Photo: Photo Stephen Clarke
Quincy Harlee Francis Brown was born some three decades ago on Cayman Brac. He was raised by his grandmother in the district of Watering Place in very poor conditions, no electricity or running water. At age six Quincy made his singing debut at the Church of God (Holiness) and the congregation seemed to approve, they gave him a loud round of applause and said ‘Amen’.
Since then many trials and tribulations have passed through Quincy’s life and today he is to Cayman what Chris Rock and Bill Crosby are to America, a dynamo of talent ranging from comedian to actor to poet to singer. On our three small islands Mr. Quincy Brown is known to all and for those who don’t know him they must be off a cruise ship… just passing through.
What makes a great comedian? Delivery of course. A great comedian can alter the lamest yarn into a joke that has your sides aching from laughter. Quincy’s comic technique can range from Bluff-roots Caymanian dialect to idioms so articulate it would have brought tears of joy to the eyes of my old English teacher. As an actor once again Quincy proves that delivery is the key, just ask playwright Frank McField or Rundown creator Dave Martins, both have signed on Quincy for some of their popular productions.
A shocker to me was when I first heard Quincy’s recording of Drinking from my saucer, a ‘country –religious’ style ballad that should have been number one on every radio station in the Cayman Islands. Like myself, Quincy is well aware of the frustrations and endless struggle local artists deal with to get airplay at local.
Quincy has always been a good friend and I am so honoured with his special way of greeting me – rather than the typical ‘hello’ he will recite the lyrics to one of my old songs. Quincy is a very religious man, so I must clarify that when I compared him to the great Chris Rock I did mean minus Rock’s sometimes crude manner. Quincy’s talents have rewarded him with performances in the USA , Trinidad, Honduras, Cuba and faraway lands such as Israel and Yugoslavia... oh and let’s not forget Cayman Brac. If we had our own version of the Academy Awards, no question Quincy would walk away with a special honorary Oscar and I would be flattered to be the presenter.