Rest in Peace and thank you for your contribution
Introduction
There is a lot of people in the Turks and Caicos Islands with great musical talents. They may not be well known throughout the world but one thing I know is if some of our local musicians were in the same room with some of these international musicians, our local musicians would outshine them.
On Friday, July 19, 2024, one of Turks and Caicos finest music legends die. His name was William Seymour and so this article is about his contribution to the music industry in the Turks and Caicos Islands.
Who is William Seymour?
On the island of South Caicos on June 6th, 1958, my uncle Noel Seymour and my aunt Anna became the parents to their second child whom they name William Nathaneil Seymour. William was named after his grandfather.
William graduated from Pierson High School in 1977. He was passionate about music from a very early age and that became a part of him for most of his life. He was a natural leader and ultimately leading several band groups in the Turks and Caicos.
William also won the love and hearts of many women which resulted in becoming a father to nine children.
How did his music career start?
His music career started with him playing under a tamarind tree located in his parents’ yard. He along with one of our cousins, Leon Seymour, made drum sets from pots and pans. He made guitar from wood and nylon. William’s father taught him how to play a guitar and in so doing, William became a lead guitarist and a base guitarist.
William’s talent became well known on the island of South Caicos and he was invited by Lu Clare and Tabby Wilson to join their band group and started calling themselves the BGs. Lu was the lead guitarist; Tabby was the drummer and Willima was the base guitarist. The group used to play frequently at the Old School. Churches also invited them to play. They also played in Grand Turk frequently. The BGs group eventually broke up.
However, Willam did not let the breakup stop him from his love for music. He formed a group called Crum and Gang comprising of himself, Penryn Brooks, Leon Seymour and Tabby Wilson. After the movies, they played every weekend at Lloyd Stubbs Place (Cat & Fiddle). They soon started putting on their own shows at the Old School, Cassidy Heights (Oswald Jennings’ place) and Sir Hugh (Dan Malcolm’s place)
They were the musical entertainers and became very popular and were invited to play throughout the Turks and Caicos Islands. They travelled to Grand Turk on the Sea Horse, and they travelled to Providencales on Mr. Ed Hegner’s plane.
The group broke up and later Cease Fire (another band group) was formed. Cease Fire is comprised of William Seymour, Dennis Penn, Edwin Lightbourn and Winston Jennings.
A singer and a song writer
William was not only a guitarist, but he was also a great singer and song writer. He wrote many songs, which were based on real life events. Some of these songs were
- Bombing up in Baghdad
- Rita scared of the needle
- Fishing
- Sandboard
- Uncle Kayle
- L love TC Islands Women
- Banana
I think the Banana song may be one of his most popular songs even being played in the Bahamas. It came from a Spanish song and William rewrote it with his own words and it left many of us up to our own imagination and interpretation.
Playing International
Cease Fire got a contract in 1992 to play on the SS Ocean Breeze Cruise Ship. The group played for four months and was very popular on the cruise ship.
Help from the community
While they did provide entertainment to the people of South Caicos, they were not getting paid too much. However, the instruments were provided by some of the great people in South Caicos such as Mrs. Annie Wilson, Hon. Norman Saunders and Hon. Alden Durham. This was to ensure that they continue with their music.
Conclusion
I remember growing up, Crum and the Gang would play anywhere and anytime, and they attracted people to their events. I recalled the group even playing in our foul coop. William was indeed an icon and a legend in the music industry in the Turks and Caicos. He loved that “pink” guitar.
Finally, I want to thank Thea Malcolm, Nisha Seymour, Penryn Brooks, Lu Clare, Lee Seymour and Winston Jennings for providing me with this invaluable information about William.
May his soul rest in peace!