The Tradewinds band was formed in 1966 and quickly became known for their witty songs that accurately described the Caribbean lifestyle. The pan-Caribbean group was led by Dave Martins from Guyana (on vocals), Clive Rosteing from Trinidad and Tobago (drums and vocals), Jeff Japal from Grenada (on the keyboards), Richard Terry from the Cayman Islands (on bass), and Harry Cupid from Barbados (on percussion and vocals). Classics include “Caribbean Man”, “Boyhood days”, “Where are your Hereos”, and “We are the Champions”.

Martins (on vocals), moved to Toronto from Guyana in 1955 and began playing in one of the only places showing Caribbean music downtown called the ‘Bermuda Tavern’. It was there that the Tradewinds was created and by the 1970s they were a household name back home in the West Indies. They acquired their own club downtown on Victoria Street called “We Place” meaning ‘our place’, and began touring; becoming a fixture on the charts of the 70s and 80s.

The band used the Caribbean dialect; witty terms known only by the locals of their hometowns, while also painting a rich tapestry of the lifestyle mixed with real issues– for example, the border conflict of Guyana and Venezuela. Lead singer Dave Martins passed away August 2024.