Friends say Clifton Glasgow loved his guitar and his guitar loved him and the two could not be parted, not even in death.
Glasgow’s beloved instrument was also sealed yesterday in the casket in which his body was interred, and people attending the funeral service at St Patrick’s Roman Catholic Cathedral could only reminisce as favourite selections from the maestro’s CD echoed through the sanctuary.
So impactful was the late musician’s contribution over many decades that Monsignor Vincent Blackett was moved to once again call for a hall of fame for people like Glasgow “who have contributed”.
“I think the time has long passed when a place like Barbados should have a hall of fame,” Blackett said as he implored Minister of Tourism Richard Sealy, sitting in a front pew, to “do your part” to make it a reality.
Glasgow died after being involved in an accident nearly two weeks ago, a death described by the monsignor as “tragic and inhuman”.
Several of the entertainers who once shared the island’s musical stage with Glasgow teamed up to give a fitting musical sendoff. They represented the crème de la crème of Barbados’ musicians from a grand old era of music on the island.
Charlie Austin from the defunct Charlie And The Cyclones strummed Oh My Papa; Mike Sealy, on lead guitar, teamed up with Cecil Bascombe on bass and Winston Green on rhythm guitar to play old standards; Gabby sang a touching ballad accompanied by Ricky Aimey and Glasgow’s son Linus Yaw, while Smokey Burke shone with his rendition of The Impossible Dream.
In a solo performance Yaw’s fingers strummed haunting notes in his own inimitable style as he bade farewell to his father, the teacher from whom he learnt the art of guitar-playing.
Eulogist Jeffrey Cobham took the congregation back to the early days of the St Lucian-born Glasgow, who came to Barbados and established himself as a musician of note. He remembered that “it was Clifton who first introduced the idea of the guitar as a principal lead instrument to the southern Caribbean”.
Glasgow’s prowess on the guitar caught the attention of the rich and famous, with names like Mantovani and Frank Sinatra appearing in the treasured collection of celebrities for whom he was privileged to play at Sandy Lane Hotel, where he entertained for over 20 years.
Also paying tribute was Stephen Fields, whose voice broke, giving way to tears as he said goodbye to a fellow musician and long-standing friend.
Glasgow, 81, was interred at Coral Ridge Memorial Gardens.
