Greater Toronto
By William Doyle-Marshall
Dick Lochan better known as "D'Juiceman" passed away last Thursday in hospital after a short illness. He has been on the Canadian Calypso scene filling many roles – mentor, composer, calypsonian, emcee, comedian and overall supporter of the Calypso art form.
During a conversation with him on the launching of his album, we talked about his involvement with Caribbean culture on the Canadian scene.
“I truly understand what being a Trinbagonian is. I am a proud Trinbagonian. I am serious about our culture. I am serious about our people,” he said.
Mindful of his involvement with the Caribbean community in the Greater Toronto Area, Lochan admitted his concerns now stretched beyond the T&T boundary. “It is not only the Trinbagonian people, it’s the Caribbean, the young people. I have a very deep affiliation to that,” he stressed.
Lochan, considered the “People's Calypsonian”, has long been a crowd favourite with calypso audiences here in Toronto, and more recently in Trinidad where he was a very popular performer in the Kaiso Showcase Calypso Tent during the Trinidad and Tobago 2009 calypso season.
In 1996 he won the Best Presentation Award in the Canadian Calypso competition. Dick’s winning ways continued when he won Toronto’s first ever Parangsoca competition in 2003.
His talents extend not only to writing for himself as well as several other Toronto-based calypsonians, but to instructing children and youths in the Calypso and Soca artform. He did this as a tutor and co-director of the "Pass The Torch" Cultural Arts Programme in Toronto which produced four (4) CDs of original calypso music in the four years of his involvement with the project.
Lochan carried the banner of advocate for calypso proudly. It is safe to say that that resulted in his composing the song “Calypso History in Canada”. It is one of ten selections on the recording that traces actual Calypso development from the 1940s when the late Lord Caresser introduced Canada to calypso music.
A more recent Canadian Calypso chapter – crowning in 1969 of Dave DeCastro (The Calypso Bandit) who died last year as the first Canadian Calypso King at the Maple Leaf Gardens – gets delicate treatment. This composition vindicates those who have tried to establish that Calypso did not start in Canada in 1980 with the crowning of Lord Smokey.
This issue troubled Lochan as he kept hearing talk about 1980 being the year when the practice of calypso started in Toronto and by extension, Canada. Lochan and his very good friend Joe Brown whom he regarded as an icon from the early days, provided some input that served as background for his new composition.
"People haven’t recognized Joe for his role in the steelband movement here with playing pan in Massey Hall, the O’Keefe Center and even teaching at St. Christopher House. People don’t even see him as that and then going to the Floyd Patterson Institute in Brooklyn. He went to the CBC archives and listened to Lord Caresser through head phones. It was truly spending some time in the past for enlightenment that should help strengthen the future for his community," Dick insisted.
Lochan’s love for his culture resulted in publishing three books – Doh Make Joke; Fuh Tru and So It Go. As a recording artiste he produced a number of memorable hits including Calypso History in Canada. As one of Toronto’s popular composers and performers Dick penned some concerns of Santa Claus noting carefully with a bit of humour that the spending on consumer products has certainly shaken up the bearded one to the point that he has begun acting strangely.
Santa Claus is disgusted, Lochan sings “He so mad til he turn blue, (he) come inside by me without shoe. If you see he hair, scratch out and he beard, well dread out round he mout’. He say is too much spending, way too much needless shopping. All he charge (credit) card done max out is why this year he dishin’ out”.
According to Lochan, Santa’s remedy is to go from house to house this Christmas to deliver gifts that are accompanied with an invoice. He will be driving off with a ho, ho, ho and returning to collect tomorrow.
Dick extends his observation into Santa’s inner thoughts about the role parents play in the spending spree for toys that some children simply discard in favour of nondescript well-used favourites. “He so mad til he boiling, is redder and redder he face getting. If you see how he sweatin’, talking to heself and well cussin’. He say he mad at the parents: is dem encourage the nonsense. They lost the meaning of Christmas (that) is why this year he billin’ us.”
Taking Calypso to the next level has been Lochan’s mantra over the years. In pursuit of that, he has been a cast member of quite a few Calypso Tents in the city including Kel-ketey, Calypso Tent, Cream of the Crop and Kaiso Showcase Calypso Tent in Trinidad.
The Calypso fraternity will certainly miss Lochan's input from now on.
Dick Lochan better known as "D'Juiceman" passed away last Thursday in hospital after a short illness. He has been on the Canadian Calypso scene filling many roles – mentor, composer, calypsonian, emcee, comedian and overall supporter of the Calypso art form.
During a conversation with him on the launching of his album, we talked about his involvement with Caribbean culture on the Canadian scene.
“I truly understand what being a Trinbagonian is. I am a proud Trinbagonian. I am serious about our culture. I am serious about our people,” he said.
Mindful of his involvement with the Caribbean community in the Greater Toronto Area, Lochan admitted his concerns now stretched beyond the T&T boundary. “It is not only the Trinbagonian people, it’s the Caribbean, the young people. I have a very deep affiliation to that,” he stressed.
Lochan, considered the “People's Calypsonian”, has long been a crowd favourite with calypso audiences here in Toronto, and more recently in Trinidad where he was a very popular performer in the Kaiso Showcase Calypso Tent during the Trinidad and Tobago 2009 calypso season.
In 1996 he won the Best Presentation Award in the Canadian Calypso competition. Dick’s winning ways continued when he won Toronto’s first ever Parangsoca competition in 2003.
His talents extend not only to writing for himself as well as several other Toronto-based calypsonians, but to instructing children and youths in the Calypso and Soca artform. He did this as a tutor and co-director of the "Pass The Torch" Cultural Arts Programme in Toronto which produced four (4) CDs of original calypso music in the four years of his involvement with the project.
Lochan carried the banner of advocate for calypso proudly. It is safe to say that that resulted in his composing the song “Calypso History in Canada”. It is one of ten selections on the recording that traces actual Calypso development from the 1940s when the late Lord Caresser introduced Canada to calypso music.
A more recent Canadian Calypso chapter – crowning in 1969 of Dave DeCastro (The Calypso Bandit) who died last year as the first Canadian Calypso King at the Maple Leaf Gardens – gets delicate treatment. This composition vindicates those who have tried to establish that Calypso did not start in Canada in 1980 with the crowning of Lord Smokey.
This issue troubled Lochan as he kept hearing talk about 1980 being the year when the practice of calypso started in Toronto and by extension, Canada. Lochan and his very good friend Joe Brown whom he regarded as an icon from the early days, provided some input that served as background for his new composition.
"People haven’t recognized Joe for his role in the steelband movement here with playing pan in Massey Hall, the O’Keefe Center and even teaching at St. Christopher House. People don’t even see him as that and then going to the Floyd Patterson Institute in Brooklyn. He went to the CBC archives and listened to Lord Caresser through head phones. It was truly spending some time in the past for enlightenment that should help strengthen the future for his community," Dick insisted.
Lochan’s love for his culture resulted in publishing three books – Doh Make Joke; Fuh Tru and So It Go. As a recording artiste he produced a number of memorable hits including Calypso History in Canada. As one of Toronto’s popular composers and performers Dick penned some concerns of Santa Claus noting carefully with a bit of humour that the spending on consumer products has certainly shaken up the bearded one to the point that he has begun acting strangely.
Santa Claus is disgusted, Lochan sings “He so mad til he turn blue, (he) come inside by me without shoe. If you see he hair, scratch out and he beard, well dread out round he mout’. He say is too much spending, way too much needless shopping. All he charge (credit) card done max out is why this year he dishin’ out”.
According to Lochan, Santa’s remedy is to go from house to house this Christmas to deliver gifts that are accompanied with an invoice. He will be driving off with a ho, ho, ho and returning to collect tomorrow.
Dick extends his observation into Santa’s inner thoughts about the role parents play in the spending spree for toys that some children simply discard in favour of nondescript well-used favourites. “He so mad til he boiling, is redder and redder he face getting. If you see how he sweatin’, talking to heself and well cussin’. He say he mad at the parents: is dem encourage the nonsense. They lost the meaning of Christmas (that) is why this year he billin’ us.”
Taking Calypso to the next level has been Lochan’s mantra over the years. In pursuit of that, he has been a cast member of quite a few Calypso Tents in the city including Kel-ketey, Calypso Tent, Cream of the Crop and Kaiso Showcase Calypso Tent in Trinidad.
The Calypso fraternity will certainly miss Lochan's input from now on.
