John Berkley Taylor
was born June 20th 1935
in Nassau Bahamas, he spent his early childhood trotting curiously about the
areas of Nassau where music lived. Thanks to Paul Meeres Peanuts’ singing and
dancing was given center stage at the tender age of four (Justilien, 2004). Taylor got his career started through
Meeres, he recalls:
“I started entertaining when I was 4
years old, with Paul Meeres. And Paul
Meeres opened his club in 1939 and it was called the Paul Meeres Club, and I
started there” (Taylor, 2015)
He was walking by Paul Meeres’ club “Carbaret” where Meeres
was rehearsing for an upcoming show, Peanuts shouted “I can sing and dance
better than you!” and Meeres replied “A little peanut like you?” He asked
peanuts to show him what he could do and at the moment a legend was born (Justilien, 2004). Peanuts reflected
on his first performance:
“You have to remember that because in
my first performance when I told Paul Meeres that I wanted to be a dancer and
dance better than he can, and he told me why don’t I show him. So he put me on the show and the people
started throwing money, and instead of dancing I went and picked up the money.
That was a good experience” (Taylor, 2015)
After that
Taylor performed with Paul Meeres up until he was 19 years old at the many
clubs that Meeres had around Nassau at the time. Initial Taylor was a singer
and a dancer then he moved to the drums, he explained he doesn’t remember how
he learned to play:
“I don’t remember, I just picked up a
drum and started playing. But that’s not
hard because we have Junkanoo and that is a lot of drumming. My first trip
abroad was to Bermuda, I played at the Hotel in Bermuda” (Taylor, 2015).
When asked about
the challenges of his career Taylor explained that:
“I never thought about challenges
because it was a chance in those days just to work and be appreciated by the
audience. Don’t forget, when I started
Nassau only operated three months a year a tourist spot. The challenge was to be able, because I had
to get an education. I had a little deal
with my grandmother, but if she allowed me to perform at the age of four, I
would get a proper education. So my
challenge first of all was to be able to perform and also go to school to get a
proper education. So I went to school
and graduated to be a teacher and then I found out I could not make any big
money like I did in the entertainment industry. So after I worked as a teacher
for a year” (Taylor, 2015)
Taylor’s career really took off in 1952 when he was asked
by the Ministry of Tourism to travel the world and promote The Bahamas as a
tourist destination. Taylor further explains that time:
“First of all I was hired by the
Ministry of tourism to promote tourist to the Bahamas. Because at that time he Bahamian tourist
market only went from December to April, yeah from Christmas until April and
then the whole town would close up, with nothing going on here no tourist, no
people. We’d call it the winter season crowd. So the government at that time at
me if I would go away and promote tourist to the Bahamas, because there desire
was to make the Bahamas a year round Tourist destination. So I went abroad, I went to Canada 5 times I
went to the Middle East, Iran, and Turkey all over the place that area where
they’re having all the problems now. I
went to Germany dozens of times because BOAC used to run between Nassau and
London, and they had another airline called International Air Bahamas that used
to run from Europe into Nassau, it was very very very cheap and we went abroad
entertain in Germany and all over Europe, the people came to the Bahamas by way
of international air Bahamas or BOAC” (Taylor, 2015)
From his travels he was exposed to the world which now
became his stage, Taylor recalls some notable names from his career:
“And then I was
introduced to Hollywood California where I got a job working at Quiro’s Hollywood California. I got a job to
work there after leaving Bermuda, I went to Quiro’s in Hollywood and worked
there about three or four months and performed with Nat King Cole, the Mills
Brothers, that’s how I became famous”
His slight frame was captured hypnotically under the glare
of
lights in the following guest appearances throughout 1957: “The
Steve Allen Show”, “The
Jack Parr Show”, “The Ed Sullivan Show”,
“The Johnny Carson Show” and “
The I’ve Got A Secret Show”
(Justilien, 2004). He also performed for a whopping audience of
32,000 people in Earl’s Court, London which he described as his favorite
performance:
“A benefit for the
whole island, like the Bahamas, in London, Haynes Oval. And they built like an
island, where they had sailboats and everything, and I went there, and also a
sales promotion team for The Bahamas also played there” (Taylor, 2015)
Today Peanuts
still performs today at Cultural Festivals and other events upon request, when
asked if he retired he said:
“No.
Entertainers don’t retire, if you say you are retired then you are just talking
out of your head. As long as the people appreciate you, you won’t retire, it’s
a beautiful life” (Taylor, 2015)
