JavaScript is disabled in your web browser or browser is too old to support JavaScript. Today almost all web pages contain JavaScript, a scripting programming language that runs on visitor's web browser. It makes web pages functional for specific purposes and if disabled for some reason, the content or the functionality of the web page can be limited or unavailable.

Tuesday, July 8, 2025

Saint Lucia Jazz ends on high note of praise

by

Bobie-Lee Dixon
2248 days ago
20190513
Gospel singer Shirley-Ann Cyril-Mayers performs with God’s Anointed Music Ministry during gospel event at the 2019 Saint Lucia Jazz Festival at the Shangri-La Estate in Rodney Bay, Saint Lucia, on Sunday.

Gospel singer Shirley-Ann Cyril-Mayers performs with God’s Anointed Music Ministry during gospel event at the 2019 Saint Lucia Jazz Festival at the Shangri-La Estate in Rodney Bay, Saint Lucia, on Sunday.

Abraham Diaz

Sounds of praise went up on Sun­day from the fi­nal venue which host­ed the grand fi­nale of the 2019 Saint Lu­cia Jazz Fes­ti­val.

Shangri-La Es­tate in Rod­ney Bay, Saint Lu­cia, was the home to Chris­tians and non-Chris­tians alike who came out to sup­port and en­joy the fi­nal show of the six-day fes­ti­val which be­gan last Tues­day.

From far, some of the el­der­ly came with their walk­ers, while fam­i­lies brought pic­nic blan­kets and chairs to make their time spent "in the house of God" a com­fort­able one.

The gospel com­po­nent of the an­nu­al fes­ti­val was in­clud­ed for the time in the 27 years it has been in ex­is­tence.

Tak­ing to the stage first was Saint Lu­cia’s own mul­ti­ple gospel award win­ner Shirley-Ann Cyril-May­ers, who led the au­di­ence in some vin­tage gospel with the song, “I Will Call Up­on The Lord.”

Im­me­di­ate­ly, one recog­nised a strik­ing vo­cal sim­i­lar­i­ty to Caribbean gospel singer Wendy Mitchell. Dur­ing her stint on stage, Cyril-My­ers belt­ed out a num­ber of praise and wor­ship clas­sics–jazz­ing them up every once in a while. She paused be­fore mov­ing on to the song “I Give You the Praise” to speak to the au­di­ence, as­sur­ing them that no mat­ter what they may face in life, God will al­ways make a way and will work it out.

In a sub­se­quent in­ter­view with Guardian Me­dia, Cyril-May­ers gave God all the praise for in­spir­ing the or­gan­is­ers for in­clud­ing gospel in the fes­ti­val, as she be­lieves it is a mile­stone that the church was able to par­tic­i­pate in such a ma­jor event. She added the fes­ti­val was now an­oth­er plat­form to spread the gospel of God.

Of­fi­cial­ly bring­ing down the cur­tain was in­ter­na­tion­al Gram­my award-win­ning Amer­i­can hus­band and wife jazz duo Mar­cus Bay­lor, a for­mer drum­mer with The Yel­low Jack­ets and Jean Bay­lor, a for­mer mem­ber of the R&B group Zhane, which had great suc­cess in the mid-90s.

Jean, the lead vo­cal­ist of the band, was the per­fect fin­ish with her an­gel­ic voice. Of the num­bers she per­formed, her ver­sion of Halle­ju­jah was with­out a doubt the most mov­ing de­liv­ery, ev­i­dent by the hearty ap­plause she re­ceived to­ward the end.


Related articles

Sponsored

Weather

PORT OF SPAIN WEATHER

Sponsored

Today's
Guardian

Publications

A model in a costume from The Lost Tribe’s 2026 presentation Island Circus

A model in a costume from The Lost Tribe’s 2026 presentation Island Circus

KERWIN PIERRE

A model in a costume from The Lost Tribe’s 2026 presentation Island Circus

A model in a costume from The Lost Tribe’s 2026 presentation Island Circus

KERWIN PIERRE

Ringmasters of the Road: Crowds flock to Tribe’s circus-themed band launch

20 hours ago
Students, principal and staff of St David’s RC Primary, along with the UWTT and Scotiabank Foundation teams at the handover of steelpans at the school.

Students, principal and staff of St David’s RC Primary, along with the UWTT and Scotiabank Foundation teams at the handover of steelpans at the school.

Students, principal and staff of St David’s RC Primary, along with the UWTT and Scotiabank Foundation teams at the handover of steelpans at the school.

Students, principal and staff of St David’s RC Primary, along with the UWTT and Scotiabank Foundation teams at the handover of steelpans at the school.

Scotiabank Foundation, United Way donate steelpans

20 hours ago
The Executive of the National Parang Association 2025-27. Back row, from left: Kervin Preudhomme, assistant secretary; Shaquille Headley, committee member; Cheriese Pierre, committee member; Lisa Lee, trustee; Joanne Briggs, PRO; Yarelis Touissant, committee member; William Calliste, trustee. Front row, from left: Jenais Carter, secretary; Alicia Jaggasar, president; Henrietta Carter, vice president; Joseph Bertrand, youth officer. Missing: Kerrylee Chee Chow, treasurer; Chevone Pierre, committee member.

The Executive of the National Parang Association 2025-27. Back row, from left: Kervin Preudhomme, assistant secretary; Shaquille Headley, committee member; Cheriese Pierre, committee member; Lisa Lee, trustee; Joanne Briggs, PRO; Yarelis Touissant, committee member; William Calliste, trustee. Front row, from left: Jenais Carter, secretary; Alicia Jaggasar, president; Henrietta Carter, vice president; Joseph Bertrand, youth officer. Missing: Kerrylee Chee Chow, treasurer; Chevone Pierre, committee member.

The Executive of the National Parang Association 2025-27. Back row, from left: Kervin Preudhomme, assistant secretary; Shaquille Headley, committee member; Cheriese Pierre, committee member; Lisa Lee, trustee; Joanne Briggs, PRO; Yarelis Touissant, committee member; William Calliste, trustee. Front row, from left: Jenais Carter, secretary; Alicia Jaggasar, president; Henrietta Carter, vice president; Joseph Bertrand, youth officer. Missing: Kerrylee Chee Chow, treasurer; Chevone Pierre, committee member.

The Executive of the National Parang Association 2025-27. Back row, from left: Kervin Preudhomme, assistant secretary; Shaquille Headley, committee member; Cheriese Pierre, committee member; Lisa Lee, trustee; Joanne Briggs, PRO; Yarelis Touissant, committee member; William Calliste, trustee. Front row, from left: Jenais Carter, secretary; Alicia Jaggasar, president; Henrietta Carter, vice president; Joseph Bertrand, youth officer. Missing: Kerrylee Chee Chow, treasurer; Chevone Pierre, committee member.

Jaggasar returns as National Parang president

Yesterday
Charles Town junior drummers and dancers take to the stage

Charles Town junior drummers and dancers take to the stage

Charles Town junior drummers and dancers take to the stage

Charles Town junior drummers and dancers take to the stage

Jamaican Maroons celebrate, question land rights

Yesterday