“George Bailey, I’d always remember jumping when a big band pass, playing big mas, sugary, peppery, he was never ever one for class.”
Such was their influence in what is considered carnival’s golden era, that the Baileys have been immortalised by the Mighty Sparrow.
In his calypso from the early 1970s, the Sparrow classic paid tribute to cultural stalwarts who had departed up to then.
George’s brother and master wire bender Albert’s name has since been added to the list after he passed away at the age of 86 at his home in Woodbrook earlier this week.
The Baileys’ name was not only etched in lyrics but also rang out among masqueraders and spectators
Resting on top his coffin during yesterday’s funeral service at the All Saints Anglican Church in Port-of-Spain, was a crown crafted from wire for a man considered the king of the art form.
But for Father Ashton Gomes, more could have been done to honour the master wire bender.
He stated, “We cannot be coming to the funeral service of a masman, someone who expressed himself in art and culture and then pretend by singing these dreary hymns, I thought we would have had some kind of calypso happening in here, honestly.”
For the religious head, the masman’s death could mark the end of an element instrumental to our costumes,
“Why are we not striving to be someone who actually makes Carnival into something that is glorious and tells a story rather than just the beads and feathers that you want to wear and pay a set of money for, you could probably get it in the store,” Father Gomes told the congregation.
But during her eulogy, Albert’s granddaughter, Alendra Bailey, pledged that the craft will continue to live on.
“I learn the craftsmanship, I learn the drawing, I learn the sewing. I learn everything, I drew from a young age, now I’m getting ready for 2023 and it is so wonderful to do, now as he gone, I don’t know how I will feel.”
Relatives said despite battling with medical complications over the last several years, Bailey never turned his back on his love for the art form of wire bending.
The 86-year-old was remembered for his passion not only for the arts but also those closest to him.