Baha Men Barking Their Way to the Top
By Felicia Persaud

Trinidad and Tobago in the early 1990s. Soca sensation Anslem Douglas made "Who Let The Dogs Out," an instant hit at that island's carnival. Soon the song spread like wild fire to other Caribbean island including the Bahamas.
Fast forward to the year 2000. Add a few more "barks" and some rap lyrics and we have a platinum-hit that's crossing racial, class, religious and other barriers among young people in the United States. Except, it's not Douglas at the helm of this musical revolution. It's the Bahamian-all male band calling themselves "The Baha Men." Got it, Bahamas -men, Baha Men!
You can't escape the song even if you try. It has been given round-the-clock air play on popular radio stations like Z100 in New York and nationwide in Chicago, Philaldelphia and Los Angeles; and school kids sing it on buses and subways. But that's not all. These Nassau-born musicians are performing on all the major stages. The Baha Men have so far performed live on the Regis & Kathie Lee show; at a huge summer concert in Central Park as part of the Summerstage concert series, in Seattle, in Philadephia and at Giants Stadium where they played the national anthem. And, of course, it just recently won the prestigious 2001 Grammy award in the Best Dance Recording category.
"Who Let The Dogs Out,'' is an infectious pop song with a distinctive island flavor, yet it has catapulted on the charts, surprising band members and music industry professionals alike. It instantly became the #1 most-requested song on Z100 radio with sales in the Top 10 at Manhattan record stores. It was the highest debuting single on Billboard's Hot 100 chart, and appeared on the "Rugrats In Paris," soundtrack. The record is the first release from the newly formed record label, S-Curve Records, founded by music industry veteran Steve Greenberg (perhaps best known for discovering the pop group Hanson).
The rest of the country rapidly followed New York's lead -- the single is already a top-requested song at radio stations in major cities throughout the US, blasting airwaves from Harvard Square to Hawaii. The Seattle Mariners picked it as the team's theme song for the season. And the canine chorus resounded at a recent US Olympic basketball game and home games of the Buffalo Bills and Green Bay Packers football teams. It was certainly the biggest hit of last summer, catapulting the group into instant stardom.
Even the group is amazed at the overwhelming response and success. As Colin Grant, co-founder and drummer of the band tells it, it was the last song they expected to be a hit. Grant remembers it was the last song brought to the group during recording sessions of the album in Miami. "We thought 'You All That,' and the ballad 'Where Did I Go Wrong?' were going to make it, but never 'Who Let The Dogs Out,'" Grant said in a recent interview. But it has been a pleasant surprise indeed. "It's feels good after paying our dues and being in the trenches for so long. Finally, we're reaping the rewards," Grant said.
It is obvious that their recent success has not gone to their heads. They seem to be still awed by their blessing and very thankful. Grant, who describes himself as spiritual and philosophical, says it was all about timing. "Nothing before its time," he added. Yet Grant reminisced briefly of time the band spent almost a year without working or of the times they believed in a song yet it never made it.
He attributes their recent success on the current atmosphere internationally where the word "dog" has become an "in thing," in the dictionary of the vernacular. "Women call men 'dogs' while some guys call each other 'my dog,' so it was just perfect timing," Grant added.
But who are The Baha Men? They've been called the Beatles of the Bahamas - having taken their basic Junkanoo sound into unexplored corners of the world including Japan where they've had several hits. Not that you'd want a steady diet of the unusual Junkanoo style that taps pop, R&B, reggae, ska, along with a steady West African rhythms. But now that the B-Men are peppering their basic sound with hip-hop riffs, they've got some tunes that are pertinent and contemporary and "Who Let The Dog's Out," is definitely numero uno. The group has been around for more than 20 years and are cultural icons on their island nation.
The thrill of being in the band is best described by 22-year old newcomer Marvin Prosper whose joyous speed raps are featured on the title track "Who Let the Dogs Out." When Prosper was selected to join the band he said it was like "an American kid getting picked to play baseball for the New York Yankees." The album, though, is far from perfect. New and old aren't totally integrated, so the disc sounds uneven. But the Baha Men's strength lies in their upbeat modern musical mutants that are exotic, sensual and totally unique - even in the Caribbean. Seventy percent of the lyrics was written by the group which comprises of Grant; Taylor, the other co-founder and band leader; Hershela Small on guitars and keyboards; Jeffrey Che, also on keyboards; Anthony "Monks" Flowers, the percussionist; Patrick Carey, Sr., on guitar; and singers, Prosper, Omerritt Heild; and Ric Carey, Patrick's son. As Grant says, it's a mixture of the experienced and the young and talented - old and new.
The Junkanoo sound is prominent in both the current album and past albums. It is the Baha Men's signature; an infectious blend of dance music and West African rhythms dominated by booming goatskin drums (which are played only while a fire burns inside them), cowbells, whistles and horns. A musical innovator, band leader Taylor worked for years to update that sound by adding keyboards, bass and guitar. The result is the fiery mix of percussion and melody that the Islands are known for.
Junkanoo has its origins in the days of slavery when Africans were given one "day off" to "eat, drink and be merry. On those nights there would be dancing in the streets and celebrating until the next day. The name "Junkanoo" comes from a rebel slave named John Canoe, who led a revolt using African rhythms as a rallying cry. Street festivals honoring John Canoe and the Junkanoo tradition have endured in the Bahamas to this day.
In 1978, Taylor apparently began to explore the sounds of Junkanoo and to fuse those melodies with modern dance rhythms, pop inflections and Latin percussion, creating a sound that took the Bahamas, the rest of the Caribbean, and Japan by storm. Lenny Kravitz, (who's mother is Bahamian) is a big fan of the Baha Men, and predicted last year that it was only a matter of time before Junkanoo wins the heart of American audiences. And finally it seems to have done so.
Their previous releases include "I Like What I Like", which was produced by an impressive crew of musicians/producers, namely Tommy D (Michael Jackson, A Tribe Called Quest), Don Dubose (Tony Rich), and John Holliday and Trevor Steele (The Escape Club) who co-wrote five songs with the band. Each producer was able to tease different elements out of the music, making the whole album a wonderfully intricate blend of styles. Along with the producers, members of the Baha Men's nine-member band also brought a variety of musical tastes to the studio. Unfortunately it was never released in the U.S. and Grant says he feels enough marketing muscle was not ploughed into it.
Yet their music has a distinct American or international feel. "That's The Way," their first single, has an irresistable melody of hits from K.C. and the Sunshine Band. In addition to the disco and pop, each song has a dash of Junkanoo, yet it's identity remains intact.
In fact on a vist to their homeland, the band, which was given a tumultous welcome, vowed to promote the Junkanoo culture throughout the world. Group leader, Taylor noted that while the group was on tour with N'Sync, the American group performed the song "Just Got Paid," which was written by a Bahamian and originally sung by Bahamian Johnny Kemp.
"The point is no-one cares who wrote the song. All they know is that they like the song," said Taylor.
For the Baha Men, however, the big question remains: will they be a one song craze like the Spanish duo who rocked the world with "Macarena" and then disappeared from the scene? For now, with their tour dates for this year already booked and their album set to be released in Europe Baha Men should be around for a while more.