Woodshed Entertainment Collective

The Barbados Jazz Festival 2008 ran from January 14-20 at a number of prestigious venues around the country - Sunbury Plantation House, Heritage Park/Rum Factory and the Crane Resort & Residences, St. Philip and in the open at Farley Hill National Park, St. Peter.

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Barbados enjoys a rich Music Jazz music tradition that goes back many decades, what with a short list of personalities like pianist Adrian Clarke and saxophonist Andre Woodvine from the old school and saxophonist Arturo Tappin and bassist/producer Nicholas Brancker who are both leading the charge for contemporary Bajan music today.

But when the spotlights went up at the Barbados Jazz Festival, the local acts under them were Clifton Glasgow as opening act for John Patitucci (bass) at Sunbury Plantation, Andre Forde and Stefan Walcott at Heritage Park and David ‘Ziggy’ Walcott who opened for the Cuban All Star Jazz Band and Smooth Jazz icons, the Rippingtons.

Forde and Walcott’s pan groups thrilled hundreds at the Heritage Park in Foursquare on Wednesday, January 16, 2008 with the kind of versatility that resulted in a suite of improvisatory gems.

 Pannist Andre Forde

Pianist, Composer and Musicologist, Walcott was making his sixth appearance at the Barbados Jazz Festival.

Pianist Stefan Walcott (Listen)

Four days later on Sunday, January 20, pannist Ziggy Walcott, appearing for the second consecutive time at the Barbados Jazz Festival in his capacity as a solo performer, used the opportunity to debut his recording career with the launch of a twelve track album entitled Jam Bustin’. 

David ‘Ziggy’ Walcott pulled out all the stops for this event.  He brought London-based keyboardist Zoe Rahman to Barbados to join what would be a 13-member group as follows:  Ziggy Walcott, Zoe Rahman, Tobi Armstrong, Melvin Alick, Jeffrey Ifie Wilkinson, Julian Ju Griffith, Dominic Stick Niles, Shari Walters, Joel Devonish, Nakita Wilfred, Nikki Browne, Michelle Garvey and Allison Pollard.

Nationnews.com’s Tracy Moore was present at Farley Hill and recounted her impressions thus:  ”Ziggy, the Candor Music artiste, was really “hyped”, and for more than 60 minutes he thrilled patrons to the point that the 500 or more attending were calling for more by the end of his set.  With the pan dominating, his Bajan-style jazz got people from their seats, dancing with hips swaying and heads rocking like they were hypnotised by the music.”

Now, we all wished we were present too.

David Ziggy Walcott poster advertising his appearance at the Barbados Jazz Festival 2008

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