Ras Shorty I (October 6, 1941-July 12, 2000) was a soca musician, known as … Read Full Bio ↴Ras Shorty I (October 6, 1941-July 12, 2000) was a soca musician, known as the Father of Soca and The Love Man. He was born Garfield Blackman in Barrackpore, Trinidad and Tobago,[1] and rose to fame as Lord Shorty with his 1963 hit "Clock and Dagger". He started out writing songs and performing in the calypso genre. In the 1970s, he began experimenting with calypso by blending it with the local chutney—the music of Trinidad's East Indian population—using instruments such as the sitar and tabla. The style was dubbed "soca".
Lord Shorty, as he is still known, released his hit song "Indrani" in 1973, which is considered the first recorded soca piece. The following year's Endless Vibrations earned him a devoted fan base, and a following of musicians who began performing in his style. His fame continued to grow throughout the 1970s, and he became one of the country's top performers. He recorded tracks such as Kim and Money Eh No Problem, which was a stinging political and social commentary based on the words of Trinidad's then Prime Minister, Eric Williams of the People's National Movement. Money Eh No Problem was used in a political advertising campaign in 2000 for the United National Congress.
In his early days, he was a known womanizer and fathered 23 children. In 1984, he voiced his disenchantment with soca, claiming it was being used for the wrong reasons. A short time thereafter, he embraced a strict form of Christianity, adopted the name Ras Shorty I and moved with his family to the Piparo forest in the hills of southern Trinidad, where he and his family focused on creating faith-based music.
In the late 1980s, he began recording again, fusing soca and gospel in a style he called Jamoo. He continued recording into the late 1990s, writing hits like Watch Out My Children, which focuses on the dangers of drug abuse. The song was recorded in ten languages and was adopted by the UN in an anti-cocaine campaign. He toured transnationally with his band, the Love Circle, which consisted mainly of family members. The Love Circle included his wife Claudette and sons Eldon, Sheldon and Isaac, who have gone on to record several highly infectious hits, such as "Blessed are the Elders" and "To The Ceiling". His daughters, Marge, Neheilet and Avion Blackman also have successful careers in recording and fashion design.
The family aims to bring across positive messages with their music, focusing especially on youth. They also exhort modern soca artists to preach positivity and the word of God through their music.
Ras Shorty I died in 2000 of multiple myeloma, a type of bone marrow cancer.
Lord Shorty, as he is still known, released his hit song "Indrani" in 1973, which is considered the first recorded soca piece. The following year's Endless Vibrations earned him a devoted fan base, and a following of musicians who began performing in his style. His fame continued to grow throughout the 1970s, and he became one of the country's top performers. He recorded tracks such as Kim and Money Eh No Problem, which was a stinging political and social commentary based on the words of Trinidad's then Prime Minister, Eric Williams of the People's National Movement. Money Eh No Problem was used in a political advertising campaign in 2000 for the United National Congress.
In his early days, he was a known womanizer and fathered 23 children. In 1984, he voiced his disenchantment with soca, claiming it was being used for the wrong reasons. A short time thereafter, he embraced a strict form of Christianity, adopted the name Ras Shorty I and moved with his family to the Piparo forest in the hills of southern Trinidad, where he and his family focused on creating faith-based music.
In the late 1980s, he began recording again, fusing soca and gospel in a style he called Jamoo. He continued recording into the late 1990s, writing hits like Watch Out My Children, which focuses on the dangers of drug abuse. The song was recorded in ten languages and was adopted by the UN in an anti-cocaine campaign. He toured transnationally with his band, the Love Circle, which consisted mainly of family members. The Love Circle included his wife Claudette and sons Eldon, Sheldon and Isaac, who have gone on to record several highly infectious hits, such as "Blessed are the Elders" and "To The Ceiling". His daughters, Marge, Neheilet and Avion Blackman also have successful careers in recording and fashion design.
The family aims to bring across positive messages with their music, focusing especially on youth. They also exhort modern soca artists to preach positivity and the word of God through their music.
Ras Shorty I died in 2000 of multiple myeloma, a type of bone marrow cancer.
Gone Are the Days
Lord Shorty Lyrics
We have lyrics for 'Gone Are the Days' by these artists:
Agot Isidro I can only remember The way we used to be But now…
Honne Where we're going you won't need him No looking back from…
HONNE And Izzy Bizu Where we're going you won't need him No looking back from…
Joseph Israel So many paths, only one road to choose, if you…
Kygo (feat. James Gillespie) You were my closest friend My strength when days go mad But…
Kygo James Gillespie You were my closest friend My strength when days go mad But…
Lana Lane I found a ring inside a box of buried dreams…
Mirah And we were just a child with the mess that…
Moya (Máire) Brennan When I was younger then Found sweeter moments No worries or …
Nichole Nordeman Do I dare even where what I was thinking of? My…
O.R.B Everything’s broken and I don’t know when it started and how…
Ringo Starr Gone are the days Gone are the days Sometimes you lose yours…
The Gray Havens Hope In the furnace, you know It can burn away slow Or it…
The Magic Numbers Gone are the days, the nights The hands that held the…
The Young Tradition Gone are the days when we lived every day as…
Towns Motel, sitting in the dark, empty rooms like an empty…
Two and a Half White Guys Some days are dry, some days are leaky Some days come…
Villain In Me A flash in the night A luminous trace in the sky The…
We have lyrics for these tracks by Lord Shorty:
The lyrics are frequently found in the comments by searching or by filtering for lyric videos
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Riyadh Rafique
"Gone Are The Days" a brilliant composition from the man who started then revolutionized soca. Lord Shorty is literally talking about the present situation in Trinidad. This song was composed in 1978-79. Now it is 2016, and not only has crime skyrocketed in Trinidad, but it is so out of hand that priests have decided that criminals should be hanged (Source: The Trinidad Guardian). Love still exists, but if you want it, turn to your family and friends that you trust.
Riyadh Rafique
Gone Are The Days (1978)- Garfield Blackman (Lord Shorty)
Le la le la (x4)
It is them cane fields, those slum yards, those highways & them ghettos that come between you and me
And all those wayward children, searching in darkness for their ancestry
I see the rich, I see the poor on the land
In a ball of confusion, the old eh (dont) care, the young ent (wont) listen
Chorus
Gone Are Them Days when we loved each other
Gone are them time when we were together
No more smiling face, no more warm embrace
In my home I am like a stranger
Le la le la (x4)
There are memories of instant graveyards, though you turn your sleeping eyes away
From the protesting voice of dead people, leading a justified struggle, to find a better way
I see the weak, I see the poor on the land
One man, one history, one culture, in conflict with each other
Repeat chorus
Brother, sister, friend & neighbor, I see them walking down the road with problems on their mind
And though thousands of people walking by, thousand of distressed voices cry, and the whole world remains blind
But I am a man, and I must go on, on the land
I will pretend there is no burden, though I am all alone & forgotten
Gone Are Them Days when we loved each other
Gone are them times when we were together
No more smiling face, no more warm embrace
In my home I'm like a stranger
hombre1968
As relevant to 2019 as it was then, in this blood soaked place.
Kyronne Granger
I luv it this song and Rad shirty I music it's soul touching