The Editor, Sir:

This is a letter sent to Olivia Grange minister of information, culture, youth & sports.

Dear Ms Grange:

I have been promising myself to write this letter for a couple of years, but I feel there is no better time than now since you have taken on the ministry which oversees culture. You have so much experience in the music industry, and with it your energy and enthusiasm to do a great job.

It is with this in mind that I am respectfully urging you to return to the Festival Song Competition and not the Popular Song Competition. Since the change of name and status of this competition, I and many others neither know the songs nor hear them being played, and that is probably because they are not 'catchy' - musically or lyrically - and they don't engender any special reaction.

Songs not creative

It is not to say that persons entering the Popular Song Competition don't work hard at their lyrics, that they are not good singers or that they don't perform these songs well on stage - but they just don't seem to get the listening public interested, involved and on their feet.

The songs of the past have never been forgotten, e.g., Ba Ba Boom Boom by the Jamaicans; Cherry Oh Baby and What a Festival by Eric Donaldson; Play de Music by Tinga Stewart; Revival Time by Roy Rayon; What a Bam Bam, Sweet and Dandy and Pomps and Pride by Toots & the Maytals and Fi Wi Island a Boom by Stanley Beckford (to name a few).

Here's hoping that when Ind-ependence 2008 comes, it will Give Me Back Me Sweet Sweet Jamaica Festival song!

I am, etc.,

J. NATHAN-BRISSETT

26 Beechwood Avenue

PO Box 351

Kingston 5