People always ask me how I got involved in steel pan and Calypso.  I was studying bass at the University of Miami in 1979 and took a gig on the cruise ship the Nordic Prince for the month of Christmas break.  I got to work with some very fine musicians and singers and spend my days in places like Barbados, Martinique, and the Virgin Islands.

The best part was being able to listen to the ship's steel band all afternoon, and hear every flavor of Calypso and Reggae imaginable on shore and on the radio.  Every island community has its own style and tempo.  I wound up staying an extra year before I went back to Miami to finish school.

After graduating I spent six years as a bassist and bandleader for Royal Caribbean, NCL, and Carnival cruise lines, and got to explore all of the islands.  The West Indians that I met and worked with showed an open and fundamentally positive view of life- just like the music.  It was impossible for me not to catch the Calypso bug, and the musicians from Barbados that I worked with were more than happy to show me the ropes.

I moved to the Lower Keys in 1988 and took up steel pan.  I hope I can give the Keys back some of the musical joy I found in the Caribbean.