Licensing Fete: The Aftermath

Who: Licensing fete
What: Buy yuh eats and drinks when yuh reach inside
Where: Licensing Compound Wrightson Road
When: Saturday 20th January 2007
How much: $100 General Admission $250 VIP
Last year’s price: $80 General $200 VIP

So after an entire day of training for ICC Cricket world Cup 2007 (for which I am a volunteer) I got home intending to take a rest, wake up and head out to Licensing fete.

I woke up the following morning, just in time to get ready to go to more CWC training.
I hear de fete was RAM.
This would have been my 5th year going to Licensing fete.

Thus ends my review. LOL.
Sorry folks.



Newsday had this to say:

FOR anyone in doubt, the economic prosperity associated with TT’s oil boom
was apparent everywhere at the Licensing Fete, held at the Wrightson Road
compound parking lot Saturday night. The all inclusives had nothing on this
one.

For one thing, the TT$120 ticket price was not a deterrent. But the real
proof of prosperity was the fact there is, without a doubt, no shortage of snake
oil or gold north of the Caroni River. Some of the big names on the night were
Bunji Garlin, Crazy, Denise Belfon, Shurwayne Winchester, Machel Montano HD, KMC and Iwer George.

Parking was tricky and police were advising patrons not to park on the streets adjoining Wrightson Road, as “the wrecker was coming.” So, as
usual, patrons at a large public fete would be under pressure from both police
and thief.

Passing right outside the Licensing compound via the media entrance
must have been tempting for anyone in need of a Certified Copy, and
unwilling/unable to pay a bribe.

Once inside, the place seemed rather empty at about 10 pm, considering the event’s reputation, but it was still early. As the DJ music blared a large contingent of police stood in a defensive, intimidating circle ready for action in the middle of the growing number of winers and jammers.

If Job seemed a little patient, then they seemed a little tense. The fact that patrons entering through General Admissions were forced to remove their shoes for inspection would have been of little consolation to the circle of cops. When asked, an officer at the entrance confirmed the procedure had been put in place to “make sure yuh don’t get chook.”

The Shoe Exam, in addition to the number of people trying to get in, may have contributed somewhat to the gathering by the various posses outside the fete, many of whom were content to chip and prance around the area before entering. It created a festive atmosphere on Wrightson Road, accompanied, of course, by long lines of traffic.

The cops did their best to keep things moving. Not long after 10 pm, Bunji Garlin kicked things off with an energetic performance, during which he discussed his recent nuptials in song. In the middle of the performance, he was forced to stop and
exclaim, “Jesus Christ, look at crowd!” By this time, he was not exaggerating. In a brief interview with Newsday following his performance, Bunji said he was heading down the highway to South Trinidad for a gig at Sting club in La Romaine.

The lovable lunatic, aka Crazy, was next on stage, briefly, and he churned up the crowd with his “One Foot Cock,” and “Cold Sweat.”

Denise “Saucy Wow” Belfon soon followed, and she reminded the crowd with a demonstration that riding a bicycle is something one never forgets. She even gave tricycle lessons.

The crowd was well pumped up by the time Shurwayne Winchester “Opened the
Gates,” and he was ably assisted by Peter C Lewis on guitar. The crowd appeared
unperturbed by recent reports that Winchester was under pressure following some
internal wrangling at Traffik, and Winchester’s top class performance drew a
fanatical crowd response.