By Janet Silvera, Freelance WriterWESTERN BUREAU:
REVELLERS HAD built-in fireworks and Byron Lee and the Dragonaires had the right voltage to temper any sparks at Montego Bay's Sunset Beach Resort New Year's Eve Soca Madness Jump Up Party.
An 'Arabian Night' stage, 20' x 30' and eight feet high, sat in the middle of the swimming pool. The lobby was transformed into a dining room and a sumptuous gala dinner buffet set the stage for the celebration.
And, as the clock heralded 2003, lovers kissed as if they were competing in a marathon, friends, strangers hugged (it never mattered), laughter rang out, dancing reached fever pitch, champagne corks popped and the Byron Lee posse 'got on bad'.
Across from the Sunset Beach, Cheryl Atkinson and friends had the attention of the rest of the friendly city as their spectacular midnight fireworks display spewed a kaleidoscope of colours into the air from the oceanfront Montego Bay Yatch Club.
At 1:00 a.m., it was time to pay a doctor's visit to Reuel and Janet Madden's home for the ONLY house party on my list. This family is known to throw a good party, so you can imagine the anticipation as I drove to their home in Mango Walk.
Simply dubbed, 'Just Us', it was refreshing and overly heartening to see a non-commercial party in swing. It was a pleasure to see the many familiar faces, that I hadn't seen in a 'Months of Sundays' such as Calvin G Brown and wife, Suzanne; Rose Skinner; Peter Pitter; Emmy and George Duncan, partying with Kingstonians Carl Miller, Colin Hamilton and David Beckford all having a great time.
A glass of red wine and the taste buds tingling from escoveitched fish later, it was time to pay tribute to Sonny Ranking's 10th Anniversary Total Togetherness Ball at the Caribbean Showplace.
There was nothing common, usual or simple about
this party. The first signal of the entrance requisite was displayed by the forest green Jaguar at the entrance, accompanied by a number of Lexus, Pajeros, BMWs, Rav4s, Escalades and Mercedes Benz lining the
driveway.
Within the venue was even more glitzy, as Dom Perignon at $10,000 per bottle; Cristal at $15,000; Moet and Chandon at $4,500 and 'Pagnes' Kraemer, Muscador, Veuve, Asti, Brut Master and Alize flowed as if there were no tomorrow. The expensive gowns and the suits lived up to the vehicles, the beverages and the musical vibrations from DJ Lippo and the Pure Playazz crew.
By 2:30 a.m., when I saw Metty Scarlett-Jones; Superintendent Jasmin Tomlinson-Brown, dressed to the nines with police radio in her hands, in tow with Shereidah Wilson departing the lobby of the Wyndham Rose Hall, I knew I had missed a great party. Bare Essentials and Fab Five had made their annual invasion of the 480-room hotel and I had missed it. However, Clayton Morgan on crutches, Fred Smith, Joe Hylton, Craig Martin and Janice Meaney admitted to having the time of their lives.
At 3:30 a.m. Margaritaville was still hot. Patrons jammed to Renaissance and the vibes was a mellow one. The life had moved from all other venues to the 'Hip Strip', the neighbouring Brewery had ignited with excitement from the selections of FAME FM's Kirk Riley, the dance floor seemed punished by a stomping and kicking large crowd having a whale of a time.
However, by 4:15 a.m., while patrons hoped to rock to the break of dawn, their hopes were shattered by the police who came to wish them a wonderful New Year and turned the music off. And I can tell you, Montego Bay's finest were not impressed!
