Rudder Review (If Yuh Int'rested)
Anthony Maillard
David Rudder - Review
‘Ministry of Rhythm’
by Anthony Maillard
There are two things you are always guaranteed when you purchase a Rudder
album - a solid eight new songs and variety. David’s new album is no
disappointment. Eight new offerings of fun, frivolity and bacchanal. From
Caribbean Party to Firequeen, David takes us on another fabulous musical
journey through his mind over the past year. The uniqueness of David is
that he is able to tell us about so many world facts of concern to him,
while still getting us to ‘jump around and let the rythm of our feet love
up the gound’. From Sarajevo to L.A.; to the U.S. elections; to cable
television coming to Laventille — it’s all here. You can’t come away
without learning something. Rudder's ability to write a lyric is undying.
It’s a beautiful Caribbean Info-party.
David starts his album inviting us to ‘come on down and bring our emotions
to his Caribbean Party. This is probably the best ‘Come to the Caribbean’
song since Merchant’s Caribbean Connection in '85. It’s as if he is
continuing where Merchant left off...... The beat is ‘90s and Rudder is
bold enough to add the Jamaican ‘ragamuffin’ beat to it. A bold chance in
this sometimes egotistically domain-possessive Caribbean. (But bold he
is.....) Where Merchant sang ‘Let’s have a party, a Caribbean party, the
entire region together in one big splashdown fiesta........’
Rudder now sings ‘We having a Caribbean Party; It’s gonna’ be a breakdown
party; Jump around, jump around; And let the rhythm of your feet love up
the ground; Feel de bass, feel de drum; Pepper in yuh body and ah know you
want to come........’ Yes, I want to go. When was the last time your
feet ‘love up de ground’?
Fireman is another side of David expanding on a dirty ditty ‘Girl, yuh need
a fireman, to put out yuh fire’. And you can take it from there.
The title track The Ministry of Rhythm is a call to all who wander the
earth to let the rhythm of music (calypso music) soothe their soul. Rudder
beckons - ‘There’s a place I can take you....’ If we would only let him. If
anything, this is Rudder’s ‘93 version of his award winning song 1990.
Except where 1990 asked the questions, Minstry is the answer.
L.A. deals with the shock and sadness of the riots after the Rodney King
verdict. ‘Mama come see, dey burnin’ down tinsel town’. What can you say
about a song like this. In four minutes L.A. summarizes years of growing
tension with the Afro-American community. Something that American
politicians were not able to do in all their lengthy speeches after the
riots. In typical David style, this song has a pulsating bass line that you
find yourself humming at the oddest of times.
Dus’ In Deh Face is co-written by Pelham Goddard and has that ‘Made for
Pan’ stamp on it. It’s about the pandemonium that reigned when Exodus Steel
Orchestra won the Panorama Steelband competition last year and goes on to
describe the revenge and concern of the panmen for this year’s competition
while paying respect to some of the great steelbands and their arrangers.
‘Will de judges give we first place tonight; De count was slow but ah still
feel we play al’right; Yuh tink de 'Radoes beat we;Renegades and Pamberi;
Ah like de tings ah hear dat Bradley do......'
The part that has really come to light in this album is the extent of
David’s sense of humor. His two comedic contributions are Tyrone and
Potatoe.
Tyrone is about a calypsonian with a severe lisp. Young Tyrone has come to
David for calypso advice you see, but Tyrone is head strong. Every time
David tries to deter him from this musical venture he responds - ‘No, Mr.
Yudder, Not So, Mr. Yudder’. The conversations between Tyrone and David are
defined in great form with David changing his voice, complete with lisp.
Tyrone’s idea of musical creativity is to string together every calypso
cliché from the past 20 years. So when Tyrone takes the stage he entices
the audience to ‘Put Up Yuh Hand’ which actually comes out ‘P-up Yuh
Hand’. You really cannot help but laugh.
Potatoe on the other hand is a ‘dig’ at the Dan Quale spelling of - you
guessed it...... In this song David reminds the children of the world ‘Yuh
gotta learn to spell potato, ... tomato ... avocado, etc.'
In Firequeen David pays respect once again to the Caribbean woman. ‘I need
you to thaw out my ice and snow’, David cries. 'You’re my fire queen.
You’re my burning dream, flambeaux woman.......' This song ends with a
repetitive ‘La La’ chant. It’s sad. It’s beautiful. It's eerie. It awakens
visions of beautiful Caribbean women dressed in our traditional large
Creole skirts and doing their wonderfully exciting ‘dance of love.’ Oh
yes.........!!!!!
This is David’s third musical venture with new producer Wayne Bruno. And
after three years, I can say — they’ve finally got it.
For you old Rudder fans, let me 'put it in a nut shell' - Tyrone is to
Leggo Beast as Firequeen is to Spirit of Music as Ministry is to 1990 as
Fireman is to 'Nuff Respect as Caribbean Party is to Just Ah Carnival as
Dust is to Savannah Party.
Just when you think you have David figured out, he not only leaves you in
the dust but in the process he reaches another pinnacle while surprising us
even more — Dus' in Yuh Face...........
© IYI
Anthony Maillard