From the opening bars of Bermuda is Another World to its outro more than three minutes later, Hubert Smith Sr and the Coral Islanders captured the charms of Bermuda for local and international lovers of our island home.
Written by Mr Smith in 1969 for a Department of Tourism briefing tour of the United States, the song evokes the friendliness of Bermudians and the natural beauty of the island with its references to flowers, honeybees, bird song and a “morning sunrise from the sea up to the sky”.
The song, which is among more than 50 written by Mr Smith, is widely considered the island’s unofficial national anthem.
This year marks a quarter century since the iconic musician, bandleader and songwriter died of a heart attack in December 2001 at the age of 83, but his love of the island lives on in his music.
Mr Smith spent more than 60 years as an entertainer in Bermuda, starting off at the majestic Colonial Opera House on Victoria Street in Hamilton, an 850-seat venue that played a significant role in the entertainment and community life of the island.
He began serenading tourists when Black entertainers became welcome on the island’s hotel circuit following the Second World War.
Mr Smith sang with several of the island’s big bands, including those led by Kenny Iris and Al Davis, but it was his leadership of the Coral Islanders that cemented his reputation as a top entertainer.
Adorned in colourful shirts, the calypsonians first performed for enthusiastic crowds at the Coral Island Hotel in Flatts, hence the band’s name. Postcards of the time heralded the hotel’s “temperature-controlled swimming pool located alongside the turquoise waters of Flatts Inlet”.
Mr Smith and the band moved on from their first venue, playing at the famed Clay House Inn on North Shore Road in Devonshire, a coveted spot on the island’s circuit. Later, international recording stars Ziggy Marley and Roberta Flack, among others, would play the venue.
The band also had a multi-year engagement at the Princess Hotel in Hamilton, where Mr Smith was named musical director, and later played at other island hotels during a period that is widely considered the golden era of Bermuda tourism.
Mr Smith’s career as an entertainer was celebrated locally with a posthumous Lifetime Achievement Award from the Bermuda Arts Council in 2002, and internationally with a Queen’s Certificate and Badge of Honour.
He was not only honoured by Queen Elizabeth II; Mr Smith performed for the Queen, and also for Prince (now King) Charles and Princess Margaret, at receptions in their honour.
Mr Smith also played for US president John F Kennedy, and for film stars including Clark Gable and Gary Cooper.
Music historian Dale Butler, keen to ensure that Mr Smith’s vast contributions to the island were not forgotten, wrote a play about him that was performed at Fourways Inn in 2014 and featured top performers from the island’s musical heyday.
Mr Butler also said that it was Mr Smith who inspired him to write his 1978 book, Jazz on the Rock.
Mr Smith was among those honoured by the Bermuda Post Office in its Bermuda Troubadours stamp issue.
He is also fondly remembered for encouraging young musicians, for his time as president of the Bermuda Musicians Union, and for giving back to the community with his charity work.
A keen golfer, Mr Smith was a trailblazer in sport as well; he was a founding member and president of Ocean View Golf Course and the first Black member and a trustee of Port Royal Golf Course.
