Black Pawn out this Crop Over

ANTHONY BLACK PAWN BLENMAN had a vision of participating in Crop Over this year.

The demands of his business did not allow for that, however, and his sights are now set on the Sweetest Summer Festival for 2012.

Black Pawn, who took the calypso title in 1980 with The Right To Criticise and Politician, said his village shop/bar in Redman’s Village, St Thomas, took up a lot of his time.

The former manager of the now defunct Hit Parade Calypso Tent has not played a major part in Crop Over for the past three seasons.

“I can’t find the time to really get out there and write and so forth and to focus on Crop Over like before.
“I’m hoping someday to be able to do something again. I was hoping that it could happen this year, but it hasn’t.
“So again, I would put next year as a possible time that something could happen,” he said, adding that trying to grow a retail business
was not an easy task.

“I’m still very much keeping abreast of what’s happening and so forth. I’m kinda disappointed that I can’t write for Malik and those kind of people I used to write
for before . . . .

“Maybe next year if I have the time, because these years are critical in terms of the business,” he said.

Black Pawn said the music he had heard so far for the season was “not bad, overall”.

“There is a lot of improvement in the commentary. I’ve heard some good songs by some of the artistes, and a lot more artistes seem to be recording commentary too, which is good. I’ve heard some interesting songs. I feel good about it.

“I think it’s not a bad year at all. Interesting, quite interesting,” he noted.

The fact that the likes of Red Plastic Bag and John King were out, he said, should give some others an opportunity to come to the fore. He said he was particularly impressed with Ronnie De Announcer Clarke, whom he has tipped to go straight through to the finals.

Even though the two, who have 11 crowns between them, are absent, Black Pawn said there was still good representation from the “big guns” in AC, Kid Site, Classic, Adonijah, Gabby, Blood, Smokey and TC.

“The competition should still be keen. The old guard should still be well represented,” he said, laughing.

“The music is pretty good. I am quite satisfied with what I’m hearing. The music has changed a lot, so we have to accept that.
“Even the party music is not that bad either. They’ve got some nice tracks that I’m listening to, so I think it’s going to be a very interesting season.”

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