HE LEAD ME – PAMELA MAYNARD
TOO SOON TOO SOON MISS PAM
By: Ewalt Ainsworth 11 28 2012
All over the Diaspora and wherever there are nice somber and sober party party-people the discussion.. the topic as distinct from the gossip is about the lifting-up of Miss Pam. Pamela Maynard songstress, fashioniesta, mother, student’s companion, song bird and soul sister has moved on up. There are no replacements in the reserve box and Guyanese are tearing up; too soon too soon.
Slightly older than her secret admirers…Miss Pam had an electronic fence around her. She had a wooey-wooey voice and a gluey-gluey aura and a let’s-get-it-on persona. She always had a script of excellence and tolerance and as a performer; she knew how to misbehave well; inducing labor and caliber when warm bodies collide. Some of you will remember songs LIKE…GROOVE ME BABY AND Etta James. I WOULD RATHER GO BLIND and MISTY BLUE by Boris Gardener. Miss Pam’s treatment still lingers in this old-head.
The girl coulda sing. And sometimes when she sang parties were transformed into revival meetings. There used to be wall-to-wall adults only standing room and the bar-man refusing to budge because Miss Pam has him bassody with her slight and wicked melody. Too soon; Too soon is the trajectory, hue and cry.
This writer’s first taste of her ever-present presence and effervescence was way back in the era when Guyana achieved Republican status (February 23, 1970). There was a Sunday nite mass and bash at Dr Frank Williams’ residence and Mac-mansion at Cove and John (now owned by KING SOLOMON). There were two bands…Dominators with Monty Douglas and Aubrey Cummings. Sid and the Slickers featuring a trumpeter named BF Goodrich and vocalist Lee Lewis. Flantis on alto-sax and Pamela Maynard controlled both microphones in both bands and both dance floors.
Most of the songs Miss Pam and Monty combined were taken from the Dobbie Dobson album…sweet dreams and they called all the women by first name. Sherry, Muriel, Donna et al.
From that time unto this time, every party organizer and socialite in the region sought out Pamela for her ability to get party-people to rent-a- tile.
Pamela at one stage had groupies. Grown-ass men and women who would take special hires and submit at her feet as she stood-her-ground and mastered the fine art of a fine wine. Talk half, leff half.
Pamela also reversed the trend by following her admirers to the cold climes of London, New York and Toronto. Her demise is simply too soon…too soon. Her songs, her gracefulness had an aura. WE MISS YOU MISS PAM.
THESE SONGS WILL LAST FOREVFER.
