Kobo Town Up for World Music JUNO

Kobo Town Caribbean music Nominated for JUNO

By William Doyle-Marshall

Kobo Town, a Toronto-based music band headed by Trinidadian composer and arranger Drew Gonsalves, is among nominees in the World Music category for a JUNO award by the Canadian Academy of Dramatic Arts for their latest recording “Jumbie In the Jukebox”. Presentation will take place in Winnipeg March 30 and the band is due to appear live on the awards show.

 Band members are Drew Gonsalves, Lindsey Wellman, Derek Thorne, Patrick Guinta, Robert Milicevic, Francesco Emmanuel, Jan Morgan, Don Steward, Walter McLean and Roger Williams.  “We are excited by the JUNO nomination. It was an unexpected but pleasant surprise,” Gonsalves explained.

                                                    Drew Gonsalves, Kobo Town leader

  The list of World Music nominees for this year are Jumbie in the Jukebox Kobo Town; Sabor A Café  -- Adonis Puentes Tumba King; Lamentation of Swans – A Journey Towards Silence -- Azam Ali and Loga R.Torkian; Walk to the Sea by David Buchbinder & Odessa/Havana; and Lume, Lume Lemon Bucket Orkestra.  

   The songs on Jumbie in the Jukebox were written over a number of years and Gonsalves and his colleagues chose the title because they recorded in the Stone Tree Studios down in Belize in a sleepy town called Benque Viejo del Carmen (usually shortened to "Benque") a town in the Cayo District, in the far interior of the country. The producer always joked that the studio is a graveyard of musical equipment. “We were recording on all these old interesting equipment of microphones and amplifiers and a lot of the sounds that were coming out were really evoking the different eras of Caribbean music because we used all that equipment too back in the day on all those old Lord Kitchener and Mighty Terror albums and it was really evoking a lot of the sounds that are very familiar on those recordings,” Drew recalled. He got the idea about a juke box that was possessed by a Jumbie and was making it spit out all these sounds from different eras of the Caribbean’s musical history.

In Kobo Town’s first album “Independence” it pays tribute to and acknowledges the immense debt it owes to those Trinidadian songsters who have passed on and who created, enriched and preserved the musical patrimony from which the band draws inspiration. They include Brian Honore, Andre Tanker, Roaring Lion, Lord Kitchener, Atilla the Hun, King Radio, Lord Caresser, Growling Tiger, Lord Executor, Mighty Growler, Lord Invader, Mighty Spoiler, Ras Shorty I and Lord Pretender.  

    It is customary for Caribbean creators of music and other artistic expression to do their work in silence and resist the temptation to be recognized. This is usually left to a manager or someone associated with a label, in the case of music, to submit the work for consideration. In this instance Kobo Town took some prodding via numerous phone calls until Gonsalves yielded on the last day before entries closed. The band’s latest recording “Jumbie in the Jukebox” was eventually presented for consideration by the Canadian Academy for Recording Arts and Sciences. Over the years some Caribbean creators awarded by the Academy included John (Jayson) Perez, Lillian Allen, Eddie Bullen, the Sattalites and Leroy Sibbles. “We are in a category with a lot of artists who are very good. It’s a pleasure to be counted among them. Of course everybody has their hopes on the award but just to be nominated has been an honour,” Gonsalves acknowledged.

   Kobo Town toured Europe and the U.S.A. last year promoting “Jumbie in the Juke Box” and Gonsalves described reception as very interesting. “Touring is always interesting because you never know what to expect and I’ve been very pleased with peoples’ reaction. It has been very encouraging and it makes the long drive and the sleepless nights and the nights on the road a fulfilling one.

   CARAS is dedicated to year-round initiatives that foster the talent of Canadian musicians and provide opportunities for homegrown artists to showcase their work. Now in its third year, the JUNO Concert Series is an important element of this year-round mandate.