“They’re not good, they’re great!”

— Ed Sullivan

When I was the district nurse for Smith’s Parish, my second patient every morning was Clara Talbot. She and her husband, Austin, lived in a pink cottage on the hillside opposite Marsden Methodist Church in Harris Bay. I was from Somerset, and although I had heard of the Talbot Brothers, I didn’t realise that Austin was one of the group.

Austin Talbot was a jovial man who loved his wife, his music and fishing. At that time, he was the only Black person to have a boat mooring in the exclusive Tucker’s Town area, and I was frequently invited there to collect his freshly caught fish.

It was with this country feeling of neighbourliness that I became acquainted with Bermuda’s world-famous entertainers, The Talbot Brothers.

Often he would describe the formation of the group, and only while researching I discovered that Clara had been a singer who often performed as a soloist at events all over the island. How I wish I had known this before.

The story of this celebrated family began with their parents, Osmond and Mamie Lambert-Talbot, who lived in a cottage overlooking Tucker’s Town Bay. Life was quiet and simple. Their neighbours were mainly people of colour who farmed the land and fished from boats they built themselves. The Talbots, however, owned several horse-and-buggy stables. This industrious couple had 12 children. Sadly, two of their sons died, leaving six boys and four girls to attend the nearby Methodist Memorial Chapel where Mamie was the organist.

In the years before the 1920s, this area of Bermuda was not considered of any value to White Bermudians, who felt it would be eventually consumed by the sea. The advent of tourism and the penchant for tourists to be near the water suddenly changed this thinking.

By the early 1920s, Tucker’s Town was considered prime property. The British Furness Withy & Co Ltd signed an agreement with the Government of Bermuda to finance the development of this area into a tourist resort for wealthy White tourists, and 5,000 acres were acquired. This whole neighbourhood of peace-loving Bermudians was thrown into disarray. They were forced to disrupt their lives and move. Although cash and alternative housing were offered, it was traumatic for most but the Talbots accepted the cash offered and a house built for them in Harris Bay. Mamie purchased a piano and Osmond a stone quarry.

During this move, the Methodist church in Tucker’s Town, built by the residents in 1861, was abandoned. In 1923, Marsden Methodist Church in Harris Bay was completed and Talbot’s School was built to accommodate the children.

The Talbot children were surrounded by music. Their mother played the harmonica and the piano at home; their father played a concertina. The children sang at home, at church and at family gatherings. Although their mother instructed them in four-part harmony and voice projection, they never learnt to read music. They just had a natural ability honed by continuous practice.

There was a record player in the neighbourhood where they heard the singing of the Mills Brothers and calypso music, but it was not until the 1940s that the family acquired a radio.

At 13, the boys left school to work, but it was Archie who had the idea of forming a family musical group. He was joined by his brothers, Austin and Roy, and a cousin, Ernest Stovell, and it was from these four talented men that the Talbot Brothers legacy began.

Eventually, Archie and Austin acquired guitars and Ernest a banjo. Roy was faced with another dilemma. He needed a bass fiddle and so he created one for himself. He acquired a Swiss pork sausage packing case and filled it with two empty kerosene tins to make the sound resonate. To form the neck, he used a piece of bamboo to which he attached a piece of fishing line. It was often called The Dog House or the Bermudavarious.

In 1936, Mark Williams, leader of the Coral Island Club’s orchestra, arranged a series of six talent shows at the club with the final prize a trip to New York. There were 15 performers in that final round and “The Talbot Four”, as they were sometimes described, won second place.

During the Second World War between 1939 and 1945, there was a decline in tourism. Many hotels were turned into barracks and recreational places for Allied Armed Forces, but the Talbots were busy performing at Cup Match, picnics and weddings throughout the island, and by 1942 they were the main source of local entertainment during the war. In 1948 they received their first professional engagement. What was surprising was that they rose to notoriety during the challenges of racial segregation. Somehow, their music and entertaining skills had the ability to cross racial barriers.

They were recognised as a highly polished professional group and were invited to play for the famous and wealthy White residents, mainly in Tucker’s Town.

Frequently, tourists would follow them to their performances at Black-owned establishments such as Clayhouse Inn or the Leopards Club in Hamilton. These clubs remained open until 3am and when the Talbots entertained, no one wanted the fun to end.

In the 1930s, so captivating were the Talbots that the millionaire class living or visiting Bermuda invited them to entertain at parties in their homes in America. It has been reported that one evening, millionaire financier Ford Johnson, who owned The Jungle in Tucker’s Town, requested the orchestra at Mid Ocean Club to stop playing so that Archie Talbot could entertain an audience estimated at about 30 millionaires. They were in great demand, but never turned down an engagement. Often guests planning to dine at Tom Moore’s requested they entertain throughout dinner.

These men were realistic and knew that entertaining alone could not support them, so they persisted with their day jobs. They continued to drive their horse and buggies and work with their father in the stonecutting business. Archie, the leader, worked at the Belmont Hotel as well as the Inverurie. Despite their busy schedule, they never failed to attend Marsden Methodist Church on a Sunday morning, often straight from entertaining.

The brothers had a natural gift of rhyming and could instantly create a rhyme to describe any event. Tourists absolutely loved this.

In 1935, the Bermuda Athletic Association brought rugby teams from Harvard, Yale and Princeton to play against British and Bermuda teams. Ross Talbot would be driven by jeep to greet the students at the airport and on to Elbow Beach. As they approached the beach, he would sing Bermuda Buggy Ride, and his brothers would be there to join in. This was the beginning of College Weeks entertainment on the beach.

In 1939, war broke out. Travel to Bermuda was brought to an abrupt halt, but by 1940 Sir Winston Churchill, the Prime Minister of Britain and President Franklin D. Roosevelt, of the United States, signed a 99-year agreement to lease land for two bases. Shortly thereafter, thousands of troops arrived from Britain, Canada and America. Fifteen hundred servicewomen arrived as Censorettes. These women were responsible for intercepting Atlantic mail and worked from the Bermudiana and Princess hotels. Quickly, it was recognised that these Allied Forces required entertainment. The Talbot Brothers were called upon immediately to boost morale, one of their concerts an absolute necessity before troops went off to battle.

On many occasions, the group would be collected by army vehicles to be transported to the Frascati Hotel in Flatts, which was headquarters for the United Service Organisations. The Frascati Hotel later became the Coral Island Club and today is the location of the St James’ Court condominiums.

The Talbots were ambitious men and continued with their other jobs. Three worked with their father in the stone quarry, Archie worked in the construction of Kindley Field, cousin Cromwell “Mandy” Manders at Coral Beach Club and Austin continued as a fisherman.

As time passed, Ross, with his electric guitar, replaced his cousin Ernest and in 1940, brother Bryant joined. He played the ukulele but shortly thereafter he was drafted into the Bermuda Militia Infantry and was replaced in 1941 by cousin Mandy, who later became a founding member of Leopards Club and a well-known tennis professional.

Servicemen occupied many of the hotels until the war ended in 1945, when hotels reopened to tourists. Many arrived on the Queen of Bermuda, while others arrived at the newly constructed Kindley Field airport. This was the beginning of the new era of tourism, and the Talbot Brothers were crucial to entertainment and the rebirth of tourism. The world was once again at peace and wealthy people were ready to travel.

By 1946, the Talbot Brothers were playing at the Elbow Beach club every night. They had a natural gift of rhyming and could instantly create an amusing rhyme to describe anything. Tourists loved this and they began to get requests from other hotels, which caused them to reconsider. They performed at The Reefs, the Bermudiana, Hamilton Princess, Pink Beach, Castle Harbour and the Hamilton Hotel, which is now the location of City Hall.

In 1949, these gifted entertainers were performing at the Coral Island Club when an agent named William Talbot (not a relative) signed them for a six-week assignment at Club Norman in Toronto, Canada, and by the 1950s they were able to concentrate on full-time entertaining.

Bermuda hosted the Big 3 Conference in 1953. British prime minister Churchill, Dwight D. Eisenhower, of the US, and Joseph Laniel, the France prime minister, arrived on island and the Talbot Brothers were asked to perform at Bellevue, the Paget home of wealthy entrepreneur Wendell Anderson. Their rendition of We Like Ike was a hit and Mr Anderson arranged an audition for them on The Ed Sullivan Show.

For 20 years, they toured abroad for three months of the year. They appeared twice on The Ed Sullivan Show and toured England performing at the London Palladium and the Mayfair Hotel.

From the 1950s to the 1970s, the Talbot Brothers toured and promoted Bermuda as the first choice of tourists for holidays and honeymoons. They performed at America’s most prestigious universities and in the northern seaboard cities. They could be found at Boston’s Parker House, New York’s 21 Club, the Plaza, Waldorf Astoria and many other elite clubs. They entertained at the Mayfair Hotel and at the London Palladium. They appeared on Good Morning America and twice on The Ed Sullivan Show.

The group always travelled by Pan Am airlines, creating an interesting relationship. They advertised Pan Am and Bermuda, and in turn Pan Am advertised them.

As part of their agreement, with all establishments they were to always enter via the front door and take their meals with other guests. America was racially segregated, but the Talbots knew they were in demand and therefore could stipulate their own requirements.

By 1957, they had appeared in Time, Life and Look magazines and released two vinyl record albums on the Audio Fidelity label before being signed by ABC-Paramount and Polyphonic labels.

While other entertainers of that era performed in tuxedos, The Talbot Brothers wore colourful shirts and biscuit hats. The hats were created out of necessity — Archie was attempting to waterproof his hat by painting it. This led to the colourful, painted hats that became a part of their distinctive costume. Once, when invited to Government House, they were offered a room to change into the usual entertainer’s attire. Government House was informed that they were already dressed to perform!

They had an undisputed sound of their own. The ukulele, bass and guitars were plucked at the same time with the melody overlaid by the accordion or harmonica and sometimes with the addition of maracas. The home-made bass was covered in the famous autographs of Churchill, President Eisenhower, Bing Crosby, Babe Ruth, Tommy Dorset and many more. In 1967, the bass was stolen from JFK Airport. A stainless-steel replacement was presented to Roy by the head of the US Steel corporation, but it could never reproduce the Talbot sound.

The Talbot Brothers never had a public relations agent, a publicist, advertising agency or any help from the Bermuda Trade Development Board, which would go on to sponsor other groups. They were a dynamic group of Bermudian men who knew the value of family working together for a common goal: to successfully reveal their talents and sell the beauty of Bermuda.

By 1977, they could be found entertaining at the Bermudiana, Hamilton Princess, Whaler Inn and the Waterlot Inn.

After the deaths of Archie, Brian and Mandy, the group was joined by nephews Rodney and Ryan, and performed simply as The Talbots. They continued performing until the 1980s. Rodney Tucker was a gifted piano player, organist and accordion player who was taught by his grandmother and mother. It was Rodney who set the musical notes of his uncles to writing and copyrighted every song. Most of the songs they sang were originals.

In 1979, the Bermuda Government arranged a week of activities in recognition of their contributions to promoting tourism in Bermuda.

Archie received a Queen’s Certificate on behalf of the Talbot Brothers for service to the community and in 1998, Ross “Blackie” Talbot endorsed a golf tournament in his name which over the years has raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for charity. In that same year, he was appointed a Member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire for his contribution to tourism.

The Talbot Brothers were the first Bermudian group to gain international fame.

In a 1962 interview, Archie Talbot said: “We’ve always tried to project kindness and consideration of others above ourselves. We endeavour to reach people with warmth. Our aim is always to show the audience that they come first.”

• Cecille Snaith-Simmons is a retired nurse, historian, writer and author of The Bermuda Cookbook. With thanks to Craig Tucker, son of Rodney Tucker and Clement Talbot MBE, son of Ross “Blackie” Talbot

References:

Bermuda’s Famous Talbot Brothers (Elizabeth Jones)

Jazz on the Rock (part 2) Writers’ Machine 1978

The BNT Architectural Heritage – Smith’s Parish 2005