BARBADOS
- music - Richard Stoute 'Diamonds are Forever' 2006
Web Posted - Fri Feb 24 2006
By David Hinkson compliments of the Barbados
Advocate
The man of the moment, Richard Stoute (in white jacket,
right) applauding the performers during the show held in his honour. Also
shown (from left to right) are Annette Nias of the National Cultural Foundation,
NCF CEO Ian Estwick and NCF Chairman Al Gilkes.
Members of the entertainment
fraternity, many of whom got their start through his Teen Talent
Contest, came together at the Sherbourne Centre to pay tribute to
veteran singer and promoter Richard Stoute as he marked his 60th
birthday with a special show entitled Diamonds are Forever .
The show began with one of Stoute’s contemporaries,
Tony Poser Grazette, bringing back memories of the old days with
Put a Little Love in Your Heart, Sam Cooke’s The Riddle Song
, which Grazette has made his own over the years, and then a recent
spouge number entitled I’ll Always Adore You . He ended his
set with an a cappella performance of May the Good Lord Bless and
Keep You.
Former Teen Talent contestant and long time crowd
favourite with the Teen Talent audience, Rosie Hunte, was in outstanding
form as she brought the auditorium alight from the time she appeared
on stage to sing Alicia Keys If I Ain’t Got You. She then worked
the entire floor with Tina Turner’s Simply the Best and got
a standing ovation.
After the buzz she created subsided, 2000 Teen Talent winner Barry
Chandler sang Stoute’s spouge remake of Vehicle, with which
he won the title
Anderson Blood Armstrong showcased his versatility
with a highly competent rendition of Englebert Humperdinck’s
The Last Waltz , and ended his performance with a medley of some of
the calypsos that made him popular as a member of Square One
1992 Teen Talent winner Adrian Clarke also performed
a ballad that highlighted the quality of his voice, as well as his
hit song, Nice Time , during which he got Chairman of the National
Cultural Foundation, Al Gilkes, to sing along
1988 winner Kim Derrick then performed one of
the songs with which she won the title, Brenda Russell’s Get
Here, while 1999 winner Ishiaka McNeil continued to highlight spouge
with a performance of the Troubadours hit Faith
Kimberley Inniss continues to grow as a performer and showed considerable
maturity in every department when she sang At Last
Red Plastic Bag and Mac Fingall brought the first
half of the show to a close with a rendition of Bag’s biggest-ever
hit, Ragga Ragga, that also brought the audience to its feet.
During the intermission Grammy Award winning musician
Jimmy Senya Haynes and his band kept the audience entertained
The second half got under way with 2005 Over-21
Contest winner Christine Carter singing her signature tune In The
Name of the Lord.
Ronnie Morris, who got his first chance to sing at
the age of twelve through Teen Talent, performed You Raise Me Up,
Over-21
contestant Troy Arthur-Shaw, whose modelling group Mystikal Touch made
its debut during the 2005 Teen Talent competition, also paid tribute to
Stoute in song. One of the most moving tributes, however, came from 1983
Teen Talent winner and VP recording artist Edwin Yearwood, who said Stoute
was like a father to him and outlined the support he had given him over
the years. He then performed Wildflower, the song with which he won the
Teen Talent Contest and his 1996 ballad Something Greater. Desmond Weekes,
one of Stoute’s contemporaries, invited Stoute on stage with him
when he sang Elton John’s Don t Let the Sun Go Down on Me. John
King then put the audience in a nostalgic mood with a selection of oldie
goldies and former Square One member O Shaka sang Stoute’s You Can
Make It If You Try. The Mighty Gabby, a contemporary of Stoute, shared
some anecdotes about his younger days growing up with Stoute, before singing
What a Wonderful World with Blood and Terry Arthur, and his folk songs
Fishermen and Emmerton. The show ended with one of Stoute’s favourite
artists, Baron, performing some of his hits. MCs for the evening were
Trevor Eastmond, Joanne Sealy and KB Kleen, all of whom said they got
their first opportunities to perform MC duties or otherwise showcase their
talent through Richard Stoute.
Over-21
contestant Troy Arthur-Shaw, whose modelling group Mystikal Touch made
its debut during the 2005 Teen Talent competition, also paid tribute to
Stoute in song. One of the most moving tributes, however, came from 1983
Teen Talent winner and VP recording artist Edwin Yearwood, who said Stoute
was like a father to him and outlined the support he had given him over
the years. He then performed Wildflower, the song with which he won the
Teen Talent Contest and his 1996 ballad Something Greater. Desmond Weekes,
one of Stoute’s contemporaries, invited Stoute on stage with him
when he sang Elton John’s Don t Let the Sun Go Down on Me. John
King then put the audience in a nostalgic mood with a selection of oldie
goldies and former Square One member O Shaka sang Stoute’s You Can
Make It If You Try. The Mighty Gabby, a contemporary of Stoute, shared
some anecdotes about his younger days growing up with Stoute, before singing
What a Wonderful World with Blood and Terry Arthur, and his folk songs
Fishermen and Emmerton. The show ended with one of Stoute’s favourite
artists, Baron, performing some of his hits. MCs for the evening were
Trevor Eastmond, Joanne Sealy and KB Kleen, all of whom said they got
their first opportunities to perform MC duties or otherwise showcase their
talent through Richard Stoute. 
