David Michael Rudder (b. 6 May 1953, Belmont, Trinidad and Tobago) is one of the top calypsonians of his generation. In 1977 he joined Charlie's Roots, one of the top bands in Trinidad and Tobago. He spent many years as one of the vocalists with the band. In 1986 he burst into prominence with his album The Hammer which produced two big hits, The Hammer (a tribute to the late pannist Rudolph Charles) and Bahia Girl. This was followed in 1987 with Calypso Music, a brilliant encapsulation of the history of calypso. In 1988 Rudder released his best album to date, Haiti which included the title track, a tribute to the glory and suffering of Haiti, Engine Room, which captures the energy of the steelband, and Rally 'Round the West Indies which has become the anthem of West Indies cricket.
David was born in Belmont, Trinidad on May 6, 1953. One of nine children, he spent much of his early childhood with his grandmother, a spiritual Baptist, growing up near a pan yard and a Shango yard, in a neighbourhood where boys dreamed of being entertainers. He has been baptized three times: as a Baptist by his grandmother, as an Anglican by his mother and as a Catholic when he started school. It was at school that he discovered how much art, painting and sculpture really interested him. Rudder began singing at the age of 11 with a group called The Solutions. In 1977, he joined the brass band Charlie's Roots and began charting his musical career.
David became an apprentice to the late Ken Morris, a master craftsman known for his copper work and carnival designs. He still paints today and in fact he sees himself more as an artist rather than an entertainer.
It was the influence of the Shango and Pan yard that was to actually colour his music. The chanting of the Shango Baptists continues to be at the heart of many of his songs, though his musical tastes in the past had leaned towards jazz. Other influences include the African music of Yossou N'Dour, Salif Keita, Mory Kante and Alpha Bondy.
He has often been described as a pensive, self-contained individual; a person who, wrote Trinidadian columnist - Wayne Brown, "...has acquired the notion of singing as a king of self-sacrifice, involving surrender of personality and of the singer dissolving to become at once a symbiotic extension of the audience and the anguished medium of the song, a voice of the mercy of a Baptist testifier."
In the early days, Rudder acquired a reputation as a back-up singer in the calypso tent run by Lord Kitchener, one of the great legendary calypsonians. For years, he worked behind the scenes in calypso tents and studios, watching the action. In the meantime, he made a living as an accountant with the Trinidad Bus Company.
Rudder's first big break came when Christopher "Tambu" Herbert, lead singer with Charlie's Roots, fell ill after an exhausting tour of Guyana and suggested his friend Rudder as a temporary replacement. Rudder stayed on as a co-lead singer, and built a reputation for his scintillating performances.
Long before Rudder established himself in the calypso arena, he was known as one of the few band singers who wrote all his own songs. His popularity flowed from his obvious talent and from the radically different image he cultivated of himself as a singer. He did not take a calypso name, did not drink (alcohol) and rarely fraternized with the other calypsonians.
David, along with Charlie's Roots, produces and performs for the Carnival productions of, what is arguably, the most innovative and controversial Carnival artist ever - Peter Minshall. Minshall's designs have been used in many major events, the most notable being the Barcelona Olympics of 1990 and most recently The Atlanta Olympics in 1996. Over the years Rudder's music has become intertwined with the yearly Minshall's theatric bands.
Rudder spends much of his spare time reading or relaxing with his children, who he regularly brings on stage. His first son Khafra, named after the first black Pharaoh of Egypt, was born in December 1984, almost exactly a year after the death of Rudder's father, an oilfield worker in La Brea in South Trinidad. His second son Isaac was named after the best friend of the character he played in the TV series, Sugar Cane Arrows.
In May 2001, David married and he and his wife Christine have three children: Adam, Sarai and Noah. David lives in Canada with his family and spends much of his time touring in North America and Europe.
One of his most recent projects is a play in collaboration with award winning director, Anthony Hall, on The New Lucky Diamond Horseshoe Club, a recreation club and bar chronicled on David’s album Zero in 2000.
