Carl & Carol Jacobs

The first of 17 children of Sylvira McDavid and Andrew Skeete, Carol grew up with her grandparents in Belmont. She married Carl Jacobs at age 22 on December 31, 1977. The couple produced three children: Carla, Caryl (Trini) and Kyle. Their first grandchild, Jeahni, came in 1999.

Of her children, Carla and Caryl also performed with Island Jam, one of two bands that the Jacobs put together in their adopted home of Miami, Florida.

Although Carol had been singing since her primary school days at Belmont RC, her very entry into the world of music was traumatic. "The first time I got up to sing, my voice cracked so badly that everyone laughed and I thought I would never even attempt to sing in front of people again."

But thanks to the confidence and guidance from Mrs. Simmonds, a lady who lived just down the street from her grandparents' Garnett Lane home, Carol picked up the pieces of that cracked voice and stuck with it, forging a successful career as a singer.

"By the time I graduated to Providence High School, I was taking part in the music festivals, which gave me the opportunity to continue my voice-training."

Carol first saw Carl when he performed at a Queen's Hall concert and soon after started going out, then singing together. And since Carl worked with David (Rudder) at the Public Transport Service Corporation, the three started putting their voices together and got gigs doing background vocals for calypso albums and at Kitchener's Calypso Revue during the Carnival season.

"In between, scraping along with no regular work and by then, a baby to care for. The couple got an apartment in the government buildings on St Francois Valley Road and had to make do on whatever work came along; until 1979, when the first real break came."

For five years there after, Carol and Carl were the lead singers with the super successful band Shandileer. Carol tells of having to go back on stage within a month of the birth of her third child. She also remembers the rigours of having to take the babies to their grandparents when the band had to work, and then go pick them up after the fete, all without the convenience of a car.

"Carl would be holding the two girls and I would have Kyle and the bags, looking for a taxi at 4 am to get home," she said. "But it was an exciting time all the same. We were building a family, working day and night, having to spend time with the children, get them to school and back and meet a schedule that was sometimes impossible."

But those sacrifices paid off. The band's debut album, Disco Queen got good reviews. Then there was "Luv Up", two old-time calypso medleys and a string of hits. But Shandileer broke up in 1984 and the family had to think once again about how it was going to survive.

"It was a big decision to go it alone in 1985. We had a stint with Eddy Grant, where we did 'Jump' and recorded an album for the mas band 'Savage' (now split into Barbarossa, Poison and Legends). Then there were hits like 'We Wanna Live' and 'Scandal'."

"In 1987, we did the Jumbie Bead concert with David Rudder and Carl hit with 'Robot Jam' and 'Bend Down and Rock'. We followed up with the High on Love album, which included 'We Time' and 'Doh Leave Mih', a song that may not be politically correct at this time, but was a hit then. There was also 'Cipango' for Barbarossa, 'Nobody Like You', 'Start to Wine', 'Freedom' and 'Limbo'."

Carol's two solo songs ("Pressure" and "Fix it Up") were also Caribbean-wide hits.

In 1988, after winning the prize for Best Playing Band on the Road that Carnival, performing with Minshall's Santimanitay, Carol and Carl were devastated by a newspaper article that accused them of miming. "It was the last straw," she said.

"We were working hard, perhaps harder than most other performers, because of our family responsibilities. So after taking the hot sun and dust all day, to have someone write a story like that, it really hurt. They packed up and left for Miami. "I have matured past that now and bear no animosity, but at the time it was more than I could take."

In Miami, Carol has stayed with the music and the family has grown even stronger. Such was the demand for their performances that a second band was formed, featuring Carla and Caryl.

They have worked continuously during the past 14 years there, with lucrative long-term contracts at popular tourist attractions.

Carol, meanwhile, went back to school, completing an intensive programme in music industry management, which included courses in copyright, TV production, artist management and contracts.

In 2003 Carl collaborated on (the now labelled "Trinidad & Tobago Anthem) "Trini 2 De Bone" and for 2004 has released "Sugar Island" (with Roger George) and "Dad's Daughters" (featuring daughters Carla & Trini Jacobs).