By OSWALD T. BROWN
WASHINGTON, D.C., May 18, 2021—I have been in a troubling state of depression most of the day because of some serious financial problems that could result in me being evicted. Indeed, it is now painfully evident that I shall be evicted unless I can make a substantial payment on the back rent that I owe before June 1, the date the D.C Superior Court Landlord/Tenant Court Judge set in his ruling on Wednesday, March 17, in favour of my landlord for me to pay the back rent that I owe.
I have made several humiliating public appeals for financial assistance from friends in The Bahamas for financial assistance, but it is now obvious that I do not have as many friends in The Bahamas as I thought I did, because the responses to my appeal have been very disappointing, so much so that I was supposed to make a substantial payment of the back rent that I owe by May 15 and I was unable to meet that deadline.
I clearly would not be in the position I am in if Minister of Foreign Affairs Darren A. Henfield had implement a proposal I submitted almost three years ago to continue doing on a contractual basis what I did at the Embassy for four-plus years as Press, Cultural Affairs and Information Manager before the FNM became the government in May of 2017.
I was informed by Ambassador Sidney Collie that a revised proposal for $2,000 a month had been approved and this was subsequently confirmed by Attorney General Carl Bethel, yet Mr. Henfield has refused to implement if for what I believe to be reasons that I shall address in another article later this week. For the time being, however, I have put my problems in storage while I watch my beloved Washington Nationals play the Chicago Cubs.
Actually, my problems were put in storage well before the game started after I saw a post by Wendy Munnings, wife of Raphael “Ray” Munnings, commenting on the death of my very dear fiend from boyhood years, Sir Charles Carter. The post included a classic photo with the following caption: “1973 Sir Charles Carter, Sleep on Dream on. RIP, A Bahamian Pioneer who help launch the legacy of THE BEGINNING OF END, THE YOUNG BAHAMIAN SHOW AND THE LION’S DEN. Photo: Leroy Munnings, Sir Charles Carter, Raphael Munnings,not seen Frank Munnings and Peter Humes.”
While doing some research on the Internet for an article that I planned to write on Wendy’s post, I ran across a comprehensive article on The Beginning of the End, the group led by Ray Munnings, that recorded the internationally acclaimed hit FUNKY NASSAU in 1971. Consequently, I started listening to the video that accompanied that article, and it proved to be very therapeutic as I listened to it, and I almost instantly got in better mood. Here’s that article:
FUNKY NASSAU debuted on the Billboard 100 chart #94, Peaked #15, and stayed on for 14 Weeks
The Beginning of the End released an album entitled Funky Nassau in 1971 on Alston Records (a subsidiary of Atlantic Records), and the track “Funky Nassau – Part I” became a hit single in the U.S., peaking at #15 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, and #7 on the Billboard Black Singles chart. The same track reached #31 in the UK Singles Chart in March 1974.
The Beginning of the End was a group from The Bahamas that consisted of three brothers, Raphael, Leroy & Frank Munnings and a fourth member on bass Fred Henfield. Their only hit “Funky Nassau” on Billboard’s Hot 100 was a lyrical ode to their home city. From its Junkanoo beat to its island brass parts mixed with American funk, its description of “mini-skirts, maxi-skirts and Afro hairdos,” the song extolled the virtues of the group’s Bahamian base.
A surprise hit, it reached the top 15 on both the pop and R&B charts. It was a success for Henry Stone during his days at Atlantic Records, and the money he earned helped him start up TK Records in Miami which introduced KC & The Sunshine Band shortly thereafter.
Raphael (Ray) Munnings ‘It Could Happen To You’
Bahamian singer and keyboard player, Ray Munnings, recorded two LPs with The Beginning Of The End (a group which included two other Munnings brothers) in the 1970s. They will always be best remembered for their 1971 hit, ‘Funky Nassau’, which brought them international recognition.
Munnings would remake ‘Funky Nassau’ in 1979, at which time he also recorded some new material under the auspices of Dwight Brewster, Stan Lucas and Kenny Lehman. Of the sides he cut that year, the first to hit the streets was the classy, mid-tempo disco-soul of ‘It Could Happen To You’. The singles were on limited release on both sides of the Atlantic and have consequently been collectors’ items since the ’80s.
The year was 1969, and Nassau was in for the wave of this energetic young band called Beginning Of The End. The band, according to lead singer Raphael, was quite a unique group inasmuch as it was heavily influenced by the pop culture that was very vibrant in the United States.
The flower power movement and the hippie generation gravitated towards artists like Marvin Gaye, Impressions, Jerry Butler, and Jimmy Hendrix. Hard rock, rhythm ‘n’ blues, funk, jazz, and of course the Latin music that was heard over the airwaves from Cuba went into one big melting pot that helped in creating Nassau’s newest sound.
The members made a decision to quit their jobs and rehearse for six months in order to make this band a success. With the influence of Freddie Munnings Sr. who ran an extremely successful nightclub, “The Cat and Fiddle”, the Munnings brothers along with Fred Henfield had ample opportunity to perform with and hear the many foreign acts that appeared at the club. Among them were Nat King Cole, Count Basie, Flip Wilson and just about any major star of the 50’s and 60’s entertainment era.
These young musicians took full advantage and learnt the many styles that graced the stage of “The Cat and Fiddle”. The members of the band were Fred Henfield on bass guitar; Leroy Munnings, lead guitar; Frank Munnings, drums; and the youngest member Raphael Munnings, vocals and keyboards. Together they came up with the music of “Funky Nassau,” which sold over a million copies worldwide. Assisting with the lyrics was Tyrone Fitzgerald, “Dr. Offfff”, who died in 2003. Tyrone was to become a leading innovative junkanoo icon in the Bahamas.
After months of experimenting with various fusions, the band was ready to present their brand of Bahamian music. In addition to the rhythm section, the band used a few horn players that contributed to the sound of the group. Those musicians were: Neville Sampson, Vernon Mueller, Kenneth Lane and two other relatives, Ralph Munnings and Freddie Munnings Sr.
Click on the following link for the video of FUNKY NASSAU that accompanied this article: https://youtu.be/PWIzEbBHgd0
