial pod.
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RWW FASHION FEATURE - 'BRIDGET SANDALS'
Novia McDonald-Whyte - Contributing editor Jamaica Observer
Sunday, December 07, 2003
Sandals designer Bridget say "Bridget sandals" in Jamaica and fashion watchers, as well as lovers of sexy leather straps, will smile the smug smile of those in the know. It has been, for Bridget Brown, (known by thousands as Bridget), a journey of twenty-odd years. The fact is, the leather soles of her sandals almost left her barefooted on several occasions. "It took me three years," Bridget tells SunDay to get my feet off the ground. I paid the price for not going to school. I had to endure artisans not cutting the leather properly, bad work attitude, sabotage, you name it, I went through it."
A baptism of fire, some might be tempted to add for the former Playboy Bunny. "I was a bunny between 1972 and 1977 at the Playboy Boscobel Beach," says Bridget, flashing her signature toothy smile, and still conscious of that bunny poise.
"Playboy was forced to close (no tourists were coming to Jamaica). I was forced to come back to Kingston. I had to find some means of survival. My first stop was G's One of a Kind -- an upscale boutique that sold one-of-a kind Italian shoes and clothing. I left that in May 1981, after Bob Marley's death. I sold pound-cloth for Carmen Brown of Karmen's Corner. "There I was with my scale underneath my arm, and my cushions at my side. I really never wanted to make sandals. I also made skull caps and crochet bags."
Start she did and never looked back. Bridget even found the time and finances to attend school in Milan. "I went to school out of curiosity. I wondered if I was doing something wrong. Little did I know that I was in fact doing something right. My customers are happy, the sandals are fitting right, and I, too, am satisfied. I admire what I am doing."
No idle boast. Bridget Sandals were on the runway at New York Fashionweek, and Caribbean Fashionweek. Bridget Sandals are in Barbados, St Kitts, Antigua, Lincoln Avenue, South Beach (Miami), in the Village (New York) and at Controversy -- Battersea London.
Come next season, there's the possibility of a shipment to Japan, San Francisco, Salt Lake City, and Dallas.
"You have to be skilfull to survive. It has been a 20-year fight for survival. It's a struggle to maintain quality, confidence, style, craftsmanship. Finally, you have to have integrity in business."
As the chat comes to an end and Bridget does that Bridget walk towards her taxi, and there's a feeling that the very best is still to come from this beautiful sister.
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