Virgoans raising the roof, Melba Moore bringing the house down

Chester Francis-Jackson, Contributor

My darlings, it's that time of the year again when Virgoans everywhere don their party attire and wake up the town in ample celebration of life, friends, family and blessings.

And the partying is on full throttle as from Negril to Morant Point, on this fab isle and beyond these shores, Virgoans everywhere are celebrating with Romanesque gusto and then some! And as they continue to celebrate, we extend birthday wishes to: twin siblings and eminent businessmen Desmond and Donald Panton; realtor Fay Kessler; businessman Ricky Chin; the lovely Alaine Roberts; the charming Brenda Belding-Topping in Florida; the lovely Juanita Bernard in New York; former European Union Head James Moran, now in Brussels, Belgium; and the fab Lindsey Barclay, in Basel, Switzerland; who all celebrate today.

Tomorrow, those celebrating will include the affable Zachary Harding, the lovely Sheraine Murray of the Guardsman Group, international hotelier Ron Droegmyer, the lovely Elise Hyler, and Giovanni Swyer in London, England.

On Sunday, those partying up a birthday storm will include Indian High Commissioner Mohinder Grover; multi-talented musician Paul Kastic; celebrated musician Richie Sinclair; Elaine Henry, formerly of Linstead, St Catherine, now in Hollywood, Florida; Alex Haq, in Houston, Texas; Gordon Wedderburn, in London, England; and Mara Mandara Jarchow, now in Brussels.

On Monday, glamour maven Cecile Levee will celebrate in New York and Pulse international model, the fab Nell Robinson, will take a break from the catwalk to ham it up on her birthday.

Come Tuesday, National Dance Theatre Company dance captain and premier danseur Marlon Simms; the lovely Monique van Spankeren; Brandon Allwood; the affable Christopher Williams in Ocho Rios; Chef Moses McKenzie, formerly of Hedonism III, now with Starwood Hotels and Resorts in Ontario, Canada; and publisher M. Peggy Quatro of Reggae Report will make it a very special day of celebration!

On Wednesday, Labour Minister Pearnel Charles; public relations practitioner Ed Gallimore; the charming Keisha Anderson; the lovely Natalee Robertson; and north coast habitué Jeremiah Wycuff, of Fort Recovery, Ohio, all share the same birthday!

On Thursday, August gives way to September, and the Virgo celebrations continue with the charming Jacqueline Sangster Brooks; the charmingly lovely Claudette Jackson-Richards; businessman Marlon Creary; the beautiful Yvonne Chang-Oliver; the lovely Phillippa Saffron Sauterel; the lovely Rose Marie Campbell; Garrett Young, in Orlando, Florida; Karen Bent, formerly of Linstead, St Catherine, now in Houston, Texas; Tamara Nelson, in Coral Springs, Florida; songstress and performer Monet Cherise in Brooklyn, New York; Ennio Conte in Italy; and the absolutely flawless Nancy Fadel in Sweden. And belated wishes to the lovely Debra Lopez, who celebrated her very special day yesterday. Many happy returns y'all, with champagne toasts and beluga treats!

Melba Moore

Now, when times are tough, the fab go partying, and it was like that last Friday night at Studio 38 at the Pulse Complex, as Melba Moore rocked it to its core with her hits of yesteryear! And, my luvs, kudos to Kingsley Cooper, Romae Gordon and the Pulse staff who made it all happen, but more so to the very enterprising Cooper, as my dears, who would have thunk it, as in the age of Lady Gaga, Rihanna, Paris Hylton, the Kardashians and all the other media sensations and teenybopper entertainers, Melba Moore, whose last hit was nigh decades ago, came to town and the fab and chic, the old and the young all came out to see the pop diva of Guinness Book of Records fame, belt out her notes with the same gusto she did years ago when she was then a household name!

Well, my dears, the standing-room-only audience needed no prompting as this was more of a jam session than a concert performance. Her fans led the way in dancing along to her every tune, as they sang along and created the perfect party atmosphere! Honeys, it was hot like that.

The turnout underlined the fact that Kingston is thirsting for quality entertainment, and like Sir Willard the weekend before, Moore, in a different genre, brought them out, and then some! Now, mind you, it was not all about the fabulous Moore, as her opening act was the absolutely talented and fabulous Ashley Martin and, my dears, she came prepared to show her musical class and did so with a medley of international and regional covers that had the audience not only singing and humming along with her, but also dancing.

Rookie faux pas

Now, there's no denying the awesome talent of Martin, but the starlet seemingly got carried away, and was just a tad too long onstage as, with her not being the one given the star-billing, the multifaceted and oh-so-marvellously talented singer, fashion designer and actress should have been mindful of that. As it was, it would appear that when it was all over, Martin's set was longer than Moore's, which was a definite no-no!

Anyway me daahlings, it was one fab night and nothing but, with quite a fab turn out that included Transport Minister Mike Henry; junior energy minister and MP Laurie Broderick and his fabulous fiancée, the gorgeous Sandy Gregory, and the word here is that they will be tying the marital knot in November! Also out was Justice Hilary Phillips; Kathryn Phipps; R. Christene King; actor and comedian Glen Campbell; the fab Marilyn Bennett and the fab Donna Harpaul, who were in the throes of their birthday celebrations; the charmingly lovely Dollis Campbell; the stunning Millicent Lynch; the lovely Monica Robinson and the fab Shana Stewart; plus scores more. My dears, it was definitely one fine night out and then some!

Then, my dears, it's slated to hit the news-stands in October, but already the Marlene Daley-inspired Kotch Magazine, to be published by the fab Daley, is the talk of the diaspora and stateside, and dears, little wonder why, as with its stated mission being to empower and inspire people of Caribbean heritage, as well as to enlighten them to the possibilities open to them in education, sport and entertainment, the publishing world and advertisers are abuzz with expectations!

Dears, wait for this one as it promises to be a light in a sea of darkness! And speaking of light, the Flip Fraser-inspired Black Heroes In The Hall of Fame that so inspired and electrified Britain in the mid-'80s - dubbed as the UK's most-acclaimed black-theatre production - is getting all set for a revival, and coming soon after the ugly riots and violence that rocked some British communities recently, this inspirational production can't return to the stage any time too soon, so wait for it!

And my dears, it's now Dr Cherise Francis-Windle, as the St Catherine High School and University of the West Indies School of Nursing graduate, and resident of Orange County, in California, and Long Island, New York, recently added a doctorate to her accomplishments. Dears, celebrations will follow in November here in Jamaica, so wait for it!