A book, capturing a great deal of the calypso art form, is to be launched on Saturday evening, September 29, by noted song-writer and social commentator, Mr. Bernard Wattley, soon retiring from the Anguilla public service. He spoke about his literary work ‘From The Heart: 101 Calypsos’ in the following interview with The Anguillian newspaper.
How do you describe your publication?
It is a book which highlights the culture of the Caribbean. To support that, the calypsos included in the book are songs that have been sung mostly in St. Kitts, St. Maarten, Anguilla and, in one instance, St. Vincent & The Grenadines.
What inspired you to produce this book of calypsos?
It has always been a dream or an aspiration I had to do a compilation of my work having been involved in calypso writing for over four decades. I am pretty confident in the quality of my songs and the messages that they convey. And so I thought it would be a useful addition to the cultural reservoir locally, and even regionally, to have a compilation of my songs. I believe the book could be a benefit to persons who take the time to read it.
How did you become involved in this kind of social commentary?
From an early age, I took to enjoying social events and even politics. I see myself as a social commentator and someone who is very opinionated. I thought that using the calypso art form as a vehicle, I could get some of my ideas and opinions in the public domain – and I think for the most part it has worked. I don’t see myself as an artiste. I have had a couple of brothers who thought themselves as artistes. They went out and I would assist them with their writing; and I have come across other persons who were willing to put themselves forward as artistes.
In fact, in earlier life, due to my religious background, I could not let my mother know that I was involved in writing calypsos because I started around 16 or 17 years old. I lived with her and she was a staunch Seventh-day Adventist, and you know how that goes. The way I stayed in the background, people did not know that I was the one doing the writing for certain persons. But eventually I became an adult and I thought there wasn’t any harm in what I was doing. So I was now willing to let everyone know of my prowess as a writer. I have sung a few songs in recent times, but I don’t consider myself an artiste. I am a writer.
What would you say were some of the burning messages you imparted in the calypsos you wrote?
As I indicated, I have a very keen interest in what goes on in society. I also have a liking for commenting on politics, so a lot of my songs are of a social and political nature. What I try to do is to put forward my views and perspectives on what I see happening around us. That has been my motivation for the most part. I have written songs on a lot of other issues, but I think social and political commentary is my forte.
Did you ever see your role as a public servant being a kind of a hindrance to your passion as a social commentator through calypso?
Yes. In fact, I remember the former Deputy Governor who obviously listened to my songs – (and I know his dad is an avid calypso lover and listens to my work) – telling me at one time, ‘I notice that you hold back a bit. There appears to be some things you might want to say, but you are being very careful.’ I had to be. I was always cognizant that I was a public servant and that it was not wise to come out and, in a sense, to demonstrate a particular political leaning or to attack people in a direct way. So I had to find ways to couch my lyrics in a way that was acceptable – but at the same time provocative, interesting and causing people to think. And that’s really what calypso is all about.
Are you a mainstream thinker, or do get carried away by any wind that blows, so to speak?
I wouldn’t categorise myself as being left or right or mainstream. I just tell things as I see them. Today, I could sing the praises of a particular government and tomorrow if they do something I don’t like I would go after them as well. I am just a straight shooter. I tell it like it is.
What are some of the calypsos you wrote that you feel particularly proud about?
In my early years I wrote a song called ‘Gone are the days”. It was sung by a singer named Kenta back in St. Kitts. I was very proud of that. It looked at the whole business of an awakening among Caribbean people – and their unwillingness to just accept what politicians do without questioning them. My brother did a song some years ago which came out of a personal experience called ‘The Letter’, and it is one of the calypsos in my book. I was able to bring it together quite nicely and it created a firestorm in St Kitts. He also did a song in tribute to King Eli Matt [the popular St. Kitts singer and musician] who was ailing at the time. We wanted to pay tribute to him as a stalwart in the art form, and it was a good song.
On the local scene in Anguilla, when we are challenged by something, there is a song which becomes very popular. It is ‘How did we get from that to this? It was done by Singing Deseree many years ago. On the lighter side, Sunbeam did a song called ‘Singing For Fun’ which took him to the crown. It was a kind of reverse psychology but it was very popular. There were a lot of other interesting songs which, for me, stood out over the years and these have continued to the present.
Anguilla is fast becoming a litigious society – how do you guard against defamation and libel?
Fortunately, so far, no one has seriously threatened me with any litigation. I did a song under the title ‘Anonymous’ about five years ago. It was the first song I chose to sing. It came out of a personal experience and there was one individual who didn’t threaten me directly but who, I learnt, was trying to get the song banned from the radio stations, and who told others he would sue me. Nothing came of it, by the way, but outside of that nobody has ever threatened me with litigation.
I think the reason is that I take the art form very seriously and would not want to use it to slander or libel anybody. A few years ago I did a song which I released in the St. Kitts market. It was a political song and, so, before I released it I sent the first version to a cousin who is a prominent lawyer in St. Kitts. He advised me how I could get the song out without being libellous or slanderous and we managed to pull it off. I take great pride and care in how I couch my lyrics so that persons would know what I am talking about, or who I am getting at, without actually saying it.
We gather that you are on pre-retirement leave. When you in fact retire, will that give you a certain licence or freedom to be more expressive or brazen in what you write politically?
I think some people already fear that I could become even more outspoken, but I have no definite plans to change the way I have been. I will continue to speak up, and speak out, but I still want to be cognizant of my role [and as a government pensioner]. I will no longer be an active public servant, but I will always be a public servant and do things in a very cautious and discreet manner.
Why do you think that people should buy your book and read the calypsos it contains?
For one reason, I think it is an important compilation of songs dating back four decades. A lot of times we hear songs and are impacted by them, but we don’t know all the lyrics. So this is a chance for people to interface directly with the lyrics. It is literature. Believe it or not, I think it has the potential even to be used in the classroom at every level as a reference text. So people interested in calypso, in literature, and culture, should find it interesting – I hope.
The book has been relatively expensive to publish but it is something I wanted to do. I am now depending on the public to lend their support to the venture.
The launch takes place on Saturday, September 29th, weather permitting, at La Vue at 7.30. I am hoping to have a number of persons present, who have sung the songs over the years, and some of them will perform bits of those songs. DJ Sugar will also perform and there will be some light refreshments. It will be a kind of celebration and I am hoping to have some relatives coming in from overseas, but it is an open event. The entire public of Anguilla is invited to the launch of my book – ‘From the Heart 101 calypsos’ sung and unsung. The title of the book is a catch phrase and I put a lot of thought into it. As I said, it has been a life-long dream and to be able to pull it off gives me a lot of gratification. There is no charge at the event. All I ask is that people purchase a copy of the book. The price is US$ 25.00.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Mr. Wattley, who came to Anguilla in 1983, is originally from St. Kitts and has basically been a career public servant. He taught for 25 years: 6 years in St. Kitts and 19 years in Anguilla. He holds a Bachelor of Education Degree from the Mona Campus of the University of the West Indies with first-class honours; and a Master’s Degree in Educational Administration from McGill University in Canada. He served as President of the Anguilla Teachers’ Union; Dean of Studies at the Anguilla Community College; and as Deputy Director, Human Resources, at the Department of Public Administration. He has represented Anguilla at cricket and football matches both on the island and overseas. He is retiring shortly as the Director of Library Services at the Anguilla Public Library.
