In Mucurapo’s Sound Forge, musical giant David Michael Rudder presented what he said was his final grand performance in front of a packed house of loving, devoted fans.
The audience expresses a pure form of joy and love through laughter, movement, hip-swaying, arm-waving, spontaneous singing, jumping, joy, and even a few tears as Rudder displayed the style that earned him the reputation of King of Calypso.
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Even though Rudder celebrated his 70th birthday that day, he managed to hold his audience’s attention for over five hours at his Rudder 7.0 show. Proving that Rudder who was recently diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease has an iron will indeed.
Seasoned calypso singer led the standing-room-only gathering in singing Rudder Happy Birthday.
VIPs and ordinary attendees mingled in the Sound Forge audience as they gave Rudder their love and complete attention with an explosive vibe.
A member of the audience remarked during Rudder’s performance, “I don’t know how to stay sitting down,” and although some seated individuals originally protested about others standing in front of them, they soon got to their feet and remained there rocking their hips to the sweet sound of calypso music.
Rally Round the West Indies, De Long Time Band, Frontline, Engine Room, Belmont, Nuff Respect, The Ganges Meets The Nile, Adrenaline City, Jump Up, Club Hysteria, Dus’ In Dey Face, Guilty, A Madman’s Rant, and Madness are just a few of the masterpieces Rudder performed.
In the second half of the performance, he turned to social commentary and sang songs like Haiti, 1990, Jerusalem, The Immigrants, Adrenaline City, and a song about a magical land getting out of control. He then pulled the audience to their feet with The Ganges Meets The Nile and continued the theme of international unity with Cuba and Panama.
Ministry of Rhythm and It Doesn’t Get Much Better Than This are songs that Rudder dedicated to his longstanding drummer Barry Howard and his musical director, writing collaborator, and dear friend Wayne Bruno.
Guest performers included Carl Jacobs, with whom Rudder performed Trini to the Bone after urging the audience to “stand up and wine to the national anthem of TT,” Vaughnette Bigford, with whom he performed Song for a Lonely Soul; Roger George, performing calypso music; Kees Dieffenthaller, performing live yuh life like yuh playing mas; Machel Montano, performing oil and music and Happiest Man Alive.
With their unequivocal admiration and affection for the man who had inspired most of them, each attendee brought a special spark to the evening’s event.
Entertainers such as Carl Jacobs singing Trini to the Bone, veteran audio engineer Robin Foster performing a Belmont crawl, Montano entering the stage in the dark, Yung Rudd performing with his father, Rudder singing Bacchanal Lady about Garcia and challenging her to put down a “bacchanal 20” wine, and Verna St. Rose Greaves ringing a bell during Hammer performances made the event even more special and memorable.
The crowd eagerly participated in Bahia Girl, singing along loudly to the first two verses of Rudder and to Madness, A Madman’s Rant, and High Mas.
“Ase. Namaste.Hallelujah. Dance!” was the chorus of the concluding song, Spirits, which caused many audience members to respond nearly frantically.
Those who watched the live broadcast were pleased with the production’s audio and visual quality, and the band and support vocalists added a further level of perfection to it. Rudder then gave awards to Derwin Howell and Dennis Ramdeen, the concert’s co-chairmen.
