BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – FORMER musician now Gospel calypsonian, Clarence ‘King Fire’ Woodley has had a rewarding musical career travelling around the Caribbean and performing with a number of local and regional bands. But where is he now?
This afternoon (Mar. 25), we caught up with the 63-year-old in Old Road, where he had just returned from a fishing trip in the Caribbean Sea.
“Well, it all started for me when I was like around 10 to 13 years old. I used to play in small bands before I got older and played across the Caribbean,” Woodley told SKNVibes Entertainment.
The first band in which Woodley was a member as an adult, was one called Dynamics out of Sandy Point. That band, he said, produced a number of singers and musicians within the Federation and the region.
Woodley later formed his own band called Silver Tone, which hailed from Old Road.
“The Small Axe Band eventually grew out of the Silver Tone Band after some of our members started to branch out into other avenues,” he explained.
The Sandy Point native said at age 25 he was more a musician than singer, because of his knowledge and ability to play a number of instruments. He however noted that the changeover occurred while on a working visit to the US Virgin Islands.
“I started listening to Shadow but when I went to St. Thomas to play in the band I met a guy from Trinidad named Lord Cutty and another guy from Antigua named Darky, and those were the guys who helped to motivate me.”
Woodley, who had resided in the US Virgin Islands for a number of years, said that he returned to the Federation in 1974 and decided to write two Calypsos for which he would enter the National Senior Calypso Competition in the said year.
With no formal vocal experience, Woodley said that he was elated to make it to the Finals with his two songs, ‘Back to St. Kitts, here I am Again’ and ‘Not going to Canada, staying for Carnival’.
“A calypsonian from Sandy Point named King Smiley also encouraged and helped me to get prepared for the big night. I was surprised because I beat out people like Bath Towel and some other guys who were there longer than I was. So it was a real honour,” Woodley said.
In the following year, Woodley said that although he was encouraged to enter the National Senior Calypso Competition again, he became a Christian and left the show just after one appearance.
“I had a lot of opportunities to go back to it. Maybe I would have won it that year but I had found a new love in God. And so I started to compose and perform Christian Calypso music which was aired on a number of radio stations.”
Where is he now?
Although almost all of his children are engaged in different professions, Woodley said that one of his sons, Jermaine ‘Artical’ Woodley, had followed in his footsteps. He is a musician, music producer and produces his father’s music.
Clarence ‘King Fire’ Woodley, who currently works on his own vessel as a fisherman, informed this publication that he is working on a Gospel Calypso album that he intends to release later in the year.
Editor-in-Chief's Note: SKNVibes solicits suggestions from the public in identifying other individuals who have made significant contributions to the calypso art form in St. Kitts and Nevis. Feel free to email us at newsroom@sknvibes.com or call us at (869) 466-9242 or (869) 662-3901 and pass on the relevant information.
