Abstract Entertainment Incorporated
Life Time Achievement Awards

The Abstract Life Time Achievement Award recognizes individuals for their contributions that have assisted in the development or perhaps revolutionized a particular movement in some way, shape or form.

2007 Life Time Achievement Award Recipient - Mr. Neville Jules  *  Click To Listen 

NEVILLE JULES was born on May 21, 1927 at No. 3 Richardson Lane, East Dry River, Port of Spain, Trinidad.  As a teenager living in Mango Rose, he would stand and gaze at the big guys in HELL YARD, from across the bridge until, eventually, he joined the ranks of the HELL YARD band known at the time as “2^nd fiddle”.  The band later moved up Charlotte Street into Fisheye’s yard and was then called “Cross of Lorraine”.  With his natural musical gift, he started arranging, tuning and making pans and became the Captain of this pan side whose name was later changed to TRINIDAD ALL STARS.  He molded this band into a respected and much admired  institution. 

NEVILLE JULES is a pan pioneer and innovator of yesteryear.  Some of his innovations are admirably remembered in that he was the first to place rubber on pan sticks and to use 2 sticks to play with.  He tuned the biscuit drum, put notes on it and called it the tune boom.  He created the Guitar and the Grundig pans.  Later he introduced the Bass pan to replace the tune boom.

As an Arranger he is responsible for the J'OVert “tune boom” tune, which he practiced in the Garrett with his players who played with their fingers because of the musicals wars with the bands from the West, e.g:, Crossfire, Invaders, North Stars, Tripoli and others.  Some of his first boom tunes were Skokian, ElMerengue, Minuet in G and Tammy, in that order.  He took his band, Trinidad All Stars to the first Music Festival in 1952 and placed 3^rd with “The Dream Of Aldwyn”, and he, himself, played a Ping Pong Solo, placing 2^nd with  Bless This House.  In 1954, he again led his band to the 2^nd Music Festival with “LaMer”, placing 2^ND.

As Captain, Tuner & Arranger of Trinidad All Stars, he was greatly admired for his musical ability and other contributions and most of all the strict discipline which he seriously advocated and which had to be adhered to.  Mr. Jules migrated to the United States in 1971.  He still dabbles in arranging for the band and arranged and won the Bomb Competition in Trinidad Carnival this year, 2007.
 

2006 Life Time Achievement Award Recipient - Mr. Patrick Thomas  *  Click To Listen 

In the early years of Steelband, musicians would typically walk with their instruments harnessed around their necks.  These instruments constructed from abandoned oil drums were relatively heavy.  Large Steelband orchestras typically consisting of a 100+ musicians performing concurrently, would mount their instruments onto stands to relieve the weight burden.  However, these arrangements did not allow for the mobility that was to come.  Moving an entire band encompassing stands was very cumbersome and difficult. 

In 1952, Patrick Thomas constructed a 'swivel' wheel that was attached to the base of the stands which enabled the stands to become mobile.  At today's age of 71, Patrick Thomas continues his innovations and claims to have an invention that will once again contribute to the evolution of the Steel Pan movement.

Thus Abstract Entertainment Inc. recognizes Patrick Thomas for his life time contribution to the Steel Pan Movement.

2004 Life Time Achievement Award Recipient - Jack 'Cobo' Railey  *  Click To Listen 

Entertainment Life Time Achievement Award  Recipient Emmanuel Jack Riley, steel pan soloist extraordinaire, master pan craftsman and renowned pan tuner will be honored at the Father’s Day show called An Acoustic Revolution - Steel Pan Jazz at Lincoln Center’s Alice Tully Hall, for pioneering the art of improvisational jazz playing and contributions to the steelpan art-form....Mr. Riley, a self-taught musician, is one of the greatest players to ever grace the pan instrument. At an early age Riley quickly distinguished  himself as a player with exceptional improvising skills. Indeed, Emmanuel took the art form to new heights with the merger of his American jazz styling and Caribbean roots approach to soloing. Mr. Riley is acknowledged as one of the most influential players on the current generation of steelpan player superstars, which include Len "Boogsie" Sharpe and Robert Greenidge. Emmanuel Riley, now based in New York, is one of the steelpan instrument's true living legends - Mr. Riley is one of the  best of a special generation of young people who were both great players and master instrument makers. Mr. Riley's steelpan feats have already been immortalized in song and the folkways of pan. 

As an integral member of the steelband culture and movement, Jack Riley wears at least three hats. He creates the pan instrument from discarded 55-gallon steel drums – then does the hammering, sinking, physical shaping and molding of the drums into divisions to emit musical notes - all by hand, thereby fashioning the initial instrument into its primary phase. Tuning is another subsequent step which requires skill and attention to detail, as exhorting from a steel drum in basically its primordial form, harmonious and melodious sounds - was not ever the original use intended for the steel container. Jack as a great improvisational Steelpan player and renowned soloist, has the rare distinction of one who may truly be hailed as "Master" of the Steelpan.