Carnival: Flavor It Socalicious
by John Oseid
Kevin Lyttle's Web site declares he is "best known for his worldwide hit with the interpellative soca ballad 'Turn Me On.'" I haven't the faintest idea what that means, but I do know that listening to the Vincentian singer's blend of soca, R&B and dancehall is a great way to get into the Carnival mood as we approach the most adrenaline-rushed week on the world social calendar.
Unless you spent the summer of '04 in a bunker, you've heard the biggest crossover hit from the West Indies ever so many times. Lyttle's self-titled album features no fewer than three remixes of "Turn Me On." The video above to his latest single "Fyah" starts out with an East Indian "riddim" commonly used in Caribbean music and segues into dancers showing off their wicked West Indian moves.
Here's a version of "Turn Me On" with Alison Hinds, the biggest Bajan superstar not named Rihanna. I caught her boombastic act at Trinidad's Carnival some years ago and no one can more justifiably title her newest album Soca Queen.
Hinds is joined in the video to her hit song "Roll It Gal" by the inimitable baritone Machel Montano, the leading Trini soca singer. It's a girl power tune with an infectious dance track. Go ahead, sing along: "When dem fly up in yuh face gal, Mek dem know dem place."
More music:
* Go to Kevin Lyttle's MySpace page for performance dates.
* The greatest party I ever attended was Trinidad's famous weeklong Carnival. You could spend days just listening to all the Carnival songs posted on trinijunglejuice.com.
* Trinidadian designer Peter Minshall's costumes are celebrated worldwide.
* Everyone raves about Barbados's Crop Over festival. It's summer's Carnival.
* Boom Box: An unabashed gusto for music of the world.
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