Album Notes

Biography

Mervyn grew up in the Caribbean island of St. Lucia in the small town of Vieux- Fort, and from the tender age of nine he had found his true passion, music. His vocal talent has always been his signature mark and he has left this audible print in the minds and hearts of music writers, critics and his general audience alike who affectionately refer to him as “the man with the golden voice”.

Mervyn's professional career started at age 20 when he joined a local band called ‘Survival’ as the lead vocalist. In 1979 they recorded and released two singles, ‘Let Us Start A Revolution" and "Hence The Reason" which topped the charts both locally and regionally. A year later, he joined a group of popular St Lucian musicians, ONYX, which took all the major cruise ships, including the Queen Elisabeth 2, by storm. Mervyn gave his own cover flavor to tracks like " One in a Million", " Cruising " and "Rub A Dub Partner" all released on their album cruising in 1984. His writing and composing talents were also prominent in tracks like "Get Together" and "From the Islands".

During his more than 10 years with ONYX, Mevyn also shared the stage with the great Jimmy Cliff in 1989 at a "Summer Festival" held in St Lucia; and in 1990 represented the island at a Caribbean Tourism Organization function held at the famed Waldorf Astoria in New York. The highlight of the bands achievements their performance as the opening act for the Walt Disney Production of "New Kids on the Block" Party concert held in Nassau (Bahamas) in the spring of 1991.

After ONYX, Mervyn along with his late drummer friend Jones Tisson, moved on to do a four year stint of classic covers and originals as a duo they called MERVYN JONES.

In 1997 his solo effort was formally recognized with the release of his debut album entitled "Influences". This album is a blend of Caribbean rhythms infused with R&B, Pop and Jazz flavours and showcases the versatility of this extraordinary singer /songwriter. The album continues to enjoy rave reviews throughout the Caribbean region with powerful tracks like “Caribbean Woman”, “Here to Stay” and the ever-popular “Sherrian” topping the charts both locally and regionally. All eleven songs on the album are original compositions and are arranged, produced and recorded by Mervyn at his own home studio. In that same year "Influences" won Mervyn the prestigious M&C Fine Arts Award for "best vocal music"

Most recently Mervyn has performed at the St Lucia Jazz festival with the band TEN/90 formed in 1999 with his colleague and band member Dien Thomas.