Barbados celebrates Jackie Opel’s life, legacy

A lunchtime celebration at Queen’s Park on Thursday honoured Jackie Opel’s far-reaching musical legacy, with performers and artists tracing the Barbadian pioneer’s influence from Bridgetown to Kingston, Jamaica, and the creation of spouge.

The tribute brought together musicians, dancers, visual artists and spoken-word performers to celebrate Opel on the 89th anniversary of his birth. The music icon was born Dalton Sinclair Bishop on August 27, 1937.

Chief Cultural Officer of the National Cultural Foundation (NCF) Andrea Wells said Opel’s influence extended beyond music and helped shape Barbados’ national identity.

“Today we celebrate the legacy of Jackie Opel, who was an artist that liberated souls through his voice, provoked imagination with his lyrics, and pushed us further in defining our national identity,” she said.

The NCF and the Prime Minister’s Office’s Division of Culture funded the Jackie Opel Residency Lab in 2025.

Wells explained that visual arts, music and dance were supported through the initiative, with residents immersing themselves in Opel’s life and even travelling to Jamaica to explore his impact there.

Two young visual artists, Safia Stoute and Starlight Talma, received support to develop bodies of work inspired by Opel, with some of their pieces featured in the exhibition.

Wells said the artists’ work highlighted aspects of Opel’s life, including his childhood, neighbourhood and rise to fame.

“Jackie is Bajan. He was from town. Nelson Street was his stomping ground—the jukeboxes, the people, the energy,” she said.

She also pointed to Opel’s contribution to Barbados’ musical development, particularly his creation of spouge.

“His return to Barbados in 1970 seems like fateful ordination. Jackie was sent back to help us transition to nationhood, and this is most evident in the creation of spouge, which is now considered the music of Barbados,” Wells said.

Musician Justin Taylor said he had long wanted to create a hip-hop project inspired by Opel because he believed the singer’s contribution was much broader than spouge.

Justin Taylor. (Photo Credit: Lauryn Escamilla)

“I always want to do a Jackie Opel hip hop album,” Taylor said, adding that he had always wanted to create a Jackie Opel concept album.

“I think that Jackie was so much more than just spouge music,” he said.

Taylor described Opel as “a top soul singer” and “really creative”, arguing that there was still much to learn about the musician.

“He was Kutton before Kutton,” Taylor said.

Reflecting on Opel’s musical ability, Taylor highlighted the song Tears Are Falling From You, saying: “Nobody else was doing that in the 60s.”

He said Opel’s experiences in Jamaica also demonstrated the extent to which his talent was recognised outside Barbados.

“Jackie was fairly big in Jamaica, recording at Studio One, noise sound system Fridays. He was a voice that was known to the people,” Taylor said.

He added that he wanted his contribution to the residency project to explore Opel’s mindset rather than focus solely on his music.

“I said I wanted to talk about the mindsets of Jackie Opel and not necessarily the spouge music, because I feel like everybody’s talking about spouge music,” he said.

Taylor performed two pieces, They Don’t Know Jackie and One More Chance, during the tribute.

Spoken-word artist Adrian Green also presented a piece inspired by Opel’s life, while Desmond Weekes performed a new spouge song, I’ve Got a Mobaton of Love For You. Artist Safia Stoute also spoke about her artwork displayed in the gallery.

Adrian Green. (Photo Credit: Lauryn Escamilla)

Desmond Weekes. (Photo Credit: Lauryn Escamilla)

Dancer and choreographer Keisha Dowridge contributed a dance tribute entitled Wharf Boy, performed by Naiobi Rudder. The piece represented Opel’s practice of diving for coins at the Wharf.

Dancer Naiobi Rudder. (Photo Credit: Lauryn Escamilla)

Dancers from the Mark Burgess Dance Academy performed to spouge music following each tribute.

Wells said Opel’s influence continued to reach beyond Barbados.

“Jackie Opel has left a legacy that stretches far beyond the shores of Barbados, one that we are proud of as Barbadians and Caribbean people,” she said.

Also in attendance were Opel’s daughter, his three grandchildren and his great-grandchildren.

The family of the late Jackie Opel. (Photo Credit: Lauryn Escamilla)

The Queen’s Park event also featured the Rewind exhibition, sponsored by the Central Bank of Barbados as part of the NCF’s Emancipation Exhibition series, Push, Pause, and Rewind.

The celebrations were set to continue on Thursday night at CARIFESTA House, where the NCF was scheduled to host Jackie Opel Night. 

(LE)