#archivecarnival

Born Roy Lewis, becoming Lutalo Masimba and evolving into Brother Resistance, leader of the rapso movement in the 1980s and the lead singer of the Network Riddim Band, this artist created a space for a generation of young poets who would  find release in an earthy new sound characterised by dense, swirling lyrics. The Network wasn’t welcomed. The police trashed their rehearsal space in 1983 and many of their concerts at City Hall were poorly attended, and I know this because I went to write about the work they were doing there. Later works from Resistance became more introspective and worldly and led to tours and foreign engagements. Since 2011, Masimba has led the Trinbago Unified Calypsonians Association, first as acting president and then appointed in two successive elections in 2013 and 2016. This 1991 photograph was shot for SG Magazine, a revamped Sunday Magazine for the Guardian that I did with Dexter Lewis @dexout and Marlon Rouse between 1990 and 1992 (the first issue was on the press during the attempted coup and was never released). As it turns out, I went into the People’s Mall on Frederick Street to photograph Resistance with a whole other plan in mind, but I forgot a component in my gear and the flash wouldn’t work. So I photographed him in a shaft of light lancing through the makeshift roof. Day Six of Trinidad Carnival - An Instagram Exhibition, 10 days of posts that take note of notable people and events from my archive of Carnival coverage #archive #lyndersaydigital #musician #archivecarnival #trinidad #portrait #rapso #carnival #trinidadandtobago #filmphotography #lutalomasimba #nationalcarnival commission #ncc #music #portofspain #composer #brotherresistance #peoplesmall #trinidadcarnival #thelyndersayarchive #exhibit #instagramexhibit (at Frederick Street, Port of Spain) https://www.instagram.com/p/Buc9l8bAYFk/?utm_medium=tumblr

Winston Bailey crosses the Savannah stage at Dimanche Gras in the late 1980s.  The Shadow had came some distance from his first appearances at the Savannah, when he would walk to a microphone stand planted dead centre and sing to his audience without moving from the spot, turning from the south to the north to address his audiences, first in the Grandstand then the North Stand. In later years, most notably when he clearly relished his performance of Looking for Horn, he strode confidently from one end of the stage to the other, courting the cheers of the often neglected North Stand audience. He spoke with authority in every word and every gesture to fans of calypso, his love for them returned a hundredfold by Trinbagonians who heard their stories and experiences in his quirky, heartfelt lyrics. He transitioned in October 2018 at 77, weeks before he was conferred an honorary doctorate by the University of the West Indies. #archive #lyndersaydigital #calypsonian #archivecarnival #trinidad #performance #kaiso #carnival #trinidadandtobago #filmphotography #winstonbailey #shadow #dimanchegras #savannah #stage #performance #trinidadcarnival #thelyndersayarchive (at Queen's Park Savannah) https://www.instagram.com/p/BuQDQl2gKr4/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=u54g8estjpgw

Shot for promotional use by Rituals Records in 1998, this photo captures the original line-up of 3 Canal @3CanalTT, a group formed by theatre practitioners and J’ouvert entrepreneurs who had a surprise hit in 1997 with the rapso J’Ouvert anthem, Blue. The group, as individuals, had been drawn to Carnival by the work of Peter Minshall. There friends Roger Roberts and Wendell Manwarren met John Isaacs, Stanton Kewley and artist Steve Ouditt and the idea for the group came up, starting with a J’Ouvert band Jocks-Tuh-Pose. They produced the small band for a few years until 1997 when they had a chance to make a song. Blue caused a sensation, and the J’Ouvert band crossed the line from a little art project into what Manwarren has described as “an experience for an entire generation. Isaacs, who died in 2000 had long advocated that the group refocus on theatre, particularly the earthy, intuitive work that they had experienced in Helen Camps’ Tent Theatre and in the workshops at Minshall's Callalloo company that shaped their stage presentations. The 3 Canal show has been staged annually for the last 15 years, the J’Ouvert presentation is in its 25th year and the band has an expansive discography on streaming and download websites. A Las’ Lap lanyap for Day 10 of Trinidad Carnival - An Instagram Exhibition, 10 days of posts that take note of notable people and events from my archive of Carnival coverage #archive #lyndersaydigital #theatre #archivecarnival #trinidad #portrait #music #carnival #trinidadandtobago #digitalphotography #3Canal #musician #steelband #rapso #queensparksavannah #3canalshow #jouvert #blue #trinidadcarnival #thelyndersayarchive #exhibit #instagramexhibit (at Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago) https://www.instagram.com/p/BupBXFqgvJ3/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=1qxluf86mc51o

The United Sisters were four female calypsonians who joined together to challenge male dominance of the road march and the party circuit and to unify their efforts to succeed in the industry through mutual support.  From left, they are Marvelous Marva (Marva Joseph), Tigress @tigress1570 (standing, Joanne Rowley), Singing Sandra @singingsandra1 (Sandra Des Vignes) and Lady B (Beulah Bobb), photographed in 1993 at the height of their fame backstage at Kitchener’s tent in Port of Spain. I remember it as being on Henry Street in this era. They were rocking Trinidad and Tobago Carnival with their soca hit Whoa Donkey which gave rise to The Donkey Dance, the notorious “Reverse Donkey” and directly influenced Minshall’s decision to resurrect the Donkey Derby band from the ashes of The Wedding. By then, the group had placed second in the Caribbean Song Festival with Ambataila Woman. In the late 90’s Tigress migrated to the United States and Lady B died in September 2001. A Las’ Lap lanyap for Day 10 of Trinidad Carnival - An Instagram Exhibition, 10 days of posts that take note of notable people and events from my archive of Carnival coverage #archive #lyndersaydigital #theatre #archivecarnival #trinidad #portrait #music #carnival #trinidadandtobago #digitalphotography #3Canal #musician #steelband #rapso #queensparksavannah #3canalshow #jouvert #blue #trinidadcarnival #thelyndersayarchive #exhibit #instagramexhibit (at Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago) https://www.instagram.com/p/BupBA0wgY_J/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=17ew4kwqcxwju

I have no idea who these musicians are, but they are probably leading or trailing a band performance onstage. The perspective of the photo suggests a position on the western end of the Savannah stage looking northeast  with a partial view of the North Stand in the background. Many of the images photographed at the Savannah by my father show the music in the midst of the costumed revelry, sometimes in the middle of the band, sometimes off to one side, but all carrying their instruments and many with musicians with broad brimmed hats like these that kept the hot sun under control. The most surprising revelation to be found in these images as a collection is just how small Carnival actually was in the years he photographed it. Big bands numbered around 500 members. The Grandstand stage was only about two feet high at its plateau.  There was no amplification, so bands would have to be small enough that they could hear acoustic music. By comparison with today’s cacophony, Carnival was quiet! The lack of amplification made steelbands, with their powerful natural sound, the commanding presence on the streets. My father, Kingsley Lyndersay photographed many cultural events and personalities between 1957 and 1961. After his death, an envelope of negatives covering these years was brought to me, representing my informal bequest from his estate. Day 10 of Trinidad Carnival - An Instagram Exhibition, 10 days of posts that take note of notable people and events from my archive of Carnival coverage. Today’s posts are taken from images scanned and repaired and gathered into a collection of vintage images shot around the year of my birth by my father, Kingsley Lyndersay. #archive #lyndersaydigital #calypsonian #archivecarnival #trinidad #georgebailey #kaiso #carnival #trinidadandtobago #filmphotography #kingleycollection #kingsleylyndersay #savannah #stage #carnivalday #masquerader #trinidadcarnival #thelyndersayarchive #trinidadcarnival #thelyndersayarchive (at Queen's Park Savannah) https://www.instagram.com/p/Bun8bRNAqb3/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=f7s99xdtxl2a

George Bailey’s Ye Saga of Merrie England, Band of the Year, 1960, was the second of the famous bandleader’s wins in a run of five successive titles, between 1959 and 1962, a feat that wouldn’t be equalled for thirty years. Bailey’s remarkable work came to an end in 1970, when he fell ill on a return trip from Bermuda. When he stepped onto the tarmac in Barbados, he stepped onto the ramp and fell dead of heart failure. To this day, fans of his creations believe that Relics of Egypt, his winning 1959 band called down a curse on the players that ultimately claimed him. My father, Kingsley Lyndersay photographed many cultural events and personalities between 1957 and 1961. After his death, an envelope of negatives covering these years was brought to me, representing my informal bequest from his estate. Day 10 of Trinidad Carnival - An Instagram Exhibition, 10 days of posts that take note of notable people and events from my archive of Carnival coverage. Today’s posts are taken from images scanned and repaired and gathered into a collection of vintage images shot around the year of my birth by my father, Kingsley Lyndersay. #archive #lyndersaydigital #calypsonian #archivecarnival #trinidad #georgebailey #kaiso #carnival #trinidadandtobago #filmphotography #kingleycollection #kingsleylyndersay #savannah #stage #carnivalday #masquerader #trinidadcarnival #thelyndersayarchive #trinidadcarnival #thelyndersayarchive (at Queen's Park Savannah) https://www.instagram.com/p/Bun8J5xgGjZ/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=cm67byhbrgel

The Red Ants J’Ouvert band enters Kathleen Street from George Cabral Street in St James before dawn on February 23, 2009. Part of my reportage on the operations of Tribe but unused in the final edit, the band, thousands strong, weaves through St James daubed in paint and with bad behaviour on its collective mind. The band isn’t so much a part of Tribe as it is a parallel complement to it and is run by some of the members of Tribe’s management. The street party is the culmination of a series of events that are organised under the brand leading up to J’Ouvert morning. Day Nine of Trinidad Carnival - An Instagram Exhibition, 10 days of posts that take note of notable people and events from my archive of Carnival coverage #archive #lyndersaydigital #jouvert #archivecarnival #trinidad #paint #design #carnival #trinidadandtobago #digitalphotography #paint #morning #party #dawn #tribe #stjames #trinidadcarnival #thelyndersayarchive #exhibit #instagramexhibit (at St James) https://www.instagram.com/p/BulaJ7egc0c/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=a5t9628ne00o

Chocolate City flows through St Clair heading to Boisierre Village. The band introduced a cocoa mix to the J’Ouvert menu of liquids that you pour all over yourself at dawn on Carnival Monday. I’d planned to do a photo essay about the band for years, but every time I went looking for them after Carnival, they had decamped to a new location. Finally, I got my chance in 2010 when the band set up shop on Ariapita Avenue (find Local Lives via the Shorby link in the profile). I couldn’t seem to impress on anyone the significant of capturing the actual creation of the cocoa mix and it turned out to be the one thing in the band’s preparation that I didn’t get. It’s a problem I face often with photo essay stories, particularly Carnival subjects, who are used to a media focus on certain things they do and are genuinely non-plussed when I show an interest, even insistently, on photographing something they consider unimportant. You never get everything, but to this day I still feel a twinge at that lost opportunity. The band doesn’t encourage its players to actually eat the mix they hand out in squirt bottles, but the smell of the players coming down a street is certainly unique in the festival. One of its more pleasant olfactory experiences. Day Nine of Trinidad Carnival - An Instagram Exhibition, 10 days of posts that take note of notable people and events from my archive of Carnival coverage #archive #lyndersaydigital #jouvert #archivecarnival #trinidad #chocolate #notfood #carnival #trinidadandtobago #digitalphotography #cocoamix #carnivaltuesday #maraval #dawn #chocolatecity #woodbrook #trinidadcarnival #thelyndersayarchive #exhibit #instagramexhibit (at Boissiere Village, Port-Of-Spain, Trinidad And Tobago) https://www.instagram.com/p/BulZ5wWgLMT/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=7qkc6bl8ztbi