Toronto Caribbean Soccer History Part One Arrival & Adapti

Caribbean Clubs off Yonge Street

The after - hours clubs were West Indian safe havens, and their pop ularity became a real challenge for conventional clubs ’ profit margins. As a result, some of those clubs were forced to operate without alcohol so the party could contin ue and partygoers could enjoy the music. It was around that time that West Indian clubs like Mercury, W.I.F. Club, and Club Trinidad began attracting the West Indian crowd. The Mercury Club was lat er renamed We Place

Before becoming We Place, the Mercury was a chartered club bought over by several West Indian musicians who came together after playing at the Trinidad Club and Bermuda Tavern on Yonge Street. Together, they formed Tradewinds, with Dave Martins as band leader. Some of the Tradewind players were Joe Brown, Terry Dayal, and Clive Rosteing, and the band toured the Caribbean during the Carni val time in T&T

Before his passing on August 19th, 2024, Dave Martins said “ It ’ s almost eerie that following the formation of the Tradewinds in 1966, I ended up buying the Mercury Club in 1970. I renamed it “ We Place ”, and it was a home - away - from - home for Caribbean people for almost 10 years until I moved the band to Grand Cayman. “ We Place ” gave us a permanent base between tours and was essentially the hinge on which much of The Tradewinds ’ later success swung. ”

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