Island Voices: From St Christopher & the Barracudas
Philip Nanton, with art by booops. Island Voices: From St Christopher & Barracudas. London and Trafalgar, Dominica: Papillote Press, 2014. 66 pp._PHILIP NANTON, WHO WAS BORN in St Vincent, returned to Caribbean in 2000, after many years in England. In an early manifestation Island Voices was CD, written, mixed and produced with appropriate sound effects in 2008, using actors to bring voices to life. CD cover was designed by another Vincentian, booops (Caroline Sardine) who also created art work for each of fifteen tracks; and in 2009 an art gallery in Bridgetown hosted joint exhibition of booops's work and Philip Nantons reading. Material from Island Voices has also been presented on internet and in film. And now we have book.The book is nicely designed, and enlivened by collaboration with booops. In blurb on back cover, Rex Dixon, an artist and educator, writes: The illustrations demonstrate mature style and individual voice combining text colour, line, objects, multimedia and assemblage into distinctive whole. But Island Voices is still essentially script - viable revue script - requiring direction and performance.It is set in the mythical Caribbean islands of St Christopher & Barracudas (iv). prime minister, J.G., has asked Fish-head, retired chief of police, a good man behind mike (3), to help promote tourism. Fishhead is in studio directing editing process.The recordings to be edited include taxi-driver calling attention to landmarks (cemetery, hospital, dump, and new construction work); multi-layered response to Hurricane Ivan (including snatches of poetry); rum shop dialogue (in which former groom is rebuked for colonial nostalgia); admiration of coconut vendors machete-wielding artistry; dispute in public transport about what style of music to play; privileged ladies comparing cruises and their inadequate husbands; rich man worried about health and physical security; an unreliable gardener who cannot repay loan; foul-mouthed entertainer complaining that his precious smoked salmon has been eaten as red salt-fish; an incompetent hold-up man remonstrating with bungling confederate; what reads like celebration of criminal assault in New York (and haunting snatches of Shake Keane poetry); police broadcasts; class-conscious lady who insists that she must be one to take governor around to see stalls at fair, and who is cross that Cuban Embassy has failed to indicate their wishes in good time; lady who finds her priest so stubborn with his kindness (59) that he would weaken corps of volunteers by accepting Mrs Maynards of this world who do not mean to work; and finally Wake Up Call, snatch of stylishly vacuous morning radio. …