I Will Play Again: Unfulfilled Music Dreams

By George Howard Newton

The story reveals a musician whose father was a Nevisian and his mother a Puerto Rican. By ten, Henry played the piano; and later, he attended the Free School of Music Academy in Puerto Rico. He founded the Sunstones, a band of teenaged players, and was later contracted as the bassist in Reggie Ashby Quartet. Driven to attain a big name for himself, he relocated to Miami. He composed over thirty songs, yet he never realized his dream. To support his family, he established an interior decorating business, and his music became a side hustle. In his late fifties, he contracted cancer, which overwhelmed him, and brought much pain to him and his family. His passion and love for music and his wife were unmatched. In his hopelessness, that love affair was the main constant in his life that led him to believe, "I will play again."

• Language: English
• Publisher: Christian Faith Publishing, Inc.
• Release date: Mar 12, 2020
• ISBN: 9781098017897

Book preview

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I Will Play Again

Unfulfilled Music Dreams

George Howard Newton

Copyright © 2019 by George Howard Newton

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods without the prior written permission of the publisher. For permission requests, solicit the publisher via the address below.

Christian Faith Publishing, Inc.

832 Park Avenue

Meadville, PA 16335

www.christianfaithpublishing.com

Printed in the United States of America

Table of Contents

A Seed Is Sown

Humble Beginnings

The Borinquena Transition

Music and the Academy

Music on My Mind

Love and Music

Miami with a Mission

My Pastime

The Bass Connection

The Music I Played

Making It Big

Disaster Strikes

Little High Priest

I Chose to Play Again

Today Is the Day

To Milagros, Cynthia, Madeline, and George.

Foreword

Growing up in an island community in the U.S. Virgin Islands, music was an important part of our daily living for our family and many local families and friends. We were always invited to anniversaries, celebrations, weddings, birthday parties, and many other island occasions. Of course, music was a natural part of it all. Whether it was Milo and the Kings, the LaMotta Brothers, Jeppesen’s Band of Renown, and many, many more, music was there for all to enjoy and savor the moment to listen, or to move. We enjoyed, and honored and paid special tribute to those who were gifted musicians who could just give of their gifts and talents on a whim, on a grand stage, at any time, place, or for anyone!

Dr. George Newton—principal, educator, writer—in this very special, loving, and unique treatise about his brother Henry, lays down the important need that musicians have for their craft, for the field of music, and for their special gift. It calls out to them from within and provides the nucleus with which they operate. Most importantly, even if they know they need to rest for a while, they can never give it up. It is an intrinsic part of their being.

What is so relevant about this book is that we all know someone within our family who was also a gifted musician of the time, and who couldn’t even stop the illness, the abuse, the rampant movement from place to place, until their bodies finally gave (caved) in. And so many of them played beautiful music of the time, had gifted ears, musicianship, and harmonization skills that would make them millionaires today. However, they were not about the money. They were about the music! This is what comes out in this book about Henry! His music was his life, his heart, his everything, to the disadvantage of his family at times.

In the end, we are all closely connected to this brother, for the humanistic content that Dr. Newton so lovingly displays in the content, the musical material, and the friendships and family we all relate to. Enjoy this good read!

Sincerely,

Lois Hassell-Habtes, PhD

Music Instructor

University of the Virgin Islands

No. 2 John Brewers Bay

St. Thomas, Virgin Islands

Preface

Igrew up in Nevis, a small eastern Caribbean island. My brother Henry was eight years younger. He was privileged to be raised in that huge and fast-paced metropolis of Chicago. Geographically, we resided over a thousand miles apart. However, our father fostered between us a lasting sibling bond by utilizing the mail and photographs.

It was no coincidence that Henry posed in a feathered and colorful American Indian outfit for Christmas. Meanwhile, my outfit in Nevis depicted a flashy Western cowboy.

Basically, I was motivated by this special bond. Upon his early passing, I promised Henry never to let his music dream die a sudden death. Of course, his passion was to make it big in the music business. I am no musician. I couldn’t promote his music ambition. I decided willingly to share his story in writing.

I confess that I have no measurable music skills. Aunt Georgette Pinney Browne graciously offered to finance piano lessons for me. But I foolishly reneged on her generosity. I suspected that, at the precarious pre-adolescent age, I succumbed to an imaginary peer pressure.

I envisioned myself strolling sheepishly to a music lesson. Then those narrow-minded village boys would tease me, carrying the music book to practice under Teacher Iona Browne. As a result, my masculinity was under attack and I became their laughing stock.

However, I experienced an epiphany in college. My friend and countryman, Ronald Liburd, played the keyboard with great facility for students’ enjoyment. Immediately, I experienced a flashback. I became haunted by my inability to finger a single note. Ironically, I chose a wife, Rosanna (Bernice), who plays for various church audiences. In hindsight, our marital relationship compensated for my past and immature misgivings.

Yes, there are still occasions when I reminisce and experience a residual guilty feeling. I often think much like the Monday-morning quarterback. The many years I’ve spent to develop and establish a promising tennis career could well have been utilized to grow my own music ability.

My brother Henry’s life is a story of rejection and approval, triumphs and trials, disappointments and success, living and dying. It is from this backdrop that I have Henry tell his story in I Will Play Again.

The earth has music for those who would listen.

—William Shakespeare

Acknowledgments

My sister-in-law Milagros didn’t want my brother’s music accomplishments to be forgotten. That sparked my interest to write his story. Obviously, I depended on my nieces and nephews to share with me the inner scoop about their father.

My siblings were especially helpful in detailing Henry’s upbringing in Puerto Rico. Lorna’s written account was extremely useful. I managed to reenact life as he was growing up in Chicago. I thank them dearly.

Dr. Sydney Sadio, my countryman and friend, spent valuable time helping me to improve the manuscript. Musicians like Louis Taylor, Wayne Samuel, James Pemberton, and Denton Johnson have all been so helpful to educate me in the beauty and pitfalls of professional music. Dr. Ronda Herbert offered the much-needed