I’ve been living in Miami for… jeez, coming up on a decade now! And I like it OK. I’ve become very used to Miami’s ways — not sure if that’s a good thing, sometimes. It probably just means I drive like a total jerk and I’ve learned more incidental Spanish than the average person.

Even though it’s been nine years of living away from home, I still get a real pang for my homeland. Especially on our public holidays. Americans no offense, but y’all need to buck up on the public holiday tip. Here, I’m lucky if I get eight. Trinidad has FOURTEEN. And EVERYBODY gets them. For real, the country is more-or-less shut down today so if you’re in Trinidad, hope you bought all your groceries and party supplies already! (Don’t even get me started on job vacation days. Trinis, allyuh really have it good).

Today is the 45th anniversary of Trinidad and Tobago’s independence, and while I have to work all day in my sad cubicle, my family and friends will be maxin’ and relaxin’ all day, eating good food, and soaking up the sun. Drink a rum for me, Mom and Dad – I miss you!

If you want to know what it’s like to visit T&T, check out this cool video that literally takes you up in a plane and over some of both island’s most beautiful sights.

This video is where I want to be, on the beach, getting my toes in the water. That looks to me like Store Bay in Tobago, where you can get some of the best curry crab and dumpling you ever hope to eat. Oh my, even typing the words curry crab and dumpling made me hungry. Mmmmmm. I could go for one NOW. Or even better — Bake and Shark. OH MY GOD, bake and shark. If you’ve never had it, you have NO idea. It is so, so good.

We eat some really interesting foods in Trinidad and Tobago. Check out this Bizarre Foods documentary that shows some of the strangest. For the record, my father loves pig and chicken feet souse and he once made my then-soon-to-be husband eat it, almost as a test. And yes, I’ve eaten iguana before. It’s not my favorite of the wild meats, but it’s not terrible.

Blog buddy The Bookmann has uploaded some great YouTube vids, including an excellent Trinidad Carnival Tuesday video that shows elements of old-time mas as well as the more familiar bikinis-feathers-n-sequins variety everyone adores. That jab-jab posse looked like my kind of fun. I enjoy the getting-dirty part of Carnival.

I love how The Bookmann captured passing sounds, from the big music trucks to the slowly-moving steelpan bands. In fact, I can’t think of anything more Trini, more celebratory, more spectacular than the sounds of steel. What better way to pay homage to our independence from British rule? It occurs to me that many of my American readers have never experienced pan. It’s a magnificent thing. Being there, in the North Stand during Panorama, is something to feel. Literally. The music literally fills your body. You can’t NOT dance. It’s beyond awesome. Here’s the Trinidad All-Stars performing Soca Warriors during the finals night of Panorama, our national steel pan competition.

American readers — want to hear a more familiar song translated into steel? Click here to hear the Trinidad All-Stars play “I Wanna Love You” by Akon. Can I assume this was performed before the debacle?

Whether you’re in Trinidad and Tobago, or like me — just a Trini living “in foreign” feeling homesick and planning to celebrate in your own way later, Happy Independence Day!

Heyo! Today’s the last day to get your vote on for yours truly.

I’m nominated for THREE Black Weblog Awards — Best Culture Blog, Best Niche Blog, and Best Writing in a Blog (doesn’t that last one have an extra-special ring to it?)!

Click here to log in and vote. Voting ends today, August 31 and winners will be announced on September 5.

Thanks to you who DID vote, and thanks to you who wanted to, but couldn’t get through the process. I got a very sweet shout-out from Rachel’s Tavern on the frustrations of voting, and just yesterday, a regular reader e mailed me about the same thing — having to vote in every category takes a lot of time if you want to be for real about it and actually VISIT each blog to decide who should really win. So if you voted, tried to vote, didn’t vote but read the site all the time, it’s all love! I understand. I’m gonna keep on bringing the Afrobella goodness regardless. And now… on to your regular Friday post!

Picture this: you’re driving across the great state of Nevada towards California, marveling at the vast expanses of nothingness.

The road is empty as far as the eye can see and the vista reveals the inspiration for America the Beautiful — spacious skies, purple mountain majesties, all that good stuff.

Scattered across the arid landscape are barely-there towns in various stages of dusty erosion. There are subtle, sad signs of life in these almost-abandoned places. Water towers graffitied with the tag “tweekers rule,” and brothels tucked behind old-timey saloons.

For such a journey, you need music that’s soothing and layered, slightly hypnotic but with a rhythm that moves you forward. If you love Seventies roots reggae as much as I do, you need some Culture. Specifically, Two Sevens Clash. The seminal authentic roots album has been re-released in a cool 30th anniversary edition, and there’s a reason Rolling Stone named it one of the fifty coolest albums. It’s like Rastafarian gospel music. As Robert Christgau says, “Imagine it’s how a prophet might sound if the prophet believed in black starliners. You have to hear it to believe it.”

The album is steeped in mythology — the title is derived from Marcus Garvey’s prophecy that there would be chaos when the “sevens met” on July 7, 1977. Earlier this year NPR did a great segment on the history of the song. “Two Sevens Clash” was so gripping a song, with such a vivid message, that when the actual date came the city of Kingston was reportedly brought to a standstill.

The album begins with “I’m Alone in the Wilderness,” the perfect song for zooming across the desert. The tracks all flow so effortlessly into each other, it seems that almost every song should have been a hit in its own right. But some tunes have proven to have greater resonance and staying power than others. “Pirate Days” will always be a significant foundation tune, even moreso to students of Caribbean history who studied the Arawaks and recall the brutal slaughter of those peaceful people. The swirling harmonies of “Natty Dread Taking Over” took us past Death Valley and through sleepy Beatty. And when the road seemed too long, “See Dem a Come” took us through. That song is definitely in my top ten reggae songs of all time. The refrain never fails to uplift my spirits — Jah Jah see dem a come, but I and I a conqueror. Here, I want you to have the 12″ mix with Prince Wendy. It’s the Thursday jam, to float you through to the weekend. Hope you enjoy this as much as I do!

I found an amazing video of a studio session for the album, and it made this roots reggae lover so very happy. So here’s Culture, featuring the late, great Joseph Hill, performing Natty Dread Taking Over. I wish I had the chance to see them perform live just once before he passed away. I’ve heard amazing things, and the videos on YouTube reveal the power the group had as a live force.

Long live YouTube for this kind of thing. I just wish they had as much classic calypso and soca as they do reggae and dancehall. Here’s a shout-out to my Trini massive — let’s get some of our old videos online once and for all!

This might seem a bit off topic and random, but I gotta get into some sadness I read on the celebrity blogs today. Apparently my childhood crush, Eldra “El” DeBarge, has been arrested. And the dude is now 5′9″ and 130 pounds. He was always lean, but that’s extra lean. The mugshot is heartbreaking. Oh, El. What happened?

It seems like it was just yesterday when I was listening to Love Me in a Special Way on my little tape player, and wishing you were singing to me. And who could forget the family’s appearance on Solid Gold? Not me! (At one time, Solid Gold was totally my favorite show. I thought Madame was the funniest thing ever).

Here’s hoping El can get it together. But it doesn’t look good, TMZ is reporting that he’s being held on outstanding warrants which include vandalism, drugs, and driving with a suspended license. No bail, so he’s stuck in jail. That’s a far cry from the heady days of 1986. Man, the downfall from fame can be so vicious.

This just makes me want to curl up and listen to All This Love. Won’t you join me?

Vibe Magazine has a great, very timely story on the rise and fall of the DeBarge family. A must-read, if you ever were a fan.

My lip gloss obsession has been well documented, and I thought I was almost hitting the tipping point. I just haven’t been blown away by the selection on store shelves these days. I still browse the beauty aisle at the drug store like I always do, but no lip gloss has made me want to give it a second glance (much less purchase it) recently. Silly me — apparently I didn’t realize I’d been waiting for a new breakthrough in the world of glossy lips. Bellas, the future is now!

Lo and behold — the Rimmel Light Beam Lip Gloss. Cue a chorus of angels.

This is a sheer, tinted gloss that gives your lips a subtle spladazzle of color. The color I have, Spotlight, is a fresh and bright pink that doesn’t overwhelm. It’s just glossy and bright and I love, love, love it. AND it tastes like candy!

It’s ALL about the packaging — the gloss features a mirror and an internal super bright LED light that illuminates your lips and the tip of the lip gloss. Bust this out at the club and everyone will want to ask you about it. Seriously, every woman I’ve shown this to regresses into an excitable teenager state when they see it. “Ooh! What is that? That is SO COOL!” The next lip gloss to come out on the market will have to go the extra mile to impress me now. I’d need to see a lip gloss/penknife/wine bottle corkscrew combo next.

But a friendly word of advice — as excited as you might be, don’t try to show your man what your cool new lip gloss can do while you’re driving on the highway at night. You just might blind him and maybe you’ll get in a fight about it, and… it’s just not a good idea. Trust. You can get it for $10.99 at Ulta.

In other futuristic beauty product news… I wanted to try that new Smashbox O-Glow stuff since I read Lianne’s review on The Makeup Girl Blog. This new gel blush squeezes out clear, then reacts to your skin to give you a natural, healthy flush thanks to a Goji Berry-C Complexâ„¢. Plus it’s got antioxidants like pomegranate seed oil and marine plankton, yadda yadda yadda. But does it work?

Unwilling to shell out $26 for a blush that might not work for me — I scored a Sephora sample. It freaked me out that the stuff turned bright pink on my fingertip, but it dulled to a reddish glow on my cheeks. By the time I blended it, I could hardly tell I was wearing blush! It really blends in and gives a subtle color. But for $26? Meh. Not so much. Maybe I just tried the wrong one. Apparently, there’s O-Glows for deep/dark skin, too. I’ll keep you all posted if I come across a freebie, or an extra $30 to splurge at Sephora.

And speaking of the homegirl Lianne, to celebrate a blogging milestone — 150,000 page views! — she’s hosting a fabulous MAC Cosmetics giveaway! Enter now to win MAC’s newest collection, Blue Storm. Contest closes on Friday. Congrats, Lianne! Here’s to 150,000 more!

If you’re a regular reader, you already know that I’m crazy about Afrobellas with guitar skills, who play music outside of the limiting circles of hip hop and R&B. In the vein of my Sister Rosetta Tharpe post, I’d like to pay homage to another legendary afrobella who laid the foundation and inspired legions of artists. Odetta Holmes Felious Gordon — simply known around the world as Odetta. She’s widely considered a musical mother to Janis Joplin, Tracy Chapman, and Joan Baez. Her career as a folk music pioneer is over fifty years long and still going strong.

Born in Birmingham Alabama, Odetta’s earliest beginnings in musical theater took place when her family moved to California. After a trip to San Francisco, she discovered the folk music scene and she took to it like a duck to water. She called her wood bodied guitar “Baby,” and began performing in the early 1950’s. Her first album is called The Tin Angel, after the San Francisco cafe where she and Larry Mohr recorded and performed together from 1953 to 1954. Even in the Fifties when it wasn’t the norm, she wore her hair in an elegant afro.

The tracks on the album range from treasured gospel classics (Wade in the Waters, I’ve been ‘Buked and I’ve Been Scorned, He’s Got the Whole World in His Hands) to bluesy numbers like Another Man Don’ Gone, and Old Cotton Fields at Home.

By the late Fifties, she was performing in Greenwich Village nightspots alongside Harry Belafonte and Pete Seeger. Her 1958 album, Odetta Sings Ballads and Blues is famously credited for inspiring a young Bob Dylan to trade his electric axe for a Gibson acoustic guitar. Her influence on Dylan is recognized by Martin Scorsese in the documentary No Direction Home. This clip of her singing The Waterboy reveals her enormous voice and its operatic power, and her regal bearing. She returned Dylan’s compliment by recording Odetta Sings Dylan in 1965.

While she often sang in a deep register, Odetta’s voice also could soar like an angel. Lo, this brief clip of her crooning What a Friend We Have in Jesus with Tennessee Ernie Ford. At the heyday of folk music, Odetta was celebrated as the genre’s best. Her albums, At the Gate of Horn and Odetta Sings Folk Songs, were among 1963’s most popular folk albums.

In the early Sixties, Odetta aligned herself with the Civil Rights movement and often marched and sang alongside Dr. Martin Luther King. He called her the “Queen of American folk music.” In this phenomenal NPR interview on the occasion of her 75th birthday, she sets the scene of the movement in that era. She starts out with tales of growing up as a black girl in the Jim Crow era, setting a context for her passion and conviction. “In the Fifties, there were people who were interested in improving life’s situation in this country. And many of them heard of what my work was, and I was called upon to be of assistance — to bring either attention, or to do concerts to make money for people to do the job that they had to do …I was much too shy of a person to say anything more than “how do you do” to all those people at the top there, and just to sit at their feet and listen to what they had to say. I was always like a student, and always like someone who was looking in,” she says. Despite the strength of her voice and the power of her presence, she was always humble.

The interview continues, and Odetta explains why she hadn’t released a “Christmas style album” in forty five years. In her own words, her 2005 Christmas spiritual album, Gonna Let it Shine was inspired by the burden of history and the modern plight of children with AIDS in Africa. “This record to me, represents the determination that me and my folks had and came through within this country while this country’s foot was on our throat. We lived in spite of, we found ways to get over, around, and through – to get stuff done.” Much of Odetta’s music is political, and she wrote a song on that album, “Keep On Moving it On,” with a powerful message. I found her response about that song to be so inspiring. “Any old way you can make it, baby – keep on moving it on. That many times we feel that we can’t do much of anything. But in our own way, within our own neighborhood our own family, we can stand up for what it is we believe in.”

In the Seventies and Eighties, Odetta changed musical gears and focused on jazz and blues. Check out the range of her discography here. A great starting point is The Essential Odetta, a live album that captures her strong pipes. This really honest and interesting article reveals the writer’s original balking at Odetta’s delivery, and the albums that brought him to love her music. I agree with him — Livin’ With the Blues is a phenomenal album. If you just want to drink in her voice first before you buy an album, I encourage you to listen to this Words and Music podcast that showcases friends and contemporaries Odetta and Maya Angelou, singing and performing spoken word poetry. Odetta and Maya have been friends for years, and Maya has said “If only one could be sure that every 50 years a voice and a soul like Odetta’s would come along, the centuries would pass so quickly and painlessly we would hardly recognize time.”

Odetta’s vocal strength appears to be undiminished, as you can see in this live version of The Midnight Special. She looks as beautiful and regal as ever as she delivers this haunting and stately live version of House of the Rising Sun. At 76 years old, Odetta’s still delivering musical power. Check out this clip — filmed earlier this year — of her performing Rock Island Line.

Despite her fame in the Fifties and Sixties, having performed for presidents and celebrities and audiences all over the world, many younger people today are like “Odetta who?” Odetta’s a living legend and a national treasure. She’s a proudly natural afrobella from the beginning, who stands strong in her beliefs and beauty to this day. So if you don’t know, now you know. Congratulations, Odetta! You’re Afrobella of the week!